Luke 2:14 (ESV)
[14] “Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with
whom he is pleased!”
In an earlier blog I quoted part
of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem Christmas Bells. The sixth stanza starts,
“And in despair I bowed my head; ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said.” So
where is peace? When will there be peace?
Jesus said to his disciples in
John 1:7, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world
gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be
afraid.” It is through faith in God because of Jesus’ death and resurrection
that we have peace with God. It is through that same faith that we can have
peace between brothers and sisters in Christ. But Jesus also said in Matthew
10:34, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not
come to bring peace, but a sword.” How do we put those two passages together?
As I discussed world events with
someone recently, he commented, “There is never peace without war.” Sometime
after his violent arrest in 1991 Rodney King said, “People, I just want to say,
you know, can we all get along? Can we get along?” It’s a nice thought, and I’ve
heard it countless times through the years. But the truth is, we can’t all get
along. Just look around you. Russia attacks Ukraine. Gaza attacks Israel, who
responds with even more aggression. Myanmar is filled with violence as
Christians are fleeing to India to escape persecution and annihilation. Longfellow’s
words seem more appropriate than King’s wishful thinking. So where is this
peace the angels talked about?
The reality is that we live in a
fallen, broken world. Violence is the result. Selfishness is the result. Greed
is the result. Oppression is the result. But in Christ we can have four kinds
of peace. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have peace
within ourselves as we rest in his forgiveness and acceptance, and trust him.
We can have peace with others if they are willing. Romans 12:18 says, “If
possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” It may not be
possible with all, but we can live at peace with those who are willing. God has
not called us to intentionally make enemies. But what is the fourth kind of peace?
The fourth kind of peace is still
coming. There will be a day when every knee will bow at the name of Jesus. There
will be a day when all Creation will be at peace. Isaiah 11:6 anticipates that
day, “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.” On that day the world will finally know the
peace that little child in the manger came to bring. Until that day we live in
hope and rest in him.
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