Will there Be Peace on Earth?

Click Here: Read Luke 12

“Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.”  – Luke 12:51

It was a crisp night in the small town of Bethlehem.  The stars in the sky were brilliant and the moon lit up the desert hills.  In the distance you could hear the bleating of sheep, the noise of the crowds in the city center, fire crackling here and there as stander-bys warmed their hands.  When the young couple enter into the city, tired from a long journey of nearly 100 miles on foot.  Several days if not a week or more, by donkey, over the hills, mountain passes and desert terrain. 

In that day, the people of Judah were expecting a Saviour, a King to rule for them against the tyranny of the Roman Empire.  What they weren’t expecting was a baby, born in the humble setting of an animal stable.  Lying among the hay, troughs and obvious animals in that stable; Mary gave birth to the King of the Jews, the Messiah, and our Saviour.  It was anything but peaceful on that first Christmas Eve.  The city was abuzz, the crowds had amassed, and the Romans were taking a census.  Thieves ran to and fro through the night.  Marketers sold their goods to the passersby for exorbitant fees, ladies sold themselves for the company of another.  God, stepped into the world amidst the chaos of the world, and set out on a path of redemption that would take 32 years (or so) to complete.

Did Jesus come into this world to bring peace?  No, not at all.  He came into this world to bring justice, to bring salvation, to bring a hope of redemption for the evil that lives in this world.  He came to separate the chaff from the grain on the threshing floor (Matt 3:12) of man’s heart, and burn the chaff in an unquenchable fire.  The division Christ speaks of is between the righteous and the unrighteous, between the good and the evil. 

I hear from the world today, if God, then why….. (fill in the blank).  Why death, why suffering, why poverished, why sick, why fired, why rape, why evil, why floods, why earthquakes, and so on.  It’s as if they believe because God is love, then God wouldn’t allow these things.  What they fail to recall is that mankind is inherently evil, and only through God can they become good.  Man must choose right or wrong in every situation.  We make decisions, or others make decisions that influence us, which instinctively lead to an outcome.  God is Love.  Could He, as the single omnipotent, sovereign authority wave His hand and make it all go away?  Yes.  Then why doesn’t He? 

His timetable is infinite and His existence is eternal.  Romans 8:28 tells us: He works all things to His good.  We may not and often times do not understand the how or what, but with faith in His eternal plan, we can know that this is true.  I don’t know why some things happen, but I do know that God wants our love and worship; and this is evidenced by His action in sending Jesus Christ as a single means of redemption.  We are given every opportunity to accept Him and turn from evil, and by doing so, find an eternal peace.  So, no, there will never be Peace on Earth.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2018
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