For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Prince of Peace
The final aspect of this Ultimate Gift is the peace He brings into the lives of those who receive Him. Isaiah further promised that Of the increase of his...peace there will be no end. What does it mean to have His peace that always increases and never ends.
Isaiah fleshes out this Reign of Peace in Chapter 32:
1 See, a king will reign in righteousness and rulers will rule with justice. 2 Each man will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land...16 Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. 17 The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. 18 My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. 19 Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, 20 how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.
Prince of Peace [and Quiet]When the Prince of Peace sets up His forever Reign, it will include quietness. This is the effect of right living. In our hustle and bustle toward Christmas Christ offers us quietness of heart and soul. How frazzled our spirits can get in the pursuit of the Perfect Christmas. Jesus wants to calm and quiet our heart like he did to the stormy lake. Today, hear him say to you, "Quiet! Be still!"
Prince of Peace [and Confidence]
Confidence is that calm assurance that all is well. When the Reign of Peace comes to stay, people will have such assurance. But even today, we can have the Blessed Assurance that Jesus is near. When my family went Christmas shopping, we had to go to Charleston. I was a small boy from the country and the city scared me with all the people. But as long as I held Mom or Dad's hand, I felt confident and sure. So it is with Jesus, he holds our life in his hands and we can be confident.
Prince of Peace [and Security]
When the Kingdom comes, the lion and the lamb will lay down together, children will play outside snake holes and all will be safe. We "ain't gonna study war no more" and spears will be refitted as plowshares. Peace will preside over all.
One of my favorite Christmas stories comes from the era of World War I. The whole of Europe was divided by a series of trenches interconnected with tunnels. It was a stalemate. In almost pointless procession, solders would receive orders to climb out of their trench and run across "no-mans-land" toward the enemy trenches. The goal was to break the stalemate and advance the battlelines. Almost always it resulted in the death and wounding of hundreds of men who would eventually have to fall back to their original position.
One Christmas eve after nightfall, the sound of singing drifted from the German side toward the Allied side of "no-man's-land." In German someone was singing "stille nacht, hailege nacht..." Silent Night. Soon some English and French singers joined the song.
Eventually, these singers climbed out of the trenches and walked toward each other. They exchanged Christmas greetings and the fighting ended...briefly. For just a while, eternity's peace invaded earth's warring.
Prince of Peace [Chieftain of SHALOM]
The Hebrew word for peace encompasses wholeness of the entire person. God sent Jesus to make a whole out of our fragmented selves. Paul prayed for the Thessalonian Christ-followers, May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ. The One who called you is completely dependable. If he said it, he'll do it!
God wants to pull together our brokeness and make us whole persons again.
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