Where Is Our Peace?

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on the third Sunday in Advent, the 12th of December, 2021, at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  Our YouTube streaming channel is: 

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDIz4WuP8igQstkEOq1AMTg.  Look for the video of our recorded services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

Family, this morning our choir sang the beautiful anthem, “Peace, Peace”, and you joined in with “Silent Night, Holy Night”.  Peace on earth, a quiet night…  That’s how we envision the night our Savior Jesus was born into the world as a mortal babe, born like one of us, born of flesh and blood.  Quiet, and peaceful.

But where is our peace?  How many of our nights can be described as quiet and peaceful?  Gunshots and sirens too often punctuate the silence.  Loud vehicles, radios, or people shouting at each other wake us from our slumbers.  The daylight hours are even worse.  And our round-the-clock newscasts seem little more than announcements of the latest spurts of violence throughout the world.  Where is our peace?

Please listen and follow along to what Jesus said about peace as recorded for us by the Apostle Matthew in chapter 24, verses 1 through 13 of his Gospel account, and I’ll be reading this from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible…

1 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, epidemics, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.”

--Matthew 24:1-13 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Father God, thank You for Your promise of redemption and eternal life through Your Son Jesus.  As the end draws near, peace will be hard to find.  Thank You, Father, for standing by us and staying with us through troublesome times.  Please help us endure to the very end.  Help us stay true to our calling no matter what each day brings.  And help us to do as You will and not just what we are comfortable doing.  Please keep us strong in our faith and of one mind and one purpose in our service to Christ Jesus.  Please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  And Father, please shield us from all of Satan’s tricks and schemes.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit and better understand the message You have for us this morning.  Give us the inner peace that can come only from You, the peace that will help us survive these angry times.  This we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.   Amen.

It has been reported that Duke University once did a study on "peace of mind."  Some factors found to contribute greatly to emotional and mental stability, that add to our peace of mind, include: 

1. The absence of suspicion and resentment.  Nursing a grudge was a major factor in unhappiness. 
2. Not living in the past.  An unwholesome preoccupation with old mistakes and failures leads to depression.
3. Not wasting time and energy fighting conditions you cannot change.  Cooperate with life, instead of trying to run away from it.
4. Force yourself to stay involved with the living world.  Resist the temptation to withdraw and become reclusive during periods of emotional stress.
5. Refuse to indulge in self-pity when life hands you a raw deal.  Accept the fact that nobody gets through life without some sorrow and misfortune.
6. Cultivate the old-fashioned virtues -- love, humor, compassion and loyalty.
7. Do not expect too much of yourself.  When there is too wide a gap between self-expectation and your ability to meet the goals you have set, feelings of inadequacy are inevitable.
8. Find something bigger than yourself to believe in.  Self-centered egotistical people score lowest in any test for measuring happiness.

I hope you can see that more than a few of those points can be traced back to our unwillingness to forgive others of their wrongs or perceived slights.  Nursing a grudge, living in the past, wasting time and energy fighting conditions we can’t change, withdrawing into a world of our own, having little personal pity parties, not loving others as Jesus loves us, as Jesus commands us.

All of those, along with expecting too much of ourselves, can absolutely destroy our peace of mind.  And sadly, peace of mind is about the only peace we can expect these days.  So let’s be quick to forgive, and quicker still to love.

When Jesus came to us the first time, He came quietly, with very few noticing His birth.  Had it not been for the angel’s announcement, even the nearby shepherds watching over their sheep would have missed the event.  The silence of that night was broken only by the heavenly host, as the Apostle Luke tells us in chapter 2 of his Gospel account, where in verses 13 and 14 we read…

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

14 “Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

--Luke 2:13-14 (NKJV)

“And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”  That sure didn’t last very long, did it.  The peace and goodwill of that holy night quickly faded.

We know very little about Jesus as a youth, which is understandable since the Gospel writers didn’t know Him until He was an adult and into His ministry.  As an adult, Jesus soon became the target of the plots and schemes of the Jewish religious leaders, even to the point of their planning how to have Him killed.  So Jesus knew what it was like to suffer trials and endure hardships.  And in chapter 16 of the Apostle John’s Gospel account, verses 32 and 33, Jesus warns us of what we face…

32 “But the time is coming — indeed it’s here now — when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving Me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with Me. 33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

--John 16:32-33 (NLT)

Jesus said, “I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.”  We are never alone because our Father God is always with us.  But what do we have to look forward to here on earth?  Jesus says many trials and sorrows.

In our earlier scripture reading from Matthew’s Gospel account, Jesus talks about the end times and the horrible events that will occur then.  And to me, the most frightening thing He says is that all of these are only the beginning of sorrows.  After everything He just said, there’s even more to come - more trials, more sorrows.  Where is our peace?

I could not find the source of the statement, but it’s been said that safety consists not in the absence of danger, but in the presence of God.  I believe the same certainly applies to peace.

Our peace can come from the last part of what I just read from John, where Jesus says, “take heart, because I have overcome the world.”  Our world, this mortal life, may be falling apart all around us, but Jesus has already conquered and transcended the world.  He has fought the battle and won.  And it was all done for us.

So take heart, and be at peace.  This is what Jesus wants, that we can find an inner peace that will allow us to shut out the noise and chaos of the world around us.  In chapter 14 verse 27 of John’s Gospel account, Jesus leaves us with these beautiful words of reassurance…

27 “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

--John 14:27 (NKJV)

The world’s peace is transient, short-lived, usually filled with deceit and broken promises.  Even if there is peace on one front, disorder and conflict and hardships abound on other sides.  True, lasting peace in the world is only a dream, an unfulfilled wish.  But the peace that Jesus offers, that only He can give, is true and lasting, for it is an inner peace that settles the storms raging within us.

Again I could not trace the source, but it was said that the peace that Jesus gives is not the absence of trouble, but is rather the confidence that He is there with you always.  He is with us always.

Looking a little further in John’s Gospel account, in chapter 20, verse 21, we read…

21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

--John 20:21 (NKJV)

The word “apostle” comes from the Greek word meaning “one who is sent out”.  Biblically, it is one who is sent out by God, or for God.  God the Father sent Jesus His Son out into the world to offer us salvation.  God the Son Jesus sends us out into the world to make new disciples, teaching them all about Him and what He did, and helping them to salvation.

And what does He give us to equip us for that task?  Peace.  Peace - not as the world gives peace, but a peace that surpasses all understanding, the peace that comes from the presence of God and in knowing that He is with us always.

Where is our peace?  It’s right here, in our hearts, placed there by Jesus, who will never forsake us.

Peace on earth and goodwill to men may be a pipe dream, but the peace of God is real.  It may surpass our understanding, but if we dwell on that peace, if we abide in the love of Jesus, then all the turmoil around us will subside, the drama will fade.

Trust in the Lord, accept His peace, and endure to the end.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus, our Lord.  Peace to you.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Father God, thank You first and foremost for sending Your own Son into this world to offer us salvation and eternal life.  By this act, Father, You showed how much You love us, how much You want us to be able to live with You for all eternity.  Thank You, Father, for so great a love.  And thank You, too, for blessing us with Your peace, the peace knowing You are always with us.  Sometimes though, Father, the trials and troubles of this world chip away at our peace until there is none left, and fear takes its place.  Sometimes the events happening around us crush any love we may have to give.  Please forgive us those times when our faith and conviction falter, when we rail away at the storm rather than facing it with the courage You’ve given us.  Please help us feel You peace in our hearts.  Remind us that You will never leave us or forsake us.  Encourage us and strengthen us as we strive to carry out the work Your Son left for us.  Please keep us strong in our spirit, in our faith, and in our service to You and Jesus.  And please help us remain strong and true during these trouble-filled times we now live in.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You from our hearts through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more faithful and true, putting all our trust in You and Jesus, and seeking Your help as we do so…

Lord Jesus, You came to us in obedience of our Father’s command.  You came to offer us redemption and salvation from our sin.  And when we accept You as Lord, You give us peace - a true and lasting peace, not the short-lived peace the world can offer.  Thank You, Jesus, for loving us.  Thank you for giving us peace, for helping us through the tough times, for always being with us.  Lord, we ask You to help us truly know and feel Your peace even as the world sinks into chaos all around us.  Help us endure to the end of the age.  Help us stay true to You and faithful no matter what trial we may face.  Strengthen our will to do what our Father God wills us to do.  Help us to be more loving, more understanding, kinder to all we encounter each day.  And please help us as we try to show Your love to all we encounter in our daily walk.  All this we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.