Christmas can mean so many things …
For my kids… presents
For many …. Family time… which may involve the warmth or challenge of being together.
For many… a little break at the end of a busy year.
What lies in the heart of God this morning? What is heaven celebrating?
> PEACE
Luke 2:14
"Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
We find the proclamation of peace is at the center of what God held at hand in the birth of Christ.
Isaiah 9:6-7
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.
[7] Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
Perhaps you find the sense of peace to be a bit of a paradox at Christmas… You may find peace hard to hold onto… as you go through the busyness of the Christmas season.
Joke – Two men on the eastern seaboard… dropped off their wives at the mall… went sailing… storm…capsize… as they hang on to the boat tossed about… one says, ”Man, this sure beats the shopping mall.”
Yet when quieter moments are found… there is that feeling in the air… a peace like no other… that somehow these events fill the world with new meaning and hope.
On a global level we still see the need as striking as ever before. At no other Christmas in my lifetime has the issue of peace stood more significantly in the backdrop of our lives.We are living in a time of war… when the world is filled with the knowledge of hatreds and mistrust.
Yesterday… a new government was pronounced in Afghanistan… surrounded by ‘peacekeeping’ troops to control the tendency towards ethnic violence.
Today… as the city of Bethlehem… the Bethlehem hotel which has 210 rooms for all who come to celebrate Christmas Eve in the town of Christ’s birth…announced it has 208 vacancies.
It has been almost three thousand years since Isaiah made his prophecy. Of those years only about three hundred of them are recorded without some war going on somewhere on the face of the earth.
During this time we are told there have been almost eight thousand peace treaties made and broken.
Still we sense that the celebration of Christmas… birth of Christ… offers a hope unlike any other… a work which offers peace even in a world of conflict.
Perhaps you’ve heard of the famous Christmas truce that occurred during
World War I, on Christmas Eve of 1914, that first year of the War. German and
British forces were facing each other on the battlefield, each in their muddy
trenches, separated by a strip of flat, ugly land intersected with barbed wire.
The air was cold and frosty, of course, because it was winter, and
things were very quiet. Both sides had to keep alert, however, as there was
the odd shadowy figure creeping across the no-man’s land.
Suddenly, the British soldiers were amazed to see lights coming on,
along the line of then enemy trenches. Then came the unbelievable sound of
singing— German soldiers raising their voices to "Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht"
— the familiar verses of "Silent Night" ending in "...sleep in heavenly
peace". When the sound died away, the British soldiers replied with "The First
Noel".
Back and forth, the singing went on for about an hour. Then there were
voices of invitation to cross over to enemy lines. One German with great
courage started walking across the "no man’s land", and was soon followed by
some of his buddies, all with their hands in their pockets to show that they
had no weapons.
When they’d crossed over to the enemy trench, one German soldier said,
"I’m a Saxon, you are Anglo-Saxons. Why do we fight?"
The soldiers on both sides started to talk together and decided to
declare peace for one day, beginning in the morning, Christmas morning. As
Christmas Day passed, without the usual noise of gunfire and mortar-fire, even
the wild birds returned, and the soldiers fed them.
The high commanders on both sides were very displeased. They knew that
friendships formed between declared enemies would hinder the business of
warfare.
What of the peace within us? Safe to say that the human soul longs for peace as much as it ever has..
· Social scientists say that anxiety comes from rapid change… and that such change has become so rapid that it’s off the charts.
· Survey taken by the National Center for Health & Statistics… found more than half have suffered moderate to excessive stress in the past two weeks.
· Government says it costs the U.S. economy 150 billion dollars / year in losses due to stress related problems.
· Former surgeon general – 2 out of every 3 illnesses prior to the age of 65 are preventable and directly related to stress.
> Good News…God places peace at the center of Christmas… but the Bible also makes clear that God has a different perspective on peace than we often do.
We think of peace as simply the absence of something… but peace in the Bible is rooted in the Hebrew word “shalom’ … expresses not simply the absence of something, but the vitality of wholeness… of being connected…. Of being settled and secure. (Like the satisfaction when you’re around someone who leaves you feeling more alive.)
A sentiment that Martin Luther King was fond of: "True peace is not merely the absence of some negative force, tension or war, it is the presence of some positive force, justice, good will, brotherhood."
Peace is not the absence of trouble, but the presence of God.
> The peace of Christmas…the peace that comes from God…is not circumstantial.
Couple who became afraid of nuclear war… moved to Falkland Islands.
John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
> Jesus tells us we can …Expect trouble… experience peace.
Some people have said God is used as a crutch in life. In truth, we have a world of crutches…ways to distract us from our lack of peace… whether pills, possessions, people, … which simply can’t provide a settled and secure peace… can’t eliminate the underlying inner conflict.
From a Biblical perspective… God’s perspective… the root of conflict is an estrangement from God… that leaves us unsettled and longing …
· Goes back to that of Cain and Abel…. There is insecurity with God…. that begins to resent others….
· Why did Herod call for the killing of all babies under the age of two?…Insecurity breeds contempt at every level…
· From Herod to Hitler… from Columbine to Palestine… insecurity breeds contempt at every level.
· I would venture to say that the challenges we face in marriage are caused less by incompatibility than insecurity.
· The Bible says that at the core of our human condition lies an inner conflict… a lack of peace about ourselves… that no pill, thrill, position, possession, or person can take away.
> What we long for is the FAVOR OF GOD… to know that the very source of all life…of our lives… can embrace us and bless us.
Luke 2:14
… on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
Whom does God favor? He favors those who receive His Son: the Prince of Peace. If you were to send a daughter or a son into the world in order to make a difference for the good of others and they were rejected, ignored or mistreated, would you favor that community? If your child had been well received, believed and embraced, would you not favor that community?
Within this picture of peace is the Prince of Peace and those who have received Him and have a personal relationship with Him. As John says, "To all who received Him, he gave the right to become children of God." > God is offering a peace treaty.
Continuing Unnecessary Battle
On March 10, 1974, Lt. Hiroo Onada was the last World War II Japanese soldier to surrender.
Onada had been left on the island Lubang in the Philippines on December 25, 1944, with the command to "carry on the mission even if Japan surrenders." Four other Japanese soldiers were left on the island as Japan evacuated Lubang. One soldier surrendered in 1950. Another was killed in a skirmish with local police in 1954. Another was killed in 1972. Onada continued his war alone.
All efforts to convince him to surrender or to capture him failed. He ignored messages from loudspeakers announcing Japan’s surrender and that Japan was now an ally of the United States. Leaflets were dropped over the jungle begging him to surrender so he could return to Japan. He refused to believe or surrender.
Over the years he lived off the land and raided the fields and gardens of local citizens. He was responsible for killing at least 30 nationals during his 29 year personal war. Almost a half million dollars was spent trying to locate and convince him to surrender. 13,000 men were used to try to locate him.
Finally, on March 10, 1974, almost 30 years after World War II ended, Onada surrendered his rusty sword after receiving a personal command from his former superior officer, who read the terms of the cease-fire order. Onada handed his sword to President Marcos, who pardoned him. The war was over.
Onada was 22-years-old when left on the island. He returned a prematurely aged man of 52. Onada stated, "Nothing pleasant happened in the 29 years in the jungle."
Like Onada, many people are fighting a lonely battle against the God who is offering reconciliation and peace. (Citation: Summarized from a 1974 story in Newsweek)
> The battle can be over… there is favor.
This is the peace that transcends our circumstances….
2 Thes. 3:16
…may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.
… Beyond circumstances…and
Beyond Ourselves….
Philip. 4:7
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
‘transcends all understanding’ – Doesn’t mean just a feeling you can’t explain… it meanslietrally, “to hold above”… above human reach.
The Bible says that this life-giving peace comes only when the human spirit is united with the Spirit of Christ…. which has now been born into this world.
Isaiah 9 – “prince of peace”- in the culture of the times… didn’t refer to one preparing to be king… = exclusive owner.
John 14:27…. Just as he’s leaving the earth… expresses his very purpose and desire…
"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" (John 14:27 RSV).
> He has come to give us His peace…. that of a child’s settled and secure position.
John 14:1-3
1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
When Jesus Christ is in the heart, we do not have to worry about a home at the end of the way.
It’s the peace of the one who holds the meaning of life … of eternity… in His being.
Part of the idea behind the Hebrew word for peace, Shalom means "to bind together the fragments of life into a meaningful whole." When you are assured that all things will work out in your life for an ultimate meaning that makes perfect sense, you have peace.
Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
With such peace existing in Christ… we may wonder why those who know Christ often don’t walk in such peace.
> Because it can easily be robbed from us.
As we close this morning, let me mention three ways in which we can protect the peace of Christ in us… as described in Philippians 4:6-9
1. Prayer
Philip. 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. [7] And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
‘guard your hearts’ – the feeling process…’your minds’ – the thinking process
> Prayer allows the peace of Christ to become a guard… a sentinel over our hearts and minds
Often we lose peace because we lose prayer… our connection with God.
Perhaps you’ve read some of the recent articles describing how the medical and scientific community is recognizing the power of prayer.
USA Today article some years back… “Healing Power of Prayer” – quotes Dr. Dorcey, the chief of staff of Medical City of Dallas Hospital as saying,
“I have come to regard prayer as one of the best kept secrets of medical sciences.”
> We’re just recognizing what God has always said about peace.
2. Perspective
Philip. 4:8
“ …., whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.”
· When I think about that simple principle… I think of how far our culture is from naturally focusing on such things.
· When I think of whatever is true…right… pure…lovely….admirable… it doesn’t describe a lot of what the evening news portrays…. Certainly not Friday 13th… part 67.
· More like “Whatever is dark, whatever is distracting, deceptive… tells you your inadequate…makes you envious… sensational… dwell on these things.”
3. Practice
Philip. 4:9
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”
If there is some secret sin in our lives that we’re not confronting… the first thing to go is our peace.
Closing:
Each of us needs peace …. The type of peace that transcends our circumstances… that settles and secures our souls. That’s the peace which Christ offers to each of us…
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" (John 14:27 RSV).
Following his resurrection from the dead we hear our Lord greeting his apostles on three different occasions with "Peace be with you" (John 20:19, 21, 26 RSV).
Let’s receive His peace.
