The Peace of the King

Advent 2023 • Sermon • Submitted 5 months ago • Presented 5 months ago

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Peace is one of those qualities that everyone desires. Of course, peace may look differently for different people. Some people may think of peace as sitting on a beach, hearing the rhythmic crashing of the waves and the beautiful sunrise.

Other people may envision peace as the absence of noise.

Still others may see peace as a safe family, all needs being met, and living together.

But what is peace, and why does every person want it?

In a way, we could say we were created for peace. We will consider this in our first point this morning.

But why don’t people have peace? This will be addressed in our second point.

Finally, if not all people enjoy people, how can we have hope to enjoy it today? That will be answered in our third point this morning.

After considering each point individually and reflecting upon them collectively, we will see...

The peace of the King came through the incarnation of Jesus Christ which is all a part of the plan of the Triune God

I. The King’s Reign Unquestioned Guaranteed Peace- Gen. 1–2

The opening chapters of Genesis can be viewed from multiple angles.

It can be viewed, and perhaps this is more common for us today and in the recent past, from a scientific standpoint. In the first two chapters of the Bible, we see creation by God ex nihilio, out of nothing. It helps explain how all matter, which certainly includes human beings as well as all animals. This is in contrast to the naturalistic explanations offered by evolution.

The first two chapters can also be examined from a mythological perspective. The creation account has many similarities to other creation stories in the Ancient Near East. This examination would be fascinating to sociologists and historians.

I am sure, if we were to work hard enough, we could find more.

We are going to examine these chapters from a canonical perspective, that is, from looking at the Bible as a whole; or to take a panoramic view. It is important to keep the bigger picture in mind, otherwise some of the odder stories in Scripture would seem disconnected and meaningless.

As we read the opening chapters of the Bible, we see the King who’s reign is unchallenged. He speaks things into existence, and nothing disobeys. Unlike the creation accounts of other Ancient Near Eastern cultures, there was no war between equally powerful deities. The King reigned unchallenged.

He speaks everything into existence in 1:1–25, and then hand-crafts human beings into His image, spirit-embodied beings, (cf. 2:7–8, 21–23).

God placed “the man” into the Garden of Eden (2:8–9) and gave him his tasks, to tend/work and to keep the Garden of Eden (priestly terms, by the way).

The King’s Reign unchallenged guaranteed peace. We cannot fathom the unimaginable peace they enjoyed.

Their relationship with their Creator was one of complete union There was no sin, they talked with God without any distractions, without any mediators, and without any break of fellowship.

Their relationship with one another was one of complete serenity Their marriage was perfect, there was no division, no usurping of marital roles, no backbiting, or anything. Adam nor Eve ever has to say, “You were right.” We can deduce from this, too, that all human relationships, had the purity of the Garden been maintained (or, to put it another way, had Adam kept the Covenant God made with him), all human relationships, parent-child, etc. would have been equally perfect.

Their relationship with creation was one of dominion Adam and Eve, as co-regents of God, ruled over creation. They were benevolent, in other words, they cared for God’s creation, but they ruled over it and it yielded to their reign. Again, we cannot imagine what this would have been like.

This place is the epitome of the concept of peace.

The King’s Reign unchallenged guarantees peace. But what happens when the King’s reign is challenged?

II. The King’s Reign Challenged Removes Peace- Gen. 3:1–7

Now, before we dive into this point let me remind you that God’s reign being challenged did not take Him by surprise. It was not something God was not expecting.

God, in eternity past, knew exactly how His creation would respond, how the devil would rebel and, through temptation, bring God’s image bearers to rebel against their Creator.

How can I say that? Well, for one, God knows all things (1 John 3:20). Second, His plan of redemption, or covenant of redemption, was made before the foundation of the world (cf. Rev. 13:8; Eph. 1:3–14). Our great God was not at all surprised.

God the good Creator of all things, in His infinite power and wisdom does uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things, from the greatest even to the least, by His most wise and holy providence, to the end for the which they were created, according unto His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will; to the praise of the glory of His wisdom, power, justice, infinite goodness, and mercy.—2LCF 5.1

However, this in no way denies the real challenge of the King’s reign.

Just as we cannot imagine the peace Adam and Eve enjoyed with God during the King’s unchallenged reign, so too, and perhaps even more, we cannot fathom the removal of that peace.

“The ideal fitness of Adam to act as the head of his race, and the ideal circumstances under which the decisive test was to be made, must forever shut every fair and honest mouth against objecting to the arrangement God proposed to Adam, and the fearful consequences which his sad failure have brought down upon him.”—A. W. Pink

From Adam’s sin (and he indeed is acting on our behalf, or to put it in 17th century terms, our federal head, cf. Rom. 5), obliterated the peace they enjoyed while serving under the reign of the King.

Now, where peace once reigned, they is no peace. Isaiah 48:22 ““There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.””

The wicked have no peace because their relationship with their Creator has been severed. The wicked rebel against the LORD, hating Him in every possible way rebelling against His reign, choosing rather to serve a false, ugly counterfeit wormy king called Satan.

There is no peace in our relationships. Men and women have been fighting, not following their created roles for each.

Marriages face great challenges.

Parental issues reign as well, children rebelling against parents and parents abusing children.

Governments and citizens are also under this new realm, marked not by peace but by chaos under reign of Satan.

Humanity’s relationship to creation is also marked by chaos. Humans abuse the environment and animals, animals kill and maim humans.

Our Advent reading this morning stated, “Without Christ there is no peace in this world.” The veracity of that statement has been proven time and time again throughout human history.

When the King reigned unchallenged, peace was guaranteed. There was peace between Creator and Creature, between Creature and Creature, and between Creature and Creation.

However, the King’s reign was challenged and peace was removed. It is not possible for human beings, outside the grace of God, to have peace.

Returning to our Advent reading again, “The fourth candle reminds that Jesus comes to bring Peace to both the world

III. The King’s Reign Restored through the Prince of Peace - Gen. 3:15; Select Scriptures

But in the promise offered in Gen. 3:15, we see this theme of the King’s peace restored.

In God’s gracious promises to Abraham in Gen. 12:1–3 (which unveils the identity of the Seed of the Woman)

Luke 2:14 ESV

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

John 14:27 ESV

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Romans 5:1 ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

In Eph. 2 Paul discusses the peace between ethnicitits.

In Eph. 4 Paul unpacks the peace in the Church.

In Ephesians 5:22–6:9 Paul unpacks the peace in relationships.

And if we compare ROM. 8:19–22 with Revelation 21, we see peace with creation restored.

Blood has a voice to pierce the skies, “Revenge!” the blood of Abel cries; But dear stream when Christ was slain Speaks peace as loud from ev’ry vein.

Pardon and peace from God on high; Behold, he lays his vengence by, And rebels that deserv’d his sword Become the fav’rites of the Lord.

To Jesus let our praises rise, Who gave His life a sacrifice; Now he appears before His God, and for our pardon pleads his blood.

—Isaac Watts

The peace of the King came through the incarnation of Jesus Christ which is all a part of the plan of the Triune God

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