A little boy and a little girl were singing their favorite Christmas carol in church the Sunday before Christmas. The boy concluded “Silent Night” with the words, “sleep in heavenly beans.”
His sister elbowed him, and said, “No. Not beans, peas!”
The way many of us feel by the time we are ready for Christmas; the song might just as well end with beans or peas instead of peace.
In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy says to Charlie Brown, "I hate everything. I hate everybody. I hate the whole wide world!"
Charlie Brown says, "But I thought you had inner peace."
Lucy replies, "I do have inner peace. But I still have outer obnoxiousness"
But have you ever stopped to think what would have happened if it had been the three Wise Women instead of three Wise Men?
1. They would have asked directions in Bethlehem rather than feeling that they needed to stop off at the Palace in Jerusalem,
2. They would have arrived on time,
3. They would have helped deliver the baby; they would have cleaned the stable and given practical gifts – like bringing a casserole and
4. There would be Peace on Earth.
In another "Peanuts" comic, Lucy had a score to settle with Charlie Brown. She is chasing him shouting, "I’ll get you Charlie Brown! I’ll get you! I’ll knock your block off, Charlie Brown!"
Charlie Brown, who has been running full speed, stops, turns around and says, "Wait a minute. Hold everything. We can’t carry on like this. We have no right to act this way. The world is filled with problems--people hurting other people, people not understanding other people. Now, if we as children can’t solve what are relatively minor problems, how can we ever expect to . . .”
At this point, Lucy interrupts Charlie Brown, hits him with a left to his jaw, knocking him out. She says, "I had to hit him quick; he was beginning to make sense."
Isn’t that the way it is? So many times we, as human beings, war with other human beings and we don’t even know the reason why, or we war inside of ourselves. We have constant turmoil and war going on inside of our own lives.
In the scripture reading for today we heard the angels announce to the shepherds on that first Christmas night: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
WHAT IS THIS CHRISTMAS PEACE? that the angels announced to the shepherds.
There is a place in the Bible that I think many misunderstand. A lot of people, including Christians, have given it as an excuse for holy wars. It is where Jesus says to us, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword." [Matthew 10:34]. NKJV
Here is what this means to me. What is peace? It is not complacency or smugness. This is what I believe the original word meant in this particular verse. I come to you, not to bring complacency, but to bring a sword.
The Message paraphrase helps in my understanding of this passage. It reads "Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy. I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut …. cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God.”
You see, the sword represents a dividing line between the choice to be self-satisfied or self-righteous and the decision to build a new way of life. In other words the sword is about repentance, turning around and walking in a new direction even in the midst of friends and family who may try to distract you from the journey of faith.
I come to tell you about possibilities. I come to give you muscle in your lives. I come to give you joy overflowing. But you can’t have it if you remain complacent. You have to rise above that. You have to accept a greater power than your own. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. Phil. 2:5 NKJV
Many people are facing conflicts this holiday season. Some have unhappy marriages and it’s like a war zone when they go home. Or they are facing financial trouble and it’s like a war zone when they get the calls from the creditors. I know many of you are facing things, but you can still find peace. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:7 NIV
The message of Christmas time, the message of the Prince of Peace, is this: nothing can bring you peace but YOUR OWN DECISION TO ALLOW THE Prince of Peace to rule your heart and life. You see, you make the decision whether you’re going to have peace today and in this moment or not. You cannot lose your peace through what others are doing. You lose your peace because of what you are failing to do to make that holy connection with the Spirit of Christ.
One of the primary teachings of Jesus is. According to Jesus, peace is not just going apart for a while and meditating and praying. That is an inverted sense of peace. That is saying, "I’m going to escape what is happening in my world right now. I’m not going to think about it. I’m going to close my eyes to the world."
Actually, peace is a state of being alert. It is knowing whatever I’m doing in the day, I can know that I am not alone. No matter what is happening outside of me, I make the decision on how I’m going to live that moment. I give myself great power and possibilities when I do that.
Peace is the environment of your heart and soul. It has nothing to do with your outer environment or circumstance.
When I surrender and let the same mind of Christ live in me that was in him, something flows in and through me that is beyond belief, that transcends my human understanding. It’s so great that when chaos is going on outside of you, there is a Divine order inside of you and you are empowered. You’re not going to buy into what appears to be disaster outside of you. You’re buying into something that has great power.
If we had a hurricane come through here right now, everything would be spinning around the room. But if we were at the center of the hurricane, there would be absolute calm. Remember that the next time your life feels like it’s in a hurricane. When you’re so angry and everything is blowing around, get to your center.
In John 16:33 it says, "I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace." What does that mean--"In me you may have peace"? That means in the attitude, in the thinking, in the way of Jesus going about living--in Jesus is the clue to finding peace.
Jesus says, “Follow me. Follow my way of doing it. Follow the way I did it so you can do it too, and become more like me.”
Jesus goes on to say, "In the world you have tribulation, but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
Let’s say you have troubles or ill health, or you’re facing some other difficulty, and you say, "That’s fine, Jesus, You have overcome the world but I haven’t. I’m still here in the hurricane. I’m still feeling the pain. I feel like I’m destroying myself inside of myself."
Remember what the whole verse said--what He’s saying to you directly: In me you may have peace; I have overcome the world. (Always read the Bible like it is written for you. It is a personal message from Jesus Christ to you.)
Have this same mind in you that Christ Jesus had and find this Prince of Peace. The Prince of Peace doesn’t do any good just on a Christmas card. The Prince of Peace doesn’t come alive until the Prince of Peace lives inside of you with the same wonderful mind, thinking and peace of mind.
In Philippians 4:7 it says, And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
So many times something happens in our life that is so unexplainable that we ask ourselves, "Where is God in this situation? How can there be any good in this situation?" That is when we need to attune ourselves, again, to God’s spirit.
When you do, you see with greater eyes than your human eyes. When you’re willing to focus your attention on the presence of God rather than the situation, you open yourself to the activity of God waiting to come forward.
The Bible says (in Job 22:21): "Agree with God, and be at peace." If you want to do what Job says, how do you agree with God? As you kneel in front of the altar do you say, "God, I agree with you"? What are you agreeing with? Did God just tell you something that you’re agreeing with? Or are you attuning your mind to become more like God?
This is the great gift-- the gift of life. This is the gift that the Babe born in Bethlehem brought us. It is the gift that we don’t have to live by the old law of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. It is a gift to know that I can rise above conflict in my relationships. I do not have to war any more with other human beings.
We talk a lot about following Jesus Christ and becoming Christ like. How do we do that? We do it one step at a time. We do it by becoming that which He was, little by little, day by day. Today, instead of getting into an argument with someone, seek peace. Let it radiate from you and allow everyone to see it.
But most of all, don’t live your Christian life simply for others to see. Live the Christian way of life to discover a new way of life for yourself. Know that you can have peace today, and by peace I don’t mean just the absence of conflict. It is peace because you choose peace despite the circumstances raging around you. You will choose nothing else. You will be allowing the spirit of Christ to give you great, wonderful power and abilities like you have not had before.
Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man, The things which God has prepared for those who love Him. 1 Corinthians 2:9 NKJV
PRAYER
Please join me in prayer. In this sanctuary, I invite you to turn to the presence of Christ presence, The Prince of peace. Discover a calm peace and assurance awaiting you. Through the power of God, you are empowered to face any situation in your life and experience a true peace. You have a foundation of peace inside of you. You trust God to work through you in peace. And in peace, you heartily and openly accept you’re the good gift that God has given you at this time of the year. Through the power of the Christ, you are victorious and you will overcome. The greatest victory is peace. You are centered in the peace of God and you prepared your mind and your heart for the joy of Christmas Day. We are of the same mind that You are, O Christ our Lord, born in Bethlehem long ago and born today in my heart . . . Amen.
