Good morning, Friends! Thanks for coming today!
It’s starting to get pretty close to Christmas! There’s so many things to do! It doesn’t hardly seem as though we’ve got time enough to do them all.
How many people here already have their tree up?
How many people here have all of their Christmas shopping done?
How many people here have taken some special time to stop and remember why it was that Jesus came?
A couple of weeks ago, we talked about hope. Last Sunday, we talked about joy. This morning, let’s talk about how Jesus came to be the Prince of Peace.
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
On those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned.
You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy;
They rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest,
As warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
You have shattered the yoke that burdens them,
The bar across their shoulders,
The rod of their oppressor.Every warrior’s boot used in battle
And every garment rolled in blood
Will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,
And the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom,
Establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness
From that time on and forever.The unstoppable passion of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
- Isaiah 9:5-7
It’s pretty easy to forget, ‘cause we’ve got a lot of other things to do. We’re full of our own plans. Why did Jesus come here? What was it that God wanted Jesus to to do?
You see, there were a lot of promises made before Jesus was even born. People were waiting. They were and hoping, and praying for a Savior.
He wasn’t going to bring them presents. He wasn’t going to fill their stockings.
When we think about Christmas as the season of peace, we think about families getting together, and nobody talking about politics and spoiling Christmas dinner.
We like to think about old quarrels getting made up and forgotten.
I remember, one of the best Christmases I ever had.
At this meeting when I was serving back then, there were two people – Blanche and Walter. They’d been friends for many years. Both of them were in their 80’s. Both of them had lost their spouses. They became friends with each other.
Blanche and Walter went everywhere together. Every chicken pie supper, every yard sale, every community event, Blanche and Walter were always there together.
And then, by accident, some silly little thing started a fight, and they both wound up with hurt feelings. And these two good people, these two old friends, stopped speaking to one another.
On Sunday morning, they would drive in their separate cars to the meetinghouse. If one of them saw that the other person’s car had gotten there first, the one who came late would just sit outside, in the car, all through meeting for worship, and not come in. They wouldn’t even walk into the building if they knew that the other person was there.
This went on for close to a year. They were both good, kind, generous people. But once they started this silent, stubborn fight, they didn’t know how to end it.
So that year, just before the holiday, I wrote to each of them. I said that it would be the nicest Christmas present I could imagine, if the two of them would reconcile with each other.
It turned out that both of them were just waiting for the other one to make the first move. They were lonely. They missed each other. But they were both too proud for either one to take the first step.
And on Christmas morning – Christmas fell on a Sunday that year – both of them walked in together to meeting for worship. And they shook hands and hugged each other in front of the whole church.
It was the best Christmas worship that any of us could ever remember. The whole church gave thanks! And the whole church congratulated them, and told them how wonderful it was. We realized that by sitting back and feeling helpless all that time, we’d been hurting ourselves.
Christmas isn’t the only time when we’re supposed to think about peace. God cares about peace all the time.
The Scripture reading today says that people have been walking in darkness for a very long time. When Jesus was born, there hadn’t been peace for hundreds of years. The Holy Land – the Promised Land – had been torn apart, invaded time and time again. They had a whole series of terrible kings. Ordinary people, all over the country, had lost everything. They’d lost their land and were just sharecrop farmers. Now the Romans were here, and the Romans ran things with an iron hand.
People remembered the promises that God had made. People were desperate for things to get better. They remembered that once upon a time, God had fought their battles. At one battle, only 300 of their soldiers had scared the wits out of an army a hundred times their size.
They surrounded the camp, and blew their horns, and waved torches. And the enemy thought it was a surprise attack by a much larger force. They dropped everything and ran for their lives. God won the battle for them. They didn’t even have to draw their swords. They piled up all the uniforms and weapons of their enemy, and burned them. That’s what Isaiah said.
And now, Isaiah said, a new king was coming. A different kind of king.
We don’t have kings any more – at least we think we don’t. But Isaiah promised a totally different kind of government from what they were used to.
Isaiah said that the new king would be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Isaiah said that his government would grow like a living thing, and peace would never end. There would be justice and righteousness, forever and ever. And Isaiah said that peace is God’s own dream. Peace is God’s passionate desire, and that God would make it happen.
That’s what Christmas is truly about. It’s about longing and praying for a different kind of king. It’s about longing for light. Not just the candles and Christmas lights we see. Those are just a symbol.
We want light in the world! We want there to be no hiding place for wrong and evil. And we want there to be true peace – not based on threats and fear. We want peace based on what’s right and fair for everyone. Sometimes it’s going to mean setting aside our pride, like Blanche and Walter. Sometimes it’s going to mean shaking hands with people we didn’t want to shake hands with.
But the promise is, that when everyone is treated right – not just a favored few, but everyone – there will be peace.
Jesus is a king like no other. Jesus didn’t want to hurt people. Jesus wanted no enemies. He didn’t want to conquer the world. He wanted to redeem and save the world.
A lot of people think that Jesus’ kingdom is only up in heaven. That’s not true. The kingdom of Christ is wherever people gather in his name, whenever people do the work that Jesus told us to do.
You’ve heard me say this, so many times. When you reach out to someone, and make a stranger into your friend, that’s doing Jesus’ work. When you help someone, who’s hungry or thirsty or lonely or scared, that’s doing Jesus’ work, too.
People who bring healing, whether it’s healing of body, or mind, or heart, or relationship – people who bring healing are doing what Jesus did. And especially, people who bring peace. Jesus once said that peacemakers are so blessed, that they’re truly children of God. There isn’t any higher title than that – children of God.
Jesus is the Prince of Peace. But he expects us to be peacemakers, too.
When you reach out and cross the border lines, and listen to what the other person is saying, you’re a peacemaker.
When you don’t judge the other person, and just welcome them, you’re part of the peaceable kingdom.
When you tell the truth, even if it costs you, and when you listen to the truth, no matter what party or country the other person belongs to, that’s a big step towards peace.
When you speak up for someone who isn’t popular or isn’t being allowed to speak, when you stand with them and give them a voice, or when you get out of the way and let them speak for themselves, that’s all a part of it, and it’s something all of us can do.
Whether it’s in homes or classrooms, whether it’s on the street or on a larger stage, peace is what God wants. Peace is what Jesus came for.
In one of his letters, Paul said: “Rejoice in the Lord always. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don’t worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication and thanksgiving, offer your prayers to God. And the peace of Christ, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:4-7)
Enjoy your Christmas! Have a great time with your family and friends! But remember who it’s all in honor of. Remember the Prince of Peace. And try to be a peacemaker yourself.