And a Little Child Shall Lead Them to Hope (Emmanuel: A Call to Hope, pt. 2)

This week, we discussed the Advent theme of peace in light of Isaiah’s prophecy that a little boy would lead creatures of starkly different natures, such as wolves and lambs, to be at peace with each other. Of course, we often encounter obscurity, confusion, and questions when reading the books of prophecy because they are often written with an incredible amount of symbolism.

These days, we have the benefit of knowing that this prophecy about peace was a precursor to the many ways in which Jesus already brought peace into the world, foreshadowing even greater peace to come. He was the child who would lead people normally at odds with each other to not only live amongst each other but “lie down” with each other, indicating comfort and closeness.

This is the beauty of the peace of Christ. It is not simply an agreement to not fight constantly or endanger each other’s wellbeing in any area of life. It is a profound, intentional movement toward one another, a deepening of engagement that might not normally be possible. However, life in Christ is hardly normal, and anything is possible through him.

It wouldn’t have been considered normal for the gods of the Ancient Near East to humble themselves from their power and privilege to walk with empathy amongst humans, but Jesus did, nor to challenge humans as we lord it over each other, nor to completely give up their lives for us in order to save us from our sins rather than crush us for them, nor to be resurrected from the dead in order to give us true and unending life to replace the false and faltering lives we so often live. Thank God that he is far from normal.

The big question about peace is usually how to actually live in it.

The better question is how Jesus himself lived in peace.

How did he live in peace with tax collectors, the traitors to his own kinfolk? He made one an apostle and author of one of the synoptic gospels. He visited another in his own house, one whose door none would have darkened because of how he extorted money from others, and as a result, this tax collector gave back way more than he took.

How did he live in peace with religous hypocrites? He told the truth both about what they got right and what they got wrong. He discouraged injustice and public displays of supremacy while encouraging them to consider whether or not they were actually focused on the right things. One of these Pharisees was Paul, who would go on to be an apostle, even though he was a killer of early Christians.

Peace for Jesus meant welcoming people without exception, and that kind of welcoming was so powerful it changed their lives forever.

This week, ask yourself who the Holy Spirit is calling you to welcome into your life. Who grates against your last nerve? Who do you prejudge? Who has sinned against you that you need to forgive? Better yet, who have you hurt, and how do you plan to repair things? You might not know the exact next step to take, no matter who may have been responsible for breaking the peace and introducing conflict, but you can probably think of who the right person is. Start there, ask yourself what you wish were different in that relationship, and trust that God will light the path before you.

The peace you long for may even be peace with God. Maybe you blame him for something that happened in your life, or he’s felt distant. Maybe you’ve felt guilty about something you’ve done, and you don’t know if God would ever forgive you for it. Regardless of what is disrupting the peace, know that he took the initiative to make peace when he sent Jesus to be with us, baggage and all. He can handle our confessions of doubt and anger just as much as he can handle the confessions of our sin. That’s how strong his love is. Even in the chaos we create, he makes every effort to bring peace to our souls.

As you walk through this week, even in the most chaotic of circumstances, may you turn your mind to the one who calms the raging seas, for he will have no trouble calming our hearts and minds through the presence of his Holy Spirit.