A Gift of Peace
Notes
Transcript
Handout
On his blog Dave Tenholm shares the following,
“The story begins with a man name Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Longfellow was a fairly famous American poet who lived in the mid-1800s and he wrote a poem that formed the basis for the Christmas carol “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”. You might be familiar with that one – I’m sure you’ve hear it at least sometime this Christmas season.
The poem that it was based on was written on Christmas Day of 1863. The American Civil war had been raging for over 2 and a half years by this point. Over a million fathers, sons, and brothers would not be home that Christmas – and many of those would never return.
But on that Christmas day in 1863, Henry Longfellow pondered the dismal state of the world in which he lived. He was no stranger to tragedy. His first wife, Mary, had died six months into her first pregnancy at the age of 22. His second wife, Frances, had died from severe burns after her dress caught fire. And now, as the Civil War raged around him, Henry would spend this Christmas nursing his oldest son, Charles, back to health after a confederate bullet nearly paralyzed him.
And as he listened to the church bells pealing forth their Christmas tidings on that Christmas morning, he struggled with the message of the angels as they proclaimed to the shepherds – peace on earth – goodwill to men.
Henry had read in his Bible how, some 2000 years ago, in the hills around Bethlehem, the angels appeared to the shepherds to announce the birth of the Savior. In Luke 2:8-14 (NIV), Henry had read:
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’”
But as Henry Longfellow looked at the world around him, he did not see peace on the earth.
And so this is what he wrote:
I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play
And mild and sweet
Their songs repeat
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
And you can certainly see his point. As the cannons and the gunfire drown out the sounds of the Christmas carols, and as Henry looked around the ruins of war and the ruined lives of the people he loved, it did not seem like peace on earth – goodwill to men.” (end quote)
Fast forward to the year 2021 and it doesn’t take much for us to resonate with Longfellow’s words. Where is the peace here in America? Can you hear the Christmas bells over the noise of social media, where animosity dripped opinions are typed at the top of our lungs? Can you hear the Christmas bells over the racial tension, over the prejudice, over the hatred of the ethnic other. Can you hear them over the sounds of the riots? Can you hear them over the bitter mutterings of the politically unsatisfied? Over the yelled frustrations of our nation grappling with the pandemic and all of its ramifications.
Where is the peace within the home? Within our families? Friends, (long pause) have you found peace within yourself? Looking around, the concept of peace seems like a nice dream that we bring up at Christmas. Like how some dream of a white Christmas or of hallmark movies come to life. Is peace just wishful thinking?
And yet, 2,000 years ago the angels declared, “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Friends, I pray you come to know this morning that peace is not a myth. The angel’s appearance before the Shepherds is a historical event. It happened at a real place- the town of Bethlehem, to real people. In fact we can learn a lot about God’s intentions towards us, by taking a closer look at the people He chose to include in the miracle of His son’s birth.
The shepherds weren’t well to do. Today we would identify them as low income. Although they were often honest and hardworking their efforts did not reap high financial rewards and yet God chose to include them in the miracle of His son’s birth. They were average, every day, kind of guys- they were included and they were not alone.
The men who saw a star in the sky and recognized it as a sign of the savior’s birth were well educated and wealthy men. God included them in the miracle of Jesus’ birth. They were also travelers in a foreign land. They did not look or talk like Mary and Joseph, they were the ethnic other and yet they were included.
Anna was a widow but more than that she was a woman given the gift of prophetic leadership in a man’s world. God included her in the miracle of His son’s birth.
Simeon was an old and frail man. Mary a young woman- a girl who became pregnant out of wedlock. Joseph was a low income laborer. God included them all in the miracle of His son’s birth.
What does this tell us? It tells us that God’s offer of peace, His love, His gift of salvation through Jesus- Emmanuel- God with us- is for everybody. It is all inclusive. It does not matter if you are poor like the shepherds or rich like the wise men. It does not matter if you are uneducated or full of knowledge -you are included. If you are young or old, male or female, white or black, whether you are a foreigner or if you call this your home- you are included! God’s gift of peace is for you! As Pastor John Piper states, “Peace spreads everywhere this child, Jesus, is received.”
So let’s take a closer look at the angel’s declaration of peace so that we may get a clearer understanding of their message. Reading Luke 2 verses 11-12 we see that the angels tell the Shepherds to go and find Jesus. So my first point this morning is this:
1. To find Peace we must first find the Savior.
The angels tell the Shepherds were to find Jesus and enthusiastically they search for Him.
This morning, if you are like the Shepherds and are searching for the savior than let us introduce you to Jesus whose birth the angels announced. We call Him savior because it is only through Him that we can have peace with God.
Until we have peace with God, we simply will not be able to know peace in the other areas of our lives.
Thankfully, God has provided a way for us to have peace with Him – and that way is Jesus.
Colossians 1:19-22 (NIV) says…
For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—
How wonderful- we can be holy and blameless – we can stand before God without a single fault because Jesus paid our moral debt and exchanged our sinfulness for His goodness. No matter how much sin you’ve accumulated in your lifetime, Jesus paid for it all and you can stand before Him in total peace as if you’d never sinned at all.
Notice, however, that Colossians 1:19-22 talks about those who have already put their faith and trust in Jesus.
As Tenholm shares,
“Until we accept Jesus’ gift of salvation, we are still enemies of God. Not by God’s choice of course, but by our own. If we refuse to put our faith in Jesus and give Him Lordship over our lives – then we remain in our sin as enemies of God – and we will not experience peace. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Romans of how it is our faith in Jesus that brings us peace with God. Romans 4:25 says…
‘He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God. 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.’” (end quote)
The savior- makes peace with God for us. So, if you receive the peace maker, than you will have peace with God.
The angel’s message to the shepherd’s hinted at that truth. They said, “on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” When we receive His Son, when we receive Jesus, God looks at us with favor.
The peace therefore, of which the angels sang was a promise for everyone but not a prophecy about everyone. They did not say- “all humankind WILL live in peace.” Or even say, “all humankind will HAVE peace.”
No, their promise of peace came with the conditional statement, “on whom God’s favor rests.”
So what does that mean? It means that you must first find the savior. You must find Jesus and accept His gift of salvation so that you may have peace with God. Then and only then will His favor rest upon you.
The truth is that God’s peace is a gift- given for everyone but it will be experienced only by those who receive Jesus as their savor and make Him Lord of their lives.
In his prophecy concerning the savior, hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, Isaiah declared (KJV), “and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.”
Jesus is the prince of Peace, if you choose to follow Him, the angel’s promise is for you- you will have peace with God.
But there is more to it than that.
That brings me to my second point this morning.
2. When you follow the Prince of Peace you can also have peace within yourself.
For many, turmoil is not just something that is happening in the world around them. Feelings such as guilt, regret, shame, anxiety, stress, fear, self-hate, suicidal thoughts and insecurity bombard their hearts and minds. Thus, inner turmoil is something they wrestle with daily.
If that is you, then I want to give you hope this morning. Because, peace is not just some grand ideal- it is in also a person. Take a look at what Jesus says in John 14:25-27 (NIV),
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
In these verses Jesus introduces His followers to the Holy Spirit. If you have put your faith and trust in Jesus then the Holy Spirit is always with you- He is your inner counselor and advocate. But Jesus also calls Him- “Peace.” The Holy Spirit embodies the peace of God and He is a gift to us. He is here to help you every second, every moment of every day. Friends, do not let your hearts be troubled, do not be afraid for the Prince of Peace is always with you.
As Romans 8:35b, 37-39 (NIV) declares:
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
So if you are struggling this morning with inner turmoil, don’t suffer in silence. Seek out a trust worthy person- perhaps myself, my wife, Lorna, or one of the elders. Let us share God’s love by offering you comfort, support, and encouragement. You are not alone.
That brings me to my final point this morning,
3. When you follow the Prince of Peace you are called to share His peace with others.
In the person of the Holy Spirit, we have been given God’s peace and Jesus asks His followers to then share His peace with others as Romans 12:18 (NIV) challenges us,
If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
Now I know that it may not be possible to live without encountering conflict from time to time. Instead, I believe this verse is encouraging us to love others well and to make the choice not to allow disagreements or conflict to steal our inner peace or keep us from seeking loving and peaceful resolutions when possible. And when it gets difficult to do so, and it will, I challenge you to ask yourself, “what does love require of me?... In this situation, in this circumstance, what does love require of me?”
As 2021 comes to an end and a new year dawns I hope that you will take a hold of God’s message of love. His lavish love for you and His commission to love others as He has loved you. When we choose to love instead of keeping a record of wrongs, when we choose to accept others even if we do not approve of their choices or beliefs, when we choose love instead of being easily offended – when we do that then we are sharing His peace. Friends, we can see peace spread but only if we share it. One person at a time- you can make a difference.
And I think that is the conclusion Henry Longfellow came to as he wrote his famous poem about those Christmas bells. Even though he had lost two wives, nearly lost a son, and was surrounded by the pain and suffering of war –he recognized that there was hope – there was a peace that could only be found in Jesus- our Prince of Peace.
As he sat there in despair, concluding that there is no peace on earth – Hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth – goodwill to men. As he considered all this, it was as if God spoke to him through the church bells that were ringing out Christmas tidings. He concludes the poem with this verse:
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.”