Advent Peace

Last week we spoke on how reflecting on the Advent of Jesus – the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension gives us HOPE!

His first Advent gives us a deep hope, historically, Biblically, and experientially for the second Advent, when Jesus returns and sets all things to right.

We have Hope through His redeeming presence that He will remake all things new and Dwell in His relational presence with His people for eternity.

This week as we continue to prepare our hearts and minds for Advent we will look at how God has brought peace through Jesus and how he will fully bring Peace to all creation in the second Advent.

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Scripture reading –

Isaiah 9:6–7 NASB95

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.

Luke 2:8–14 NASB95

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. “This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

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What is Biblical Peace?

Shalom – OT, Eirene – NT:

Complete or whole – Complex structure with lots of pieces that is in a state of wholeness, completeness. Life is complex full of relationships moving parts and situations, and when any of these is out of line or missing, your shalom breaks downs, life is no longer whole, it needs to be restored.

To bring Shalom or Eirene literally means to make complete or to restore wholeness.

· Your animal destroys a portion of your neighbor’s grape vines. To make shalom, you repay in full to set the wrong back to right.

· To reconcile or heal a broken relationship is to bring shalom.

· When rival kings come into a state of shalom, they don’t just stop fighting, they work together for each other’s benefit.

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The Problem –

Sin – Chaos – The disruption of peace between God and man, man and man, man and himself.

Every relationship broken

Humanity themselves broken. Broken people break people; intentional and unintentionally.

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As we spoke last week, no one could carry the relational presence of God because of this brokenness brought on by sin and our broken relationship with God. Yet God through His covenants with men and His promises through the prophets spoke clearly and loudly; His peace will

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The Promise

Isaiah 2:1–4 NASB95

The word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. Now it will come about that In the last days The mountain of the house of the Lord Will be established as the chief of the mountains, And will be raised above the hills; And all the nations will stream to it. And many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; That He may teach us concerning His ways And that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He will judge between the nations, And will render decisions for many peoples; And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, And never again will they learn war.

Isaiah 11:1–10 NASB95

Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist. And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little boy will lead them. Also the cow and the bear will graze, Their young will lie down together, And the lion will eat straw like the ox. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den. They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea. Then in that day The nations will resort to the root of Jesse, Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.

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In the First Advent, Jesus came to bring us peace through His power in three areas.

In our relationship with God

In our relationship with one another

In our relationship with our own mind and emotions.

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The Presence of Jesus is our peace.

Jesus is our Peace

2 Thessalonians 3:16 NASB95

Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!

John 14:26–27 NASB95

“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 said to you. “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.

· Jesus our peace with God – Col 1:19-23

Colossians 1:19–23 NASB95

For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven. And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

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The Indwelling Presence of God Gives us The Power of Living in Peace.

We are called to turn chaos into Shalom

The Spirit of Peace Lives in and Out of You.

Galatians 5:22 NASB95

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

Ephesians 4:1–6 NASB95

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.

Ephesians 4:29–32 NASB95

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

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Jesus is our Peace within ourselves, even when circumstances are dreadful.

Philippians 4:6–7 NASB95

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 5:7 NASB95

casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

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Yet, the Messiahs mission for peace is not yet complete.

The world is still full of chaos / we still choose chaos over peace even though we have the HS.

Sin and brokenness are still the normal experience of the world.

But the first Advent reminds us, encourages us to look forward to the day when all chaos will be turned to peace

All death to life

All sickness to health

All relationships to peace

A day of Shalom, wholeness, completion.

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The Future – The Peace of the Second Advent

· Total Shalom in human relationships Rev 7:9-12

Revelation 7:9–12 NASB95

After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”

· Total Shalom is creation

Revelation 21:1 NASB95

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

Revelation 21:4 NASB95

and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Revelation 22:1–3 NASB95

Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him;

· Total shalom with God

Revelation 21:3 NASB95

And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,

Revelation 21:22–23 NASB95

I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.

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Conclusion:

Today I want you to know that Jesus has come to be your peace.

Jesus desires to bring Shalom to your relationship with God.

Jesus desires to offer peace to others through you, healing your relationships, and giving you the courage and the power to offer His shalom in your broken families and relationships.

And even though you may have chaos, worry, and fear surrounding you, he desires to fill your mind and emotions with His Peace - Bringing God’s Shalom - His wholeness to your mind and emotions.

And as we experience the Peace of God that surpass all understanding in this broken life, let us look forward to the second Advent when all creation will be brought into God’s shalom - Where peace will reign for eternity.