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Peace on earth and good will toward men
Luke 2:14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
The phrase “Peace on earth and goodwill to all men” used to be very common at this time of the year but in our current society where Christianity is being swept aside in favor of God-less secularism this is not as common as it used to be but it still used to a certain extent.
Very often at this time of year people want to put an end to strife they want to lay aside the normal ways of the world and have this feeling that the scripture describe as “peace on earth and good will toward men”. But you won’t find peace in Christmas you will only find it in Jesus Christ.
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Back to Luke 2:14
Oftentimes the later part of this verse is misquoted by saying “goodwill to all men”
The Angels that made this declaration serve in the presence of God Almighty and spoke for Him on this occasion, so what happened to this declaration of peace on the day of the birth of Jesus?
Some other translations give us a better insight into the recipients of this heavenly promise.
NLT "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to all whom God favors.*"
NIV “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”
ESV "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"
Whom does God favor and with whom is He pleased?
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
One of the things the diligent seeker will be rewarded with is peace, peace wonderful peace
John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Our peace and our hope are all centered in Jesus the Messiah Gods faithful son.
When two people are in agreement they have no schisms or strife between them there is quite simply peace. Peace is the absence of strife and adversity,
Peace is the result of unity.
Within the person of Jesus Christ God was able to establish peace between himself and man because through Jesus God was reconciling the world back unto himself. (2 Cor 5:18-19)
Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
God has stated his will in the scriptures when we accept and conform to the will of God we are in agreement with God and therefore we are also at peace with Him.
The peace promised by the Angles that day is not evident in the world at large which is in itself a testament to mans unbelief but it is and can be evident in the hearts and lives of those who love God and believe his promises. Today we can have peace because we have the prince of peace Jesus Christ
Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
You can be an ambassador for peace by proclaiming the prince of peace and not just at this time of the year but at all times
Gal 6:10
Matt 5:44-48
Glory to God
However much the world tries to make peace it can never do so with any genuine fulfillment.
When men quote this scripture from Luke saying “Peace on earth and good will toward men” this is in itself a broken promise because it misses out the first part of the verse upon which the second part is achieved “Glory to God in the highest” Without first giving glory to God there can be no peace, once again man tries to bring about the things of God on his own terms and ignores God who makes all things possible even peace to those with whom he is pleased.
So the pathway to peace is to glorify God which we do when we accept Jesus Christ who glorified God and whom God glorified
A man, a woman, a married couple, a family, a city and a nation can only have true peace when God is truly glorified. Peace on earth can only exist with God in his proper position as the one who is glorified.
There are several statements made by Angels regarding the birth of Jesus which have not yet come to pass but will come to pass when he returns to claim his inheritance – the world (Ps 2) then we shall see the fullness of this and other promise come to pass and then finally the world will know peace because when Jesus Christ takes the government of the world upon his shoulders as the prince of peace then all men will enjoy the wonderful peace of God which passes all understanding, then will all warring and fighting cease.
Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
You won’t find peace in the world not even at Christmas but you will find it in God through Jesus Christ the prince of peace.
Amen
