Monday, December 15, 2025
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace. Luke 1: 76-79
A Path of Peace
This Christmas season Pastor Jim is leading us through a series titled Peace On Earth, through which we are learning the key truth that peace is not just the absence of conflict, but the presence of wholeness. As we learned last Sunday, the birth of one tiny baby brought us peace with God, peace for the future, and peace with other people. Through his life here on earth, his death on the cross, and his resurrection, Jesus not only gave us redemption and eternal life, but also an invitation to a new way of life as we live out our days here on earth.
Jesus is our Prince of Peace, and we not only find peace in him, but we can also have peace in our hearts through him. He invites us to walk in that peace every day, in all the circumstances and challenges we face. It is not something we only find in church on Sunday or during one season out of the year, but it is a path of peace that we can journey on our whole lives.
The passage above is an excerpt from Zechariah’s song in Luke. Zechariah was a priest and he and his wife, Elizabeth, were unable to have children. In the temple one day, Zechariah was met by an angel who announced that he and Elizabeth would have a child, and he was to name him John. Zechariah did not believe and as a result God made him unable to speak. Elizabeth did conceive a child and had a son. When it was time to name him, Zechariah wrote on a tablet that his name is John, and suddenly his voice returned. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Zechariah wrote a song prophesying about the life of his newborn son. John would have the very special role of testifying to the world about the Messiah: There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. John 1:6-9 (CSB)
John testified to a dark and lost world that the light had come to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace. The light of the world had come inviting all who would believe and have faith in him to a path of peace, and so much more. In him we find anything and everything we ever need.
Are you looking for this path of forgiveness, salvation, mercy, eternal life, and peace? All this and more can be found in the Prince of Peace if you will put your faith and trust in Him. The goodness of a life lived in him is with us always, not just at Christmas. His peace is a peace beyond what we could ever imagine, and it stays with us forever.
