Prince of Peace

PRINCE OF PEACE No matter where you look today, peace seems to be in very short supply. Each day the headlines tell of some new crisis that threatens to plunge a nation, a region, or the whole world into chaos! Our courts overflow with people caught up in conflicts, and millions seek frantically for something--anything--that will give them peace of mind and heart in the midst of daily pressures. We need to hear again those familiar words, spoken 20 centuries ago by angels to a small band of simple Jewish shepherds: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased" (Luke 2:14). How Realistic Is Peace? But are those words really true? Can God's peace become a reality in our lives and in our world? Or was the promise of the angels just a hollow, empty hope, unrealistic for life as it really is? Peace is possible--not because men have discovered some new scheme or formula for instant peace, but because God's Son--Jesus Christ--visited our world. It is possible because that same Son who entered the world on that first Christmas wants to enter our lives today. "His name shall be called...the Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). The miracle of Christmas is that we can personally be at peace with God! We can come into a relationship with Him and be born again spiritually by the grace of God. Those who have become right with God can say with confidence that they "have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). It has been 2,000 years since the angels hovered over the Judean countryside, declaring their Good News of "peace, good will toward men." But sadly, most of our world still knows very little of that peace. God's peace has been made possible by his Son, Jesus. That peace becomes a reality in the lives of men and women who turn to Christ as their Savior from sin. Then, despite the trials and difficulties of life, they can know "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" (Philippians 4:7). Will You Take the Only Way to Peace? Will you receive Jesus Christ right now and trust in Him alone for forgiveness and eternal life? The Bible says that is the only way to find peace with God! Admit your need--that you are a sinner in need of God's forgiveness. "Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God" (Isaiah 59:2). Be willing to turn from trusting in anything else for eternal life and trust only in Christ. "There is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all" (1 Timothy 2:5-6). Believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross, came back to life from the grave, and is your only way to heaven. "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life" (John 3:36). You may want to express your conviction to God like this: "Dear God, thank you for making it possible for me to have peace with you! I believe that when Christ died he was paying the penalty for my sins. I now receive Him into my life as my Savior, so I can have forgiveness and never-ending life from you! Thank you for forgiveness, eternal life, and peace!" Someday the Christ who came so humbly at Christmas will come again in glory and power to establish His kingdom on earth. When He does, our world will finally know the peace of God in its fullest sense.