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Shelburne Free Press https://shelburnefreepress.ca/?p=16588 Export date: Wed Nov 27 18:54:25 2024 / +0000 GMT |
Crossroads Community ChurchPastor Don opened our service this morning praising God for all the blessings we have been given and the peace we can have through our faith in Jesus Christ. We began our study this morning in Luke 1:30, The angel Gabriel appeared to a young, unmarried virgin girl, Mary; announced she would bear the Son of God and name Him Jesus. Mary,unafraid responded in Faith, “may everything you say come true.” Her response is true Faith and one of pure Peace. Today, most people do not have lasting peace in their lives. They look for peace through new relationships, jobs, or even an electronic gadget. They might look to their doctor for medication or a new Pastor. But we all know real peace cannot be found in temporary fixes. No matter how many times you keep looking in the same old places, you won't find any lasting peace! To find true peace, you need to look in the place where promises are never broken. You need, to look to the One, whom the angels proclaimed, when Jesus was born. Luke 2:13-142 Jesus, while on earth, performed innumerable miracles; established a spiritual kingdom to deliver us from sin. Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sin and in doing so opened the way for us to find true peace with God. He offers pure peace and asks only for our faith in Him, as our Lord and Saviour. Christmas is a time to reflect on and celebrate the birth of Jesus; God became man. The baby in the manger symbolizes the beginning of all that is peace and the end of sin, as it says in Colossians 1:18-203. This means as long as we put our complete Faith in Him, then we will find Peace with God; a path paved by the birth of Christ and His death. Be reconciled to God, come to Him through Jesus Christ, place your total Faith in Him, John 14:23-274. Here we find peace of mind and heart; a gift from Jesus; a peace not found in this world. Lasting peace can only be found through the surrendering of our lives to God's will; accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. John 3:16-185 Believing is more than an intellectual agreement. Believing is putting complete trust, faith and hope in God that he alone can bring lasting, eternal peace. Only God can give us true peace and save us from eternal condemnation. Jesus explains exactly how to obtain a personal relationship with God. Anyone having a personal relationship with God, through Jesus, can find peace. In Isaiah 9:67 Jesus is named, Prince of Peace. The message of hope, along with the establishment of his eternal kingdom was fulfilled with the birth of Jesus Christ. He delivered everyone from sin. He is literally “Peace with us!” Next we are called to have “Peace with each other.” The scripture Luke 6:27-318 calls us to love our enemies, be good to those who hurt us. It actually asks us to treat others as we would have them treat us and to live in peace (Romans 12:18). Romans 12:199 goes so far as to direct us to “not take revenge” on those who hurt us. We must leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the scriptures say: I will take revenge, I will pay them back, Says the Lord. The last line is often missed. In our day of lawsuits, Paul's commands sound impossible. We are asked to forgive, regardless of how we have been hurt; even if our enemy never repents. Forgiveness is for our Peace. We find the promise of peace that was given in 2 Peter 3:12-1310. Do you ever find yourself thinking about the future? The future can be a scary image. We see the moral fabric of our country decaying, higher divorce rates, single parents, school shootings, bullying, violence, and immorality. It doesn't paint a good picture for our future. The reality is our government can't save us; nor can any man made program. In this world marred by sin, the only one who can save us is the One who created us; the one who came as a baby in a manger that first Christmas morning. If you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, that's a promise you can claim. The question is, “Can we have peace today?” 2 Peter 3:1412 tells us we can have peace provided we match our posture with our position; walk the way we talk. We must match our life with the Word of God and peace will be ours. Living our lives in rebellion to that Word of God, will only rob us of the peace we all seek. If you need peace; claim it today as stated in Romans 10:9-1013, confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart he was raised from the dead; you will be saved. We have peace because we now know we have an eternal future. As one Christian author wrote, “Peace consists not in the absence of strife, but in the presence of God.” That's the peace we celebrate by placing our faith in God's Son Jesus Christ. May we all find that peace that only He can give. Amen! |
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Post date: 2016-01-08 18:29:45 Post date GMT: 2016-01-08 23:29:45 Post modified date: 2016-01-15 16:47:26 Post modified date GMT: 2016-01-15 21:47:26 |
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