Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”
NL Daily Devotion for Friday, December 24, 2021
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: God’s gift was peace.
“Peace on earth!” It is a Christmas blessing so common it is easy to let the words gloss over us as nothing more than a cheesy saying on an old Christmas card.
But peace on earth is not cheesy and it is not wimpy. Peace is an incredibly difficult thing to achieve. Ironically, peace often cannot be achieved without conflict or war. And this earth is rarely, if ever, completely void of conflict.
For the people of Israel, conflict was upon them. Rome occupied Jewish lands and a foreign government controlled God’s people. Peace would have meant regaining control over their own land and governing themselves. For the Israelites, that peace never came. The land has been in conflict ever since.
For us, peace might mean freedom from war – indeed, many of our sisters and brothers, fathers and mothers, and daughters and sons are fighting overseas. The promise of peace might also mean freedom from more personal conflicts—physical ailments, mental illness, addiction, broken relationships, lost jobs. The turmoil that surrounds any of these indeed begs for peace.
So, is the angels’ proclamation of peace for us? Can Jesus bring peace into a broken world (globally or locally)? For some, peace is already upon them. For others, they may still be waiting. But the promise is solid. Christ brings hope for the possibility of peace on this earth and the certainty of peace in the life to come.