On that most holy night, when the Word who was with God in the beginning—because He is God—became flesh and dwelt among us, the Blessed Virgin, who had conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, gave birth to her firstborn Son, the Son of God through whom all things were made. This happened in the filth of a stable, no less. A chorus of angels appeared before the shepherds as they kept watch over their flocks in the fields of Bethlehem and sang the Hymn of Praise, which we also sing when we approach Mary’s Son in His Service: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men.”

But do not mistake the peace Jesus came to bring with the peace, say, President Trump, for example, is trying to achieve between Russia and Ukraine. Even if that peace becomes a reality—and that is by no means a sure thing—there will still be bloody conflicts in this world. Our Lord made that very clear when He listed this as one of the signs that will occur before His return: “There will be wars and rumors of wars. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.” That’s certainly been true in our lives, but for Israel, it’s pretty much their entire history. With the exception of Solomon’s reign some 2,900 years ago, the land of Israel has been a battleground: first with the Canaanites who inhabited the land God promised to Abraham’s descendants, then with the Egyptians to the south, followed by the powers to the north—Syria and Assyria—then the empires to the east—Babylon and Persia—then the powers to the west—Greece and Rome. After them, the Muslims controlled the land. It wasn’t until 1948, after two World Wars, that the Jews were once again allowed to rule in the land, and yet still they have no peace.

But we Christians do. Not with the people of this world, for this world hates Christians—it always has and always will. But “having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Of course, it wasn’t always this way. On the sixth day, I believe, the very day God created Adam and Eve, Satan convinced them to rebel against Him and sin. Thus began the war between God and man. For the sinful mind, which is the mind of every one of Adam’s descendants—including you and me, having been conceived in the sinful image of Adam—is hostile toward God, and reveals its hostility by refusing to submit to the Law of God.

I ask you: what could be more foolish, more futile, than for the creature to wage war against his Creator, than for sinful men to take a stand against almighty God? Look at what happened to the Jews in Jerusalem who tried to do that very thing. The Holy Spirit inspired St. Luke to record this historic event in the pages of Holy Scripture for our learning. In their hostility, they didn’t only kill many of the prophets whom God sent to call them to repentance; they actually turned against the Lord Himself when He came in the flesh to save them from the curse of their sins. They arrested Him, falsely condemned Him, and handed Him over to the Romans, whom they persuaded to crucify Him. They were determined, albeit unknowingly, to remain at war with God rather than at peace. So God—whose patience, though great, is not eternal—finally rejected them. In the year of our Lord 70, only thirty-seven years after the time of His visitation, He allowed the Roman armies to destroy them and level their city to the ground.

History portrays the siege of Jerusalem as extremely brutal. The most merciful fate for its inhabitants was to die by the sword, for others perished by starvation and disease. Their bodies were piled in the streets and left to rot. Survivors, in their severe hunger, boiled and ate the leather straps of their sandals. Many mothers killed their own children to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Romans; some even resorted to cannibalizing the flesh of the dead to survive. Those who were captured and not tortured or executed were sold into slavery. And yet, even this horror was only a faint image of the greater torment suffered by those who foolishly waged war against God. For as great as their physical suffering was, it is nothing compared to what they now endure at the hands of almighty God in the unquenchable fires of hell.

This brings us back to the Hymn of Praise the angelic chorus sang on the night of Jesus’ birth, and which we sing as we approach Him in His Service: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men.” The reason the Son of God appeared in our flesh was to establish peace between this holy God and sinful men. However, to do so, He would have to suffer the punishment that man brought upon himself for waging war against God. He, who once fashioned a whip out of cords to drive idolaters from the temple, gave His back to the scourge. And He, who overturned the tables of the greedy money changers, paid at the expense of His holy, precious blood the price required to redeem you from Satan’s house of eternal torment.

Sadly, the Jews of Jerusalem did not know the time of His visitation. But by the grace of God, you do. And I say “by the grace of God” because “No man can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.” It is the Spirit who has blessed you with the gift of faith to believe—not only that Jesus came into the world to establish peace between God and man, but also that He visits you in this, His House of Prayer, today to bring you this peace through the forgiveness of your sins.

For he whose sins are forgiven is no longer subject to God’s wrath and punishment. And he whom the Holy Spirit has blessed with faith is no longer at war with God. His sinful flesh may still rebel, as shown by the sins he commits daily, but trusting in the merits of his Savior, he knows he is at peace with God. This peace brings him comfort even in this war-torn world, but even better, it promises the fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore in the presence of His Lord.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.