“We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we are not at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God.” (Thomas Merton)
8 Nearby, in
the fields outside of Bethlehem, a group of shepherds were guarding their
flocks from predators in
the darkness of night. 9 Suddenly a messenger of
the Lord stood in front of them, and the darkness was replaced by a glorious
light—the shining light of God’s glory. They were terrified.
Messenger: 10Don’t be
afraid. Listen. I bring good news, news
of great joy, news that will affect all people everywhere. 11 Today,
in the city of David, a Liberator has been born for you! He is the promised
Anointed One, the Supreme Authority! 12 You will
know you have found Him when you see a baby, wrapped in a blanket, lying in a
feeding trough.
13 At
that moment, the first heavenly messenger was joined by thousands of other
messengers—a vast heavenly choir. They praised God.
14 Heavenly Choir: To the highest heights of the universe, glory to God!
And
on earth, peace among all people who bring pleasure to God!
15 As
soon as the heavenly messengers disappeared into heaven, the shepherds were
buzzing with conversation.
Shepherds: Let’s rush down to Bethlehem right now! Let’s see what’s happening!
Let’s experience what the Lord has told us about.
16 So
they ran into town, and eventually they
found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in the feeding trough. After they saw
the baby, 17 they spread the story of what they had experienced and what
had been said to them about this child. 18 Everyone
who heard their story couldn’t stop thinking about its meaning.
19 Mary,
too, pondered all of these events, treasuring each memory in her heart. 20 The
shepherds returned to their
flocks, praising God for all they had seen and heard, and they glorified
God for the way the experience had unfolded just as the heavenly messenger had
predicted.
Stuff
some peace into your life by accepting who you are in God’s eyes (by urgently pursuing
and pondering Him).
Stuff some peace into your life-(See Luke 2:8-14 above) The lowly
shepherds were not part of the elite society, but were unclean outcasts. God
loves everyone no matter who they are, or their social standing. He sees who
you truly are inside.
Pursue and
ponder -(See Luke 2:16-20 above) The shepherds hurried as they pushed
themselves to view baby Jesus. There is everlasting peace in pursuing Jesus.
What does this look like for you, and are you doing it?
Peace in
pursuing Jesus urgently-(See Luke 2:19 above) This is a
never-ending pursuit. You can pursue peace in Bible reading, talking to God in prayer,
and putting into action biblical truths as you consider them. Mary was confused
about her situation, and asked her questions (like we do), but she was chosen
by God (just as we are in our life today).
Peace in pondering all
of God’s revelations in life-There are some things that the Lord our God has kept secret. Only
he knows these things. But he told us about some things. And these teachings
are for us and our descendants forever. And we must obey all the commands in
that law. (Deuteronomy 29:29, Easy-to-Read Version)
God is in control of
your life. The painful things of life are there for a reason. They can prepare
and elevate you to the depths of peace you need to reach in your life (for your
circumstances). Real peace does not come through our accomplishments, but
through Jesus, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). God is the author of peace,
and He wants to enjoy it.
Peace can be an elusive thing during this holiday season. It does not
involve events going perfectly (or people acting perfectly) as you might have
in your life. Real peace involves knowing who you are in Christ (as His
cherished child).[i]
[i] Inspired by the sermon
“Stuff Some Peace: Stocking Stuffers,” (installment three) Sunday December
13, 2020, Pastor Jon Fulton (CPW). All CenterPoint churches have returned
to an online format because of the increase in COVID-19 cases in central Ohio.
Sunday morning online services can be viewed at
facebook.com/centerpointchurches or centerpointchurches.com/live.
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