Day 16: Peace
"For to 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 greatness 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
The Prophet Isaiah pointed God’s people to look ahead to a
time when God would bring His people a Messiah, A Savior who would be light and
joy, who would release them from bondage and suffering. (Isaiah 9:1-5) This
Messiah would be a child born, a son given to the people, who would reign on
David’s throne. Isaiah says this Messiah will bear the titles of Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. It is this last
title we look at today, the Prince of Peace.
Peace in the Hebrew language of the Bible is shalom. While we
tend to think of peace as
the absence of war or conflict, or a sense of calm and quiet, shalom is
a sense of well-being and fulfillment that comes from God and is dependent on
His presence. Shalom is wholeness, prosperity, security, and fullness of
life that only comes as a result of a restored relationship with God. Shalom
is reconciliation. It is the restoration of what is broken and painful in the
world – our separation from God because of sin.
The
prophet Micah also looked to the Messiah, a king who would “be their peace.”
(Micah 5:5) Ephesians tells us that the prophecy spoken of by Micah has come to
pass in the person of Jesus Christ ..."He himself is our
peace." (Ephesians 2:14) Jesus is the instrument of our
reconciliation with God. He is our peace.
“Remember that at that
time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and
foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and
without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been
brought near by the blood of Christ. For he
himself is our peace.” Ephesians 2:12-14
“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.” Colossians 1:19-22
In pointing to the
fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy that a child would be born who would be the
Prince of Peace, the angels sang at Jesus’ birth, proclaiming,
“Glory
to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on
whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:14
God’s
favor rests on those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
“Therefore,
since we have been justified through faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have
gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.” Romans 5:1-2.
To
those who are justified through faith in Christ, Jesus promised not only the
peace of reconciliation with God, but that He would be with them always, giving
them an abiding peace.
“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.” John
14:27
Our world has been full of tragedy,
despair, conflict, death, and suffering, especially over the past few years.
For many it can seem like there is no hope. But God wants us to
know His peace in the midst of all of this. To know, that despite all that is
going on, all that is going wrong in the world around us, His peace brings us
comfort, because His peace is eternal. His peace withstands the trials and hard
times we face. His peace brings us into the loving arms of Jesus who will wipe
every tear, who will comfort every hurt, who will restore the broken hearted,
who will fill you with His love and grace, and who will give you His Spirit to
provide you with peace through prayer. True peace comes from knowing, "It
is well with my soul".
If you do not feel you have peace with God, then please read the passages I spoke of above that show the way to peace with God through Christ. Pray over them. Then ask Jesus for His forgiveness of your sin. Read Acts 10:43 and Romans 10:9-10 for more. Accept His gift of forgiveness for your sins. Do this and know that you have peace with God and let this Advent season be a time of celebration for His goodness, mercy, and grace in your life.
“Now may the Lord
of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be
with all of you.” 2 Thessalonians
3:16
No comments:
Post a Comment