How We Can Have Peace 12-10-23

Transcription and Summary are computer generated and may vary slightly from the spoken text. Overview: Last week, the first candle of Advent was lit, representing hope. The second candle, representing peace, reminds us of the fear Mary and the shepherds felt when encountering angels. This fear is rooted in the understanding of God's holiness and our own sinfulness. The message of Christmas is that through Christ, we can have peace with God, despite our sins. This peace comes from trusting in Him and His righteousness. The Gospel story doesn't end at the cross or the resurrection, but continues today with a living Savior who intercedes for us. We can have peace in this troubled world by keeping our eyes on Christ and finding our joy, value, and peace in Him. Scripture reminds us of the peace that Christ offers, and our prayer is for the Lord of peace to give us peace in every way. Transcription: Last week, we lit this candle. The first candle of the Advent. The prophet's candle of hope. The story throughout the entire Bible is this. That the Messiah is coming. In the Old Testament, it is He will come. In the New Testament, it is He will come again. And we have great hope in the return of Christ today. The second candle of Advent, the one I light this morning, is the candle of peace. And I thought about this for a second. And my mind goes to Luke 2. It's a very familiar chapter for all of us who think about Christmas, who celebrate Christmas, who maybe even read the Christmas story to our families on Christmas. And in Luke 2, angels appear twice. They appear to Mary to announce the birth of Christ. And then they appear to the shepherds in the fields. But the response of both of those, Mary and the shepherds, was the same. Do you remember what their response was? They were afraid. They were afraid. Now, I can understand that a little bit. If some angelic form appeared before me and it was glowing and white and it had this glory shining around it and speaking in a voice that I was unfamiliar with, I can sense a little bit of fear that would swell up in me. And maybe you can as well. So then I began to question why. Why fear? Now, to understand that fear, we have to press into a little bit about what they represented. You see, they were messengers of God. And what Mary and the shepherds understood a little bit more than we understand today is the character and the nature of God. You see, we like to mold God in our image. We like God to be our co-pilot. We like God to be our homeboy. And all of these sayings that we have put on mugs and t-shirts and window stickers, license plates, we have made God someone who is soft, who is pleasing to us, who makes us feel good about who we are. That kind of God, when we see His nature and His essence, we don't become afraid. But what we forget about God and what we forget about God in the flesh, Jesus, is that God is holy. That God is perfect. In fact, one of the prophets, when he was faced with a vision and being in the presence of God, his response was, woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips. You see, when we come into the presence and the realization and the understanding of the holiness and the power of God, that should create in us a little bit of fear. In fact, Scripture goes on to say that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. Because we need to understand the holiness of God. And so when we see their response, Mary and the shepherds, we understand that they knew who God was. And when they found themselves in the presence of God, they were fearful because they realized who they were. Men and women of unclean lips. Men and women who have sinned against God. Men and women who needed peace. But what was the message that the angel brought to the shepherds? Luke 2, verse 14. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. Well, I'm going to tell you how you can see peace on earth and goodwill toward men. When we understand who God is, there should be something inside of us that is fearful of the day we stand before Him. And so how can we have peace? Because if we look around this world today, peace is not one thing that I would use to describe that. We don't have peace in our capital. We don't have peace in our nation. We don't have peace in our state. We don't always have peace in Six Mile. And we don't always have peace in our homes. But this message is peace. Beloved, this message is talking about peace with God. Now how can someone like us, someone like me who is sinful, someone like me who even on my best day cannot even come close to the holy perfection of God, how can I expect to have peace with Him? And the answer is what we celebrate on Christmas. The answer is what is symbolized by this doll laying in this manger before you. The answer is Christ. Because of what John the Baptist said about Him. Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away what? The sin of the world. That He made Him who knew no sin to be sin, that we might become the righteousness of God. And so how do we have peace with God? Only through Christ and Him imputing His righteousness upon us. And that's what He accomplished on the cross. You see, this birth of Jesus that was foretold of from the prophets and the hope that they received that we see and read about in the Gospels is the beginning of the Gospel story that will finish in eternity. You see, the Gospel doesn't just begin at the birth of Christ and end at the cross of Christ. It doesn't even for us who celebrate Easter, it doesn't begin at the birth of Christ and end at the resurrection of Christ or the ascension of Christ. The Gospel continues to go on today because the good news for us today is that we have a Savior who is alive and well and sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding for you and me so that when I stand before Him because I've put my faith and trust in Him, He will look at me and say, come on home. Come on home. I love that song that we sing that sets the scene of the courtroom and it talks about the old accuser pointing his finger and laying out my sins before God. And my only response to that is to say, you're right, I'm guilty, I'm a sinner, I've forsaken you, I've used your name in vain, I have murdered, I have lied, I have cheated, I have done all of these things, I have no defense, but my Savior walks into that courtroom and says, He's mine, He's forgiven, He has cleansed from all unrighteousness, He has set free because of what I've done for Him. And that's the story of Christmas. That's how we can have peace with God. And I remember Scriptures like this. And maybe you recognize this Scripture. In the world, you will have tribulations. But be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. And we use that and we claim that and that's a great reminder of what Christ does for us. But do you realize that's the second half of a verse? There's words before that in the same verse. Do you know what those words are? These things I have spoken to you that in Me you may have peace. This is John 16. The first part, 15 and 16 of chapter John. John's laying down this. You're going to have troubles. You're going to be persecuted. You're going to have hurts and heartaches and hard times. And these are all the things that you're going to face in this world. And right before he mentions this in chapter 16, he reminds them of who he is. Yes, you're going to have troubles, but guess who I am? I am the Son of God. I'm the One who died for you. I'm the One that's done all of these things and will do all these things. That's who I am. And so, even though you face these things, you can trust in Me. And if you trust in Me, then guess what? You can have peace. So how do we have peace in this world when we face financial struggles, when we face relationship struggles, when we face family struggles, when we face cultural struggles? How can we have peace? In Christ. What does that look like? Well, Lord, I don't know how I'm going to pay my bills this month. Well, James, just remember, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you that you may be where I am. Okay, but I get that this is not my final home that I'm just passing through. So, what about this hurt and heartache? Just remember, James, that the struggles of this present world are nothing to be compared to the love that you have in Me. Okay, yeah, you're right. But you know what? They don't like me. They don't accept me for who I am. Well, just remember, James, you were created in My image and I've made you and I've fit you and knit you together in your mother's womb and I've created you to be the person that you are. And so you don't find your value in what they say about you. You should find your value in what I say about you. You see, Scripture gives us an answer to any struggle that we have in this world. The reason oftentimes that I don't have peace in my life is because I look at the struggle and the situation and the hurts and heartaches that I'm facing instead of keeping my eyes on Christ. You see, the key to that verse is in Him. Where do I find my joy? In Christ. Where do I find my value? In Christ. Where do I find my peace? In Christ. I need to quit looking for them in the things of this world or I'm still going to reap hurt and heartache because the things of this world will promise you silver and gold, but what they'll give you is charcoal and sticks and stones. What Christ says is what I have for you makes the value of gold nothing but worthy to be on the street. What I have for you takes the value of pearls and makes it to be used for a gate. What I have for you makes the precious stone of jasper be used for a building block on a wall. What I have for you far surpasses the value of anything that this world holds. How can we have peace in this struggling world as we look to Christ for that peace? And when we do that, we can live out the words of the psalmist in Psalm 4, 8, I will both lie down in peace and sleep. For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. John 14, 27, Jesus speaks these words. He says, peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Why? Because He has given us peace. Colossians 3, 15, and let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful. My prayer for you this morning, my prayer for myself comes from 2 Thessalonians 3, 16, May the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. So, beloved, as I light this candle, as we spend just a few moments to watch it burn, may we remember the peace that Christ offers us. May we remember the peace that He paid for us to have on the cross. May we remember the peace that comes only from Him. Because in this world, we will have trouble, but we can fear not. We can have peace because He has overcome this world. Let's pray together. Father, prepare our hearts to celebrate Your birth joyfully. We thank You for faithfully doing what You promised long ago when You sent Your Son to earth so that we can become Your children by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Let the promise of Your second coming inspire us to live with hope and peace. And as we wait for Your plan to unfold, remind us of the peace we can access when we take the time to still ourselves before You and remember that You are God. We thank You that You are both sovereign and gracious. Help us to find rest in the midst of what feels like chaos in our world. Amen and Amen. Ms. Patsy's going to come play for just a moment. I don't know all of you. I don't know your situation. I don't know your story. But I know what the Bible says and I know my experience. And my days, and I'm assuming your days, are not always filled with peace. So maybe your response this morning is to come and ask God for that peace. You lay out your situation, your struggle beforehand. Say, God, I'm dealing with this. I'm struggling with that. I have these doubts. I have these questions. I need You to give me Your peace. Brother, I want to let you know this morning there's only one way to begin a relationship of peace with God. And that's to experience His forgiveness, His cleansing from all unrighteousness by putting your faith and trust in Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. So as we stand together this morning, as Ms. Patsy plays, we're going to enter into a time of invitation. And what that means is simply this. I invite you to come and pray before the Lord at this altar. I'll be down front. I'd love to pray with you, to pray for you, to share with you, to talk with you more about what it means to acknowledge Christ as your Lord and Savior, so that you can experience that peace that passes all understanding that the Scriptures tell us about. As I said, I'll be down front.