The God Of Peace

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.  

Hebrews 13:20-21 

We have arrived at the closing benediction of the book of Hebrews. The writer begins with ‘the God of peace.’ and takes us straight to Christ. God is indeed the God of peace. He does what He does after the counsel of His Own will to bring peace to the world. The psalmist declares, ‘He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariot in the fire.’ He defeats His enemies in order to establish a lasting peace. Speaking of Christ, the ‘Rod from the stem of Jesse,’ Isaiah says, ‘But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.’ The end result of His work is, ‘They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.’ These passages, and others like them relate God’s being the God of peace directly to Christ. It is Christ Who is the brightness of God’s glory and the express image of His Person. Christ is the agent by Whom God demonstrates that He is the God of peace. Isaiah refers to Christ as the Prince of peace. When the angels announced His incarnation, they proclaimed, ‘Peace on earth. Good will toward men.’ We cannot think of God as being the God of peace without looking to Christ. Therefore in all of our discussions of peace we must involve Him.  

Our God of Grace and Glory, 
we rejoice that You are sovereign. 
We praise You that You bring peace in the earth, 
according to Your own plan.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning