Instead of coming with the armies of heaven to wage war against people, Jesus came with the purpose to wage war against sin. They came to proclaim that the holy, almighty God has brought down the white flag from heaven in the face of Jesus Christ. It sounds absurd, doesn’t it? In the ancient world especially, no army had ever been deployed to bring peace, except this army. Imagine a nation’s military sending out their most highly trained men and women from all branches to go invade a foreign land, but instead of bearing arms, they bear white flags symbolizing the invasion of peace into that land. The paradox lies in the fact that the host of heaven, the heavenly army was deployed for peace rather than war. So, Luke tells of an army of heavenly angels announcing the birth of Jesus and singing a song about a peace offering from God. Instead of coming as a blood-thirsty tyrant, Jesus was born with the very purpose to give His own blood to establish peace something unprecedented from any ruler.Īnd through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Now, the world awaited the coming of God. Since then, people have continued to reject God’s way of building a better world and have chosen to do egregious things instead. How will this war-lord establish peace? Will He do it just like how every world leader had in the past? Remember, mankind declared war against God (so to speak) when Adam and Eve rebelled against God’s authority in the garden. It was a euphemism for “army.” Heaven’s army was deployed to announce the birth of the king! The Sar Shalom had been born. Quite a few details are relevant here, among those would be the arrival of the “heavenly host.” This was a technical military term. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”(Luke 2:8-14, NIV) 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you he is the Messiah, the Lord. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But notice how Luke tells this part of the narrative.Ĩ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. The world needed a Savior, the One who would truly bring peace.Įnter the angels announcing to the shepherds the birth of Jesus. So, the world wearily waited for true peace to come. Part of the reason they had not succeeded at bringing peace is that their methods of achieving and maintaining “peace” were cruel and tyrannical. Pax Romana was a political slogan, not a concrete reality. He cannot give peace of heart, for which man yearns more than even for outward peace.” “While the emperor may give peace from war on land and sea, he is unable to give peace from passion, grief, and envy. The famous philosopher Epictetus-a contemporary of Luke-observed: Rome claimed it established Pax Romana (“peace of Rome”) but had it? Was everyone truly experiencing the tranquility they said to have brought? Not a chance. How did it become so? Through brute force, military might, and political oppression upon anyone who would challenge them. At the time of the first Christmas, the Roman empire was in its heyday. Between the writings of Isaiah and then the Gospel of Luke there was a transfer of power. Because this tells us something incredible about the character of God. It sounds strange! “Prince of Peace” sounds a lot simpler. ‘ Sar’ has militaristic overtones, which denote a tyrant or war-lord. The Hebrew says that the child will be the “ sar shalom,” which is where we get the title, “prince of peace.” But a ‘ sar’ is not a friendly title in the OT. In fact, it is the climactic title of the list! But the original Hebrew construction Sar Shalom is far more perplexing! Our English translations don’t quite capture the irony of such a title. “Prince of Peace” is a beloved title for Jesus’s identity, foretold by Isaiah. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.
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