The Coming Kingdom of Peace

This morning we will complete the series we began the first week in December. The series has focused on the different aspects of the coming Kingdom as they pertain to the Themes of Advent: Hope, Love, Joy, and today Peace. The lectionary text this morning focuses on a very interesting and important passage of scripture. Not only does our text bring together the strands of Advent, but it also speaks to the anticipation, expectation, participation, and longing surrounding the coming Kingdom. What we will read is a story that takes place after Mary has been visited by a messenger; a messenger explaining that she would conceive a very important and special child. But the messenger also informed Mary of her relative Elizabeth, a barren older woman, who had now conceived. Thus, in an attempt to validate the claims of the heavenly messenger, Mary traveled to her relative.

Text: Luke 1: 39-55

What Mary is described in Luke as saying is truly remarkable. Yes it is verse and not prose, and it echoes back to many Hebrew Bible passages. But it also affirms Mary's acceptance of her coming son. Mary, in haste, traveled to her relative Elizabeth to confirm if the heavenly messenger should be trusted. In seeing Elizabeth, a once barren mother, six months pregnant with her child John, Mary felt over-whelming Joy; a Joy that expressed itself through the Magnificat. The first word in the Latin Vulgate for Mary's song of praise begins “Magnificat” and in English it is translated “magnifies.” Thus, Mary, upon realizing her special privilege and the hope her son would bring, magnifies God.

The coming of Jesus created an immense Joy in Mary. Joy, however, comes from some source. And the source of Mary's Joy waits in the Grace of her God, the Mercy of Yahweh. As her song says, “And his mercy is for those who fear him...” (v.50) and “he has filled the hungry with good things...” (v.53). Mary's words reflect not only an admiration for God's Love, Grace, and Promise, but also set the precedent for Jesus' ministry to the poor, oppressed, hungry, and needy. Her song anticipates the Kingdom Jesus would begin by indicating the neediness of the world, and the Salvation God offers the humble. Here we find a woman who anticipates, expects, longs for and definitely participates in, the coming Kingdom of God. In Mary we see Hope because of God's Love. In Mary we see Joy expressed in a beautiful and revolutionary song. A song concerned for the poor, down-trodden, and rejected of the world. We can speculate about the Peace Mary may have encountered or experienced, but it isn't until the birth of Jesus that we begin to see the coming Kingdom of Peace made apparent.

So I believe it is very appropriate to read the “Christmas story” at this juncture. We have seen the presence of Hope, Love, and Joy, but let us focus here on Peace.

So turn in your bible with me to Luke chapter 2. Now you may have heard these verses many times over the years, but today read them through the lens of the Kingdom, through the eyes of someone expecting and anticipating the completion of the Kingdom that Jesus established in his birth, death, and resurrection. This is the birth of that man, who manifested God's Divine Grace, Mercy, and Redemption so that we might participate in God's Kingdom as the Children of God. This is a beautiful and important story. So, listen.

The “Christmas Story”
Text: Luke 2: 1-20

What a beautiful story. A story that has been told countless times, spanning history and the globe. A story which can bring us into the life of Christ. I mean, after reading it so many times I feel as though I could be in those words that Luke writes. I could be right there in that story watching the events of the narrative unfold. I feel as though I am watching with knowing eyes the birth of a Messiah who would bring the world endless Hope and eternal Joy. Can you see the child this morning? Can you see Mary tenderly wrap the babe in rags? Can you see this gentle mother, filled with Hope, Love, and Joy, carefully place Jesus in the manger? And all the while Joseph watches eagerly over her shoulder. Can you picture it?

Now imagine we travel a little ways. We come upon some lowly shepherds watching over their flocks. They patiently perform their duties unaware of the strange events about to transpire. And you can almost see this dirty but dedicated group of people burdened with their uncleanliness. These shepherds could not keep ritually clean in their profession, yet the very sheep they watched over would become the sacrificial lambs used in the temple. And it is the shepherds, the lowly animal care-takers who were shown a splendid site. A messenger from God comes before them to proclaim the birth of their savior, the one who would ultimately cleanse their ritual impurity. Hear the words of the heavenly host that joined with the messenger saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

And then we travel with those shepherds back to find Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus. There in that lowly stable, in the dirt and hay, layed the Messiah. Surrounded by the lowly shepherds, a carpenter, and a weary mother sleeps the Anointed One, The Christ. This is the Arrival of Hope, Love, Joy, and as we shall begin to see today: Peace.

But what is this Peace that we talk so fondly of? What is this Peace that the heavenly host proclaimed to the shepherds? What is this Peace that Mary might have felt with the her son, the coming Redeemer, as she endured her pregnancy? Well to begin, let's explore what it is we mean when we use the word “peace”. As you might find in many dictionaries, the word peace is often used to indicate quiet, silence, or some form of rest. This is expressed in the phrase “needing some peace and quiet.” And couldn't you go for some “peace and quiet” during the holiday season? A little break from the hustle, bustle, and endless holiday jingles would be nice.
But what else do we mean when we talk about Peace? Another dictionary definition might reveal that “peace” refers to harmony in personal relations. Such harmony is being understood when people use the phrase “at peace with herself.” To be at one with yourself, or to be “together” psychologically seems to offer us peace. But what else offers Peace?

Further dictionary examination might reveal that Peace indicates an end of hostility between those at war, or in opposition. This is the Peace that is sought when governments battle, countries fight, and people feud. But what is it that unites all these notions of Peace? And how does that connect to and inform us of spiritual Peace?

I submit to you this morning that all these notions of Peace carry with them the idea of Freedom. To be at peace with yourself, to be in a state of quietude, or to end enmity with another is to be released. So in the first sense of Peace, “peace and quiet,” we are released from the noise and exhaustion of the world. We are freed from the constraints of schedule and task, from the demands of those around us. We are free to rest and be alone. And in the second case, “peace with oneself,” we find that we are free from inner dispute and torment. We have a unified personality, a psychological wholeness. The third case, “peace not war,” we find that we are freed from the confines of hate and death. We are liberated from opposition to embrace Love. Ultimately, Peace brings freedom.

But I also submit to you this morning that all these notion of Peace also carry with them the idea of unity, or togetherness. Whether this is internal togetherness or external togetherness, Peace implies harmony or accord. To be individually at Peace is to have internal, psychological unity or wholeness. To be collectively at Peace is to have external unity with the rest of those in your world. And we see this in Jesus. In fact, we see this in the meaning and power of Christ .
Jesus' arrival as a baby and Christ's life, death, and resurrection have two effects which promote Peace. First, Christ, as our Redeemer, restores Peace between God and humanity. This is the individual element of Peace. Correspondingly, this is also the internal spiritual Peace. Each one of you has access to the Peace that comes from God's Grace and Mercy. This is the Peace of Reconciliation, the Peace of Redemption, or the Peace of Salvation. But this is not all the Peace that is produced by the Christ-event. There is a corollary Peace, a Peace that is derived from Reconciliation and Redemption; and which transcends the individual. This is the collective Peace of God's Children. This is the Peace between human and human. It parallels external peace because it involves our interaction in the world around us. A Peace that flows directly from the Reconciliation between God and human produces a Peace that unifies and unites human and human.

Thus the coming Kingdom of Peace is one which embraces both aspects of Peace. Its source is Hope which emanates from Love. But Peace is not purely private. We are missing the larger image of the Kingdom when we focus solely on the private aspect of Peace. Peace is also collective. It has collective meaning, and more importantly, collective power. Peace can transform. It can not only transform an individual who has been affected by Hope and Love, but it can affect a world desperately needing Hope and Love. What's more, the heavenly host and messenger from God make an interesting and important connection between Peace and God's pleasure. They come on the scene to proclaim God's Glory, but also to proclaim that God is glorified and pleased with those to whom there is Peace. Having Hope in God's promise of Love yields a Peace which pleases God.

So this morning, as we close, we have to ask ourselves a few important questions. In this time of Peace, Joy, Love, and Hope, is God pleased with me? Is God pleased with me? Do I have Peace? Do I have the internal Peace of Christ's redemption? Have I stopped there? Have I forgotten the external Peace of Christ? Is God not only pleased with me, but with us, collectively, as a community? Do we have peace in Perryville? Is God pleased with us as a collective state? Do we have, practice, or strive after Peace in Kentucky? And now the tough question. Is God pleased with us as a collective nation? Does America long for Peace, pursuing it with all its resources and capabilities? Are we a nation of peace? I ask you this morning to reflect on the condition of your Peace, and of our Peace. Do not simply focus on your internal Peace, Hope, Love, and Joy. This is corrupt and perverted if we think that these issues are only a personal matter. For the Kingdom calls us into a collective whole. The Kingdom which Advent draws our attention toward is filled with people, lots of people, living in the Hope of a Promised Love that produces Joy and Peace. A Joy and Peace we share with those around us, not just in our own hearts and thoughts. Have you been sharing your Joy and Peace? Have you been making Peace on earth, and are you filled with good will toward all humanity?

I invite you this morning, as the Christmas Holiday reaches the threshold, to find Peace. If this means finding personal Peace for the first time, then come, kneel before the God who can bring you personal Peace in the redemption of your sin and the evil that has befallen you. If instead, you have found internal peace, but struggle with external opposition, come and pray with me. I invite you as well to the alter of humility where you can find that Peace which extends into all the world. There is a need in each of our lives to admit our short-comings, both with our own personal selves and with the world. The house of God is a haven of Love which offers the cleansing of such burdens. Come, I invite you to pray as we sing our closing Hymn.

Benediction:

Holy God, the psalmist wrote that where “Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other” (85:10). May we find that to be true today. May we find your steadfast Love which gives us Hope. May we be faithful with that Love, striving for Peace in a fallen and broken world. Let us realize that Peace is not only for our own pockets, to give us a false sense of security and momentary happiness. May our Peace be both internal and external. May we work toward the Kingdom of Peace, building up all of humanity in Love, Compassion, and Mercy. May we extend the Grace of God toward the needy, hungry, impoverished, and down-trodden. Give us the hands to serve those that Christ served, the hearts to love those that Christ loved, and the desire to spread your Peace to all the world. May this Christmas be one which beckons us toward the Kingdom, the unfinished Kingdom. Let us await its completion in anticipation and expectation, ever-fueled to participation, and never forgetting our longing. For You have given us all we could ever need by sending that babe to our world so many years ago. A babe that would transform our lives and give us the drive to transform our world. May that be our image of Christmas, a changing world moved toward Hope, Love, Joy, and Peace. Amen.