Good Morning All!!
Luke 2:14; “Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
If every little boy has been a shepherd,
most of the little girls were angels.
Being an angel is a two-step process.
The first year you are part of the heavenly host. This is where all the little girls who had no
other place to be in the program are put.
Just like the shepherds, there is no limit in how many heavenly host
angels there are. The number fluctuates
according to the number of available girls.
You have to be ready to speak when the head angel gets done. Sometimes you are on an elevated stand and
maybe a spotlight will shine bright on you when your line comes up. You have to
be ready and so do your fellow host angels when the light shines, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom
he is pleased!”
Then the congregation sings “Angels, We have Heard on High” and your
part is done.
And on earth peace among those with whom his favor rests. Many mistakenly believe that there will be an
end of war or, on a more personal level; all our relationships will suddenly
work. We see this on many a Hallmark
movie where the dysfunctional family suddenly works. The almost completely failed marriage is
healed. All it takes is the singing of a
Christmas song or someone who looks like Santa going through town. Unfortunately, this is not the reality.
The word in Greek is “Eirene”. It
is best thought of as the
tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so
fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort
that is. The
Hebrew word would be shalom. This too, speaks to the greater understanding
of well-being, health, safety, wholeness or completeness. This type of peace is far more internal than
external.
First and foremost, this type of peace is dependent upon God. It comes from the knowledge that our
salvation is secure and that God has promised and delivered this truth to us. We have nothing to fear from God; his love
and mercy are poured out upon us daily and richly. God’s favor, his grace, rests upon us. He gives us his peace, in doing this he is
making us whole, complete in our being.
Through this knowledge we can have tranquility. Nothing the devil throws at us can take the
peace of God from us. Even if our world
stays in turmoil; even if our dysfunctional family remains dysfunctional we
still have God’s peace. God’s peace
allows us to overcome the pain and fears of this world. We have his peace; whole, complete, tranquil
peace.
Father
of all mercy, you give us peace. You
pour your peace and mercy upon us. Guide
us by your Spirit to live in your peace with you and with our neighbor. Give us your peace that we may dwell in your
peace in our hearts. Send us your loving
kindness to free from our fears and sorrows.
In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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