Christmas Devotions (3/3)
What is peace? The Oxford Learner’s Dictionary defines it as “a situation or a period of time in which there is no war or violence in a country or an area”, or also “the state of being calm or quiet.” However, with the Hebrew word for peace, shalom, there is a much richer meaning where it is not just the absence of conflict, but the idea of making something complete; to bring it or restore it to completeness (Check out this Bible Project video). We will explore these different aspects of peace in three parts, each one leading into the next: peace with God, peace that comes from God, and how Jesus is our peace. This Christmas season, would we be reminded of the wonderful gift of peace.
1. Peace with God
The first facet of peace to explore is having peace with God. Since the Fall (Genesis 3), humans have been separated from Him, having become slaves to the passions of our flesh and the desires of our body and mind (Ephesians 2:3). We have become friends of the world! But friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4); how are we to have peace with God when we hate Him?
It is thus how the Gospel introduces the first part of peace, this peace with God: we are reconciled into right relationship with God, forgiven of our sins and no longer condemned. We not only have no more conflict with God, but that broken relationship with God is now restored to completeness — the created with their Creator, the clay with their Potter.
“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:18)
We are no longer friends with the world, nor are we of the world. Reconciliation with God means peace with God, and now enmity with the world: “If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:19)
Here are some other verses to think through with regards to peace with God:
““Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”” (Jeremiah 31:31–34)
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)
Know that these are all pointing to the person of Jesus Christ! More of that to come in point 3, where we discuss how Christ is our peace.
2. Peace that comes from God
The Gospel is so rich and so powerful — we do not just have peace with God, but also peace that comes from God. This is much more than what the Oxford dictionary described as “a state of being calm or quiet” as it is directly from God, knowing that He is in control: His sovereignty, omnipotence, omnipresence and power.
The Gospel brings us peace, and the Gospel comes from God. Even from the Fall, God has promised a plan of redemption and salvation, that the offspring of the woman would crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3). Hundreds of years before Jesus came along, the prophet Micah prophesied His birth (Micah 5:1–5). God is faithful even when we are not; He keeps his promises and fulfills them all by the very being of who He is. Hebrews 6:16–20 explains this clearly:
“For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”
Now that we know of God’s character, His faithfulness to us and His plan of redemption, how can we not have peace? (Question that will be pondered later in our reflection — why is it that we still struggle with peace?)
Paul reminds us that “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7). This peace, we may not be able to fully explain it, but we can still experience it day-to-day and be thankful, knowing that our peace cannot be taken away as it comes from God who is the everlasting One.
Some other verses to reflect upon:
“Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.” (Joshua 21:45)
“fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)
“For you shall go out in joy, and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” (Isaiah 55:12)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22–23)
3. Christ is our Peace
As we explored earlier, many of these aspects of peace point to the person of Jesus Christ, and that is our focus as we are in the Christmas season. The fulfillment of God’s plan of salvation is found in Jesus, and without him we would not have the Gospel: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). It is only through Jesus and the shedding of His blood on the cross that we can have peace with God.
Jesus is the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) and also the Lord of peace (2 Thessalonians 3:16), reminding us that He (and by extension, his peace) will one day reign forever over all the nations, but also that He rules in our hearts too as believers of Christ. Submitting to Him will bring us the peace that comes from God and also the peace of who Christ is as we continue to spend time with Him, becoming complete and whole in Him.
In times of trouble and fear, we only need to look to Him, our Shepherd (see blog post!), and experience peace: “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). It is evident that Jesus gives us peace, and that He is our peace; let us then celebrate His birth this Christmas with joyful and longing hearts, knowing that our Saviour has come with the gift of peace!
Some other verses to check out:
“And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace.” (Micah 5:4–5a)
“For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.” (Ephesians 2:14–16)
“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” (Colossians 1:19-20)
Reflection & Prayer
Peace with God: In what areas of your life do you find yourself at peace with the world instead of at peace with God? What can you do to become more at peace with God?
Peace that comes from God: What circumstances or events brings you anxiety and worry? Based on that, what does that imply about your beliefs in God?
Then, remind yourself of what you know to be true about God’s character. If you know this to be true, how does that change these circumstances or events and bring you peace?
(If you are interested in this thinking process, check out the book Gospel Fluency by Jeff Vanderstelt! It is the idea of “From Fruit to Root and Root to Fruit”.)
Christ is our Peace: Listen to the hymn Come Thou Long Expected Jesus on YouTube or Spotify (I like the Shane & Shane version). What line(s) are you drawn to? In what ways is Christ the fulfillment of promises and our source of peace? How will you posture your heart to celebrate His birth this Christmas season?
Prayer: Lord, we have all sinned and fallen short of your glory. We are unworthy of you, and yet you have given us a path to be reconciled to you through your Son, Jesus Christ. It is only through our belief in Him and His death and resurrection on the cross that we can have peace with you. God, help us to recognize more and more of who You are: steadfast in love, sovereign over all, always in control. Would this lead us to find peace, knowing fully that our eternal outcome is secure in Jesus’ sacrifice and your unchanging nature. Point us to the long-expected Jesus, that we may celebrate His birth with joyful hearts — that he has come to set His people free from fears and sins, and to reign in our hearts forever. Let us find our rest in Him, and accept His gift of peace with thanksgiving and praise. Amen.
