Christmas Praise and Peace

The great Christmas passion of the angels that night outside of Bethlehem was this:  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased! (Luke 2:14).  They rejoiced over two wonders:  the glory of God, and peace on earth.

But as soon as we hear their song, questions arise:  1) Are we actually moved to applaud God’s glory?  2) Can we even imagine “peace” in our war-torn, terror-ridden, greed-driven, divided world, and do we really believe God for the peace he announces?

One way to prime the pump of your heart for Advent praise is by reflect­ing on the “distance” God’s Son came to save us—to save you. So consider:  the eternal Son “emptied himself” of all his splendor and majesty, was born into human form, and obeyed the Father’s eternal decree to bear sinners’ guilt by his death on a cross (Phil 2:6-8).  Contemplate that undeserved degradation … all to rescue us from wrath we did deserve!  Go ahead and measure Jesus’ descent—and bow down:  “Glory to God in the highest!”

And when it comes to the announcement of peace, let’s make sure we know what kind of peace God promises.  Here’s what it isn’t: it’s not the eradication of violence in our cities or between warring tribes; it’s not a utopia of worldwide, inter-ethnic, good will.  Jesus says:  “If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20).  “In this world you will have tribulation” (16:33).

The “peace” God brings, ultimately, is vertical: at the cross Jesus became our peace and made peace for us so we could be recon­ciled to God (Eph 2:14-16)!  “Since we’ve been justified by faith, we have peace with God” (Rom 5:1).  With God.  Yes, it’s vital to express our love for God by serving neighbors, and in so doing to strive for peaceful relations in the human community.  But always remember:  every taste of earthly peace is actually only a fore­taste of the real thing, the eternal peace with God by which we become his forever friends!