Micheal Hurlbert
On the day of Jesus’ birth, angels announced his arrival as good news proclaiming peace on all those with whom his favor rests. But what is peace, and how do we obtain it?
Many define peace negatively by saying it is the absence of conflict. However, peace has a positive side as well. Peace is the presence of wholeness. At its root, the Hebrew word for peace means to be whole. It could describe an unbroken wall that surrounds a city. If the wall is whole, the people inside are at peace. But a fracture or gap in the wall opens it to conflicts from outside. As a result, the city is unable to have peace.
On a theological level, God created the world to be at peace, but sin put a fracture in the creation’s wall. On the sixth day, God stood back and looked at his creation and saw its was “very good.” Genesis 1:31. Knowing what he made was good or whole, God rested from his work on the seventh day. Genesis 2:1-2. There was no chaos in creation, only peace, which allowed for rest. Then conflict came with the choice. Humanity could trust God by taking him at his word or give in to the desire to be like him by eating from the fruit of the tree. They chose to eat the fruit, fracturing the peace of creation and giving it over to frustration.
Since then, God has been working to restore peace in his creation. He made a covenant of peace with Israel in which their righteous lifestyle would lead to peace as God who dwelled among them in a tabernacle and later in the temple. Unfortunately, the people could not live up to their obligations of the covenant. The prophet, Isaiah, wrote “If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.” Isaiah 48:18. Just as in the garden, Israel’s inability to follow God’s commands led to conflict and robbed them of peace.
God is still working to bring peace today. This is the good news proclaimed to shepherds tending their flocks by night. The angels appeared to them, and glory shone around them. The shepherds were terrified, but the angels calmed them with words of peace. There was no reason to fear. In the town of David, a savior, the Messiah, the Lord, was born and was sleeping in a manger. The entire company of angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest of heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:14. It is the birth of the Messiah, Jesus, that brings peace on earth!
Since this is the case, we understand that the peace which came on Christmas is a gift God gave us through the presence of his son. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.”
John 14:27. We should note that Jesus’s peace was not the absence of conflict within the world. The disciples he spoke to were sure to encounter trials while living their lives.
Instead, his peace is the presence of wholeness in the relationship between God and man. It was accomplished on the cross and proclaimed by Jesus to his disciples when he entered the room post-resurrection and declared, “Peace be with you.” John 20:19.
Today, we are at peace with God through Christ. Still, staying focused on this peace is difficult. When viewed from ground level, the world is not at peace. We can easily get caught up in this chaos and forget that peace with God transcends the world’s circumstances. To find peace this Christmas, Christians must remember that Jesus is its source, and he is sitting at the right hand of God in heaven.
Michael Hurlbert is pastor at First Christian Church.