The Advent season provides an opportunity to take time to reflect on the fact that God brings peace to His people. This peace is one for which we as believers can revel in, specifically the truth that we are saved through the redemptive power of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. This peace that we are afforded as Christians is a manifestation of the truth that, although we are all sinners, we are saved and that the debt has been paid through Christ. The incredible part of this truth is that, because of His sacrifice on the cross, God sees us as righteous and we are now no longer enemies of God.
Not only are we saved, but all can be united with God and can be cleansed of our sins. This is clearly reflected in Romans 3:22 where Paul writes that “We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.” We do not need to worry about where we are from, how much we do, or how hard we work; we are all able to be reconciled back to God. What a blessing! We are no longer separated from God; we are now in community with God. As such, we experience real peace, peace that only comes if we admit that we cannot attain salvation by our own moral goodness.
We can now serve God without the fear that we need to earn our salvation. , wWe can instead revel in the fact that Christ enables us to experience true peace with God. No longer do we build up our own achievements, kind actions, and good works to be justified by God; , we can instead dwell in the peace that Paul writes in Philippians 4:6: “the peace that surpasses all understanding”. This peace reminds us that God can, and does, meet all our needs every moment of every day regardless of our own works. Our works are not enough to attain this peace because this peace is something that can only be bestowed by our Creator and giver of life.
We acknowledge that we are undeserving, inherently selfish, and unable to earn our salvation through any works of our own, and, as such, gracefully accept redemption through Christ our savior. During this Advent season, we have the pleasure to not only celebrate in our new status with God but to also share the truth of this Good News with others! It is imperative that we love others well because we have been given life through Christ! This should encourage us and spark in us a desire to share the Gospel message, this Good News, so that everyone has a chance to learn of their need for a savior. What a wonderful gift to have and share with others. , Glory to God in the highest!