Advent : Cherish the Advent Peace
Advent: Cherish the Advent- Peace
Finding Peace in the Manger: A Christmas Reflection
In a world that desperately seeks peace yet rarely finds it, the Christmas story offers us something profoundly different. The angels who filled the night sky over Bethlehem didn't just announce a birth—they proclaimed a promise: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace."
Yet when we look around today, peace seems as elusive as ever. Wars rage. Conflicts simmer. Even in our daily lives, peace unravels with startling speed. A crowded highway during the holiday rush. An impatient driver. A moment of irritation that rises unbidden within us. We all want peace, but too often only on our own terms—after our enemies are defeated, after circumstances align, after the world finally cooperates with our expectations.
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
Before we dive deeper into peace, let's consider a powerful truth from Luke 15: the parable of the lost sheep. Jesus tells of a shepherd who has one hundred sheep and loses just one. What does he do? He leaves the ninety-nine and searches until he finds the lost one. When he does, he joyfully carries it home on his shoulders and celebrates with his friends and neighbors.
Jesus explains that there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who don't need to repent.
This parable reveals something essential about God's character: He pursues us. When we're lost—whether through meanness, disobedience, or simply wandering away—God doesn't rest. Like a magnet that keeps attracting metal, the Good Shepherd keeps searching. He celebrates when the lost are found. This is the heart of Christmas: God coming to find His lost sheep.
No Room at the Inn
One of the most poignant details of the Christmas story is found in Luke's simple statement: "She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them."
Imagine being the innkeeper that night—the person who turned away the family that would give birth to the Messiah. Years later, when pilgrims began visiting Bethlehem to see where Christ was born, that realization must have been overwhelming. The God of the universe came knocking, and there was no room.
Yet even in this rejection, God's will was accomplished. The King of Kings was born not in a palace but in a stable. The Prince of Peace entered a hostile world that had no room for Him. This wasn't a failure of God's plan—it was the plan. Peace doesn't come through power and prestige. It comes through humility and surrender.
The Lowest of the Low
The Christmas story is filled with inversions. God didn't come "down from heaven in splendor with ten thousand angels" at His side. He came as a helpless baby. He became "the lowest of low." There was no room in the inn for a Savior. No power to claim as His own. He was enthroned in a humble manger, worshiped by the lowest of lords.
This is Emmanuel—God with us. Not God above us, demanding our submission through force. Not God distant from us, unreachable in His glory. But God with us, in the mess and the struggle, in the rejection and the cold.
And one day, the story promises, He will return. "The heavens will open in splendor, and the heavenly trumpets will blow." The Lamb who came for slaughter will return as the King of Kings. But for now, we live in the tension between the manger and the throne.
Peace Be With You
So what does this mean for our search for peace?
The world offers Pax Romana—peace through empire, through control, through force. We think of peacekeepers as those who enforce order, like holding a grenade tightly and hoping it never explodes. But the tighter we grip, the greater the blast when it's released.
Real peace doesn't come from controlling our circumstances or eliminating our enemies. Real peace comes from receiving Christ within us.
When we look at the manger—at the small, silent child born where animals feed—we discover that peace is not something to be surrounded by but something to be received within. Mary carried peace in her womb even as she carried shame in the eyes of her community. The Prince of Peace entered a hostile world and remained unshaken.
Jesus later spoke these words: "Be still and know that I am God." Be still in the noise. Be still in the chaos and fear. Know the Great I Am. When the Prince of Peace dwells within us, we become children of peace.
Three Dimensions of Peace
This peace transforms us in three ways:
Peace with God: Through Christ, we are reconciled to our Creator. The hostility between us and God is ended. We are accepted, forgiven, made whole.
Peace within ourselves: We stop striving to earn our worth. We accept that we are accepted. The inner turmoil quiets when we rest in His presence.
Peace with our neighbor: The fruit of the Spirit includes love, joy, and peace. While the flesh produces hatred, envy, and strife, the Spirit teaches us how to love even our enemies.
Peace Today, Not Someday
There's an old song that speaks of peace "in the valley someday"—a beautiful hope for heaven. But here's the wonderful truth: peace doesn't have to wait for someday. Peace can be yours and mine today.
When the Prince of Peace rests in our souls, we carry peace with us into hostile environments. We speak peace in divided spaces. We walk in peace through chaotic circumstances. Not because the world has changed, but because we have been changed from within.
This Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, let's remember that the angels' proclamation wasn't just about a distant future. "On earth, peace" begins now, in every heart that welcomes the Prince of Peace.
The child in the manger is the Great I Am, the fullness of peace dwelling among us. And when He dwells within us, we become carriers of that same peace to a world that desperately needs it.
May the peace of the Lord be with you this season and forevermore.
In a world that desperately seeks peace yet rarely finds it, the Christmas story offers us something profoundly different. The angels who filled the night sky over Bethlehem didn't just announce a birth—they proclaimed a promise: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace."
Yet when we look around today, peace seems as elusive as ever. Wars rage. Conflicts simmer. Even in our daily lives, peace unravels with startling speed. A crowded highway during the holiday rush. An impatient driver. A moment of irritation that rises unbidden within us. We all want peace, but too often only on our own terms—after our enemies are defeated, after circumstances align, after the world finally cooperates with our expectations.
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
Before we dive deeper into peace, let's consider a powerful truth from Luke 15: the parable of the lost sheep. Jesus tells of a shepherd who has one hundred sheep and loses just one. What does he do? He leaves the ninety-nine and searches until he finds the lost one. When he does, he joyfully carries it home on his shoulders and celebrates with his friends and neighbors.
Jesus explains that there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who don't need to repent.
This parable reveals something essential about God's character: He pursues us. When we're lost—whether through meanness, disobedience, or simply wandering away—God doesn't rest. Like a magnet that keeps attracting metal, the Good Shepherd keeps searching. He celebrates when the lost are found. This is the heart of Christmas: God coming to find His lost sheep.
No Room at the Inn
One of the most poignant details of the Christmas story is found in Luke's simple statement: "She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them."
Imagine being the innkeeper that night—the person who turned away the family that would give birth to the Messiah. Years later, when pilgrims began visiting Bethlehem to see where Christ was born, that realization must have been overwhelming. The God of the universe came knocking, and there was no room.
Yet even in this rejection, God's will was accomplished. The King of Kings was born not in a palace but in a stable. The Prince of Peace entered a hostile world that had no room for Him. This wasn't a failure of God's plan—it was the plan. Peace doesn't come through power and prestige. It comes through humility and surrender.
The Lowest of the Low
The Christmas story is filled with inversions. God didn't come "down from heaven in splendor with ten thousand angels" at His side. He came as a helpless baby. He became "the lowest of low." There was no room in the inn for a Savior. No power to claim as His own. He was enthroned in a humble manger, worshiped by the lowest of lords.
This is Emmanuel—God with us. Not God above us, demanding our submission through force. Not God distant from us, unreachable in His glory. But God with us, in the mess and the struggle, in the rejection and the cold.
And one day, the story promises, He will return. "The heavens will open in splendor, and the heavenly trumpets will blow." The Lamb who came for slaughter will return as the King of Kings. But for now, we live in the tension between the manger and the throne.
Peace Be With You
So what does this mean for our search for peace?
The world offers Pax Romana—peace through empire, through control, through force. We think of peacekeepers as those who enforce order, like holding a grenade tightly and hoping it never explodes. But the tighter we grip, the greater the blast when it's released.
Real peace doesn't come from controlling our circumstances or eliminating our enemies. Real peace comes from receiving Christ within us.
When we look at the manger—at the small, silent child born where animals feed—we discover that peace is not something to be surrounded by but something to be received within. Mary carried peace in her womb even as she carried shame in the eyes of her community. The Prince of Peace entered a hostile world and remained unshaken.
Jesus later spoke these words: "Be still and know that I am God." Be still in the noise. Be still in the chaos and fear. Know the Great I Am. When the Prince of Peace dwells within us, we become children of peace.
Three Dimensions of Peace
This peace transforms us in three ways:
Peace with God: Through Christ, we are reconciled to our Creator. The hostility between us and God is ended. We are accepted, forgiven, made whole.
Peace within ourselves: We stop striving to earn our worth. We accept that we are accepted. The inner turmoil quiets when we rest in His presence.
Peace with our neighbor: The fruit of the Spirit includes love, joy, and peace. While the flesh produces hatred, envy, and strife, the Spirit teaches us how to love even our enemies.
Peace Today, Not Someday
There's an old song that speaks of peace "in the valley someday"—a beautiful hope for heaven. But here's the wonderful truth: peace doesn't have to wait for someday. Peace can be yours and mine today.
When the Prince of Peace rests in our souls, we carry peace with us into hostile environments. We speak peace in divided spaces. We walk in peace through chaotic circumstances. Not because the world has changed, but because we have been changed from within.
This Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, let's remember that the angels' proclamation wasn't just about a distant future. "On earth, peace" begins now, in every heart that welcomes the Prince of Peace.
The child in the manger is the Great I Am, the fullness of peace dwelling among us. And when He dwells within us, we become carriers of that same peace to a world that desperately needs it.
May the peace of the Lord be with you this season and forevermore.
Posted in Advent
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