ADVENT WEEK TWO: PEACE
December 10 Rev. Mike Miller
The Call of Peace
Romans 12:17-21
If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, love peaceably with all.
Romans 12:18
This passage from Romans 12 has been one of my personal favorite scrip-
tures along my faith journey. And it reminds me that if our journey as Chris-
tians and Christ followers is easy, I don’t believe we are doing it right.
Paul’s words here are challenging. “Do not repay anyone evil for evil... live at
peace with everyone.” These aren’t passive instructions; they are active calls
to peacemaking. Our call to be Christians is not a call to passivity: it is a call to
action. This kind of peace that we are called to create with God isn’t just the
absence of conflict, but it is the intentional presence of grace, forgiveness,
and humility.
As we reflect on the Peace of God this Advent, we’re reminded that Jesus
came not only to bring peace to us but also to make peace through us. Jesus
was not born into a serene, peaceful world, but into one filled with injustice,
fear, and political tension.
Still, Jesus chose peace and continues to call us to do the same. Our world is
still so full of injustice, fear, and political polarization. Our call as Christians is
to continue to create spaces of peace for all of God’s beloved: which is all of
us.
Advent is a season of expectation, wonder, and preparation — not only for
the birth of Christ but for the transformation Jesus’ coming brings. In a world
marked by division, resentment, and conflict, Romans 12 calls us to something
radically different: the way of peace.
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