“Because
of the tender mercy of our God,
Whereby
the Sunrise from on high shall dawn upon us,
To
shine on those who live
in darkness
And
the shadow of death,
To
guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Luke
1:78-9
This One will be our peace.
Micah 5:5a
This One will be our peace.
Micah 5:5a
And
suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God
and saying:
“Glory
to God in the highest,
And
on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
Luke
2:13-14
He
has come! The Christ of God;
Left for us His glad abode,
Stooping
from His throne of bliss,
To this darksome wilderness.
He has come! The Prince of Peace;
Come to bid our sorrows cease;
Come
to scatter with His light
All the shadows of our night.
Unto us a Child is born!
Ne'er has earth beheld a morn
Among
all the morns of time,
Half so glorious in its prime!
Unto
us a Son is given!
He
has come from God's own heaven,
Bringing
with Him from above,
Holy peace and holy love.
HORATIUS
BONAR
Hymns of Faith and Hope -1878
“Peace,
perfect peace!” What music there is in these words! The very mention of them fills the heart with longings, which cry out for satisfaction, and will not be
comforted. Sometimes, indeed, we may succeed in hushing them for a little, as a
mother does a fretful child; but soon they will break out again with bitter and
insatiable desire. Our natures sigh for rest, as the ocean shell, when placed
to the ear, seems to sigh for the untroubled depths of its native home.
There
is peace in those silent depths of space, —blue for very distance, —bend with
such gentle tenderness, over the fevered, troubled lives. There is peace in the
repose of the unruffled waters of the mountain lake, sheltered from the winds
by the giant cliffs around. There is peace at the heart of the whirlwind, which
sweeps across the desert waste in whirling fury. The peace of the woodland
dell, of a highland glen, of a summer landscape, —all touch us. And is there
none for us, whose nature is so vast, so composite, so wonderful?
There
is! Weary generations passed by until at length there stood among men One,
whose outward life was full of sorrow and toil; but whose calm face mirrored
unbroken peace that reigned within His breast. He was the promised Peace-giver.
He had peace in Himself; for He said, “My peace.” He had the power of passing
on that peace to others; for He said, “My peace I give unto you.” Why should not each reader of these lines receive
the peace which Jesus had Himself, and which He waits to give to every longing
and recipient heart?
His
peace is perfect, unbroken by storms,
unreached by the highest surges of sorrow. Unstained by the contaminating touch
of sin. The very same peace that reigns in Heaven, where all is perfect and
complete.
His peace is as a river: The dweller on its banks, in
time of drought, is well supplied with water. It is flowing at early dawn, as
one goes to their daily toil. It is there in the scorching noon. It is there
when the stars shine, hushing one to sleep with the melody of its waves. Think,
too, how it broadens and deepens and fills up, in its onward journey, and from
its source to the boundless, infinite sea. So may our peace be, abiding and
growing with our years.
His peace is great: its music is louder than the
tumult of the storm. Learn the lesson of the Lake of Galilee, —that the peace
which is in the heart of Jesus, and which He gives to His own can quell the
greatest hurricane that ever swept down the mountain ravine and spent itself on
the writhing waters beneath. For when the Master arose and rebuked the wind and
said unto the sea, “Peace, be still,” the winds ceased and there was a great
calm.
There is a remarkable
text in Isaiah, which teaches us that the Government should be upon the
shoulders of Jesus Christ; and that when it is so, there is no end to the
increase of Peace. Surely these glorious words refer, not only to the
government of a nation, but of each individual life also, and they are very
searching.
“In Me you shall have
peace.” ‘Twas our Savior who said those words. Let us abide in Him. Let us live
in Him. Let us walk in Him. Let us make of Him the secret place unto which we
may continually resort. And as we are joined to Him, in the intimacy of deepest
union, the peace that fills His heart, like a Pacific ocean, shall begin to
flow into ours, until they are filled with the very fullness of God; and the
peace of God, like a dove, with fluttering wings, shall settle down upon our
hearts, and make them its home forevermore.
F.B. MEYER
Steps
into the Blessed Life
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