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Teaching podcast from the Eagle Community Church of Christ in Mont Belvieu, TX.
Hello and welcome to our Eagle Community Church Christ podcast. My name is John Gunter. This week, we are in week 2 of our Advent series. We're talking about the subject of peace. What does it mean to have peace in the Bible?
John:I think it's interesting to find out that it may not be exactly what you think. It's such a robust understanding and we'll have, Tim Mackey from the Bible Project break that down again. But I hope, and pray that this is something that really helps you in your walk with Christ. It certainly stick sticks with me. Have a great week.
John:We'll see you soon. Talking about it over the 4 weeks, we talked last week about hope, we talked today about peace, and then we talk about joy and love. Both Terry and Mickie asked me to clarify. What does Advent mean? Had some confusion.
John:A lot of you, seem to go right with the flow. Others, had some questions. What is what is this Advent we're talking about? It it kinda reminded me of, back when I was in Harding. And the interesting thing is, every sermon you preach, everything you do like that, you have to be critiqued.
John:Sounds fun, doesn't it? And, as you go through them, it's interesting that, some folks say the cert that certain section of your sermon was fantastic, and then you get to a couple of, like, I don't know what you were doing there. It's like, how do we bridge the gap? But when we have an opportunity like this to clarify, let's do so, and I think it's a great time to do it. So the sermon before the sermon this morning.
John:What is Advent? What does that mean? And I just want to start off with the definition. Advent is not a new word. It may be a new word to you, but advent just means the arrival of a notable person or thing or event.
John:As you see at the bottom of the screen, the advent of technology or television or the arrival. That's all that means is a synonym, with arrival. So, do we have to say Advent? No, you can say arrival. We anticipate the arrival of Jesus.
John:What does this mean? We're waiting for the arrival of Jesus. Right? That's what we are supposed to be doing as a church, that we, every time we meet and we remember, we have the Lord's Supper, and we remember. It is not about just the things that happened in the past.
John:We anticipate, we look forward to, I hope you do, I do, the arrival of Jesus. So why are we talking about this? This is just a tool. Hopefully, you have many tools in your tool bag of your Christian walk that help you focus, help you center around the things that matter. Right?
John:Anybody ever do a daily devotional? Yeah. Just a tool to help you center. Do you have to do that? Absolutely not.
John:You don't have to do that or that specific devotional. This is just to help us focus our minds on waiting for Jesus. Again, in a time, as I talked about last week, where a lot of the world, is doing that. A lot of a lot of churches are are doing these 4 types of sermons, just like, we are. I wanted to read this to you from Jesus, in Matthew 24.
John:Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know on what day your lord will come. But understand this, if the owner of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So, you also must be ready because the son of man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Be ready. Be ready.
John:You hear that from Jesus. We are to be ready. So, can we say Advent if the word isn't in the Bible? How many of you grew up and you were told you can only use words like out of the Bible. Right?
John:Use it's called Bible things by Bible names, I've heard it said. There's a guy that's got a song about it. Kind of funny, but, anybody raised like that? We only use words like that. So can we use can we say Advent if the word isn't in the in the Bible?
John:Absolutely. And, if if that's a lot of confused faces. A lot of you weren't raised that way, so this may be weird to you. But some folks think if it's not in the Bible or said in the Bible, you can't use that term. And so what I wanted to tell you was all these words are also not found in the Bible.
John:Bible. Communion. New Testament. Old Testament. Song leader.
John:Youth group. Church building. Hymnal devotional. Things that we're all there, we're all comfortable with. Right?
John:Nobody has called me this week upset about any of these words. And so, we use these things, right, to in service to God. Right? That's the way we use them. We use them to help train our our kids.
John:We're talking about, having a youth group or having a Bible study. Again, some churches choose not to do that. We're not gonna have classes because I don't see classes in scripture. That is not something we have chosen to do here because that's scripture doesn't ask you to not do that. Scripture tells you to follow God, and that's what we try to do to the best of our ability.
John:And so, when we talk about things like this, I understand it is very serious, but I also want us to understand that we we do this kind of thing all the time. And so, again, these 4 sermons are just focused on, again, hope, peace, joy, and love, trying to center us around Jesus and anticipate his coming. So today, we talk about peace.
John:The word peace is common in most languages. And in the new testament, the Greek word is. The most basic meaning of shalom is complete or whole. The word can refer to a stone that has a perfect hole shape with no cracks. It can also refer to a completed stone wall that has no gaps and no missing bricks.
John:Shalom refers to something that's complex with lots of pieces that's in a state of completeness, wholeness. It's like Job who says his tents are in a state of shalom because he counted his flock and no animals from this. This is why shalom can refer to a person's well-being. Like when David visited his brothers on the battlefield, he asked about their shalom. The core idea is that life is complex, full of moving parts and relationships and situations.
John:And when any of these is out of alignment or missing, your shalom breaks down. Life is no longer whole. It needs to restore. In fact, that's the basic meaning of shalom when you use it as a verb. To bring shalom literally means to make complete or restore.
John:So Solomon brings shalom to the unfinished temple when he completes it. Or if your animal accidentally damages your neighbor's field, you shalom them by giving them a complete repayment for their loss. You take what's missing and you restore it through hormones. The same goes for human relationships. In the book of Proverbs, to reconcile and heal a broken relationship is to bring shalom.
John:And when rival kingdoms make shalom in the bible, it doesn't just mean they stop fighting. It also means they start working together for each other's benefit. This state of shalom is what Israel's kings were supposed to cultivate, and it rarely happened. So the prophet Isaiah, he looked forward to a future king, a prince of shalom, and his reign would bring shalom with no end. A time when God would make a covenant of shalom with his people and make right all wrongs and heal all that's been broken.
John:This is why Jesus'
John:birth in
John:the New Testament was announced as the arrival of Erena. Remember, that's the Greek word for peace. Jesus came to offer his peace to others, like when he said it would followeth, my peace I give to you all. The apostles claimed that Jesus made peace between messed up humans and God when he died and rose from the dead. The idea is that he restored to wholeness the broken relationship between humans and their creator.
John:This is why the apostle Paul can say Jesus himself is our. He was the whole complete human that I may believe but have failed. And now he gives me his life as a gift. And this means that Jesus' followers are now called to create. Paul instructed local churches to keep their unity through the body, which requires humility, patience, and bearing with others.
John:Becoming people of peace means participating in the life of Jesus who reconciled all things in heaven on earth restoring peace through his death and resurrection. So peace takes a lot of work because it's not just the absence of comfort. True peace requires taking what's broken and restoring it to wholeness whether it's in our lives, our relationships, or in our world. And that's the rich biblical concept of peace.
John:Man, I like that. If I would have just started off with this word today, peace, we could have probably come up with a couple of things. Right? A peace and its understanding in scripture and the definition in scripture, you see how much broader it is than that. Have you heard the word Shalom before?
John:Probably watching TV, Jewish people, shalom. Right? Not just, Hey, hope your day is going well. I hope you are complete as a person. And we describe our lives this way, right?
John:If you lose someone, you might describe your feelings as, There's a hole in my heart. Right? Yeah. You don't have peace. You are missing that peace, really.
John:P I e c e. But you are missing. You are not full. You are not complete. And so that's what we are talking about when we are talking about peace and anticipating Jesus coming.
John:As we look around at the world, do you see complete peace? I don't have to wait for a response on that, do I? We understand that the world is kind of in chaos. Right? Jesus came, and we see, really, god coming into the world in this way, but he doesn't, at that moment, bring about this complete, full peace.
John:And that I've told you before that the Jewish people, actually, one of the reasons they reject Jesus as Messiah is this, is because their belief was, when the Messiah comes, that is the exact time that the world will experience this full, never ending peace. Isn't that interesting? We understand it as the kingdom of God comes into effect, but not fully. And we understand at the end of of time, when God chooses, that that is the time of complete peace and being with God. I actually can't understand, looking around and thinking we would ever believe we would all be at complete peace here, right now, right?
John:Before God comes in His fullness. Now, when God comes in His fullness, I can see that, right? And so, that's what we talk about when we talk about peace. And so, just like last week, and just like we'll do for the next couple of weeks, we're going to read a few passages that, that you can see this in, this piece, this maybe missing piece. But we're going to start this morning in Isaiah 40:1-five.
John:Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins. A voice of one calling in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.' Does that sound familiar to you? It should. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low.
John:The rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. Do you see how everything falls into place? Everything clears out, making way for Messiah. Everything will be moved. Everything in its right place.
John:And the glory of the lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together, for the mouth of the lord has spoken. We skip down just a few verses to verse 9. You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout. Lift it up.
John:Do not be afraid. Say to the towns of Judah, here is your God. See, the sovereign Lord comes with power and He rules with a mighty arm. See, his reward is with Him and His recompense accompanies him. He tends his flocks like a shepherd.
John:He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart. He gently leaves those that have young. So what you will see in the Scriptures that we read today is is not always, hey, everything is perfect, But a lot of these scriptures will be pointing back to, See, this is who God is, and have faith in Him, and He will make it right. The study we do with our boys every every night, it ends. They they they've got it.
John:We've done it enough now that it talks about making the wrong things right and the dark things white. And that is this this idea of peace. That God comes in and makes things right. Have faith in the God who tends his flocks like a shepherd, gathering his lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart. How many of you remember when your kids or grandkids were little and you got those snuggles?
John:Yeah. You remember that? Katie gets followed around by our 90 pound lab. That is not the same thing. But those snuggles that you want.
John:Right? And so, scripture here is trying to give you that imagery of just that hug, that that tending to. Remember that? Some of you can't remember that far back, but remember that time in your life when you didn't have to worry about anything else, just surviving, right? That your parents took care of you, or your grandparents, or whoever that was in your life, and they just loved you, and those times you felt love.
John:Yeah. That's what Scripture is trying to say here. Think of God, this is who God is. And through Him, though right now you may not have peace, you serve a God who can bring about peace completely. Follow Him.
John:2nd Peter 3, verses 8 through 14. I love this. If you don't, listen to anything I have to say today, listen to this, please. But do not forget this one thing, dear friends. With the Lord, a day is like a 1000 years and a 1000 years are like a day.
John:Okay. Let's we'll talk about that in a second. Verse 9, the Lord is not slow in keeping his promises, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. For the day of the Lord will come like a thief, the heavens will disappear with a roar, The elements will be destroyed by a fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.
John:Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? Love that rhetorical. What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about destruction of the heavens by fire and the elements will melt in the heat.
John:But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and new earth, where righteousness dwells. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him. And because of what we just read or what we just heard from the video, peace with God is everything is in place. You ever been at that that that point? For me, that that point often is at a conference.
John:You ever feel like let me just ask you this. You ever feel like you're alone sometimes out in the world? Like, you look around, it's like, is anybody else trying? Not I'm not taking shots at you guys, but sometimes when you're just out in the world, it's like, is anybody else fighting this way? You ever felt that way?
John:I is it just am am I being silly? Or is all this right? And I think about that, and so at a conference or something where a bunch of preachers gather who, you ever just been with someone, like, you've been through something in your life and you talk to someone else who's been through something similar? Like, oh, we can talk, Like all these other people, I can't talk to them, but I know you've been through it. And and so it's at those points when we come together and we're able to share stories and and encouragement and and sing song.
John:I love to sing. Anybody else? To sing songs and to draw, encouragement from this wonderful singing, that last song that, Tyler sang. He can sing that again in a minute. I don't care.
John:Let's do it. Loved it. But I I draw encouragement, and that's where I feel whole. And we should be chasing that. Often, we are chasing other things that lead us other places, but we should be trying to get this peace with God.
John:And I I wanted to just go back through this real quick because what I told you was, when we talk about peace, sometimes it looks like, yeah, everything's right or everything's not right. Well, you see here in Peter is, don't forget this one thing, with the Lord, a day is like a 1000 years and a 1000 years are like a day. The lord is not slow in keeping his promise. He's talking to people who are like, alright. Jesus died a long time ago.
John:What when's this happening? Little did they know. Right? We're 2000 years from that. Well, when when is this gonna happen?
John:He says, the lord is not slow in keeping his promise as you might understand slowness unless it's taken 50 years, 2000 years. Well, how many days is that to god y'all? Couple. It's the weekend. That's hard to fathom.
John:Right? Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. You hear the heart of god in that. Like, you're you're trying to rush him back, and what god is trying to do is bring everyone into the fold. He's trying to get everyone ready so that everyone is saved.
John:Do you walk around thinking about that? Hoping everyone else is saved? Or walking into HEB going, oh, you heathens. Don't don't let some of you see a guy in a fishing boat with a fishing boat here in a minute. Right?
John:Just, you should have gone to church. But, yeah, that god is not waiting, like, he's just lazy or something. God wants, he desires everyone to come to him, to have this peace that exists within him, this perfect peace. How many of you be okay if you looked up right now and you said, my life is full and complete and perfect? How many would you like that?
John:I don't like that. It doesn't sound good at all. That's what we want. Right? Now, we may have a skewed view of what that looks like.
John:That if only I do this, or if I get this, or if only this happens, then I will have peace. A lot of times those things are not what brings peace. The peace with God is full and complete and perfect peace. He wants everyone to come to repentance. He said, but the day of the Lord will come like a thief.
John:You heard this earlier, right, as we read from Matthew. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by a fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? And we say, I don't know. I don't know what god wants for my life.
John:I'm still looking for my purpose. God wants you to follow Him. That's what He wants. You ought to be living holy, godly lives. We talked last week about about having this hope, and what does hope mean?
John:K? It's more than just, oh, I wish. You ought to be living godly lives despite your circumstances because real hope looks around and says, there's no way out of this. But I still have hope in God because I know He takes care of me. That's real hope.
John:Hope in other things is just going to fall apart. But you ought to live holy, godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. Looking forward, as we're talking about in this series, looking forward, anticipating, waiting for the arrival. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire and the elements will melt in the heat, but in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward looking forward to a new heaven and new earth where righteousness dwells. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this you got that yet?
John:Since you are looking forward to this, make every effort make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him. Because it means that much, doesn't it? How much does it mean to you if your family comes to faith? Does it mean to you young parents right now that your kids grow up and know who God is? Yeah.
John:It's a big deal. Live in anxiety about it. Right? I told the class this morning I love hearing my kids ask questions. The problem is, sometimes their questions are way above my pay grade.
John:Logan asked me, here probably a week or 2 ago, he said, Daddy, who do you like better, God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit? I don't know. I think I told him all. I like them all. That's the safest answer, I think.
John:But he wants to know. But he is also the kid where we like to, you know my personality by now. My kids and I, we like to have fun. Katie just rolls her eyes. But we're competitive.
John:We like to play. And if we're playing something on the Nintendo Switch where I'm bowling, I always tell them I'm pro or I'm I'm the best. And Logan's gonna be the one that looks up and said, daddy, God is the best. And you get put in your place. Just a minute.
John:Yes, he is, son. Yes, he is. But it warms my heart that that's what my son is thinking about. That because of, hopefully, the way we are raising him, the way a lot of you are pouring time into their classes, into children's church, into forcing them to sing the books of the Bible for 18 hours straight or something. All that is getting into that for a reason.
John:We don't just do that just because, do we? We do that because we want people, we want people, I hope, just like God, to come to repentance in Him, to come to know Him, to find peace in Him. Amen? That's what I want. In Mark 1:1-eight, the part of something that is very familiar again, the beginning of the good news about Jesus, the Messiah, the son of god.
John:As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, I will send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way, A voice of 1 calling in the wilderness, prepare the way for the Lord. Make the strip make straight paths for him. And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him, confessing their sins. They were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
John:John wore clothing made of camel's hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message. After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I'm not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. Again, you see how the 2 passages link up to our understanding of peace and who God is.
John:That God said this in Isaiah, and what we see in the New Testament here is that God is faithful to do exactly what He said, that though Elizabeth and Zechariah could not understand or could not fathom having a child, God made it so because He is faithful. So, if you're missing a piece out of your life this morning, you're not experiencing real peace, understand that God is faithful. Seek him. In Psalm 2, why do nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.
John:The one enthroned in heaven laughs. I like that. I don't know about you. Every time I I someone is just so concerned that someone's going to come over here and and overthrow god somehow. I I think, man, people have thought that before.
John:The one enthroned in heaven does what? He laughs at that because it's ridiculous. The lord scoffs at them. He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath saying, I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain. I will proclaim the lord's decree.
John:He said to me, you're my son. Today, I have become your father. Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will break them with a rod of iron. You will dash them to pieces like pottery.
John:Therefore, you kings, be wise. Be warned, you rulers of earth. Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. Kiss his son or he will be angry and your your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all those who take refuge in him.
John:Seek God in all of these things because he is faithful and he loves each and every one of you. You know that this morning. So if you know that, we desire, we seek his coming, hoping to transform the world into a perfect place. Yes. As we experience life right now, it is not perfect.
John:It is not something that we look around and say, man, god has nailed it right now and everything's in perfect order, in perfect peace. But he is faithful, and we can see that throughout scripture, can't we? That he will handle all of these things, that he will make the wrong things right and the dark things black. God loves you. This morning, if you have anything you'd like to, pray to the church about, we'd love to pray with you.
John:If you haven't begun that walk with him, we just tell you, you do not have peace like you have with God. Do not sit and wait and think, man, maybe one day. Seek God and see what happens. I hope that's who we are at the church. Tyler has an invitation song picked out this morning.