S 112:1 Praise the LORD.
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in his commands.
PS 112:2 His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
PS 112:3 Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever.
PS 112:4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright, for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.
PS 112:5 Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice.
PS 112:6 Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever.
PS 112:7 He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
PS 112:8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.
PS 112:9 He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor, his righteousness endures forever; his horn will be lifted high in honor.
PS 112:10 The wicked man will see and be vexed, he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
JN 14:23 Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. JN 14:25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
JN 14:28 “You heard me say, `I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. 30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, 31 but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.
“Come now; let us leave.
Introduction
When we pass the peace of Christ what exactly are we doing and why?
Passing the Peace of Christ – Explanation
In the New Testament as the Gospel spread about the Greco‐Roman world – things changed. People of many different cultures beliefs and class were brought together which meant there was a need for long-standing barriers to come tumbling down.
Slaves and masters, barbarians and free, Men and Women, were now co‐heirs in Christ and shared food at the same Lord’s Table.
What a radical departure from the status quo! This new upside‐down Kingdom brought with it many new customs and practices that supported and reinforced the new Gospel reality.
One of the most striking Christian practices we know of ‐ called in traditional liturgical practice is the “Passing of the Peace.”The custom of the Roman world was that whenever someone of lower class greeted royalty they would either kiss their hand, or their feet, or even kiss the hem of their robe.
The early church understood that in Christ all became sons and daughter of a King. This made every saint a prince and princess. This translated to the early church practice of greeting one another with a holy kiss.
Even today there are many cultures that continue in this ancient practice. ‘Passing the Peace of Christ’ after the Assurance of Pardon. Reminding God’s people that in the forgiveness of Christ we find equal footing at the Cross – a reality that needs to be celebrated by the people presenting an image of God’s kingdom to the world of visitors and seekers sharing our space and time.
The passing of the peace is different in different churches.
In some churches it is no more than an uncomfortable ‘greeting’ time’. It should not be that way! We come to this place of worship today to celebrate our unity in Christ. He is the one that unites us.
When we “share the peace” in this way it expresses the hospitality of the Gospel – we are saying – I accept you even as I have been accepted by God as a member of this family.
It is a Gospel that transcends all barriers – social, cultural, gender or race barriers come tumbling down because we are family, brothers and sisters in Christ.
1JN 3:18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 19 This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence”.
In Passing the peace with this understanding of its purpose we help people to move beyond ‘pew fillers’ and it creates wonderful opportunities for visitors and newcomers to engage in worship with us.
In our reading this morning from John 14 Jesus talks about a unique peace. A peace that is not of this world. A peace that Paul described as being “beyond our understanding”.
It is beyond our understanding that someone else 2000+ years ago fought and won the battle we have with sin now.
We know the saying from Isaiah, ISA 48:22 so well “There is no peace for the wicked”. Without Jesus, when we stand before a Holy and righteous God that is exactly what we are. Wicked through and through and therefore separated from Him and. Even although the law says that the wages of sin is death. Praise God – in Christ there is no condemnation. In Christ we live even though we die.
In Romans RO 6:8 Paul says “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again;
There is peace in knowing that! That is for sure.
Those interested in gardening might be interested to know the story behind the ever popular Peace Rose.
The Peace rose is the most famous and successful garden rose of all time.
Over one hundred million plants had been sold, as of 1992. That was (20 years ago) ! The horticulturist who developed the rose wanted to name it after the Marshall who orchestrated the master strategy that won the Second World war , but he declined the offer saying –though he was honored to be asked, his name would soon be forgotten and a much better and more enduring name would be peace “
It is the name of Jesus that we remember now. He is Peace. His Peace is not just the absence of conflict. We tend to think of peace in terms of the laying down of arms during times of war, re-conciliation in relationships, or of a special quietness or stillness and we talk of “Peace before the storm”.
But I think that Jesus was talking about something all together other. Entirely different, and yet in some way the same because His peace, which we have access to is also about the absence of conflict. Conflict between God and humanity.
Our sin caused a rift between the Lord of creation and His creation. His victory over death through His resurrection restored that broken relationship.
Jesus was talking to his disciples about a peace they will have even in the midst of a storm, be it conflict loss or pain.
He called it “his peace”. His peace is a peace that endured the fires of trial and of suffering, and it is a peace that we have in Him because of Him. Not because we earned it, or deserve it, but because Jesus gave it to us just as he gave us the gift of grace simply because He wanted to and because He loves those whom He created.
Jesus shared a meal with His disciples that night that we now commemorate over and over again as a reminder of the fact that Jesus willingly took upon Himself our sin, and in doing so reconciled us to God and us to each other.
In JN 13:37 Peter distressed at the thought of Jesus leaving them protests” “Lord, why I can’t follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”
Little did he know that was exactly what he would do…… Peter was martyred for His faith, and I believe that in order to willingly succumb to that suffering he must surely have known something about Jesus that made it impossible for him to deny him yet again. He must surely have received that “peace” that is beyond our understanding.
The question remains for us though “How do I get there?” and what does it look like?
First of all I think we need to know what it is not and what not to do!
The peace of Christ, like grace, cannot be bought, stolen, worked for or demanded. It is a gift! It is free! It is a done deal. It is a given.
It is not a matter of floating around with an aura of sublime tranquility around us untouched by the pain and suffering in this world and in our lives. It is not a cold hearted indifference the realities of sin and struggles.
The peace of Jesus in us empowers us to overcome these things not by being indifferent to them as if we are above them, but on the contrary, by being so moved by them that we reach out to touch and heal and restore the broken hurting or lost. Empowered by His Spirit we have an inexplicable desire to be Him to the those around us and the desire to meet others needs before our own – becomes the natural us – not because we must but because we want to.
But you might protest – I want to do that, I want to feel that way, and be that person but I just cant do it! The fact is no! You can’t do it! It is Christ in you that is the hope of glory.
Remember that glory is what happens or is seen when the divine is made manifest in the ordinary.
But Jesus did say very clearly what we can do!
He said “The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
Obedience is the key, the password, the user ID, to access this unique peace that Jesus promised. This obedience is not a list of rules to keep in order to earn peace – it is a description of a life lived in order to experience the inexplicable – a life that reflects Christ. It is a life in Christ.
We come to the Table of our Lord time and time again and we hear the words’ This is my body, this is my blood, do this in remembrance of me”. What must we remember? What was the fundamental thing he taught everyone who sought His wisdom?
It is nothing new. It began with Moses – Love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor, as I have loved you.
How was that? How did He love? He loved with total abandonment of all he had and was to the Father in absolute obedience. Even if it meant death on a cross –
Every time we come to the Table it is so important that we come knowing that the peace He promised is ours – ours to embrace and rejoice in and ours to pass on to others.
But as Calvin said to me yesterday, we cannot pass on to others what we do not have ourselves.
I would like to invite you later in the service, before we share the communion meal, to share the peace with those around you – but let us first take some time to acknowledge before God that we understand that He has given us His peace in and through The Holy Spirit.
Let’s embrace this gift with truly grateful hearts, and then commit ourselves to obedience to the teachings of Jesus as much as we are able in Him, and through Him to do.
Let us pray ……. Jesus you said 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid
AMEN
