Luke 2:8-14; Ph. 4:6-9
iWant to Experience Peace
Woodlawn Baptist Church
December 9, 2007
Read Luke 2:8-14.
The angel said, “peace on earth, good will toward men.” Some of your Bibles have verse 14 translated, “peace on earth toward men of good will,” or “peace on earth toward those with whom God is pleased.” You know the story. It’s told and retold every year at this time, how the shepherds were tending their flocks one night in the hills outside Bethlehem and Jerusalem. At night they would have gathered all the sheep together, then as they watched over those sheep, maybe lying in the grass or in a tent, the angel appeared and gave this great news that concludes with the saying we’re so familiar with.
Peace. What is it anyway? Peace has been defined as a state of harmony or the absence of hostility. It might mean the opposite of war, or more generally, the presence of calm, serenity, and silence, or a state of tranquility. What you may not know is that the word basically means to make one and that the opposite of peace is to be fragmented, for the various parts of a whole to be out of harmony with one another. So if we’re talking about warring nations having peace, those nations would experience oneness. If we’re talking about a church or a family having peace, then there’s going to be unity or oneness of spirit among that unit. If we’re talking about you or me having peace, it means that our body, soul and spirit, our will and intellect and our spirit are all going to be operating in oneness.
Just like last week, I asked some folk this week why they believed people want to experience peace. Here are some of the answers…
• Because they are sick and tired of all the war, famine, crime, injustice, and so forth.
• Because there is so much craziness in the world that we want peace whenever we can get it. I know that I try to get it whenever I can but with an 18 month old running around unfortunately that doesn’t happen very often.
• Because it provides hope that things will be okay again.
• I don’t like getting upset or feeling out of control. There’s nothing like the feeling that your mind, body & soul are in sync.
• Because we need peace to keep our sanity in this crazy place!
• Peace means to me....calm...no fighting...just a calmness....I like peace.
• Because it is our soul’s natural state. We are looking to get back to the core.
• Because in our world things happen that are troubling; car accidents, terminal illness, shootings at malls, war. . . we need inner peace. If we are in a panic – scared out of our minds – without peace; we can’t focus and mentally shut down. Worse yet, if we do not have peace - we lose hope. We need peace to have hope.
I want you to watch this video with me as we think about peace.
(http://www.eleven72.com/media/sermon_peace.html)
Just like that desire to believe in something bigger than us, all of us want peace. We want national peace, and we’re willing to go to great extremes to have it. We want financial peace and marital peace, and most importantly we want inner peace. We want to be able to lay our heads down at night and know things are going to be okay. We want to be able to relax, to enjoy the days we’re given with hope and assurance that in the midst of the crazy, troubled, stressful world we live in there is life to be lived and enjoyed. We want to be able to believe that real relationships can be formed and that marriages can last and that kids don’t have to experience so much heartache. We want to find fulfillment in our jobs instead of just a paycheck, and we want to know that not only are we making some sense of it all, but that our lives are making a difference to those around us.
In reality, though it may look and feel and sound a little differently to each of us, what we really want is paradise. Paradise like Adam enjoyed. He was in perfect harmony with Creation, wasn’t disturbed with worry or stress or fast paced living, wasn’t burdened with a job he hated, was at one with God and with himself. But of course sin messed that up, bringing dysfunction into Adam’s marriage, into His relationship with God and into his own life. Sometimes it seems that the farther removed we get from Paradise the more dysfunctional life gets, but I don’t think that’s necessarily true. The things that rob us of peace may be faster paced and more violent, but the bottom line is always the same – we’re a world looking for peace.
The good news is that as much as you and I want peace, God wants it for us even more and has gone to great lengths to secure it for us. The Bible tells us that because of the fall of Adam, humanity was cast into sin, and as the result, was at enmity with God. Our sin was and is offensive to God, and where sin and offense are, there is no peace.
Now some folk will want to pull up right here and say, “Kevin, I’m looking for peace in my home. My family life is suffering. I’m at odds with my boss, my neighbor, my kids, even myself. I appreciate the talk about God, but I’m past that – tell me how to fix my real problems with life. I’m tired of being alone, of being too crowded, of being irritated and frustrated and stressed out all the time.” If that’s you this morning, stick with me. I’m going to try to come full circle in just a moment.
Paul said in Romans 3:17 that before we know Christ as our Savior, we don’t have a clue as to the way of peace. In other words, for all their talk and prayers and efforts, lost people can’t have peace, not real satisfying peace. But when once we trust Christ as our Savior, when we repent of our sin and put our faith in Him, peace becomes ours. Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Why? What is it about a relationship with God that gives a man or a woman peace? The key is that word justified. It means that God declares you free from the guilt of your sin. Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay for your sins. He died on the cross to suffer the wrath of God…His judgment against your sins. When you repent and put your faith in Him, you’re admitting that you are a sinner and that you know you caused the death of Christ and you’re sorry for what you did and you’re trusting that the payment Jesus made was sufficient for you. You are in essence accepting God’s gift of Jesus to you. Now when you do that, God, considering what Jesus has done, declares you free from your guilt. You’re made right in His sight, and because you’re now right with God, because the guilt is gone, you can be at peace with Him.
Paul wonderfully expressed this in Ephesians 2. Jesus broke down the partition that existed between God and us and gave us peace with Him and made the way of peace possible with everyone else. If you’ve never trusted Christ as your personal Savior you lack this peace. You hear about it, work hard to make peace and quiet and tranquility happen in your life, but no matter what you do you’re going to have to deal with the guilt of knowing that you’re not right with God and you’re going to have to answer to Him one day for what you did with Jesus.
But most of you have done that and peace still evades you. Being at peace with God concerning your relationship with Him and experiencing that peace on a day to day basis are two different things, and it is that daily peace we’re after. I want you to turn with me to Philippians 4:6-9 where Paul’s going to tell us how to have it.
Read Philippians 4:6-9 and teach from it.
So now let’s sum this passage up. If you want to experience peace…
• Make a deliberate choice not to worry.
• Pray. Let God know what your needs are.
• Pray. Thank God for what He has done and is doing in your life.
• Take control of your thoughts. Feed your heart and mind what is good and positive and wholesome.
• Imitate the life of Paul: holy, servant-like, sold out.
So how does any of this help? Because again, I know the immediate application appears to be living in peace with God, but think about what Paul has said again. What’s worrying you? We all worry about something. What is it in your life? What is it that is making you long for peace? For worry free living? For a place of peace and quiet? Is it marital trouble? Is it having to juggle bills while you try to raise a family? Maybe Christmas has you stressed out. A job situation? Dealing with family, especially extended family this time of year? What is it that makes you want peace?
Let’s make this very practical, and I’ll pick just one thing to make an application to. We’ll say I’m stressed out about money this Christmas. Money is tight, somebody’s been sick, you’re running out of time to do your Christmas shopping, whatever. What do I do today?
1. Make a deliberate choice not to worry. If there’s nothing you can do to change the situation, then there’s no use worrying about it. And if there is something you can do to change it, then do it and quit worrying about it.
2. Pray. Tell God what it is that you need. Maybe why you need it. Maybe why it is a need and not just a want. Maybe you need to tell God your motive. But pray.
3. Pray some more. Thank God for His provision in your life. Thank God that the amount of money in the bank has nothing to do with how blessed you are. Thank Him for the opportunity to have your faith tested, and thank Him for using money to make you teachable and hungry for Him.
4. Take control of your thoughts. You choose to think about money all the time. Think about something different by feeding on positive, wholesome messages.
5. Imitate Paul’s life. Learn to be content with what you have. Be thankful for all things. Simplify and examine whether you’re living like a pilgrim passing through, or like a permanent resident, buying up all you can to secure personal peace and comfort.
Someone has said that the peace Jesus gives is not the absence of trouble, but is rather the confidence that He is there with you always. That’s so true. Jesus Himself said that He didn’t come to bring peace, but a sword. Following Him is not easy, and it may put you at odds with others, but you can still know and experience peace because of the oneness that Christ offers: oneness with Him, oneness with others in your life, and oneness of self: of body, soul and spirit.
