Advent Peace for a Broken World

Most of my life is lived in a bubble. I stay at home with my two young children and work remotely during their nap times. My days are filled with Disney songs, dance parties, and deadlines.

During the school year, when my husband is working, our mornings are pretty quiet. Breakfast is made, second breakfast is requested, books are read, outfits are picked out and we tackle the day ahead. But when my husband is on a school break, he likes to start the day off by catching up on the news while he drinks his coffee.

And that’s when I’m brought back to reality.

There is news of the latest tragedy. An accident that cost lives. Natural disasters destroying homes. Diseases running rampant. Political unrest. Injustices abounding. Pure and utter brokenness.

We live in a fallen and broken world. There is so much pain and death and sadness. There are small evidences of this brokenness in daily frustrations and disappointments. And there are large, glaring examples of it in the headlines.

And it is in this brokenness that the light of Advent peace shines bright.

From the moment Eve listened to Satan in the garden the world has been ravished by the effects of the Fall. God’s perfect relationship with his creation was broken when sin entered the world. The result is a cursed life - pain, toil, death. But there is also a promise:

“The Lord God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,
    cursed are you above all livestock
    and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
    and dust you shall eat
    all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
    and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:14-15

The promise of victory. The promise of restoration. The promise of a Savior. And from that moment on, we can trace the shadows of the coming Messiah throughout every page of Scripture. We see the need for a sacrifice and the grace of substitutionary atonement in the story of Abraham and Isaac (Genesis 22). We see Moses raised up to deliver God’s people from slavery in Egypt (Exodus 3-14). We see our need for rescue in the face of God’s perfect law (Exodus 20-23). Later on, we see David, a man after God’s own heart, rule as king (2 Samuel 2-1 Kings 2). We get glimpses of God’s love as the prophets proclaim the need for the coming Messiah.

And then, there was silence. Hundreds of years stretched between the last of the prophecies and that holy night in Bethlehem. Darkness abounded. Sin was celebrated. Brokenness weaseled its way into every corner of the world.

And then the silence was broken with the sounds of a baby’s cries. God had sent his Son. Our Savior had come. His birth was the fulfillment of the promise made so long ago. His life was lived perfectly. The lamb of God was free from the stain of sin and was ready to be slain (1 Peter 2:23-25). He “for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2) and took upon himself the wrath of God our sins deserved. His death was the ultimate sacrifice we had only seen shadows of before.

But death could not defeat him. He was raised to life three days later, claiming victory over death. His life, death, and resurrection offers the incredible gift we’ve been talking about all week long - peace with God. Jesus has brought reconciliation with God for the believer - something that we can never grasp on our own. And now, just as Abraham, Moses, David and countless others waited for the promised Messiah, you and I wait for our King to return.

And our expectant waiting is lived out in this broken world. Darkness abounds. Sin is celebrated. Brokenness has weaseled its way into every corner of the world.

Yet, we do not lose heart. We hold onto our unshakable hope in the midst of war, famine, and tragedy. We cling to the joy of our salvation in the midst of heartbreak, death, and disappointment. We proclaim the love of Christ in the midst of persecution, hatred, and division. And we rest in the peace we have with God in the midst of unrest, destruction, and uncertainty.

God fulfilled his promise to bring us a Savior. He has been and will always be faithful (Lamentations 3:22-24). He has promised to one day make all things new (Revelation 21:5). He will defeat sin and death in one final battle and he will claim his rightful throne (Revelation 20-22). God will dwell with his people once again. This broken world will be restored (Revelation 21:3-4). This promise offers hope, joy and love. But most of all it allows for true, unshakable peace.

Rest in this peace as we look back at the majesty at the manager. Rest in this peace as we look forward to his coming again. Rest in the peace your soul has with God because of his Son Jesus Christ.