Christmas. The angels proclaimed Christ’s birth with joyful songs and “peace on earth, good will to men!” But do we see that? There is no peace on earth. There are wars and rumors of war. Terrorists threaten everyone. There are lonely, grieving people. Death touches so many lives. What do we have to rejoice about?

But we misunderstand the peace God offers to man. When Adam sold the world into sin and Satan’s power, the relationship with God was broken and there was no peace on earth. Ever since, man has been at war with God, wanting to run their own lives, and finding frustration and unrest, not peace. Because Jesus (who is God) came to earth, lived, died, and rose again, he restored man’s relationship with God and through the relationship with Jesus. Even though everything about me is chaos and in tatters, I can have peace with God, true peace. And I rejoice. I have life with God, not just now, but for eternity.

BECAUSE OF LOVE
Glory could not hold him
when love called out his name
His Father bade him change his
clothes of glory’s reign.

The Son of God left heaven
to don a servant’s life
to dress in human skin to
serve those lost to strife.

Because of love he suffered;
because of love he died.
Because of love he rose that
with God we could abide.