Christmas 2024 God of Peace
Selective Scriptures
Good morning everyone…Christmas is a great time of year for most and a great time of stress for a lot of people.
Christmas gives us a chance to be with people we love and being with people we love can sometimes get stressful.
Kids are kept up late and ran to exhaustion and they put the parents on their last nerve and if we are not careful, we can say or do things that cause us stress and tension.
We try to take several families and lives and blend them into a time of celebration.
We began the Advent season last week looking at Jesus being the Hope for mankind.
That hope had to be more than wishful thinking, but someone who we could put our trust in and someone who would not let us down.
Christ coming to mankind allows us to hope in the God of the universe, the creator of all things, Instead of hoping in ourselves and being lost in our sins, or looking to other people who often let us down and don’t meet expectations we put to them.
Romans 15:13-
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may be filled with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Instead of chasing joy and peace and most of the time feeling empty when we do not find it, God instructs us that He desires to fill us with Joy and peace.
Godly Joy and peace are a gift from God to the people of God.
He desires to do that in the life of every believer.
Today we look at God’s peace. He says that He offers to fill us with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may be filled with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
That will preach every time!
Phil. 4:7-
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ.”
The peace of God that is offered, we will not be able to understand fully in our normal
Because He is God and we are not.
He promises to keeps our hearts, and our minds centered on Christ, who is our supplier of joy and peace.
Isaiah 9:6-
“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.”
The Christmas story is the story of God.
When I was in Bible college years ago, professor Lodaul who wrote the course the story of God made it abundantly clear that the story of God was all about Jesus and Him coming to redeem mankind.
From the very beginning, we see a God that had compassion for a fallen world and provided a plan of redemption that would involve His coming.
It would involve His miraculous birth and His persecution, his prophetic announcement ahead of time that was recorded in God’s Word to God’s people, all the way to the cross with His death and then His glorious resurrection.
His plan and His story. In His story, we also get to have a happy eternal ending. Those that accept His plan of redemption can not only enjoy eternal life with Him, but can enjoy the benefit of joy and peace now.
Our text this morning is two verses both from the gospel of John.
John 14:27-
“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 16:33-
“I have told you these things, so that in me you will have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
The first thing we need to do is define God’s peace.
Question: "What does the Bible say about peace?"
Peace is something everyone wants, yet few seem to find.
What is peace? It can be defined as “tranquility, harmony, or security.” Depending on the situation, it could mean “prosperity” or “well-being.”
Various forms of the word peace are found 429 times in the King James Version of the Bible.
There are different types of peace…inner peace from God, a peace that we can have with God and peace with man, including a false peace that come from the enemy of our soul that will pull us away from the Lord.
"What is the peace of God, and how can you and I experience it?"
Philippians 4:7 refers to “the peace of God which transcends all understanding.
Most of Paul’s letters began with the words
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Peace is a state of tranquility or quietness of spirit that transcends circumstances.
The term peace is described in Scripture as a gift from God and in harmony with His character. (1 Thessalonians 5:23; Galatians 6:16; 1 Peter 1:2; Hebrews 13:20).
If God is peace, then to know God is to bask in His peace. The closer we draw to Him, the more of His peace we can enjoy (James 4:8).
So how do we draw near enough to experience His peace? Jesus said, “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”.
We come into the presence of the Lord through His Son (John 14:6). When we allow Jesus’ death and resurrection to purchase our forgiveness from God, we are counted as righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our sins are forgiven because Jesus already paid the price for them. Only then can we have peace with God (Romans 4:5; 5:1; 1 John 4:10).
1Peter 1:2 says, “May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord”
Peace I leave with you, peace I give you…peter prays that more peace is given to us as we grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
When we grow in understanding of the depths and riches of God’s love toward us our minds and spirits begin to rest in His power and wisdom.
We begin to understand that He really will make all things work together for our good (Romans 8:28)
We learn that His purposes will be accomplished (Psalm 33:11; Proverbs 19:21; Isaiah 45:9; 46:9–11).
Those shepherds in that field on that miraculous night were given the miraculous sign to go find the savior .To go and experience for themselves Jesus the Son of God.
Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd, who would humbly follow God’s will. Those sheep represent us in more ways than we want to admit.
Sheep cannot clean themselves. Some animals such as a cat can do that, but not sheep. Likewise, we as unbelievers were not able to clean ourselves from the filthiness of sin;
Sheep cannot defend themselves from predators. Many animals have a defense system, such as skunks and blowfish, but sheep do not. We as believers are protected from the evil one, Satan, ultimately by the power of God.
Sheep cannot find spiritual food and water for themselves. They depend upon the shepherd to lead them to water and green pastures, as stated in Psalm 23. We as believers depend upon the Lord for our spiritual food and water, as well as on our daily physical needs;
How do you live your life? Do you live in the peace of God or in self?
The promise of the coming of Christ should motivate us to live in peace with one another and with God.
We can’t wish away the conflict and terror in today’s world.
We can choose to live our lives in a different way from the world--in a way that will bring peace to us individually.
How have we missed it?
I think it is because we have not fully realized what Jesus came to bring us.
When we try to make it on our own, we forfeit peace. We fail to realize that when we come to Christ He not only becomes our Savior, but He wants to become the LORD OF OUR LIFE.
Too often when He works a miracle in our life we say, “OK, thanks, but I can handle it from here.”
We want to pick and choose. And then on our own, peace flies out the door.
We need his wisdom as to how to make daily decisions.
We need His power to be able to live an overcoming life when stresses try to tear us down.
We need his counsel when we are confused and don’t know which way to turn.
We sometimes choose just enough of Jesus to “get by” and never make Him Lord of our lives where peace flows from God.
Some of us this morning are just getting by…We never make Him Lord so we never experience His peace for our lives.
Isaiah 48:16 says,
“I am the Lord your God who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid attention to my counsel, your PEACE would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea.”
Scripture reminds us that we don’t get peace by just doing as we please and living our lives any old way to suit ourselves. It is when we come into right standing with God and seek to follow His ways that peace will be there.
Peace comes with repentance--by turning around and going a different way.
Peace comes with turning towards God --not away from Him.
Surviving the Most Wonderful Time of the Year (sing) except if you are going through tough times.
For some joyous and some the hardest time of the year.
Article I read said this;
Joseph & Mary had been planning a wedding until God told them to prepare a nursery.
Joseph was planning on marrying his sweetheart, drawing up house plans, carving their marriage bed...BIG PLANS.
Mary was planning an elaborate wedding, picking out China patterns, looking for the perfect lingerie for the honeymoon...BIG PLANS.
Can you imagine a 15 year old Mary going to her 20 something finance’ and Joseph starts talking about floor plans and wall color...Mary says, "Joe, honey, we need to talk....I’m pregnant."
Joseph could have really blown this one.
Are you not glad that they got this right?
That they listened to God more than the bad advice I am sure was going around?
Took the hard road that was right rather than the easy road that would have been wrong.
There are certain things that will destroy the peace of God-
Assuming that God will give us everything we want and we do not have to give back anything to God.
Thinking that we will this life with all the hurts in it without knowing disappointment from others.
Worrying is the enemy of peace, not a real comforter.
Trust comes when we set our hearts on God and we allow God’s peace to overshadow our doubts and fears.
God invites us to cast all our doubts and fears on Him and He brings us peace.
I told you before that the place in your heart for Jesus is where peace and trust lives even in times of trouble.
It becomes a lifestyle rather than a behavior that can change when we are in danger or unpleasant circumstances.
The secret place in our heart is where we go to be with God.
Closing,
There is a 16 year old girl named Rifqa Bary, a girl that left the Muslim faith, not in Syria, Afghanistan, but in Ohio. Born into a strict Muslim family where her father said that he would kill her if she left the Muslim faith for the Christian faith.
How does one find peace in that setting?
How does one risk their own life to pursue a faith that upsets people around them?
It is only by the grace and mercy of God.
It is only by God giving her a peace that passes all understanding, and an inner assurance that it will be alright no matter what happens.
Peace with God brings the peace of God. Repeat.
The world will continue to have wars and conflicts until Jesus comes to establish true, lasting peace, but God will give His peace to those who trust Him.
Amen.
