We find ourselves in the second chapter of Luke, verses eight through fourteen. The scene is a familiar one. Perhaps it is so familiar, the shock has worn off. After centuries of waiting, the Savior of the world has been born. For generations, everyone longed for his arrival, because he would solve all their problems. Everyone assumed he would be born in the palace; after all, he was a king. Everyone was wrong. (You know what they say about assuming.) He was born in a barn or cave. To the world, his parents, Joseph and Mary, were just another poor couple. Aren’t the poor always having children they can’t afford? According to the Gospel of Matthew, they named him Jesus. The name means “to save.”
It was the greatest moment in human history, but the world almost missed it. An announcement had to be made. It was delivered to an unimpressive group of hard-working shepherds, despised by the religious of their world, but obviously valued by God. Our scripture reading tells us, once the announcement was given, the messenger was surrounded by a great company of singing angels. Their sheet music is long gone, but their words remain: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. We call those words Gloria in Excelsis Deo, the first words in the Latin Vulgate translation. We know those words because they are great words, but what do those words mean? How do you interpret that verse? That is not a simple task.
Some believe the angels are speaking about internal peace. One of my favorite Christmas movies is Home Alone. You may know the background. Home Alone was released in 1990. It was made for $18 million and has grossed approximately $354,000,000. It was filmed in Winnetka, Illinois, and stars Macaulay Culkin (born 1980) as Kevin McCallister. You remember the storyline. Eight-year-old Kevin finds himself home alone, because he got lost in the shuffle as his family leaves for their Christmas vacation. At first, he celebrates his independence, but in time he begins to value his family. Near the end of the movie, Kevin begins to regret how he had treated his family. He walks into a church and confesses his feelings to a stranger, who has his own family problems. The stranger, Kevin’s neighbor, a weird old man, has a great line. He says, “You’re in church now. This is the place to come when you are feeling bad about yourself.” It is a secular movie, but it holds a divine truth.
Have you ever gone to church to find some rest? The world is exhausting because the world promotes your failures. During my time in the ministry, I sat alone in my church’s sanctuary many times because I needed some peace. What I really needed was Jesus. Augustine (354–430) once said, “Our hearts are restless until we find our rest in God.” Internal peace is important! How exhausted are you? Internal peace is important, but it is not the right interpretation.
Some believe the angels are speaking of political peace. Did you know, historians from England, Egypt, Germany, and India tell us, since the year 3600 BC, the world has only been free of war 292 years? During that same period, there have been 14,352 wars, killing 3.7 billion people. The amount of property destroyed during those wars would pay for a golden belt large enough to surround the world, 98 miles wide and 33 feet thick. Did you know that since 650 BC, there have been 1,656 arms races, and only 16 have not ended in war. Most countries involved in a war end up in economic collapse. Did you know there are thirty-two wars raging in our world today, taking more than 526,000 who die annually because of violence associated with armed conflict? Our time is not the only one. There has always been a shortage of peace in our world. Political peace is important, but it is not the right interpretation.
Some believe the angels are speaking of social peace. I love baseball. I remember the night Hank Aaron (born 1934) broke Babe Ruth’s home run record on April 8, 1974. Al Downing of the Los Angelos Dodgers allowed the home run. He held that record for thirty-three years. When his 23-year baseball career ended, he was inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame and went to work for the Atlanta Braves. In my eyes, Hank Aaron is a somebody.
One night, he was checking into a hotel, but the clerk didn’t recognize him and told him there were no rooms available. The owner of the hotel recognized Hank Aaron and pulled the clerk to the side. He said, “That is Hank Aaron. He is the one who broke Babe Ruth’s home run record. Tell him we will find him a room.” The clerk went back to the counter and said to Hank, “I am sorry, Mr. Aaron. I didn’t recognize you. Of course, we have a room for you. I didn’t know you were a somebody.” I love Hank Aaron’s response. He said, “Everybody is a somebody.” How would our world change if we treated everybody like somebody?
There is a certain amount of logic to this interpretation. After all, God sees everybody as a somebody, because God loves everyone. It is God’s desire to have everyone accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, so God can spend eternity with everyone. If you treated everyone as a somebody, how would your relationships change? You know the truth, revenge is never sweet. Violence breeds more violence. Hatred poisons the soul. Resentment, jealousy, bigotry, and prejudices are spiritual viruses that will kill your soul. Hank Aaron was right! Everybody is a somebody. Those interpretations are not all bad. Internal peace is important. Political peace is important. Social peace is important, but those interpretations are not correct.
The angels are speaking about peace with God. It is the kind of peace that satisfies your entire being. The great hymn writer of the Methodist movement, Charles Wesley (1707-1788) was at peace with God. He wrote approximately 6,500 hymns. In one of his hymns, he talks about his peace with God. Read the words slowly:
I rest beneath the Almighty’s shade
My griefs expire, my troubles cease;
Thou, Lord, on whom my soul is stayed,
Keep me still in perfect peace.
Charles Wesley was at peace with God. This is the question you must answer today: Are you at peace with God? Consider these two stories with me.
Nicholas Ridley (1550-1555) was an English Bishop in London. However, he is remembered for being one of the greatest martyrs in the history of the church. His witness for Christ was unfailing. He died burned at a stake. On the night before his execution, his brother came to visit him in prison. He wanted to add some comfort. Ridley refused the offer. He told his brother to go home, because he wanted to get a good night’s rest, because he was going to meet Jesus the next day. Those who guarded over him said he slept soundly that night.
One of my favorite movies is The Outlaw Josey Wales. It was released in 1976 and stars Clint Eastwood (born 1930) in the title role. He plays the part of a Missouri farmer who joins a Confederate guerrilla unit at the close of the American Civil War. He ends up on the run from the Union soldiers who murdered his family. Along the way, he encounters a variety of characters. One of those characters was a young man by the name of Jamie, who got wounded. Wales cares for his wounds and bonds with him as they run. At a certain point Jamie admits, “Josey, I’m afraid to die.” Jamie is not alone. I meet people regularly who are afraid to die because they still question their eternity. This is the question you must answer.
Are you afraid to die? Are you more like Nicholas Ridley, who was at peace with God, or Jamie, who was facing an unknown future? I am not a perfect person, but I sleep well
at night because I am at peace with God. I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior years ago. The angels sang those words to the shepherds, but their words are still true today: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. Are you at peace with God?
Russ Adams 