Peace
2 Corinthians 1:2-5 (emphasis added)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.
As we noted last week, Paul begins nearly every New Testament letter with this greeting: “Grace to you and peace…” It was his opening prayer and his first desire for the followers of Jesus he dearly loved.
Last week we looked at God’s grace. In this final week of the Christmas season, we will look more closely at the peace God longs to bring to the lives of those He dearly loves.
The New Testament word for peace carries the same meaning as the Hebrew word shalom. It’s more than just the absence of discord or strife; it is the rich, full idea of everything being right and as it should be, the way God thought it up and intended it from the perfect beginning.
We all desire peace; it is hardwired into us. As children of God, we bear His likeness – the likeness of the God who describes Himself as the Prince of Peace. Our desire for peace points us to what is good, right, true and godly; it points us to heaven, where there will be perfect peace.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if peace came easily and stayed long in our lives? But peace, in my experience, is a tricky and elusive thing. In this final week we will explore peace together – the lack of it, its source, its substitutes and counterfeits, our role in cultivating it, and the coming peace we will experience in glory with our Prince of Peace.
Father, as we enter this week, would you open our eyes in new ways to peace, to shalom, to everything as it should be. Would you help us to be ones who bring your perfect peace on earth as it is in heaven.
Questions for Reflection:
- As you enter this week, where do you know that you lack peace in your world?
- Can you identify places around you that are in need of peace? Maybe it’s in your family, a relationship, or your neighborhood.
- How might you bring peace to these areas?
- Offer a prayer to the God of peace for these places.
