Two years ago {wow, can’t believe it’s been that long!}, I wrote about Jesus being the Prince of Peace.
I mentioned that the Hebrew word used there for peace is shalom.
It means safe, well, happy, prosperity, and comes from another word meaning to be safe, to be or make completed.
I love that.
But in Luke 1:79 and 2:14 (as well as other verses), the Greek word translated as peace means something else that I love.
To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Luke 1:79 (KJV)
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
Luke 2:14 (KJV)
I’ve always thought of peace as meaning, ya know, calmness, stillness, etc.
And sometimes it does. But not in these verses.
It is believed to derive from a word meaning to join.
To join.
“To guide our feet into the way of joining.” “On earth joining.”
Jesus came to join us.
He joined us in the sense that He lived with us humans, as a human. Taking part in every part of our life–the pain, the confusion, the happiness, the relationships, the death, the monotony, the highlights, the temptations (although He never sinned), the weakness. He felt our guilt, our shame, our separation, as He bore every sin and the punishment for every sin on the cross.
He joined us in the sense that He connects us with other human beings. He makes us Family. He makes us able to not hate, to be united, to live in harmony and love and forgiveness and grace.
For he is our peace, who hath made both one,
Ephesians 2:14-15 (KJV)
and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Having abolished in his flesh the enmity,
even the law of commandments contained in ordinances;
for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
And–in perhaps the most mind-blowing, tear-causing, heart-swelling sense–He joined us with Himself.
And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross,
Ephesians 2:16-19 (KJV)
having slain the enmity thereby:
And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.
For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners,
but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
Romans 5:1 (KJV)
Jesus came to join us!
To guide our feet into the way of joining: joining with others and, even more importantly and excitingly, joining with God–with Him. Guiding us into knowing Him, into understanding what He wants, into having–being able to have–a relationship with Him. Guiding us into love and joy and peace and eternal life and guidance and all the other wonderful things that come from Him.
Jesus makes us safe, well, happy, prosperous, complete. He joins us.
He is the Prince of Peace.
{inspired by Tanner Olson’s Advent Writing Prompts}
