Peace this Christmas

Growing up in the faith, I (Bill) learned that the peace that the Messiah brings is 100% based on a personal relationship with Christ, it leads to emotional calm, and means you don’t have to have conflict anymore with others.

Unfortunately, this is not what the scriptures teach.

As we’ve been looking at the prophecies of the Messiah over the past few weeks, we’re drawing to a close with the magnificent words from Isaiah 11. Here the wolf and the lamb lie down in peace together at the coming of the Messiah.

The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them. - Isaiah 11:6

And yet the reason that their enmity has ended is not because they have a ‘personal relationship with God’ (although that’s a wonderful and super important thing!). it’s because the Messiah has come and brought justice where there was none before: “with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth” (Isaiah 11:4). What that means is that the wolf can no longer take advantage of the lamb and the goat no longer has to live in fear of the leopard because systems of oppression and violence have been ended.

Some of the great leaders of the 20th century knew this well and tried to teach us. Reflect today on what peace means to you as you read the following two quotes. How does this perspective on ‘Peace for Christmas’ strike you? How might you participate this year with the Prince of Peace who came at Christmas?

Peace is not just the absence of conflict; peace is the creation of an environment where all can flourish regardless of race, color, creed, religion, gender, class, caste or any other social markers of difference. - Nelson Mandela 

True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice. - Martin Luther King, Jr.