Advent Reflections: Peace 1

Daily Office readings: Amos 7:1-9, Revelation 1:1-8, Matthew 22:23-33.

John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

—Revelation 1:4-8

Yesterday we lighted the second candle on the Advent wreath. The candle represents peace and this week I want to focus on that attribute. The biblical notion of peace means much more than just the absence of war or conflict. The Old Testament word for peace, shalom, and the New Testament word for peace, eirene (pronounced “i-RAY-nay”), signify a state of total well-being, prosperity, and security associated with God’s presence among his people, and it held a wide range of connotations, such as wholeness, health, security, well-being, and salvation. Paul reminds us that God is a God of peace, not disorder (1 Corinthians 14:33) and so it follows that he desires humans, whom he created in his Image and with whom he desires to have a relationship, to be creatures of peace as well.

So why don’t we have peace with God? Because of sin. Sin creates alienation and alienation produces disorder. One doesn’t have to look very far to see children throwing temper tantrums to get their way (and also unfortunately not a few adults; adult tantrums are doubtless more sophisticated, but they are tantrums nevertheless). Or think of rebellious teenagers disobeying parents over issues of their safety or well being. The parents usually know best (funny how that perspective has changed in me over the years since I was a teenager) and when their kids rebel, it produces ill-will and alienation between them. Likewise with God and us. When we act as if we were equal with God instead of his creatures, then there is usually trouble afoot and discord inevitably follows. The difference, of course, is that God does not get mad the way we humans do. Instead, God is implacably opposed to any kind of evil and always resists it. This is as it should be because there is no evil in God and he created his creation and creatures to be good. After all, when we come to live in God’s presence directly, who among us wants to have evil in our midst?

So what is the solution? Since God is the Author of all real peace, it is natural that he had to take the initiative to reestablish it once our sin destroyed it. The writer of Revelation points to God’s initiative in today’s Scripture lesson. Left to our own devices, we cannot possibly have peace with God because sin has so thoroughly infected us, even the most saintly of us, that we cannot cure ourselves. That is why the Cross of Christ is so important for us to have peace because on the Cross, God took care of the problem of sin and the alienation it causes once and for all. Without the Cross, we cannot possibly attain peace with God.

This week, stop and reflect on what is in you that is causing you to be alienated from God and then ask him to help you remove that which is standing in your way so that you may fully enjoy his peace, a peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:4-7). Give thanks that he has made this possible through his Cross, and embrace his gracious mercy and forgiveness offered you through it. As you do, monitor your well-being and sense of wholeness and expect to see and experience an improvement. Take note of how your own peace affects your relationship with other people.

Tomorrow: Peace with God continued. What humans must do.

3 thoughts on “Advent Reflections: Peace 1

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