Finding True Peace in a Chaotic World

God is so good, y'all. I'm so thankful for his goodness to us.

I'm thankful truly for his peace, right, that he has sent to us.

Let's open again in prayer today.

Lord God, there's so much chaos, Lord. There's so much confusion in this world.

Lord, I pray today, Lord, that you would help us, every one of us,

Lord, to experience the divine peace, Lord, that only is available in you.

And Lord, help us to lay down our burdens, Lord, and our problems at your feet, Lord.

For this Christmas season. In Jesus' mighty name we pray.

Amen. Amen.

Well, I'll tell you what, Eastwood, today we are continuing our annual journey

back to Bethlehem and back to where the miraculous birth of Jesus actually changed the world forever.

And we celebrate this journey through this season that we call, anybody know?

Advent, right? Which is derived from the Latin word, Adventus, meaning what?

Coming or arrival.

Advent, arrival, okay? So arrival, that's the specific event the season of Advent leads us to.

The moment when Jesus arrived and

with him, all the prophetic hope that we talked about last week, right?

And promise of a Messiah to redeem the people of God.

And last week we began, like I said, with a look into the prophetic hope of

the Messiah through the eyes of the Israelites and the specific writing,

if you remember, of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah.

And as we continue today, we'll be turning to Isaiah once again,

which we did a little bit earlier in chapter 11, verses 6 through 9.

And we are going to consider the prophetic promise of peace.

And that's what we're talking about this week, peace.

And it's only to be realized, again, I'll say this again, in and through Jesus.

I know it seems like an improbable promise, right,

as we live in a world that's immersed in wars and division, but it's from this

place, I want you to realize, Eastwood, from this place of improbability that

we turn our eyes to Christ.

And we actually remember the words of the Apostle Paul to the Philippians.

So let's look here for a moment on the screen here to Philippians chapter 4, verses 6 through 7.

Philippians 4:6–7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication

with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

And the what? The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Let me just say today, if you're feeling anxious, overwhelmed,

discouraged, fearful, or frustrated this Christmas season, then I just want

you for a moment to know that you're in the right place today.

You're in the right place because it's only through Christ that we can find

the peace that we so desperately long for. And the good news is we don't have

to wait another thousand years, do we, to experience that peace.

The peace of God, Eastwood, is available to us because Jesus has arrived. Amen.

He has arrived. His advent has come. He has arrived. And I'll tell you,

Isaiah 11, 6 through 9, we read this a little bit earlier.

It's a beautiful picture of the type of peace and harmony that will come with the reign of Messiah.

And its description of the future, yes, but also a picture of how the peace

of God can be present in our life here today.

And so as we look at that, we're going to take us to this next point here,

the promise of a peaceful kingdom.

And this passage that we read earlier, it gives us a detailed description.

If you remember, the wolf is going to lay down with the lamb, right?

And so it gives us a detailed description of natural enemies living in harmony with one another.

We understand those images and the improbable nature of a wolf dwelling with

peace, in peace with a lamb, right?

A leopard laying down with a calf, as we read about, or a child,

think about this, putting their hand into a snake's den.

I don't know about y'all, have you ever watched those YouTube snake videos,

anybody, where they catch snakes? Am I the only one? Okay, Brother Ronnie, okay.

And so, you know, they catch them and they go, I saw this one the other day,

you know, they were catching these two timber rattlers who had gotten into this

home that was being renovated.

They were doing the renovation, getting ready to sell it. So look out.

But anyway, it wasn't local, I don't believe here, but they were doing the renovation

and they actually, the guys who were working on the house said they heard some rattlesnakes.

They couldn't see them, but they heard them. So they explored and they went

in this house. And of course the snake catchers came, right?

And with their little hooks and their little buckets and boxes and all that

good stuff. And they found two timber rattlers.

Well, they began to tell us just how deadly these snakes were,

right, and the neurotoxins and all that.

And so it was like, wow, I mean, how can you picture a child being able to walk

up to a snake like that and just put their hand right there?

That's the kind of peace that's coming to our world one day through Christ as well, right?

I mean, the wolf is going to lay down with that lamb, the calf,

the leopard laying down together, the child putting their hand over the snake's den.

How could that ever happen? What kind of alternate universe could it be, right?

Just think about this for a minute. Are there people in your life,

I want y'all to sit back for a moment, just let your thoughts kind of settle here.

Are there people in your life who you can't even imagine eating a meal with

or spending an evening next to? Just think about that for a minute.

Is there a specific relative coming over this Christmas season that you just

know is going to cause trouble for everybody else? What are you going to do?

Or one picture that comes to mind is the moment when Jesus is hanging on the cross.

And you remember he looks out over all the people.

Remember the Jews were there alongside the Romans, and everybody was looking

up at him as his crucifixion unfolded. You remember what he said?

He said, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they're doing.

In Luke chapter 23. You see, that brings us to forgiveness.

Luke 23 · chapter mention

Forgiveness. You see, forgiveness, y'all, is the doorway through which peace

enters those spaces in our lives, right?

And so in Isaiah 11, 6 through 9, it gives us this amazing picture again of

enemies dwelling together in harmony.

And that reality isn't just a defining feature of Christ's everlasting kingdom.

It can be a reality, Eastwood, that we experience here and now with one another.

And forgiveness, or get this today, forgiveness is a gift offered to all of

us through Christ and through Christ alone.

True forgiveness. If you remember in John chapter 3, verse 17,

John 3:17

for God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world,

but to save the world through him.

You see, forgiveness is one of the most powerful gifts that we can extend to others.

And in many instances where we have enemies or divisions with others,

there needs to be a process of forgiveness.

And think back for a moment, kind of half joking earlier, but this is real stuff

sometimes in people's lives.

Think back to a moment to those relatives coming over that you're not too excited about.

Is there something there that needs to be dealt with?

Is there some past event, frustration or friction that you need to address, that I need to address?

If there is, then guess what? I can trust that Christ will grant me.

You can trust that Christ will grant you the strength and courage to step into

the process with the ultimate goal of finding peace.

And y'all, part of Christ's ultimate plan and his purpose is to restore creation,

as we read, to a place of true peace, true peace.

You know, somebody once said, you know, everybody has weirdos in the family. Y'all know that?

And if you don't think yours does, they say you're the weirdo, right?

But isn't it great we can have true peace, though? I know I say it jokingly,

but truly we can have peace, not only harmony to that extent with one another,

but the true peace that's found in Christ alone.

And let me just talk a little bit about this restoration of peace.

You know, we read Isaiah chapter 11. In fact,

Isaiah 11 · chapter mention

in verse nine, we go back, it talks about that they, or the natural predators,

in other words, it's referring to will neither harm nor destroy on the holy

mountain of God, if you remember.

And this holy mountain, it doesn't refer to Jerusalem or Sinai,

but to the entire earth at this time.

And we all, church, we all look forward to the day when the earth will,

what, as it says in this passage, will be filled with the knowledge of who?

Filled with the knowledge of God. And the world will be at peace because of Christ, the Messiah.

So that reality is reflected again, by the way, in the book of Colossians,

When Paul writes these words, Colossians 1, 19 and 20, he says this,

for God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, talking about Jesus,

and through him to reconcile to himself all things,

whether things on earth or things in heaven, listen to this,

by making peace through his blood shed on a cross.

There's that word again, church. What is it? Peace.

Christ made peace through his blood, it says here, shed on the cross,

and it's through Christ that we can experience today redemption,

restoration, forgiveness, and true peace, right?

So that's good news. That's worth sharing with others this Christmas season.

Even if that person happens to be your weird Uncle Charlie or your awkward Aunt Karen, right?

It doesn't matter. Christ died for them too.

I am so grateful that he laid down his life for us.

He made a way, y'all, for us to have true peace. Amen?

I mean, remember Jesus this Christmas, y'all. Just remember Jesus this Christmas.

And as we look at this next slide here, the holidays can be a difficult time, right?

I mean, as a pastor, I'm reminded of that reality, you know,

often because you get to talk with other people at different avenues and throughout ministry.

And we all experience different events in our lives.

Some of us lose loved ones, you know, and we grieve the fact that they can't

be with us this holiday season, right?

And we think that this Christmas season, this Advent season about the arrival of Jesus.

And we're reminded that part of that messianic hope and promise was a world

that was restored in peace, right?

I think we can all agree that the world needs peace now. How many of you think it does? Okay.

Just as much as it did, y'all, in the time of Isaiah, and just as much as it's

going to need it every day until Christ returns.

Again, forgiveness is a powerful path to peace, but so are things like empathy

and understanding, right?

Maybe there are people around that you just need, that need somebody to listen to them.

Maybe they just need somebody to say, you know, I can imagine how you feel and I am sorry.

I know it's a busy time of year, right?

But what would it look like, think for a moment, to share some time and space

with others this Christmas season?

You know, as we remember Christ, as we see on the screen, as we remember Christ,

let's also remember that we live in a world that's weary, right, of sin and destruction.

It's a world that is longing for peace, what we're talking about today.

And we know, y'all, we know where eternal peace is found.

You see, the arrival of Christ 2,000 years ago changed everything.

On the one hand, his arrival brought anything but peace, right,

to many people in and around Jerusalem.

In fact, if you remember, oh, King Herod, you know, had all the first-born boys

murdered, right, just to try to stop the specific messianic prophecy from coming true.

I mean, That's pretty extreme, right?

But on the other hand, Jesus did live and he did accomplish his purpose here

on earth. Thank God for that.

Thank God he arrived. Thank God he gives us hope. Thank God he gives us peace.

Y'all, through him, we can access peace in the midst of life's storms.

Y'all, have you ever had storms in life? You got some storms maybe going on now.

You see, through him, through Christ, we can experience eternal forgiveness.

We can experience salvation, of course.

In Christ, we have a peace that Scripture says surpasses our understanding.

Think back to this verse again. Did not be anxious about anything,

but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving,

let your requests be made known to God.

Help me out here. and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Church, if you're feeling anxious, again, overwhelmed, discouraged,

fearful, or frustrated this Christmas season, I want you to know again,

this is the right place for you.

It's only through Christ that we can find this true peace, this eternal peace

that we so desperately long for.

So today, the challenge to all of us is to let go, let go of our anxiety,

let go of our fear, pick up the gift of Christ, pick up the gift of Christ.

And let me tell you, share him with others, share the good news of great joy,

which we're going to talk about next week, by the way, that joy that's coming.

And by the way, I just have to say again this morning that true peace can only be found where?

In Christ. Y'all, we're not going to find peace in things. We're not going to find peace in gifts.

We're not going to find peace because our circumstances go right for a week or a month, right?

We're only going to find true peace in Christ. That's where true salvation is found.

The thing that we need most, church, is for people and you and I to be reconciled with God, right?

We need that peace with Almighty God restored.

And I know we hear this a lot, those of us that come to church,

but let me just say again, the only way we're going to experience that is by laying down our pride,

laying down our will, and kneeling at the foot of the bloodstained cross.

As we read earlier, it's through the cross that Jesus brings us peace, through his blood.

But peace, it doesn't come cheap, does it? We're talking about true peace,

peace that surpasses our understanding and it guards our hearts and minds in Christ.

Y'all, if you've never experienced that, man, I just want you to know again

today, be reminded that this peace can be yours.

And maybe some of us here need to be reminded that, hey, I have peace with God.

I truly realize that I'm a sinner in need of a savior. I've repented.

I put my faith in Christ alone. I know his blood washes away my sin.

You know, I heard somebody give a beautiful testimony this past week.

They were talking about how God had been dealing in their lives,

how they'd been reading the word more.

They were trying to figure things out and they were just trying to share Jesus with somebody.

And they got to this thread that I hear so many times and I've shared with y'all before.

It was like, you know, all we got to do is just say we're sorry to God and then

just try to live the best life we can, and he's going to take us to heaven. What's wrong with that?

Can't be good enough. You see, I think sometimes we need to remember the gospel.

The whole reason Jesus came, the whole reason that we were at war and enmity

with God is that there was sin, right? That sin separated us from him.

And so as we look at that and we remember that, y'all, I mean,

there there's repentance yes all that happens but we got to realize we can't be good enough.

Scripture reminds us loudly today, church, there is none good.

There's no one good. There's no one who does good.

And I hear that commonly today. That's a common thing today.

Everybody thinks the way to get to heaven is to do good things,

to help the little old lady across the street, to bring somebody groceries for Christmas.

Look, those are all wonderful things and things we should be doing as Christians.

As we live out our faith, yes, good works support that, and they point to the

fact that it's real, and they bring glory to our Father in heaven,

but the good works do not save us.

You can't, the Bible says, your good works in and of themselves are filthy rags.

Y'all, we need to be reminded of it. It's not that we could ever be good enough.

Y'all, I can't be good enough to keep my salvation, let alone earn it.

Come on, we're not good.

And the faster we get that out of our minds, the faster we're going to know

the true salvation and peace that Jesus brings.

You're not good enough. You never will be. I'm not good enough. I never will be.

And when I realize that and I kneel at the cross, church, and I say,

Lord, forgive me a sinner in need of a Savior.

Lord, my righteousness are as filthy rags, Lord, but your righteousness leads to life.

You see, I don't need mine. I need his righteousness.

The perfect life that he lived on my account.

You see, that's what Jesus did

on the cross. He died in my place because I was not a worthy sacrifice.

You know, even if I had died on the cross, man, I wouldn't have saved myself.

You wouldn't have either.

It took the holy blood of God shed to cover our sin and the righteousness of

Christ to cover us and close us in his righteousness.

You see, when we stand before God in heaven, the only reason we get in is not

because, God, I've been good enough.

God, I came to church every week. I came to church. I read my Bible every day.

I did this. I did that. I gave to missionaries.

All good things, but you don't earn your way to heaven.

The only reason, y'all, is because I've been covered in the blood of Christ,

and I have been clothed in his righteousness.

Y'all, that's the truth, y'all. I'm telling you, Jesus is the one.

He's the one that says his peace passes understanding.

He's the one that tells us that his blood is good enough, that his sacrifice,

the atonement on the cross, it says it pleased God. has satisfied his wrath on our behalf.

You see, Jesus died in your place. Jesus died in my place so that I could go

free, so that you could go free.

See, that's the gospel. When we repent of our sin, when we realize we're sinners

in need of a Savior, that all of our goodness is filthy rags,

and we need him alone. Only his righteousness can save us.

That's when we realize, you know what? There's nothing that I did to earn my

salvation, and I'll be honest with you, you didn't either, and there's nothing

that we could ever do to keep it.

And that's why I'm so sure, church, of the eternal security of the believer

as Scripture teaches, because God's the one who saved me. I didn't.

I didn't have nothing to do with it. God even gave me and granted me the gift

of repentance so that I would be able to repent.

Otherwise, I don't seek after him apart from his Holy Spirit dealing with me.

No one ever seeks after God. So if you see somebody dark in the doors,

hallelujah, of the church, what can you be assured of?

God's Spirit is moving in that person.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be here. They wouldn't be here.

So I hope today, church, I hope you realize that this peace that Jesus brings

at his advent is a peace that does pass understanding, all understanding.

It's a peace that makes us right with God. And hallelujah, if you know Christ

today and you've experienced that peace, you can praise God today and say, Lord, thank you.

But let me challenge you today as we wrap up, share Christ with other people.

Share the good news of great joy.

Share that news with them. Don't be neglecting that.

There are so many people out there who need this same hope that we talked about

last week, and they need this same peace that we remember today.