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Isaiah 53 ESV

1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

Isaiah 53:6 “6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

“PEACE BE WITH YOU”

Intro: When you visit the palace in Britain - If the flags are up - It denotes or tells you that the presence of the King is there - and that was established as a sign of peace for the people. This Royal Standard signifies the King is in the country and performing his duties,

Simple measure, a way of knowing, that PEACE… or if you like PEACEFUL order is what the residents, the citizens could expect, and enjoy.

And so we come around the next week of advent in our journey towards Christmas.

A KING IN RESIDENCE…. IS THE UNIVERSAL SIGN OF PEACE:

What exactly is this peace (and lets let the bible frame it for us)

1.WHAT IS IT? (do you know what it is?)

We could easily slip into a mentality is peace is just a bit of relief, or a getaway or a repreieve from stress… Thats not what the bible talks about peace and thats not biblical peace: mIts not the absence of turmoil, or conflict. Its not about these things being necessarily removed from our lives, its just what is the prevailing spirit rather in my the atmosphere:?

In the Greek work: Eirene, The Hebrew Word: Shalom.

When we often pray for people we use the priestly blessing from Numbers.

It has a progression towards this peace

Numbers 6 ESV

” 22 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 24 The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. 27 “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”

What we have here is a peace that doesn’t come from this world. Its a peace that only comes from the Lord. it is God who gives peace.

write this down: Peace is not the absence of conflict, turmoil or hard times. Its the presence and the blessing of God over all time.

All our lives. Thats what peace is.

Its not found in a philosophy,

its ot found in a program

Its found in a person - Namely, the son of God.

375 Times in my bible the word peace is used. God is the God who has peace and establishes peace and His son is the Prince of Peace.

God brings peace…. We can think of this peace in 3 ways….

its also broken down in three ways:

i.Peace with God / Romans 8:6 “6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”

Peace with others / Romans 14:19 “19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.”

…. and PEACE WITHIN.

Might be a good point in which to pause and ask the question: Do i have peace with God? Do i have peace with others? Do i have peace in myself?

We live in a so-called age of anxiety. Peace seems to be so elusive to us. Peace within seems to be beyond us — Why is that? Whats is going on here? We are sold so much worldy wisdom on whats going to give us peace, or mean we our minds can be at rest. The bible wants to tell us that this peace doesnt come from any other place.

““You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless, until they can find rest in you” - Augustine.

dont mistake the peace were talking about Here its the Shalom that god gives, its the peace that comes only from God himself,

2.WHY IS IT NEEDED? (do you know why you need it?)

We are at ODDS with God

We are born in this way.

Its wrong to tell someone anything different when you are discussing why being rightly related to Jesus is so critical.

He comes to establish peace between us and God.

So were at odds with God, there is no peace there

Were also at odds with each other: after sin enters the world the first thing we see is the rivalry and hatred form between cain and able.

Genesis 3 is the fall,.

Genesis 4 is the first chapter we see murder as a result of hatred.

Peace is something we cant find with each other unless it comes via God.

History shows us, tells us that PEACE is a tough thing to find and when its found - it doesnt last.

Middle eastern conflict, European Conflict… thousands of peace treaties recorded over time and none lasting typically no longer than two years.

We need peace because

were alienated from God - Seperated

were in bondage - Sin is raging in and through us and Lords over us until we become victors in Christ

and in conflict with God, Others and ourselves.

(sin feels a bit like freedom… until you try to stop: and you realise you need Jesus who is our victory over sin & teh grave).

Maybe today you have a heart thats troubled

Maybe today you come with a intellectual curosity thats keeping you up at night because you need matters settled, the deep matters of the heart

Maybe your here today because youre at your wits end and you just havent found what your looking for…

You need peace.

Dont be fooled: that peace is available today and every day - but dont delay:

Isaiah 55 ESV

1 “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. 4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. 5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. 6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12 “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the Lord, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

the prince of peace is able to be found knocking at the door of yoru heart today: call to him while he is near

while you hear his voice

while your heart is stirred

Let us not buy into the notion that peace will eventually come, or even worse - that these matters dont need resolving this side of eternity: ever heard someone talk like that?

I implore you - be reconciled to Christ - make your peace with Him. through the son of God, the prince of PEACE.

This Shalom comes from ON HIGH.

3.WHERE IS IT FOUND? (Do you know where to find it?)

Judges 6:24 “24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.”

Where it can only be found. Jesus.

Are you seeking peace?

Its only found in Jesus - who offers peace that comes and actually takes up residence in the heart of a believer.

When the GOSPEL COMES TO PERSONS HEART: Thats when TRUE peace is experienced

Paul writes to the early church and tells them in a gentile, hostile … worldly culture

Ephesians 6:14–15 “14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.”

….

But where is it found? where can i furnish my life with a bit of peace? can i go to the grocery store and buy a box…. or pick it up by the pount??

Its interesting that Jesus makes it actually very clear where you get it. He says you get this peace in hIM and in HIM ONLY

John 14 ESV

1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also…… 23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. 25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28

John 15 ESV

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

John 16 ESV

31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32 Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. 33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Vs 33 is where this lands today: In Jesus, we can have peace

not in his commands

Not in his tradition

Not even in his minisrty

Nothing external: It only comes as a result of being in CHRIST

in Jesus, we can have peace

outside of jesus: we will never get the peace we actually need

(this contrasts abrasively with other religions: You dont see this anywhere else if you study worl religions: no claim like this is made, that in the person - you can discover the peace

its always in the rules: does the peace come… Not in the ruler. Like the Christian.

John 16:33 “33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.””

4.HOW CAN I HAVE IT? (Do you know you can discover it for your own life)

**i grew up in a religious system that had its advantages but i will readily admit it was completly lifeless, it was dull - it was obligatry - it was religion… and i was apart of it. Organized mostly around my schooling. And for that thin baseline i am grateful. Especially for the part my parents paid in making that a reality of my early life.

In the mass i always enjoyed the part when it came for the people to greet each other by saying “peace be with you”….. and that would be followed by “…. and with YOU.

I dont know what about that i was fascinated by but i think i just liked that there was at least some interaction with the people around me…. maybe a chance moment to jab my brother in the side or be a nuisance im not sure..

… but what i am sure of is i rememmber that moment and i liked it. Peace be with you.

But understanding a little more as i do

and knowing Jesus personally as i do now..

this is what i make of it

JESUS SAID THIS TO HIS DISCIPLES FOR A REASON

THIS IS WHAT JESUS US SAYING TODAY:

PEACE IN ME, WILL MEAN PEACE WILL BE WITH YOU.

Romans 15:33 “33 May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.”

John 20:19 “19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.””

John 20:21 “21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.””

He said:IF YOU HAVE ME… YOU HAVE PEACE IN ME, ….MY PEACE WILL BE WITH YOU.

So… peace be with you.

the peace i have

true peace - can onlty

Colossians 1:15–20 ESV

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

There is only one place it is found

IN THE BIRTH OF THE PERSON WERE FOCUSED ON HERE TODAY.

a Child that lay in a manger

a child that grew in wisdom and stature with Gods favor

a man who was baptized and the heavens opened up & God the father said “this is my son, in whom i am well pleased”

A galilean carpenter who hung on a cross for a crime he didnt commit as an act of HOLY AND JUST ATONEMENT…

That man

That ressurected & ascended man, the son of God - who now sits at the right hand of the father

with Nail scars in his hand, With grace love and mercy in his eyes…

is today willing to grant to all who need him

Is today offering you peace.

So when someone says peace be with you - What they may be really trying to say is this: Jesus, Be with you… like He is with me

Notes:

Isaiah 55 ESV

1 “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. 4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. 5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. 6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12 “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the Lord, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

Isaiah 53 ESV

1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? 9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. 11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.