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“Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.’”
Luke 2:13-14

Peace. It was a message the Israelites waited centuries to hear.

After their rebellion in the book of Malachi, God had been quiet for 400 years. No answered prayers. No angelic visitations. No burning bushes, no Presence in the temple, and no blessings from above. They were subject to oppression by the Greeks and the Romans. They were taxed 60-80% of their income, were governed by people who were enemies of their God and had their land stripped away. They were watched wherever they went, were told what they could and could not do, and had to pledge alliance to their new king, Caesar.

Peace wasn’t really a part of their lives.

They knew about it. They had heard stories about how God intervened on behalf of their ancestors, gave them their own land and rest from their enemies. They knew His promises and read about His blessings.

They just weren’t experiencing it themselves.

So when these angels appear on the scene, when the heavens rip open and God’s messengers deliver a promise of joy and glory and peace, the shepherds would have been ecstatic.

God was bringing them peace.

Their Messiah had been born. He would lead the charge against their Roman oppressors, defeat their enemies, give them back their land and reign as their King. All the waiting, all the praying, all the crying out and years of oppression were about to pay off.

Peace was coming.

The Israelites were overjoyed.

The only problem was, peace didn’t come. Not as they expected.

There was no battle. Christ didn’t overthrow the Roman empire. He didn’t defeat their enemies. He didn’t give them back their land, make a public spectacle of their oppressors and bring them rest from their enemies. He didn’t make the Romans pay for what they did.

He didn’t bring them the peace they wanted.

The Israelites wanted a utopia. They wanted paradise. They wanted to be free from oppression and taxation and war. They were praying for a life free from strife and hardship and pain. They wanted the kind of peace that brought them comfort and rest and safety.

They wanted our definition of peace.

But God didn’t give them what they wanted. He didn’t give them freedom from oppression, rest from war or the comfortable life we all desire. He gave them something bigger, something better.

Christ gave them the kind of peace that transcends circumstances – that in the midst of turmoil and strife and persecution, we could have a deep, quiet, restful sense that God in in control, and He has our best interests at heart.

And so, my brothers and sisters, as we journey these last few days to the manger, may you be reminded of the true peace Christ gives. May you know that He is in control of your every circumstance. And may you, as you work through your own hardship and turmoil and pain, find that same peace the angels declared 2,000 years ago.

Where do you need to experience peace in your life?