Peace has Come

When we started lighting the Advent candles three weeks ago, we started with Hope. We then lit the candle of Love, and last week we lit the candle of Joy. The fourth candle of our Advent wreath is the candle of Peace.

It might be a shock to some of you to be reminded that our country is a country at war. Operation Enduring Freedom, or the war in Afghanistan, has been going on for over twelve years (since October 7, 2001) with an American death toll of 1098 with an additional 2379 wounded. Yet we can be blissfully ignorant of this fact as we go about our lives. We can even pretend to live at peace, all the while having no peace in our lives.

I don’t have the time to cover this topic completely this morning, but please understand that peace is not simply the absence of conflict. Just because you’re not at war doesn’t mean you have peace. And, in fact, Jesus comes, bringing peace in the face of war.

The world says: peace is when we stop fighting. Jesus says, in John 14:27 “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 the midst of turmoil, in the midst of a world at war, God gives us the gift of peace. This gift came in the Person of Jesus Christ. Born in a lowly manger, a birth that excluded nobody. Listen to the prophecy from Isaiah 9:6-7 concerning Jesus:

For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this. (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Israel expected a temporal king. They expected another ruler, maybe like one of the Judges, or even better, a Moses-type who would come and deliver them from enemy rule. But the problem is, they had already had that kind of leader, and they would change and follow God only for a time and then they’d jump back into sin. And they never experienced true peace. What’s worse, they had leaders and prophets who proclaimed false visions. Listen to Ezekiel 13:10-11a: “‘Because they lead my people astray, saying “Peace,” when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall.

False peace is not peace at all. In fact, in Luke’s gospel, Jesus himself prophesies not peace, but division. “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.” (Luke 12:51) Again, the peace Jesus brings isn’t like the world’s peace: his peace brings division. We have seen that first-hand in Jackson County, with the storm caused by a simple Jesus picture in a school. When I was an associate pastor, our church hosted a preschool. The director asked me to say a prayer for their Thanksgiving feast, but, “make it generic.” When I pressed her on what that meant, it came down to this: don’t pray in Jesus’ name.

Because Jesus’ name is offensive to the world. They’re like the people Jeremiah spoke of when he said, “To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it.” Jeremiah 6:10

But Jesus’ peace is much bigger than “we’re not fighting” or “I’m not offending anyone” or “can’t we all just get along?” Jesus brings a different kind of peace than we can get from the world. In John 16:33 he tells his disciples: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

We often think of the Christmas scene as a peaceful one, and it is, but not in the way you might be thinking. A baby’s birth is not peaceful. If you think it is, you haven’t had children. A manger isn’t a peaceful place. Even filled with friendly beasts and loving shepherds. Bethlehem was in turmoil, a conquered nation being taxed. But into this chaotic world of trouble, Jesus came, bringing peace.

And so, as we close, receive this priestly blessing from Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”



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