THE GOOD NEWS OF CHRISTMAS

On the night when Christ was born, the angel of the Lord brought a wonderful piece of news from heaven: “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10–11). Then appeared a great company of angels praising God, and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14).

Whither World Peace?

What is the good news of Christmas? The good news is God’s gift of a Saviour, Jesus Christ the Lord. He comes with God’s peace and good will. What is this “peace” and “good will”? The peace that came with Christ when He was born was certainly not a general, outward peace between men or among men. In fact when Jesus was born, there was no peace, but a whole lot of death. Herod the Great when he heard that the King of the Jews was born went on a wicked rampage and massacred all babies two years and below hoping to kill the baby Jesus in the process (Matt 2:16).

Throughout the 33½ years of His life on earth, Jesus went through a whole lot of suffering and pain. Isaiah 53:3 tells us that “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” And finally He was crucified on the cross even though He did no wrong and was without guilt, “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet” (Ps 22:16). Was there peace on earth when Christ first came? There was no peace.

Is there peace on earth today? Read the newspapers and watch the news, and you will see that there is still no peace on earth. Since 3600 BC, the world has only known 292 years of peace. The world has already suffered two world wars, and smaller, regional wars are still being fought in different parts of the world. What we see today is precisely what the Lord had predicted 2000 years ago, “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows” (Matt 24:6–8).

Jesus told His disciples not to expect peace in their lifetime, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me” (Matt 10:34–38). How many of you have been beaten by your parents, and chased out of home when you told them that you have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and have accepted Him as your Saviour? Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace but a sword.” This sword is a sword of division, of separation. If you belong to Christ, the world will hate you. Jesus said in John 15:18–20, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.”

What Is Peace?

What then is this peace that the angels sang about? This peace that the angels proclaimed had to be the special, inward peace that results from a reconciliation of man to God in Christ. In Ephesians 2:13–17, Paul explained this peace that God gives to man in Christ, “But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.”

The Gospel is indeed good news because it is the Gospel of peace. The Lord Jesus Christ preached the Gospel of peace, and He has sent us out also to preach the same Gospel of peace so that the sinners might be reconciled to God. Romans 10:13–15 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” It is only when the sinner confesses his sins, and cries out to Jesus for his salvation will he have peace with God. Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: … being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life” (Rom 5:1, 9–10). Christ our Mediator has saved us not only by His death but also by His life. Christ earned the righteousness of God for us when He lived a perfect life on earth in fulfilment of the Law (Matt 5:17–18). The peace of God that comes from Christ is the result of Christ imputing His righteousness on us when we accept Him as our Lord and Saviour.

Not Man’s Good Will

The “good will” that the angels referred to is not man’s but God’s good will. The corrupted text underlying the modern versions reads, “among men of good will” (en anthropois eudokias). This contradicts what God says about the nature of man. Man is totally depraved and his will is completely corrupted. Man’s will is not good but bad. The heart of man which is the seat of his emotions and desires is “deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” says the Prophet Jeremiah (Jer 17:9). The Apostle Paul likewise describes the depraved and corrupted nature of man, “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Rom 3:10–18).

This world that we live in is becoming more and more evil and wicked. God has warned ahead of time “that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God … [E]vil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (2 Tim 3:1–4, 13).

But God’s Good Will

It is therefore quite clear that the “good will” here is not man’s good will for he has none, but God’s good will towards men, for only God is good. The KJV rightly translates the preserved text as “good will toward men” (en anthropois eudokia). It is because of God’s good will that we can experience His peace. This good will that is towards men originates from God. God is the source of peace. God’s peace is a free gift. It is purely by His mercy that sinful men are bestowed His peace. Since salvation is purely by His grace, only He can boast when sinners are saved, and that is why to Him and Him alone the glory belongs. “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:6–8).

What then is the good will of God? The good will of God is for man to be saved from the judgement to come through the Lord Jesus Christ. The God of the Christian Bible is the only living and true God “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” (1 Tim 2:4–5). In another place, we are told, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9). It is only when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that He died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and on the third day rose again from the dead according to the Scriptures will we be saved from our sins and have peace with God. Not only does the believer have peace with God, He is blessed with peace from God, and this peace is unlike anything on earth, for the peace that comes from above is a peace that is indescribable and out of this world. This heavenly, divine peace “which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:7).

Make Peace with God

Do you have this peace, this peace that comes from God? If you want this peace, you can have it. God wants you to have this peace, this peace that surpasses understanding, and it can only be had if you believe in the Gospel of peace, in the Lord Jesus Christ who is the Prince of peace. This is the Good News of Christmas, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isa 9:6). Make peace with the living and true God before it is too late. Put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, before He comes back to judge this world. Psalm 2:12 tells us, “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.”

“Silent night! Holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight. Glories stream from heaven afar. Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia. Christ the Saviour is born. Christ the Saviour is born.” JK