For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Luke 2:13-14
How is Jesus the Prince of Peace, and how did His coming establish “peace on earth”?
Understanding this requires that we understand four kinds of peace.
Let’s start first with the big one: world peace, including the idea of all nations and peoples getting along. Jesus did not promise this kind of peace. In fact He said the opposite of this kind of peace is the norm:
Matthew 10:34 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.
John 16:33 “In the world you will have tribulation…”
Matthew 24:6-7 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.
Wars exist and people do not get along with one another because of sin. There is no escaping these kinds of strife in this life—only in Heaven.
Second, Jesus did come to enable those who trust in and submit to His lordship to be at peace with one another. That doesn’t mean we always will be at peace—but we are able. How? By forgiving others as we have been forgiven (Ephesians 4:32). By esteeming others better than ourselves (Philippians 2:3-4). If we all did these things, there would be peace among us. Why isn’t this peace widespread? Because we hold grudges instead of forgiving others, and because we esteem ourselves above others. It is no surprise that non-believers live this way, but sadly, we who are in Christ frequently also act this way. This kind of peace will not be fully realized until we are in Heaven.
Third, what about peace within ourselves? Again, sin wrecks this kind of peace but Jesus did make it available to those who trust in Him and follow Him as Lord by doing the following:
Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
To experience this promise of supernatural peace that the world cannot understand, one must be a believing follower of Jesus, and practice the discipline outlined in (v.6), or else the peace promised in (v.7) will remain elusive.
There is one more kind of peace that Jesus did bring to earth. We will consider that next time.