LSB 366 It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
Luke 2:13-14
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
It Came Upon the Midnight Clear was first included in the Lutheran Worship hymnal and here also includes an altered verse 4. The traditional carol's lyrics do not include the specific reference to Christ.
The angel's words lay out the prospect that Christ's arrival in Bethlehem will end every level and layer of conflict between God and humanity, between men and women, between brothers, and between nations.
In the chaos of the time of the Judges, the "leaders" prescription for the chaos was "a king like all the other nations." They were wrong.
When Jesus describes the way of the cross to His disciples, Peter bucks Jesus' system and Jesus has to put him in his place, too.
Every person imagines what peace would look like from their own point of view. Only God is able to see and act from His point of view. Our greatest challenge in recognizing what makes for peace is that we want to hold on to this world. We imagine that, even in its brokenness, it can still be our forever home. We imagine that our version of peace is the same as God's and that if it isn't, it must be God who is wrong.
The rounds of wars, human conflicts, national and international incidents, interpersonal conflicts and all the other rampant effects of sin among us are still smaller than the peace God actually provides through his Son's ministry. The peace provided by the Lord exists to cut across our brokenness.
"Peace I leave with you, My peace, I give unto you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."
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