I'm here. We had a bad winter storm where I live. Wednesday night we had thunderstorms for about five hours. Then the rain changed quickly to snow at about three in the morning. As soon as it started snowing, the wind picked up. We had blizzard conditions until the snow came to an end about six hours later.
We only received about three inches of snow, but the winds were terrible. We had sustained winds of thirty-five to forty miles per hour with wind gusts as high as fifty-five. These winds kept up for most of Thursday.
These winds actually damaged my house. I have one of my gutters blown off, and some of the siding on the back of my house was strpped off. Thankfully, none of my tall trees blew down on the house.
Last week, we continued our series about Jesus' teachings on the Sermon on the Mount by focusing our attention on Jesus' words, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."
I discussed some of the different meanings concerning what being pure in heart is. I mentioned the fact that we become pure in heart when we receive the imputed righteousness of Christ at the time of our salvation. I also mentioned the need for holiness in the life of the believer and the importance of following the commandments and the teachings of the Lord. Finally, I discussed the importance of motivation and having the right attitude of heart versus a righteousness that is simply external.
Today, we focus on one of Jesus' beatitudes that is so appropriate during this Christmas season. In Matthew 5:9 Jesus states, "Blessed are the peacemakers: For they shall be called children of God."
When I think about the Christmas season, one of the first things that comes to my mind is that it is to be a time of peace. In the Christmas story recorded in Luke's Gospel, the angels said to the shepherds, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will to men."
The first advent of Jesus was the birth of the peace that only Jesus can bring into the world. Jesus was prophesied to be the one who would bring about true peace. Isaiah 9:6 records that one of the names of the Messiah was to be "Prince of Peace." Verse 7 goes on to say, "Of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no end."
Jesus came into this world to bring to all who would believe in Him a peace that passes all understanding. The human race in its fallen state is at war against the things of God. However, Jesus Christ through His death and resurrection allows those who would trust in Him to have peace with the Heavenly Father. Jesus wants to bring peace to the souls of troubled men and women.
Because the ultimate goal of Jesus is to bring peace upon this world, those of us who are numbered among His followers should do all that we can to bring peace to the world and to our little corner of the world.
As believers in Jesus, I think that we should be a people that continually pray for a resolution to the conflicts that are raging in the world today. Right now, there is war in Syria and Afghanistan. The Congo, where my cousin was once a missionary, is still in the midst of strife, and it seems like the Holy Land is always on the brink of conflict. As followers of Jesus, we should be in prayer for peace in these places and wherever war rages and people are dying.
In one of the churches where I used to minister, we made it a habit each Sunday to pray for peace in all of the countries experiencing conflict. We prayed for some countries for years. But, thanks be to God, peace did come to many nations we prayed for including Ireland, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
Besides praying, Christians should be those who work for peace wherever possible. Most of us won't have the chance to be actively involved in peace efforts on a global scale. But we should take every peacemaking opportunity that we can.
On our own local level, we as believers should try to be the voice of reason and peace in meetings and in gatherings. We should be those who seek reconciliation between those striving against each other among our family and friends.
The best way that we can be a force for peace is to spread the Gospel of the Prince of Peace. We need to tell others about how Jesus can transform their life and give them the true peace that only He can give.
True peace will not come to the entire world until Jesus comes and establishes His eternal Kingdom that will have no end. At that time, the Bible says in Micah 4:3 that, "they shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore." At His coming, the reign of the Prince of Peace will bring peace to all of the created order. I love the words of Isaiah 11:6-7 that state, "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox."
There is a great day of peace coming. As Jesus' followers, let us work for peace in all of our relationships because our God loves peace and those who seek peace.
During the Christmas season, if you don't know the peace that Jesus can bring, I hope that you will accept Jesus' gifts of love and peace during this time of His birth. Merry Christmas. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment