Jan 9 – PRINCE OF PEACE!

“Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end” (Isaiah 9:7).

Once a child is born, there is deep thinking among people in choosing an ideal name to it. The father of the child will be suggesting some of the names of his ancestors.  The mother will try something from her side.   Further, a name from the Bible will also be added to the list making the total to three or more.   In the end, people will not use any of the three but will call the baby with a new pet name.

Isaiah, the prophet, comes out with many names to Christ and these names are based on His characteristics. We can find six such names in chapter 9, verse 6 of his book. We find around 272 names for God in the Scripture.

Isaiah longed that Jesus Christ will come as a Prince of peace and the period of Messiah will be peaceful to the Israelites, and it will give hope to the people who had been toiling in the life of slavery under the rule of the opponents. The angels also came out with the Good News of the birth of Jesus and told that the earth would come under peaceful governance. But, since the Jews failed to find the Messiah in Jesus, they also failed to know peace.

The name ‘Prince of Peace’ indicates His governance of peace. The rule of the Guptas is known as the ‘Golden Age.’ The peaceful, fearless and prosperous life is the reason for that. Once peace gets established, all these things will arrive automatically. Today, the world is not under the rule of the Prince of Peace but a worldly ruler (John 14:30, 16:11). The people who commit sin join together with satan and make the world devoid of peace. Those who accept Jesus Christ in their hearts will always have peace.

While listening to the sermon of D. L. Moody, the conscience of a person pricked him. But even then, he was not prepared to accept Jesus Christ. He came to D. L. Moody with anger and said, “I never worried about my sins until you arrived here. When you talk about law and judgment, my mind burns like hell. You talk about Salvation, but it saddens me. I am unable to refrain from coming to your meetings. If you move away from my place, I will regain the peace I had earlier.” Since he was in the clutches of satan, he was unable to know the greatness of real peace.

Dear children of God, is your heart possessing the real peace which the Prince of Peace gives? Or, you misjudge the insensitive and blunt heart to be the peace? Come nearer to Jesus. He will graciously give your heart a peace which no one could take away.           

To meditate: “The Lord will give strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace” (Psalm 29:11).