From the Pastor |
The story we have come to hear on this Christmas Eve is a very familiar one. It is over 2000 years old… and is told and retold every year… The angel Gabriel tells Mary that her life is going to be far different than she imagined… she is going to have a child… a very special child who “… will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” [Luke 1: 32-33]
Then the time comes for this child to be born and again… things don’t go as planned. 1st Mary and her betrothed, Joseph, are forced to journey from their home to Bethlehem… then when they arrive, there is no rooms available because the place is packed. They have to spend the night in a structure similar to a stable. The child is born and wrapped up and a cradle is made from the manger… a feeding trough for the animals. But as most mothers will tell you… once that baby is born… the circumstances surrounding the birth seem like no big deal. However… this child was CLEARLY a big deal because the birth announcement goes out… delivered to some shepherds in a field… shared by an angel who is then joined by “great company of the heavenly host”… some translations say a “multitude”… either way… it had to be a great number… a wondrous, awe inspiring sight… as they all began to praise God saying “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” It must have seemed like Heaven itself was so overcome with joy and anticipation at the wonder of the incarnation of God being born into the world that the angels cannot contain themselves… their joy spilling over into the earthly realm. But tonight I would like us to really look at the message those angels bring: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” We often simplify it in word and song to “Peace on earth… Goodwill to men!” Isaiah said the Messiah would be called the Prince of Peace… In a little while we will sing Silent Night where we tell the Christ child to “Sleep in Heavenly Peace.” What is this peace? Honestly, it seems that people know nothing about peace at all! In over 3,400 years of human history, there have only been between 200 - 300 years where peace seemed to reign. Look at our propensity for war… consider how many people die each year from violence across the globe. It almost seems like humankind loves conflict. Peace on earth seems like a pipe dream, doesn’t it? Well… things were not much different during the times when Jesus was born. Taxes were high, unemployment was high, morals were slipping lower, and Israel was being occupied and ruled by a military state. The Romans kept the peace through intimidation and threats… But was that really peace? Maybe, part of the problem is that we are looking for the wrong thing. In English, we define peace as the absence of conflict or war, but the Hebrew word Shalom means so much more. Shalom is referred to as the peace of the Lord. It is about wholeness, peace, harmony, tranquility, wellbeing, health, complete reconciliation. It is more about internal circumstances than the absence of external conflict. Scripture tells us that shalom, true shalom, will be a restoration of the peace… the wholeness, tranquility, harmony and wellbeing that existed in the beginning… it is what is promised for all of creation when Christ returns and God’s kingdom reigns on earth as it is in heaven... In the OT, a wonderful promise was given, and prophetic words of hope emerge telling of One who would come to bring God’s peace back into the world. The blessed gift of Christmas is that through Jesus… whose birth we celebrate this night… Peace has come… God has sent God’s unending Love into the world that we might learn and live God’s peace… Shalom. True peace, peace with God, and peace within ourselves. That’s what the angels proclaimed that night to shepherds in a field…telling them to go and find the child and you will find true peace. In a world filled of conflict, fear, anger and hatred... in a world full of selfishness, greed and sin… it is possible for us to find peace. We can experience true peace, inner peace, wellbeing, harmony and wholeness. Peace on earth cannot be found in this world… As Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote in his poem Christmas Bells: And in despair I bowed my head: "There is no peace on earth," I said, "For hate is strong, and mocks the song Of peace on earth, good will to men." The world does not offer peace on earth, but God does… through the child born in Bethlehem… we can find the peace on earth which passes understanding... if we but trust in the promises of Our Lord… we can find ourselves filled with peace of heart, soul and mind. Because we have the knowledge and the assurance that it is a God’s shalom, is real, it is present with us, and greater than anything the world has to offer. The peace of God is a gift; it is the result of letting God into your heart and your life… trusting in the Love, wisdom, and power of God to bring you the Peace, Hope, and Joy you so desperately need. So this Christmas, let not your heart be troubled. Let the peace of God flood your life. “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: "God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, With peace on earth, good will to men."”
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Yeon Shin
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