THE GOD OF LOVE - LOVE LIFT YOU UP WHERE YOU BELONG
I feel it is right and appropriate for this study to also share my thoughts about the significance of Christmas.
WEEK SEVEN: FATHER KNOWS BEST
the LORD corrects those He loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom He delights. (Proverbs 3:11-12)
“...on earth peace among those with whom he (God) is pleased” - Luke 2:14
Jesus was born during the reign of Augustus, the Roman “Prince of peace.” In keeping with Isaiah’s prophecy, Jesus, also came as the “Prince of peace,” and yet, his peace was of an entirely different kind (Isaiah 9:6O) Jesus’ peace was not coercive or backed up by Roman military might and law; it was a supernatural peace—peace with God—peace that no human power can ever siege, and no amount of money could ever buy. The birth of the king of the universe as a man for the sake of man's souls and the redemption of all mankind. Not for territorial gains, earthly splendor, or a golden age of national pride, but for the souls of the people. Two princes of peace, contrasts of light and dark.
Wisdom teaches us the necessity of both light and dark. You cannot ever truly know joy, peace and contentment without knowing also about the threat of war, despair, poverty, and destruction. And likewise, wisdom teaches us about the value of virtue, tolerance, and kindness, as does the cost of all sorts of crimes against humanity. Light and dark. Birth, death, and rebirth. All must be experienced in order to become a fully realized and completed soul. There can be no escaping from this necessity and still meet the expectation of peace on earth. A whole life must be experienced in all its wholeness, from the wholesome to the tiresome, and all its wickedness, from the quarrelsome to the selfish. Every bit of the costs and the virtues of life are of eternal value to the complete and renewed human soul.
In God’s providence, Caesar Augustus, for his part, brought about the earthly convergence of events that caused Joseph and Mary, per Micah’s prophecy, to come to Bethlehem in such a way as to inspire many millions. Prince of peace dark, unknowingly in his own way, paved the way for the prince of peace light. The ugliness of the situation contrasted both the brilliance of a distant star that guided the lowliest bewildered shepherds and the wisest of spiritual magi, against the messy backdrop of many human occupations guided by all sorts of wickedness. A Christmas story of light versus dark.
Christmas teaches us to love God and each other. To not fear the darkest of night times, and to share the blessings of the most prosperous days of peace. And Christmas is not celebrated just the once, but each year to remind us that we are working out our salvation still. The darkness has not yet been fully overcome, and therefore the shadow of sin remains in its many shades of gray.
Jesus said in 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.”
Jesus knew we'd be afraid because he knew that the darkness remains in control of so much still. And he promised a peace born from love and sacrifice that Caesar Augustus could never conquer by might and law.
And so, we celebrate Christmas as we have for many generations, because the soul still craves both wickedness and peace, holiness and human avarice, light and dark. It's not that the birth of Jesus Christ has done nothing lasting toward the illumination of humanity, it's that we have seen the wisdom in knowing both the darkness and the light, the profane paganism, and the profound puritans. Our celebratory Christmas displays reflect that knowing. From the glow of the advent candle to a fake Christmas tree in a window. The light breaks out into the darkness in its own way, even in the commercialization.
I pray that this wisdom becomes yours one day. That everyone will see the value in it. And find peace along the way.
God bless you and keep you, now and forever. Merry Christmas.