Peace. Be still.

Peace is not natural. At least not under the conditions in which we live in modern times. These times are described from the Christian worldview as fallen. 

Or, we could say corrupted and broken.

Since the time of Adam and Eve, the world around us, including mankind itself, has been existing in a tragic state whereby things are just simply not the way they ought to be. We can sense it within ourselves as we watch the chaos of the world. Something has gone terribly wrong.

One of these indicators is the fleeting nature of peace. 

On some days, the sun may seem to be shining brightly in our lives as the cup is half full. On other days, it may seem as though the sun will never shine again because the cup is most certainly half empty. Peace can be extremely elusive and fragile in our fallen state.

For Christianity, peace is one of its hallmarks. In fact, the Lord and Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, is referred to in Scripture as the Prince of Peace. 

The prophecies in the Bible that pointed forward to the coming of Christ in the flesh are often seasoned with the promise of peace at his appearing. 

Even in the days directly preceding his miraculous birth, mouths inspired by the Holy Spirit promised that when he came, he would “shine upon those in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” 

Yet for many Christians, peace seems to be strangely absent.

During the days of his earthly ministry, Jesus performed many miracles that validated his identity. One of these happened in the midst of a storm, on a boat, in the middle of the sea, during the late hours of the night. Initially these circumstances prompted two very different responses. 

The first was that of the disciples who were in a desperate panic because they believed their boat was going to sink. The second was peace, as Jesus took the opportunity to catch up on his sleep. Same circumstances but entirely different responses.

As the storm grew more severe, the disciples noticed the snoozing messiah and woke him up with the concern of, “Don’t you care that we are about to die?” 

In response, Scripture says that Jesus rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace. Be still.” 

As the seas became perfectly calm again, he turned to his disciples with a couple of telling questions, saying, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

This is significant because it takes us to the root of why peace is so fleeting and temporary. Faith. 

Life is full of examples whereby we exercise our faith. And herein lies the connection to peace. I can remember in my early 20s driving a 1977 Buick LeSabre. Although it was fairly old at the time, it was a very good car and provided reliable transportation. With it came a certain amount of peace. 

Over time, though, as the law of entropy settled in and parts began to wear out, my faith in its reliability was challenged. There were times when it just wouldn’t start. On these days, my peace was shattered.

In a simplistic way, this illustrates our troubles with peace. Often, too much of our faith is placed in things that are unreliable. Then when our car doesn’t start, our world crumbles.

This is better explained in another one of Jesus’ miracles involving the sea. 

Once again, in the middle of the night the disciples are crossing the sea during a windstorm. In the midst of it, Jesus approaches them walking on the water. In an amazing turn of events, Peter, one of the disciples, joins him walking on the water. But as he went, Peter became distracted by the wind and waves. As a result, his focus was no longer on Christ, and he began to sink into the sea. 

After pulling him out of the water, Jesus asked these words, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

In both of these sea-related events, the problem wasn’t the absence of faith, but rather, faith was misplaced and distracted from where it should have been. It wasn’t in Jesus. As a result, peace was shattered.

Scripture is quite clear in that the one who places their faith and hope completely in Jesus Christ will not be disappointed. With properly placed faith comes a lasting peace that will surpass all human understanding, even when your car won’t start. 

May the words of Jesus give comfort and direction this Christmas season as we place our faith completely in him.

“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid.”

Chad Cummings is pastor at Gospel Open Bible Church on South Grimmell Road.