Tucson Mountain Baptist Church

The Gift of Christmas
Today it’s rare to find people who are genuinely at peace. Jesus came to give us peace.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:14
“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.” John 14:27
It isn’t anything like the peace that this world offers.
God doesn’t intend for you to go through life full of stress, worry and anxiety. He wants us to be full of Peace , Serenity and Tranquility.
There are numerous types of peace, there’s Spiritual peace, Emotional peace and Relational peace. The combination of these reveal a fourth one that is the most important one of all…
1. Peace with God. Brings Eternal Spiritual peace. When our vertical relationship with God is not right it throws everything else out of whack!
“All this is from God. Through Christ, God made peace between us and himself, and God gave us the work of telling everyone about the peace we can have with him.” 2nd Cor. 5:18 (NCV)
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Rom. 5:1
Peace with God comes only from what Jesus Christ did on the cross!
“Even though we were his enemies, God made peace with us, because his Son died for our sins. Now that we’re at peace with God, we will be saved for eternity by his Son’s life.” Rom. 5:10 (CEV)
“Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He (Jesus) sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.” Hebrews 7:27
The Gift of Christmas
2. Peace Within.
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you
were called to peace. And be thankful.” Col. 3:15
The word for “peace” in Hebrew is Shalom.
Shalom means much more than just an end of hostilities.
It means Well-being, Happiness, Harmony, Serenity.
When you have the Peace with God then you have the Peace of God.
That Internal – Emotional peace within.
3. Peace with Others.
The further I am away from God, the less tolerant and crankier I become with
others.
The only way we’re going to ever have that Genuine peace of and with God
is when we’re United as children of God.
“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the
barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its
commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man
out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to
God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” Eph. 2:14-16
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all
one in Christ Jesus.” Gal. 3:28
Jesus is the great equalizer. The ground is always level at the foot of the cross.
1. I MUST EXPERIENCE A MOMENT OF CLARITY
“I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may
know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in
the saints” Eph. 1:18
It starts with a single moment of clarity.
Remember, the opposite of a moment of clarity is denial.
When you have clarity you stop blaming other people for your unhappiness.
You can be as happy as you choose to be.
“See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.” Luke 11:35
The Gift of Christmas
What does he mean by that? When I have a great moment of clarity and realize the biggest problem I have is Me. I am the problem.
The problem with the good life – is it’s not good enough. You need the better life.
God is not a genie in a bottle God said, “If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea.” Isaiah 48:18
2. I MUST EXPRESS AN ATTITUDE OF HUMILITY
“But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6
I need to Humbly admit and tell God I need help.
When I humble I am able to receive His peace. I exchange my vanity for his serenity. I exchange my anxiety for his tranquility. What a deal!
“Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us.” Isaiah 26:12
We’re all broken. I’m deeply loved by God but I’m also deeply flawed.
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalms 34:18
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Phil. 4:6
Worry is assuming responsibility God never meant for you to have.
He gives me an alternative. I can pray or I can panic. I can worship or I can worry. I can have faith or I can have fear. It’s real my choice.
3. I MUST EXPECT JESUS TO HELP ME
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matt. 11:28-30
The Gift of Christmas
I need to….
1. COME TO JESUS
I can only make that exchange by first coming to Jesus.
2. CONNECT WITH JESUS
The purpose of a yoke is to make the load easier by sharing it.
3. ALLOW JESUS TO CHANGE ME
Humility and Gentleness are the antidotes for two big causes of stress in life. A. Aggression
We don’t want to wait on anything. We want it now.
B. Arrogance
The more insecure I am the more picayunish I become. When you find someone who is hyper controlling they’re also hyper insecure.
People who are truly at peace don’t have the need to control everything.
When you’re prideful, your ego is responsible for more stress than you can possibly imagine because you try to do it all. You try to have it all, and you act like it all depends on you and let me tell you It doesn’t!
“You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3,
You were not made to live under tension, stress, fear, anxiety, worry, depression –You were made for God’s peace that passes all understanding.