2 Peter 1:16-21
I am amazed at the number of times that scripture tells us to pay attention. Paying attention leads to living intentional lives. In this portion of scripture we are told to pay attention to what the prophets have said. They are like beacons of light that shine in the darkness. Perhaps you are a little skeptical of prophets mistakenly associating them with sooth-sayers, tarot card readers and the friendly psychic down the road. The prophets of scripture were a strange lot. They did really strange things to make their points—Jeremiah was told to wear an ox yoke around as he gave his warnings, Hosea was told to marry a prostitute who would be unfaithful to him. We tend to stand back from weirdness.
The more troubling thing is that the prophets did not seem to have had a clear sense of timing. Some of the things they prophesied were immediate and some near future and some are still waiting to be fulfilled. However their prediction are all mixed together and it’s hard to sort them out. They are similar to Jesus prediction of the end of times in Matthew. The disciples suffered persecution and Jerusalem was destroyed shortly after the prediction, but we have yet to see Jesus descending on a cloud to take the believers to the place that he has prepared for them. There are many that have become consumed with trying to figure out the “when” of things. They spend hours pouring over the texts trying to interpret the imagery so that they can put things into a nice tidy package for us. They have been wrong so many times that we tend not only to discount them but their prophetic source.
Prophets are scary. They talk about things that we would prefer to ignore and deny. They warned of exile and God’s angry punishment. They turn our safe God into a Lion, not quite so safe anymore. Scripture warns us that we are not to discount what the prophets have said. The true prophets are speaking the word of the Lord. But after all these dire predictions of God’s chastisement, they also reveal the loving heart of God. It is not his desire that any should perish. He fills the prophet’s mouths with good news of God’s coming redemption. God will bring the people back to himself.
So what is it that we are to hear? We are to learn fear of the Lord. Oh, not to live in quaking boots, but to realize that God is not a pushover. God will do what he says he intends to do. He will judge the world, just as he warned and chastised the people in the Babylonian exile. Do not be fooled into thinking that God’s compassionate mercy means that he will not judge. Most importantly, we are to pay attention to the good news that God has made a way of salvation in Jesus Christ and that if we wish to be saved we must receive what he has given. To ignore or reject God’s means of redemption will end in disaster. The prophets have foretold. You will do well to pay attention to the word of the prophets, “as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your heart. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:19-21). Pay attention to the prophets—good advice!
Peace on Earth
Ephesians 2:11-22
Israel at the time of Jesus had a racial divide as serious as that of any time in history. The Jews and the gentiles were enemies. The gentiles were banned from the worship of the Jews. This worship was the heart and soul of the Jew's existence. They had a high standard of what made one clean or unclean and those who were unclean were banned and shunned. The Jews would walk miles out of their way to avoid crossing gentile territory. This is why the Samaritan woman was so shocked to find Jesus at the well. That he spoke with her, a gentile woman, was astonishing. To even touch a gentile made one "unclean". The hostility created tensions for everyone. The good news announced to the shepherds on the hillside, “Peace on Earth,” was startling and welcomed news indeed, especially for those who had believed themselves to be unfit and excluded from the presence of God.
Jesus came to bring the good news of peace to all people. This peace was peace with God that extended to peace among all peoples. Jesus came to “be our peace, make the two one, he has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create one new man out of the two…to put to death their hostility.”
Our world is filled with hostility. War rages on many fronts, not only in foreign lands—among city street gangs, between races, between those of different sexual orientation, between (in) religious denominations, in church families, even between husband and wife, parent and child. Jesus came to bring love and peace that would end all hostility everywhere. Unfortunately like those of Jesus’ time we resist the one thing that would bring peace—the love of God in Jesus Christ. When Jesus rules in the hearts of humankind, peace is found. All people become one in love. It is not that all people become identical. Our God loves variety. He is served best when each individual, race, or nation serves him in the beauty of their uniqueness. Peace comes when the dignity and worth of all is recognized. When God has shown such diversity in the flora and fauna of the world, why would we expect all humans to be alike? When the peace of Christ rules in the heart, our hearts are expanded to encompass the world. Rather than restrict it to a few brought together by rules and regulations of acceptable looks and behavior as the Jews had done at the time of Jesus (and as we often do in our own church congregations), God’s love is universal. “For God so loved the world . .
As we think of “peace on earth” at this time of year, it is a good time to look at the seeds of hostility that exist in our own lives. Have we allowed the peace of Jesus to remove all our prejudices? Have we opened our hearts to our “enemies”? Are we willing to make peace with our neighbor? Can we forgive our father, mother, husband, or child? The love of Christ has given us all that we need to bring peace on earth. As the song has said “let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
Israel at the time of Jesus had a racial divide as serious as that of any time in history. The Jews and the gentiles were enemies. The gentiles were banned from the worship of the Jews. This worship was the heart and soul of the Jew's existence. They had a high standard of what made one clean or unclean and those who were unclean were banned and shunned. The Jews would walk miles out of their way to avoid crossing gentile territory. This is why the Samaritan woman was so shocked to find Jesus at the well. That he spoke with her, a gentile woman, was astonishing. To even touch a gentile made one "unclean". The hostility created tensions for everyone. The good news announced to the shepherds on the hillside, “Peace on Earth,” was startling and welcomed news indeed, especially for those who had believed themselves to be unfit and excluded from the presence of God.
Jesus came to bring the good news of peace to all people. This peace was peace with God that extended to peace among all peoples. Jesus came to “be our peace, make the two one, he has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create one new man out of the two…to put to death their hostility.”
Our world is filled with hostility. War rages on many fronts, not only in foreign lands—among city street gangs, between races, between those of different sexual orientation, between (in) religious denominations, in church families, even between husband and wife, parent and child. Jesus came to bring love and peace that would end all hostility everywhere. Unfortunately like those of Jesus’ time we resist the one thing that would bring peace—the love of God in Jesus Christ. When Jesus rules in the hearts of humankind, peace is found. All people become one in love. It is not that all people become identical. Our God loves variety. He is served best when each individual, race, or nation serves him in the beauty of their uniqueness. Peace comes when the dignity and worth of all is recognized. When God has shown such diversity in the flora and fauna of the world, why would we expect all humans to be alike? When the peace of Christ rules in the heart, our hearts are expanded to encompass the world. Rather than restrict it to a few brought together by rules and regulations of acceptable looks and behavior as the Jews had done at the time of Jesus (and as we often do in our own church congregations), God’s love is universal. “For God so loved the world . .
As we think of “peace on earth” at this time of year, it is a good time to look at the seeds of hostility that exist in our own lives. Have we allowed the peace of Jesus to remove all our prejudices? Have we opened our hearts to our “enemies”? Are we willing to make peace with our neighbor? Can we forgive our father, mother, husband, or child? The love of Christ has given us all that we need to bring peace on earth. As the song has said “let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
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