Written by: Greg Blair
Article source: JOY! Magazine

I was doing some shopping a few days ago and noticed all the Christmas decorations displayed in the shop. Without thinking, I started humming my most favourite Christmas carol, “O Holy Night”. I really love the build up in the song when we sing “Fall on your knees; O hear the Angel voices! O night divine, O night when Christ was born.”

I can just imagine the shepherds and wise men who had come to see the baby Jesus falling on their knees in worship before Him on this incredibly divine night. My mind also raced to the prophetic word Isaiah spoke in chapter 9:6, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

A weary world
And so, as we celebrate Jesus’ birth and as we continue to sing the wonderful carol, we reach the words in the song, “A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices” – I wonder about this line. Certainly, I sense that the world is weary. It seems as if it has been weary for a very long time. Even at the time of Jesus’ birth, the occupation of Israel by the Romans under the rule of Herod, there was a weariness because there was no real peace, even though the Prince of Peace had been born.

The world is in shambles
Down through the ages of history, there has never seemed to be a time of real peace or long stretches of time where peace was prominent. Certainly, in the last few years since 2020, the world has dealt with some unprecedented upheavals that many people have never experienced in their lifetime.

Relentless troubles
It started with the running wildfires in Australia in January 2020 that burnt 47 million acres of land and displaced thousands of people. In early 2020, the World Health Organisation announced that a new coronavirus had broken out in Wuhan, China, and we were told it was under control. But as 2020 progressed, nations shut down as thousands upon thousands of people died directly or indirectly from the virus. Added to that, thousands of refugees were crossing land and sea into Europe and the global stock market hit new lows – driving many economies into recession. That same year, on the 4th August, a massive explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, killed 218 people and injured 7000.

In July 2021 South Africa experienced terrible riots across the nation. February 2022 opened with the Russian invasion of Ukraine causing food, fuel, and commodity shortages and price increases across the globe. Coupled with that we have seen increasing flooding across the globe, wildfires across Europe, Canada, America, and Hawaii, catastrophic earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, and most recently we’ve seen the terrible war break out in Israel.

Where is the Prince of peace?
These last few years have sparked demonstrations, world shifting alliances, and many believers in the Christian world have fallen away from church and have a very heightened look at end times prophecies. The words of “O Holy Night” are definitely on the mark when it says that the world is weary and we can legitimately ask – where is the Prince of peace?

But, what is peace?
For many, peace is symbolised in a baby sleeping under a warm blanket, or enemies laying down their arms and embracing each other, or even depicted in a beautiful sunset on a beach or a person sitting cross-legged with their eyes closed in a yoga position. Statisticians have discovered that in the thousands of years of recorded history, only 8% of that time has there been real world peace – and during that time over 8000 treaties have been made and broken by various nations.

The world can’t offer peace
The world certainly offers us types of or suggestions of peace, but it’s always fleeting, never fully realised, transitory, and in many ways elusive. You must just do this, or that, or say these five things, or read this book, or think on this or that. Every suggestion of peace is offered, but in reality – we never truly find real peace. Certainly, peace is something we all want and all need, yet it seems so elusive. If the Prince of peace has come into this world, why is it so lacking peace, and can we really ever experience peace? I believe that we can. But, let me perhaps first suggest why there is no true, lasting peace that the world can give us. There’s not a lot of peace in the world for a simple reason: we’re the ones living in it.

Peace is not our default setting
As humans, peace is not our default setting. If it was, there would be peace all around us. If there was any type of lasting programme for peace over all these centuries that man has lived, we would have found it by now. But we haven’t. With all of our good intentions we attempt peace – with treaties, negotiations, handshakes, and laying down weapons – but in a moment that can all unravel very quickly because it all depends on the fickleness of our word, our promises, our desires, and unfortunately, these change all the time. Peace is not our default setting. We must be told to, “if possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people” (Rom 12:18 ) and “strive for peace with everyone” (Heb 12:14). These scriptures highlight that peace is something that we must work at because it doesn’t come naturally.

The human heart
Our hearts, the Bible tells us, are hostile to God and His ways (Rom 8:7). The human heart “is deceitful above all things and desperately sick” (Jer 17:9). Even the Christian life is marked by internal struggles against sin (Rom 7:22-23) and external conflicts with other people, including fellow Christians that sabotage our best peace-making efforts.

What is the purpose?
We, human beings, are in many ways the cause for there being no peace, because we are not at peace with God who is the giver of peace. Numbers 6:26 tells us, “The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” So, what was the purpose then of Jesus, the babe in Bethlehem, being called the Prince of Peace – if we are not at peace with each other and with God?

1. Its only in Jesus that we have peace with God
If, as the Bible says, we are at war with God, then it would make sense that the first and most necessary peace is the one that Jesus’ death on the cross brings, the one Paul speaks of in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…”

Receiving Jesus’ offer
This peace comes from acknowledging and receiving Jesus’ offer of the gift of eternal life, brought about by His death and resurrection and the removal of our enmity between God and ourselves. Because of Christ’s sacrifice, we are restored to a relationship of peace with God (Rom 5:1). This is the deep, abiding peace between our hearts and our Creator that cannot be taken away (John 10:27-28).

The ultimate peace
This peace from Jesus, the Prince of peace, is the ultimate peace that makes any and all other peace possible. It unlocks the door of our hearts and minds to genuine forgiveness, generosity, obedience, and love – which can and must be extended to our community to bring about reconciliation, healing, change, and justice. Christmas reminds us that God sent His Son into this world to open this door of peace to our hearts.

2. In Christ we discover inward peace
Once we have peace with God, we are ready for real peace within. Unfortunately, many do not experience inner peace because they “let” their hearts be troubled. In John 14:1 we read, “Do not let your heart be troubled”, but by letting our hearts be troubled, which we do ourselves, we easily lose our peace. The antidote to this is Isaiah 26:3, which states that God will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, trusting in Him.

Eyes fixed on Him
When Christ is dwelling in us by His Holy Spirit and we keep our minds fixed firmly on Him and His Word, He will guard, protect, hide, and conceal us in His peace. Christmas reminds every believer that Jesus has come into this world, which is not at peace, but when we are hidden in Him, He is the one who walks with us through the troubles. Jesus says in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” We have a saving peace, the peace that we are now in a right relationship with God, but we also have a living peace when Christ dwells in our heart. This is the tranquillity of the heart and soul in the midst of life’s adverse times. Living peace is when our minds are at peace, despite the stabbing pangs of fear, doubt, depression, temptation, and all other attacks to our emotional well-being.

Christmas isn’t always peaceful
Christmas time, although filled with much celebration, is also a time of much depression, fear, anxiety, and turmoil. Christmas sort of ends off the year and we consciously or subconsciously run through the events of the year in our minds and perhaps what is still coming in the new year. The trauma of life and all that is happening in our world can leave us with doubts, fears, and worries – but the Prince of Peace will give you His peace if you let Him. Our Lord came on that first Christmas to grant us peace with God and inward peace in Christ, but He also intends for this peace to be outward focused.

3. In Christ we share this peace outwardly
Real, effective peace in others and in this world can only come about when we share this peace outwardly with people around us. That’s what the shepherds who came to see the Prince of peace did. Luke 2:13-14 tell of a great company of heavenly hosts declaring “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests”. Verse 17 continues “when they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child”. Part of that was imparting the news that God’s peace was available to those on whom His favour rests.

Our calling in Christ
Mankind can only ever find real and lasting peace here on earth in Jesus Christ – we are the ones who must share this with the world. Not only that, but Jesus called on us to be peacemakers. God is not asking us to do the impossible. There are some people who will not let you live at peace with them, but by His words and through our actions we can certainly try and leave the results up to the Prince of peace.

Do you know God’s peace?
Christmas time points us to the Prince of peace and to honestly ask ourselves if we know His peace, and then practice sharing His peace with others. If not, maybe that is why we do not have full peace in ourselves or a sense of full peace with God. This Christmas, won’t you allow the true Prince of peace to fill your heart with His incredible peace, a peace that passes all understanding (Phil 4:7) that will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus and lead you to others so that you can share His incredible peace with them.

4. In Christ we discover onward peace
The peace that comes from our Lord is an onward, everlasting peace. It’s not removed by sanctions, war, crime, hatred, or every other thing that brings strife and enmity. It’s everlasting, dwelling deeply in the hearts and minds of believers. One day the Lord of glory, the Prince of peace who came as a little baby and was placed in a manger, held in Mary’s arms, will return as a reigning Lord to set up His eternal kingdom of peace on this earth! Here the lion will lie down with the lamb, swords will be beaten into plough shares, and Revelation 21:4 tells us that He will wipe every tear from our eyes, there will be no more death, mourning, crying, or pain for the old order of things will pass away. The Prince of peace will reign, and His peace will fill the earth and all those who have put their hope and trust in this little baby who lay in the arms of Mary.

Be blessed this Christmas
Have you made peace with God? Have you received His Son Jesus into your life? If not, today is the right day to do so! Perhaps you are not living in peace with those around you and that is what the Bible says we must do; won’t you follow the example of the Prince of peace and extend His peace to others? At this Christmas time, “May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you” (2 Thes 3:16). Amen.

Click here to KEEP UPDATED on the latest news by subscribing to our FREE weekly newsletter.

> Please support Christian media and journalism in South Africa. Help us to spread the Word of God and take a stand for the truth by making a donation to our ministry. We appreciate your support. Click here to take hands with JOY! Magazine. 

Date published: 20/12/2023
Feature image: Image for illustrative purposes only. Artwork adapted from www.rawpixel.com
GREG BLAIR – pastor at the Somerset West Baptist Church. Visit swbc.co.za for more information.

DISCLAIMER
JOY! News is a Christian news portal that shares pre-published articles by writers around the world. Each article is sourced and linked to the origin, and each article is credited with the author’s name. Although we do publish many articles that have been written in-house by JOY! journalists, we do not exclusively create our own content. Any views or opinions presented on this website are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the company.