WELCOME,
OUR
PRINCE OF PEACE!
Unto us a
Son is given;
And the
government will be
Upon His
shoulder.
And His
name will be called
Wonderful,
Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah
9:6
I
am sitting here looking out at grey, cold and foggy skies, and in looking at my
calendar, Christmas is just two weeks from today. And the stores are crowded, traffic is heavy,
as the world rushes madly buying and selling, having their parties. But how many of those faces in the crowds
have peace in their lives? Oh, they may
think they do, but many are carrying heavy burdens of sorrow, grief and
pain. And many are just trying to get
through the holiday season, trying to please their family and friends with
their gifts.
Sunday
was the second Sunday of the Advent season, and we lit a Candle of Peace. But many out there in our world don’t know
the Prince of Peace. Oh, they many hear
some carols, but to them they are just part of the tradition of the season. Some may even join family and friends in
church on Christmas Sunday, or attend a Candlelight Service on Christmas Eve,
but they don’t know the joy and peace that our Prince of Peace brings.
And
the lovely carols we hear, do we listen to all the verses? The Christmas Carols we hear speak of our
coming King, they speak of Him bringing salvation and His joy to the
world. They tell of the love of God in
sending Jesus to a lost and dying world.
This familiar carol is an invitation to come to the “Prince of Peace.”
O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by; yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light; the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
For Christ is born of Mary; and gathered all above, while mortals
sleep, the angels keep their watch of wond’ring love. O morning stars together proclaim the holy
birth, and praises sing to God the King, and peace to men on earth.
How silently, how silently, the wondrous Gift is giv’n! So God imparts to human hearts the blessings
of His Heavn’n. No ear may hear His
coming; but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive Him still, the
dear Christ enters in.
O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray; cast out our sin and
enter in, be born in us today. We hear
the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell, o come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel. (Phillips Brooks).
As
we gaze upon the Christ child there in the manger, so humble and meek, all our
hopes, our fears, or dreams, our sorrows and pain are met in Him. He came to us as a baby, God in the flesh,
but in Him we find all our needs will be met, all the fulfillment of our lives
will be met in that precious baby. He
will walk this earth, healing the sick, bringing love and compassion, and
feeling their pain, and then He went willingly to the cross to die for
mankind’s sins and forgiveness of our sins, and resurrected the third day, to
bring to us eternal life. Oh, what a
Savior we have!
And
I think of this season this year and the sorrows of the past year. Many of us have lost a precious loved one in
the months past and this is the first Christmas without them. There is an empty space around our tables,
and an empty place in our hearts, as we remember Christmas past, and all those
precious memories we shared. But we have
hope, someday we will see the shining, happy face of that loved one again in
God’s heaven, all because the Prince of Peace came, humble and meek on that
first Christmas morning.
And
some of us may be facing medical issues in the coming weeks, as we await test
results. Some are facing surgery around
Christmas and New Year’s Day. In the
next couple of weeks, will we be recovering from surgery, having pain and away
from loved ones and in the hospital? We
don’t know what lies ahead. But
everything we need is in our Prince of Peace.
“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” John 14:27.
And
this wonderful old Christmas carol calls us to praise Him! The angels proclaimed His birth and
proclaimed peace to all men. We praise
Him because, He as God, came to dwell among men, to bring peace in the midst of
our cold, stormy, foggy days. And we
praise Our God for sending Jesus, and we praise Him for His great love, and we
praise Him for our salvation and for the hope of eternal life.
There in the manger was God in the flesh reaching out to all mankind. So sing your praises, sing the wonderful carols and rejoice in God your King! Let Him bring great joy into your heart this season no matter what the days ahead may hold! And we can rejoice in the promise of His Second Advent, His soon return as “Prince of Peace.”
And
we think of the wonderful “Gift” that was given. And into our hearts He places the hope of
Heaven and all its joys. And when we
seek Him with humble and repentant hearts, He enters in. My dear friends, the door of salvation is
still open, let Him enter and be your “ Prince of Peace.” (II Corinthians 6:2).
So
we make a call, “Come, Lord Jesus, forgive us our sins, abide with us!” He is Emmanuel, God with us! And He comes, bringing the wonderful peace that
only He can bring. In the midst of our
trials, we can sing:
Peace, Peace, wonderful peace, coming down from the Father above. Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray, in fathomless billows of love. (Warren D. Cornell).
Peace,
in Jesus’ Name,
Pastor
Sharon
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