Peace on Earth

-


Scripture

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
(John 13:34 NASB)
“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
(John 13:35 NASB)

Observation

The other day I was struck by particular portion of the Christmas story. The heavenly host comes and visits the shepherds and this is what they say:

Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
 and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

In a nutshell this is the ushering in of a new era where the greatest commandment will be foundational for all. Love God -- "Glory to God in the highest" -- and love your neighbor "peace on earth." The heavenly host was announcing it that very evening.

Fast forward about thirty three years and we find Jesus visiting with his disciples on the night when He is going to be arrested. He reiterates the second portion of this command -- "and on earth peace among those whom he favors." Jesus just happens to say it this way -- "love one another." That certainly says it, doesn't it? How do we have peace on earth without loving one another?

Application

I spent much of the day yesterday on airplanes. When I travel I often pray and ask the Lord to allow me to be open to His divine promptings of meetings with individuals along the way. Standing in line for the lavatory a gentleman began talking to me - -just making small talk. Where had I been -- what was I doing? He'd been in South Africa for a funeral. Somehow he was a bit bored with the long flight and thought a discussion about religion would be nice so after getting out of the lavatory he tracked me down for quite a lengthy conversation. While being raised Roman Catholic he really did not have any personal faith. He was disturbed by the state of the world around him and wanted to know that if God were really real, wouldn't He have decided that enough was enough and it was time to simply intervene in the world and call a halt to all evil. Why would God just not step in and do something?

I countered with the fact that God is doing something and is actively engaged in changing the world, because God lives in us, His followers and we are God intervening in the world. He kept telling me that there were a billion Roman Catholics in the world and yet it's not changing anything. But here's the question -- it's not about religion, but about being Christ in the world. Truly if all of those who claim to be Christians would "love one another" -- there would be "peace on earth!" I think that is our challenge this Christmas season, and all year round. The cry for the future was spoken by the heavenly host. Jesus kept reiterating it with His followers. Today, we are to be Christ to our world, loving one another bringing His peace.

I challenged this man to think about his faith in a different way.  What did he have to offer God.  He said he was very wealthy.  So, I asked him what he might be able to do with his wealth to help bring "peace on earth."  We discussed what Bill Gates and his wife do with their money.  He went away a bit quiet and I hope that he may have been challenged about his personal responsibility to bring peace to earth.  So, this Christmas season, may we all ask God to help us to love one another and help to usher in that "peace on earth" with the same hopeful optimism that the heavenly host revealed that night so long ago. 

Prayer

Lord, I pray for Your love and Your peace to cover this world! Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more