Peace That Passes Understanding

“PEACE THAT PASSES UNDERSTANDING” PT. 2

“ADVENT 2021”

Phil. 4.6-7

One of the lasting, profound emotions that Christmas evokes in my life is that of peace; I’m not sure whether it’s the stillness of a late-night recounting of the Christmas story, the stillness of a cold, wintry night, or the peace and satisfaction of me getting our kid’s Christmas toys put together around midnight on Christmas Eve years ago!—whatever it is, peace is the feeling that I sense more than any other this time of year! Peace is also the Candle that we light this Second Sunday of Advent! To do that, I’ve asked my wife, Brenda, to come and to light this candle for us today.

This has been quite the year for Brenda, particularly the past 4 months; taking care of me after my accident(s); dealing with her sight issues following her detached retina surgery a few months ago; and dealing with a personal issue with our oldest daughter and granddaughter has left Brenda needing some peace to come to her life, and our lives! Whoever it was that said, “When your children turn 18, your responsibility as a parent ends!” obviously never had children! Brenda, much more than I, has been the “rock” for our family, dealing with each of these issues that I just mentioned, and many others over the past 45 years, and it so very fitting that she be the one to light the Candle of Peace for us today!

Peace; have we ever lived in a time when peace was needed more than today? Jesus told us, in Matt. 24.6-12:

6 “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must

take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against

kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the

beginning of the birth pains. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death,

and you will be hated by all nations for My Name's sake. 10 And then many will fall away and

betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many

astray. 12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.”

I don’t know that there has ever been so much division, on so many different issues, or so much hatred being espoused over seemingly insignificant differences of opinion as there are in our world today! It used to be that whether you were a Democrat or Republican, a Conservative or a Liberal, a Catholic or a Protestant, an American or another nationality, there was at the very least a measure of respect for one another! That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore! In fact, today we are seeing instances of lives being taken for having such differences!

Which all of the above brings us to the desperate need of peace! The key “piece” that we must understand about “peace” is that it has already come; it’s not something or someone that will eventually one day make “peace” a possibility! It has already come, and it is a reality! In fact, that reality is Jesus Christ, and He is the only Source that will bring lasting peace to our lives, and to our world! The Apostle Paul tells us as much in Phil. 4.6-7; he says, “…do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication WITH thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the PEACE of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Would you like to know how important that is, right from the start of this message? Jesus followed up those ominous warnings of Matt. 24.6-12, with the words of v. 13: “But the one who endures to the end will be saved.”

The question then becomes, “How do we endure the violence, the hatred, the immorality, the shocking trend that this world has taken? How do we do it?” We do it by having a relationship with the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ! Jesus said, in John 14.1, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me.” He then followed that up with the words of v. 27: “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.” Do you want to have peace? Get connected to the Source of all lasting peace, Jesus Christ!

So, what is it about our world that seems so resistant, and in fact, so opposed to peace? Well, the obvious answer is that the prince of darkness, Satan, is hard at work trying his best to deceive the world, and to destroy the souls of its inhabitants in hell. Again, the Apostle Paul, talking about the spiritual blessings that we have in Christ in Ephesians 1, goes on to tell us at the beginning of ch. 2 of the one who seeks to destroy the work of Christ; he says, in v. 1-3, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” In this passage, Paul describes the prince of darkness, Satan, as a “prince” with power; John says, in I John 5.19, “…the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” This power has been given him by God; perhaps you recall that when Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan, Satan told Jesus that his power and influence in the world had been “delivered to me [him]” by God. The reason Satan is called a prince rather than a king is that there is only one King—the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ! (I Tim. 6.15)