Christmas is a Big Deal . . . because it is the only way to find Lasting Peace

Luke 2:8-20

Copyright December 23, 2018 (a.m.) by Rev. Bruce Goettsche

We are familiar with the words of the Angels

When the angels appeared to the Shepherds on the night Christ was born they had a simple message: “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

In the book of Isaiah we are told the coming Messiah would be the "Prince of Peace."

As we look at the world around us, it is hard to say there is peace on earth. It is said there have been only 250 without a war in the last 3400 years of history! In our own day Violent crime is rampant. This hardly seems like peace on earth. This morning we look for the meaning of the angels' declaration. If the peace promised is not the absence of war, what is it?

The word peace in the Bible is much richer and goes much deeper than we realize. In the Hebrew Bible the word for peace is "Shalom." The core meaning is to be whole and complete. It is like saying to someone: "may you be well." Peace refers to something deep and personal. It is a state of being "whole, complete, to have physical and spiritual resources sufficient for your needs."[1]

In other words, peace, in the Biblical sense is a sense of wholeness or completeness. It is like a calm in our soul even when the circumstances of life are chaotic. It is that sense of firing on all your cylinders; a feeling of being in synch with God and with your fellowman. It is a close cousin to contentment. It is what every one of us is striving for in our lives. The essential component in this completeness is finding a right relationship with God. This is what we see in the blessing of Numbers 6:24-25

24‘May the Lord bless you

and protect you.

25May the Lord smile on you

and be gracious to you.

26May the Lord show you his favor

and give you his peace.’

The blessing is for God to bless instead of curse, to show favor rather than wrath, to turn His face toward us rather than away from us. Ultimately, this is what will bring peace in our lives. In a sense, this is exactly what the angels were announcing at the birth of Jesus.

This morning we want to see this peace expressed in three different areas: peace with God, peace with each other and peace in the midst of our circumstances . . . and we'll see how they all trace back to Bethlehem.

Peace with God

We have mentioned several times that the primary reason for Jesus coming to earth was to build a bridge between God and man. He came to eliminate the vast chasm that existed between us because of our sin. Isaiah 53:5 gives a description of the work of Christ on our behalf,

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. (ESV)

In Romans 3:23-24

23For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.

That phrase "makes us right in His sight" is what we mean by the phrase Justified. Being "right with God" is where peace begins. Paul said,

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. (Romans 5:1-2)

I love the translation: "undeserved privilege." When we put our trust in Christ, the door to God's presence is opened to us. We turn from being enemies and become family. It is an outstanding gift which we often take for granted.

How does this bring peace and a sense of well-being in our life? Here is a list of some of the ways salvation does this.

We no longer have to look over our shoulder afraid of being exposed

We no longer have to live with the hopeless sense of guilt

We don't have to wonder if "God is mad at us" or "we are being punished" when difficult times come into our lives.

We have the wonderful assurance that God is with us in all things.

We know we are not alone.

We know we are loved and cherished

We know we will live even when we die

Think about it. If you let these truths flood your mind and soul wouldn't you know more of a sense of peace? How peace is there knowing where you will be after you die?

Peace with Each Other

Some people will say they believe they know they are OK with God; they have peace there, however, it is people that drive them crazy! For some people, the holidays are times of great anxiety. There is often that one person in the family that gets under your skin and instead of enjoying the day you spend the day trying to avoid a confrontation. Others feel desperately alone because they are alienated from family due to some conflict.

The idea of Shalom has the idea of restoration of creation to justice, truth and righteousness. In other words, there is an interpersonal dimension to the peace Christ brings. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." He appeals to our experience. It's as if the Lord says, "Do you know that sense of wholeness, freedom, and joy that is yours because of what I have done for you? I want you to go and extend that same grace to others."

In Ephesians 4:31,32 Paul says,

31Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Throughout the New Testament there is rebuke for division and hatred. There is a constant call for unity. I confess I don't know how difficult your uncle, cousin, or neighbor can be. I have no idea how obnoxious they are. But here's the thing: God knows how obnoxious they are, and He loves them.

Here are six truths that will help us to work toward peace with others.

We don't need to compete with other people. We know God opens His arms to all people. We are not fighting for one of the few seats in the life boat. We don't have to prove anything to others and that is wonderfully freeing. Much of our difficulty comes from our competitive spirit. We tend to feel if one person has more than we do that they have somehow stolen those things from us. Not true. God gives to each as He has determined. We can rest in the fact that God knows what He is doing.

We don't have to pretend. We don't have to pretend we are perfect. We don't need to be defensive. Being broken is a prerequisite to the grace of God that makes us a child of God! There is a freedom and a peace that comes from being able to say, "Yep, I am a mess, but I am a mess who is on the road to recovery because of the grace of God."

Difficult people are usually hurting people. They might tell you they don't have any problems but if they are not followers of Christ . . . they have a BIG problem. They don't need anger or rebuke (as much as it would please us to extend it), what they need is the message of God's grace and love. God wants us to try to open doors rather than barricade them.

We are all difficult people. Every one of us has idiosyncrasies that could (and maybe do) drive people crazy. God loves us. He loves them too.

When we love severely broken people we act like Jesus. He saw past the brokenness to the pain and the lostness of the soul. Jesus reached out those others pushed away: the woman of Samaria who had been married five times and was living with a guy at the time Jesus met her. There was the man who was so violent and dangerous that the town had him banished to the caves. There were the lepers from whom others ran and hid. There was Matthew the tax-collector and Peter who denied Jesus. The point is, if we don't reach out to hurting people . . . who will?

The key then is to not take offense but to learn to ask: where is the hurt that leads someone to behave like this? Humility is disarming. You don't have to prove to anyone how good you are. Do you know why? Because in our pre-grace nature we aren't good. We are selfish, manipulative, and petty. Our freedom has come not because of our goodness but because of His grace. Call me names if you so choose. They may be accurate. But I am forgiven and made new by Jesus. And I want even the obnoxious people to know that God can forgive them too.

You may not become good friends with everyone, but you can love them. You may not want to hang around some people because they expose the old nature that still lives within you. Some personalities don't mesh well. But we can still function as the body of Christ. We can endure the flaws of others even as we hope they endure the flaws in us.

Peace in our Circumstances

Every once in a while, you meet that person who remains radiant even in the most trying of times. They remain joyful as they face death. They encourage others as they take chemotherapy. They face loss with a confidence that the loss is temporary. They stand out because they handle the times of crisis with a peace that is uncommon.

In his last discourse with His disciples before His arrest and crucifixion Jesus said a couple of powerful things,

27“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. (John 14:27)

Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

People spend a lot of time trying to find a peace that can only come from Christ. The reason this is so is because the peace of the world is anchored to circumstances. They feel peace when everything is going well. If they are healthy, able to pay their bills, and all their relationships are good and stable. However, when something messes with those things . . . when a relationship ends, disease strikes, a job is lost, the market crashes, a loved one dies, or a natural disaster takes away everything we own, that peace evaporates. The peace that Jesus gives remains even when life stinks.

We read earlier about justification and peace with God in Romans 5. The conversation continues beyond those verses,

3We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. (Romans 5:3-5)

Paul says we can know joy and peace even in the times of trial because we know God uses these times to deepen us and to build our faith and character. It's as if someone looked at your house that was dirty with stuff lying all around. Perhaps there are walls that are just studs and a floor with no covering at all. Someone might say, "Oh my, it looks like you are in a war zone." But you respond, "I know things are a mess right now but that is because the house is under construction. Something wonderful is being built you just can't see it yet!

You are probably familiar with Romans 8:28 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them." So the first reason for peace in the time of trial is we know God is working.

The Bible does not teach God causes bad things to happen! God grieves over the abuse of sinful men. He weeps at premature death of a child. God does not want to see His creation in turmoil. However, for this season, that is way things are. Sin has corrupted God's good creation. And as God gives people time to repent and run to Christ, bad things will remain in the world. However, the message of Scripture is this: God can redeem even the bad things. He can bring good out of the evil that results from sin. Christians face the tough times of life knowing God is at work even in that which sin has brought to pass.

Second, we have peace in the time of trial because we know this is not our home. This is a temporary residence. In 2 Corinthians 4 Paul wrote,

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. 17For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Paul said we can have peace even in hard times because we know there is a better day coming. This is not the final chapter. Whatever painful circumstance we are in, it is only temporary. It is like labor for mother. It may seem like the pain will never end, but it does. And when that pain ends, there is a joy that is inexpressible. In fact, it is the anticipation of that joy that makes the pain bearable.

The joy ahead of us if far greater than that of a baby being placed in your arms. It is hard to imagine, but it is true. We can have peace even in hard times because of our anticipation.

Conclusions

In the gospels there is one place where Jesus says, I did not come to bring peace, but the sword. (see Matthew 10:34). What He was saying was: some people will not like His message. The message of the gospel runs counter to the message the world is sending.

Jesus calls us to a decision and that decision may cause conflict in some homes and in the hearts of some people. Until a person turns to Christ as Savior and Lord they cannot know this peace. It is a radical and life altering thing to surrender our live to Christ. But this is the only way to find the peace that comes only through Christ.

This is why the Angels declared the coming Christ would bring peace to the earth and goodwill bridging the gap between men. The coming of Christ opened the door of opportunity. Peace, the deep abiding shalom peace, was now available.

Do you have that peace? If not, is it because you do not trust Christ as your Savior? Why not make that decision today? Perhaps you have forgotten what Christmas is about. He came to bring you Shalom peace. the Lord came to earth to bring you wholeness. He wants you to be in synch with him. In Isaiah 26:3 we are told,

You keep him in perfect peace

whose mind is stayed on you,

because he trusts in you. (Isa 26:3)

I encourage you to refocus this Christmas season. Bring your mind back to the Manger. By now the presents should be purchased (except for a few of the guys). Take a deep breath and listen carefully for the voice of the angels who are still praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the Highest and peace on earth and goodwill toward men." Once you have heard them allow that peace to rush into your heart and then join them in praising the Lord.

[1] Joseph P. Healey, “Peace: Old Testament,” ed. David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 206.