Winter Fire – Prince of Peace - Monday
Today’s Verse
Isaiah 9:6
For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NLT)
A couple thousand years ago, the prophet Isaiah declared that one day, a child like no other would be born. This child would be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. Yet, upon His birth, this child’s life hardly reflected these titles. This child was born in a stable, where animals usually slept. His first bed was an animal’s feeding trough. This child was born into a world drenched in uncertainty, followed by the brutal slaughter of hundreds of innocent newborn boys, all commanded by a king consumed with insecurity and pride. This child and his parents fled to another country to find safety. And yet, despite all of this, Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled—this child was, indeed, the Prince of Peace.
Peace is something everyone longs for. We long for the fighting to stop, the anxiety to cease, and the tears to stop flowing. Time and again, we reach desperately for peace—only to find it slipping through our fingers, like trying to catch the wind. No matter how hard we try, we can never seem to grasp it. What if peace was never something we were meant to achieve, but a gift abundantly given to us? What if peace is something we experience rather than something we earn?
This is the sort of peace Jesus offers to us. We don’t have to earn it, but rather it is something that He freely gives us. It isn’t a promise that we won’t ever experience worry again, but it is a promise that He will always be with us no matter what else is going on around us.
When Jesus left His throne in Heaven to take on flesh (Philippians 2:5-11), He brought with Him a peace that the world had never seen. He brought to earth a peace that would last forever. He brought a peace that is for everyone. He brought a peace that transcends all people for all time. He brought a peace that is for you and for me. For all who don't yet know Him and for the person you’ve been praying to experience peace this season. Our Prince of Peace has brought, and is still bringing, peace to all.
REFLECTION
At the end of his second letter to the Thessalonians Paul prays, “Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all.” (2 Thessalonians 3:16 NIV). Take some time to pray this same prayer over yourself and two other people in your life.