And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. —Luke 2:8-20

‍The holiday season can sometimes feel anything but peaceful. However, we can find peace amidst the chaos because the one we are celebrating is the Prince of Peace. In this Sunday’s message, Ps Ryan Schlachter gives us three ways that we can have peace this holiday season because of the birth of Christ.

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Peace with God

• The greatest chasm that has ever existed is the one between God and humanity, and Jesus came to bridge that gap.
• The birth of Jesus proclaims that God has made good on his promise to set things right between himself and humanity. We are good with God because God is good towards us.
• The peace that we have with God is what should cause us to come running into his presence.
• Knowing that we are totally accepted and loved by God will do more for our hearts than any worldly peace.

Peace with Ourselves

• Sometimes we can find it easier to be at peace with God than at peace with ourselves.
• We wrestle with sin, we wrestle with our desires, we wrestle with our turbulent souls. But Jesus came to make peace with us so that we might also have peace within us.
• Peace with God precedes the peace of God. The peace of God is the antidote to feeling anxious, ashamed, guilty, or condemned.
• We are not honoring the work of Christ when we refuse to make peace with ourselves even though we claim to have peace with God himself.

Peace with Others

• Because we have peace with God and peace within us, we are free to be at peace with others.
• Actual peace from God is not true peace if it cannot be demonstrated towards others.
• We cannot control other people’s actions, but we can control whether or not we are initiating peace in our relationships.