His Law is Love and His Gospel is Peace

Christmas Reflections 2014

I realize not everyone reading this celebrates Christmas, or at least may not celebrate Christmas in a religious sense. Just humor me if you would be so kind. :)

Every time I turn on the news or see news reports on the internet I just get so heavy hearted. There is so much heartbreak in the world right now; such mass killings overseas, death from diseases like Ebola, and injustice here in the U.S. that so many still experience. Then add on all sorts of other awful things like cancer and Alzheimers and child abuse and hunger and poverty, and it is so easy to become downright depressed and hopeless. I suspect many are.

This is my third Christmas with a young baby. There is something about having a baby in my arms during Christmas that makes me more reflective about how it must have been for Mary. My heart ponders things. As I have been singing through Christmas carols this year there has been something that has stood out to me. Let me share some lines from the songs with you. I think these words speak timeless truths and apply to all the calamities and strife occurring in the world today.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, verse 4: “O Come, Desire of nations, bind all peoples in one heart and mind; bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease; Fill the whole world with heaven’s peace.”

Joy to the World, verse 4: “He rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations prove the glories of His righteousness, and wonders of His love.”

O Holy Night: “Oh holy night! The stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear savior's birth! Long lay the world in sin and error pining, Till he appear'd and the soul felt it's worth. A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn! Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices, Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born.

Truly he taught us to love one another, His law is love and His gospel is peace. Chains shall he break for the slave is our brother, And in his name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, Let all within us praise his holy name. Christ is the Lord. Oh praise his name forever. His power and glory forever more proclaim. Fall on your knees…”

All the things I mentioned above can leave us hopeless, unless we know that one day things will be made right. The baby that was born to Mary grew up to be a Savior and a King. You see, Christ is the desire of all the nations. People of all nations yearn and long for a message that gives hope and peace. A message that promises that one day things will be different. Christ is that message. He came to bring unity, peace, and love. When we see unfair leaders, governments, and terrorist groups, we can be reminded that right now He rules the world with truth and grace. This world is weary. I’m weary, aren’t you? I am weary of the sickness, of the hate, of the violence, of children being beheaded because of their faith, of people being shot and killed, of gov’t that is unfair. I am weary. But, there is a thrill of hope inside my heart and I rejoice. My hope is in Christ and in eternity with Him, so this is cause of much rejoicing!

The words that have been bringing the most meaning to me this Christmas season are from O Holy Night. It says that He taught us to love one another, and that His law is LOVE and his gospel is PEACE.  We may not ever experience a law of love and a world of peace while on this earth, but one day, when we are with Christ in heaven or when He sets up His kingdom on earth, we will certainly experience a perfect law of love and a world of peace. We will truly see all people as our brother and sister with no distinction or prejudice, and all oppression will cease. Oh how I long for this day. How beautiful does that sound? And oh how it will be truly beautiful.

We can all experience that in our heart now, even in the midst of this crazy world. His gospel is peace. Those who trust in Him and believe that He is the Son of God can experience this love and peace right now. This is why we can have hope and rejoice!

“Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel”  We can rejoice because Emmanuel has come. He came to give us a way to know perfect love and peace, and that way is Him. Will you celebrate Him this Christmas? Maybe for the first time. I pray you will find hope in the Christmas story in a fresh and new way this year.