December 25, 2021
From the desk of Francisco A Peralta
For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. Ephesians 2: 14-16
I draw your attention to the phrase “killing the hostility.” God Himself through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ ended the hostility with us. For those of us who are His children, there is no more hostility between us and God. The war is over!
From our history we can recall that on May 8, 1945, America and its allies celebrated “VE” day. And on September 2, 1945, we celebrated “VJ” day. These dates signify Victory in Europe and Victory in Japan, the end of the war in Europe and the end of the war against Japan. Those two dates are markers to indicate no more hostility between warring countries. Peace treaties were signed, affirmations made, and relations restored.
Likewise, on the day Jesus was crucified on the cross, paying for sins, absorbing the wrath of the LORD God on our behalf, he purchased our victory over the enemies of sin and death. And likewise, peace treaties were signed, affirmations made, and relations restored between God and us, His children. We are at peace with God and more importantly, God is at peace with us. But alas, the human mind doubts. We suspect something is wrong here. The “wrong” in my thought is more or less something like this: “that was then, but what about now?” What about now when I sin, I fail, and I run from God? Does the peace treaty still hold when I violate the terms of peace?
To that question, I go to a short booklet titled “God is Holy” (an abridged version of the Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul). What he wrote on pages 36-37 of his booklet regarding the above passage absolutely stunned me. Dr. Sproul wrote:
“When God signs a peace treaty, however, it is signed for perpetuity. The war is over-forever and ever. Of course, we still sin. We still rebel. We still commit acts of hostility toward God. But God is not co-belligerent. He will not be drawn into warfare with us. We have a mediator who keeps the peace. He rules over the peace because He is both the Prince of Peace, and He is our peace. We are now called children of God, a title granted in blessing to those who are peacemakers. Our sins are now dealt with by a Father, not a military commander. We have peace that is sealed and guaranteed for us by Christ”Perpetuity means eternal, everlasting, foreverness, infinity. God’s peace treaty with us is perpetual, even if we sin, rebel, or commit hostility toward him. God’s will not be drawn back into a war with us. How can He do this? He can do this because our status changed. We were enemies, now we are His children. Before we were at war with God, “sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2b). Now we are at peace and in peace as we are in Christ. Father God is not a military commander with his finger on the trigger ready to re-engage. My actions or inactions do not change, cancel, negate, nor mar the peace he has made for us. The peace treaty is permanent, I cannot break it and God will not be a “co-belligerent” returning fire when we fire at Him!
If we were to truly grasp that God’s heart of mercy is for us, we would run to Him and not away from Him. Let’s ask God to open our eyes to his heart of mercy and steadfast love. And lastly, as we come into Christmas, let us reflect that the six-pound child born to a teenage Jewish girl in a cold manager two thousand years ago is the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings and is the faithful guardian of our peace with Father God.