The Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6-7 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder:And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, Upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, To order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice From henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Introduction

I used to love to hear Paul Harvey talk about the news. Whether it was good or hard to hear, his consistency in simply telling the news brought me back again and again to hear his show. One year, just before Christmas, as he was finishing his news cast, he said those altogether memorable words, “And now, the Rest of the News.” On this day he told the story of a father whose son Charles, had gone off to fight for the union army during the American civil war, without his father’s permission. Charles had been promoted to lieutenant and at the battle of “Mine Run or New Hope Church,” he was seriously wounded. News of his son’s condition came to the father on Christmas eve, and being a poet, Henry he sat down and expressed his anguish in a song.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote these words as he contemplated that bleak Christmas morning:

I heard the bells on Christmas Day Their old, familiar carols play, and wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men! And thought how, as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom Had rolled along The unbroken song Of peace on earth, good-will to men! Till ringing, singing on its way, The world revolved from night to day, A voice, a chime, A chant sublime Of peace on earth, good-will to men! Then from each black, accursed mouth The cannon thundered in the South, And with the sound The carols drowned Of peace on earth, good-will to men! It was as if an earthquake rent The hearth-stones of a continent, And made forlorn The households born Of peace on earth, good-will to men! And in despair I bowed my head; "There is no peace on earth," I said; "For hate is strong, And mocks the song Of peace on earth, good-will to men!" Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The Wrong shall fail, The Right prevail, With peace on earth, good-will to men."

For many, like Wadsworth, the Christmas holiday can be overwhelming. It is a time of “Joy to the world” and filled with fun characters like “Frosty the Snowman” and “Rudolf the red nosed reindeer.” Yet, the pressures on families during this economic decline can mean less presents under the smaller Christmas tree.

However, for the Christian, our focus is not on all the “secular” stuff. Our focus is on the “Reason for the Season” and not the season itself. Christmas is the day we unite in the observance of the birth of our Savior.

We are taught in Scripture that the road to salvation, redemption and peace run through a manger in a small town called Bethlehem. Salvation and Peace cannot be found online or in a department store. You won’t find it nicely wrapped under a Christmas tree.

Our final superlative for Christ, found in Isaiah 9:6 is the “Prince of Peace.

What does the world know about peace? Historically, over the past 3,400 years, the world has only known peace for 268 of them. Doing the math, that is only 8 percent of recorded history.

Jesus is called the prince of Peace and the angels proclaim peace on earth goodwill to men. On the other hand, Jesus himself says:

Matt. 10:34-36 34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.

What is Peace?

Peace as defined by most dictionaries has the general premise of “absence of conflict.”

The world seems to identify peace by “the absence of war.” If there is no war, there is peace.

In our passage today, the word Isaiah used was the Hebrew shalom. When used, this word relates to a relationship of love and loyalty with God and one another. When used in the Old Testament it has the basic meaning of welfare, prosperity, or wholeness – the absence of hostility. Peace is the very picture of “health and wholeness, harmony and completeness.”

Isaiah 32:16-20 Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness abide in the fruitful field. 17 And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. 18 My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. 19 And it will hail when the forest falls down, and the city will be utterly laid low. 20 Happy are you who sow beside all waters, who let the feet of the ox and the donkey range free.

Why is Christ the Prince of peace?

With all the titles that Jesus is called in the scriptures, why would Isaiah conclude that the Messiah is the “Prince of Peace?”

Why not the “King of Peace” or the “Lord of Peace?” Prince of Peace sounds like a demotion.

The online dictionary defines “prince” as a close male relative of a monarch, especially a son’s son, subject to a king or emperor.”

Let us look closely at the reason that Isaiah declares that Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

Bringing Peace Between God and Man

Isaiah 53:4-6 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.

And

Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

Bringing Peace Through Salvation

John 16:32-33 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.."

And

Phil 4:4-7 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Bringing Peace Into Eternity

Isaiah 11:1-9 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.

2 And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.

3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.

7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den.

9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Conclusion

“In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

God’s Peace can only be found in Jesus Christ. Therefore, Jesus is the “Prince of Peace.”

Child of God, you too can repeat the words of Longfellow…

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep;

"God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,

Of peace on earth, good-will to men.