What is God’s greatest Gift to Humanity?
" For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)
These words were written by the prophet Isaiah more than 700 years before the birth of Jesus. So here begins one of the many prophecies about the wonderful story of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came from heaven to save this world that had rebelled against him. About 3000 years ago, God began to speak to the world through the prophets of the land of Israel: "Look! The king of this world is coming! He will be as the light of the morning sun, as the sun coming up into a cloudless sky. "He will banish war from the earth, and bring peace to the nations. His realm will stretch from sea to sea, to the very ends of the earth. His enemies will not outwit with, nor will the wicked overpower him". "I will make him the mightiest king in all the earth. His throne shall be as endless as the days of heaven. I will give him the ruling power and glory over all the nations of the world, so that all people of every language must obey him. His power and authority are eternal, they will never end; his government shall never fall". "He will reveal the meaning of justice to the nations of the world. He will bring at last true justice to the world. He will not rest or grow weary until truth and righteousness prevail throughout the earth".
The Eternal God, who created the heavens, the earth and everything in it, and gives life and breath to every creature; He is the one who says concerning Christ, the Saviour, "Look! I’m going to give you a sign! A virgin shall conceive and give birth to a male child. He will be named ’Immanuel’ (this means: ’God is among us’). He will light the path of all nations, and lead them to me. This prophecy tells us that a child will be born. The child will be unique – the child will be special. The child will be the one we know as Jesus Christ. "The government of this world will be handed to him. These will be his royal titles: He will be called:
Wonderful Counselor,
The Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
The Prince of Peace,
"His ever-expanding, peaceful government will never end. He will rule with perfect fairness and justice, and bring true peace and righteousness to all the nations of the world. And the earth will be filled with the knowledge of God just as the waters fill the sea".
Let us look at Jesus as being “Prince of Peace”.
Shalom is the word for peace. In the Hebrew language, peace is a rich and powerful concept. Shalom means to make whole, to complete, to restore, to compensate, or wholeness, fullness, well-being, happiness, tranquility, peace. Jesus is the governor of well-being, the captain of happiness, the ruler of peace. If you can embrace this, you will see the Christ differently for the rest of your life. Remember what the angels said when they announced Jesus’ birth?
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:16)
His first advent moments brought peace to all who visited him, his miracles brought peace to all who experienced them, and his words brought peace to all who received them, first to last. The farewell address of Jesus gave a formal talk to his disciples, you know what He said? “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.” (John 14:1) He concludes the speech by saying, “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)
Jesus Christ is the source of peace. Jesus made the peace, offers the peace, and is the prince of peace. Peace is not the absence of war and tragedy in one’s life; it is the presence of (God) Christ in one’s life. It is through Jesus Christ that one recovers the peace that Adam and Eve had with God before the fall; it is only in and through Jesus Christ that one acquires peace with others.
So Apostle Paul said “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift” (2 Cor. 9:15) Jesus Christ, the gift of God’s love to mankind, is an unspeakable blessing; no man can conceive, much less declare how great this gift is; for these things the angels desire to look into. Therefore Christ may be well called the indescribable gift, as He is the highest gift God ever gave or can give to man; "Next to the gospel, salvation is God’s greatest gift to mankind but the source of all is Jesus Christ."The Bible talks about three primary gifts that could be considered his greatest gifts to all mankind through our lord Jesus Christ. They are the forgiveness of sins, the gift of the Holy Spirit and the Bible. ) For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, (Titus 2:11) Salvation through our Lord Jesus is God’s greatest gifts, because the end result is being in God’s presence forever in heaven. And it’s the Holy Spirit so we may receive the Truth and be preserved in the Truth to set one free. Imagine that this gift is what makes it truly indescribable and incomparable. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— (Eph. 2:8) let us ponder over this unspeakable and incomparable gift and bond of peace.
Paul said “You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich.” (2 Cor. 8:9). The Lord Jesus Christ was eternally rich, glorious, and exalted; but "though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor." And He, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, King of kings, Son of Eternity, to whom all things belonged, decided to become poor for our sake. He then resurrected from the dead to become the life-giving Spirit. As the life-giving Spirit, God is able to dispense everything that He is and has into us so that we can become exactly what He is—the expression of God in humanity.
Bible says "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved." (Ephesians 1:4-6) “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10).
God is the ultimate being in existence, perfect in power, love, and character. Since God wanted to share His love with others, He created the angels and human beings—spiritual creatures who can relate to Him. Because God is love, He wants us to love Him and love other people. Scripture reveals that we are descended from Adam and Eve and their extended family. That family relationship—our becoming children of God the Father —is the heart and core of God’s incredible plan for humanity! We have the priceless opportunity to be a part of that family, the family of God!
From the beginning this purpose has been clearly stated by God."Then God said, ’Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness . . . So God created man in His own image . . . male and female He created them" (Genesis 1: 26-27). This shows that man was created according to the “God kind." Indeed, to help us understand the parallel with God creating man in His image and likeness, Genesis 5:3 says that the first man Adam later "begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth." So God was essentially reproducing Himself through humanity.
Romans 5:1, "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." The root of peace is the right relationship between God and man between person and person between families and communities between nations. Peace is built on the foundation of truth, justice and love. Bible says “God is Love” and we are the offspring of God. Therefore God’s purpose goes far beyond the creation of mortal, perishable human beings. He is in the process of fashioning and forming "a new creation" fathering His own spiritual children—immortal and incorruptible children instilled with His very nature and character. The more we understand just what that means, the more spellbound we will become—at not only the majesty of God’s purpose but at what this bring about for each of us personally.
God made us in His image and according to His likeness, similar to Him in every respect. For example, God is love, which is why we have a virtue called love; God is perfect, so we have an aspiration for perfection; God is just, so we have a sense of right and justice. God is God of peace, so we can have peace with God and to one another. In fact, every one of our positive attributes is a reflection of who and what God is.
God’s eternal love not only moved Him to create us. It also urged Him to go through a process so that He could enter into us and make us His expression. He, the infinite God, humbled Himself to become a finite human being named Jesus Christ. In Him, all the fullness of the Godhead dwelt, and through Him, all the fullness of the Godhead was expressed. Everything He did, said, and thought was a pure expression of God in humanity. This brought the highest delight to God, for in Jesus Christ, His eternal purpose began to be fulfilled in that a man was fully expressing God. Then the Lord Jesus allowed Himself to be crucified on a cross in order that through death, the God-expressing life that resided within Him could be released and made available to us.
Dear friends, Health and wealth, position and influence, popularity and power, wining and dining do not guarantee peace. But right relationship with God will.
When you come to Jesus Christ with your whole heart, your search for peace of mind will be over. He will give peace, and a calm that comes only from trusting Him. You will have peace of mind in a troubled world! Open the door of your heart to Christ—just now—and someday He’ll open the door of heaven for you, where perfect peace will reign and never end.
One of the wonderful names of our Lord is Prince of Peace. And Jesus is the key to peace — whether it’s personal peace in your heart, domestic peace in your home, or eternal peace in heaven. It is in Jesus that the love of God breaks through His wrath. The Cross remains the sign of this Peace. It is only in the coming of Jesus that the barriers that are opposed to forgiveness are torn down. The picture of salvation is this: God descends and runs after men and women. If one wishes God’s Peace, this peace can only be found in the One who is the Prince of Peace.
“Jesus Christ came not only to preach a Gospel but to be a Gospel, and He is the Gospel of God in all that He did for the deliverance of mankind.” Jesus is the very heart of God’s Gospel because it is in His Person that God unites the human and the divine natures. It is in Him that one finds peace, because Jesus is the Prince of Peace.
Jesus said “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.(John 14:1-3) The Bible uses a lot of different words to describe heaven. In one place it is called "a country” indicates the vastness of heaven. In another it is called "a city” indicates the number of inhabitants. It is called "a kingdom" indicating that there is a governmental structure to it all. It is called "paradise" indicating its beauty and desirability. But here it is called, "My Father’s house," and that is another way of saying, "It is our home."
A little child, whose mother was dying, was taken away to live with some friends because it was thought she did not understand what death is. All the while the child wanted to go home and see her mother. At last, when the funeral was over, and she was taken home, she ran all over the house, searching the sitting-room, the parlor, the library, and the bedrooms. She went from one end of the house to the other, and when she could not find her mother, she wished to be taken back to where they brought her from. Home had lost its attractions for the child when her mother was not there. My friends, the great attraction in heaven will not be its pearly gates, its golden streets, nor its choir of angels, but it will be Our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Heaven would be no heaven if Christ were not there. When you are in your most severe crisis, the last thing you can hear is often the one thing you need to hear."Let not your heart be troubled, Jesus says, "Believe in God, believe in me."
