The Message of Christmas: Peace
Luke 2:6-10
Introduction:
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Luke 2:10
Last week we looked at the joy that is in Christmas. The declaration of the angel said, "I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people". Christmas can be a time of joy if we remember the purpose and plan of God at the birth of Jesus. Joy is found in the person of Jesus Christ.
Now we are going to turn our attention to the peace that the herald angels brought to us. Did you notice that there is no longer one angel or group of angels? The peace of God is proclaimed by the heavenly hosts. All of them proclaim praise to God and the peace that is brought to us through Jesus Christ.
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:13-14
"Peace? Yea right!" I am not sure about you, but there must be some misunderstanding. As I type up the message people are preparing funeral services for kids gunned down in church this last weekend. Two of those killed were preparing to go out and tell others about Jesus. Our soldiers are still fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan to secure the peace for others. Closer to home people were killed not last week but last night.
A fellow pastor sent me pictures of the live nativity scene portrayed in their town parade. Mary and Joseph, a young couple with what looked like their baby lying in a manger, sat on the float. My friend was next to the camel. I assumed he played a wise man. They brought the scriptures to life.
There was another man who earnestly tried to make the scriptures come to life. No, I am not talking about a nativity scene with live animals like my friends church. He chose a passage that many in this room know from the book of Isaiah. It says in 11:6,
The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.
He finally got a wolf and lamb and put them in the backyard to begin this scripture’s visual presentation. The problem he lamented was that he had to throw a new lamb in the backyard each day. Peace in this world is to the point that the lion or wolf will lay with the lamb. So what did the herald angels mean when they proclaimed peace?
Real Peace
The King James Version says, "Peace to all men". We also find the same phrase in verse 10 referring to joy instead of peace. We know that this is not the case by reading or watching the news. Just as we know all people do not have joy, we know that all do not have peace in their life.
The proper translation is, "Peace to men on who God’s favor rests." There is a vast difference between the two. God’s peace is only available to people on whom His favor rests. Are you/we in God’s favor? How do we know His favor rests on us?
If you have a relationship with Jesus Christ, a personal relationship, then you have the availability of peace because it is through Him, and only Him, that peace is available. Isaiah 53:5 says,
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
Ephesians 2:14 says,
For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
And we find in these passages and others the peace that God has for us is only available through the person of Jesus Christ. We cannot find peace anywhere else no matter how hard we try. It is one reason our world is in the shape it is in today.
Those who refuse to acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord are not only at war with God and others but themselves as well. Jesus is the solution to our quest for peace. He is the one who brings peace and it is His message of peace the heavenly hosts heralded.
1. Peace with God
There is a problem that humanity suffers in general. It is the problem of sin. Unfortunately for us, ever since the fruit of the tree was tasted in the Garden of Eden we have been at war with God. Sin is what separates us from God. He is holy and we are not. But don’t think you are the only one, I John 1:8 says,
If we say we are without sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
Romans says,
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
We all have this problem. The problem is magnified by the fact that there is no sacrifice great enough to take care of covering our sins. Since God is holy He cannot be in the presence of sin. So how do we remove the sin to be acceptable to God?
This is the point where the birth of Jesus heralds an opportunity for peace. Through His birth, life, death, burial and resurrection, He is the sacrifice. We no longer have to wonder how to gain access to God or His peace because He provides the access. He loves us so much that He sent His Son as payment for our sins. The sacrifice is here for us to accept and receive. Just like any gift we simply need to receive it.
When we accept Him as Lord we are immediately are at peace with God. We become His child, adopted into His family through Christ. Then as we learn and grow in Christ we are molded like clay into the person God wants us to be. Our ultimate shape or look will be like Jesus. Our attitude and actions are to be like His. This is the will of God for every life.
2. Peace within Ourselves
When we are at peace with God through Jesus Christ His Son we no longer need to run around looking for the missing piece to our lives. Jesus fills the vacuum in our lives. One person said, "I feel like there is a committee inside of me that is constantly quarreling."
Addiction, obsessive behavior, and aggression or as Richard Foster says in his book "Money, Sex, and Power", are all attempts at finding peace and joy. Peace and joy are only found in Jesus.
Bob Buford was asked, "What’s in your box?" He had lost his son and found his life meaningless. His search led him to a godly man who asked that question of him. Bob did not know Jesus Christ. He received Christ as Lord shortly thereafter and found that joy and peace that eludes so many.
God brings peace to our lives by assuring us of our worth. We are valuable enough to merit His love. We are valuable enough that He sent His Son to die for us. He assures us of forgiveness of sins and He releases us from the guilt and shame and He assures us of a purpose for our life.
We no longer need to run from ourselves or our past. We can look at who we are through the eyes of God and face the day with the presence and power He gives us. One teenager remarked after receiving Christ, "I never realized I was valuable to anybody." We are valuable to God because He loves us.
There is at this point an exclusively Christian problem. We can lose the peace of God when we do not follow the will of God for our lives. What is His will for our lives, love Him, love others. If we do not do His will we fall back into our rebellious nature and then we are out of fellowship with Him. What must we do? Confess our sin and accept the forgiveness He offers.
3. Peace with Others
Lastly, God gives us the ability to be at peace with others. Our peace doesn’t rely on outer circumstances or other people but on the abiding presence of Jesus. He has commanded us to "love our enemies",
"pray for our enemies", "go the extra mile", and "do good to those who hate and despise you". We are given a proactive peace that sends us forth as peace makers to a hostile world. We are not guaranteed love by all but we are to offer God’s love to all by our words and deeds.
An old lady was being robbed by a man by gun point in her car. He demanded all her money or he would kill her. She told him she was going to heaven because of her Savior Jesus Christ but he would be going to hell because of his life. She continued to talk to him and deliver the message of God’s love. With tears in his eyes he apologized to the elderly woman and left her car in tears. He had been touched by the love of God expressed by the gospel.
Peace with others comes when we accept and abide in Christ and do His will in our lives. Peace is found when we come to the Lord, Jesus Christ. Are you ready to begin today?
