I began this blog over four years ago in the midst of COVID mania. It was the means by which I could best keep my mind on things above and not on the madness of this earth in obedience to God’s command in Colossians 3:1-2, and to present God’s offer of true peace, comfort and hope to those God would lead to read it. To that end, on the Home page of my website containing this blog I have written, There are three great, enduring truths that will calm our fears and anxieties and bring us peace, comfort and hope during times of peril and distress; namely that God is, that He is in absolute control of all that occurs in His creation, and that He is good (Genesis 1:1) ) (2 Chronicles 20:6) (Psalm 34:8).
From the beginning, I have endeavored to write posts that are consistent with these truths, depending on the Holy Spirit to do so. At the end of each post, I sign off with the closing blessing, Grace and Peace × (×=multiplied). It is taken from 2 Peter 1:1-4 in which the Apostle Peter uses it as a greeting or salutation of blessing to the people he is writing to.
Grace here refers to God’s unmerited favor revealed and displayed in the person and work of God the Son, Jesus Christ, for our salvation, freely imparted to us, while peace refers to the tranquility and wholeness, the restoration and reconciliation with God that comes to us in our receiving the benefits of this salvation by faith (Romans 5:1-2) (John 14:27) (Ephesians 2:8-9).
We see a similar greeting in all of the letters of the Apostle Paul wherein he greets the church or individual he is writing the letter to with, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 1:7). This is essentially a greeting pronouncing a blessing, a declaration of God’s goodness and favor toward the recipient, much like we find in the Old Testament book of Numbers, where in Numbers 6:22-27, we have what is referred to as the “Aaronic blessing”.
Peter addresses his greeting “To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:1). These are likely Christians scattered throughout what is modern day Turkey due to persecution. His greeting and intention in it is similar to what we find in Paul’s letters. However, it is more expansive as he writes in verses 2-4, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
Peter, in his greeting here, reveals that the grace and peace he is commending is the grace and peace that proceeds from God the Father who planned our salvation and the Lord Jesus Christ who graciously accomplished it through His sinless life, substitutionary death on the cross and miraculous resurrection (2 Corinthians 8:9) (John 1:16) (Revelation 1:4-5). This salvation is applied to us by the divine power of the Holy Spirit (John 16:13-15).
It is grace and peace found in the exceeding great and precious promises, the fulfillment of which are assured/guaranteed in our union with Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20) (Ephesians 2:14). They are promises that when fulfilled will result in our nature and character, ultimately our entire being becoming fully transformed into the righteous nature, holy disposition and excellence of Jesus’ glorious being as a man, which will result in our restoration to the glorious life with God for which we were created (2 Corinthians 3:18) (1 John 3:1-3) (Titus 1:1-2). The progressive nature of this transformation, what the Bible refers to as “sanctification”, is designed by God to draw us away from our love for this sin corrupted world and the pursuit of the things of this world that would result in our perishing with the world in God’s final judgement (1 John 2:15-17) (Galatians 1:3-4) (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
And thus, within this greeting Peter is praying that this grace and the resultant peace become increasingly apparent and applicable in all dimensions of our lives through both our intellectual and experiential knowledge of God – of His greatness, His goodness and the glory of His grace revealed to us in the person and work of Jesus (2 Peter 3:18) (John 1:16).
Grace is essentially God’s generous disposition by which He lavishes us with good things that we do not deserve, many of which are ill deserved (Romans 3:9-12). Everything we receive from God is by grace, from our daily bread to our health and safety to the various joys and pleasures of this life which he grants to both the just and unjust (Psalm 145:8-9) (Matthew 5:45). Even God’s justice is an expression of His goodness and grace (Isaiah 30:18).
For the redeemed, every aspect of our salvation is by grace, including being given the gift of faith required to receive this grace (Ephesians 2:8-10). We are chosen by grace (Ephesians 1:3-6); justified by grace (Romans 3:24-26); regenerated or born again by grace (Titus 3:3-7); sanctified – empowered to live the Christian life and progressively conformed to the image of Christ by grace (Acts 6:33) (Romans 8:28-30); kept or preserved by grace (Jude 24-25); afforded sufficient grace during tests and trials (2 Corinthians 12:7-10); and glorified – fully conformed to the beauty and excellency of Christ in every aspect of our being by grace (1 Peter 5:10-11) (1 John 3:1-3) (Philippians 3:20-21).
All of these manifestations of God’s grace have as their final end and purpose in what can be referred to as eternal grace (Ephesians 2:6-7), the glorious life of peace with God for which we were created and redeemed, in what is referred to in Revelation 21:1-4 as the new heaven (universe) and earth.
The English word peace is translated from the Hebrew word Shalom, which is used over 200 times in the Old Testament. The New Testament Greek equivalent is used 91 times. It was/is a term used in Israel and among the Jewish people as a greeting or farewell – shalom aleichem (peace be unto you) response – aleichem shalom (unto you be peace). Such a greeting expresses the desire for the other to be filled with perfect peace of mind, health and prosperity.
To have Shalom ultimately means to be complete, sound or whole in mind and body, within a joyful and satisfying life in relationship with God and one another, to work and to live in harmony with all of His creation. This is the peace man had in the Garden with God and one another until it was shattered, literally vandalized by sin – man’s rejection of God’s purpose for and rule over our lives (Genesis 1:27-28) (Romans 5:12) (Romans 3:23).
But God, in Genesis 3:15, graciously promised the restoration of this peace one day through the seed of the woman. And that gracious promise began its ultimate fulfillment on that not so silent night over two thousand years ago in a little town in Israel called Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-7). There we have announced by angels to lowly shepherds, the birth of one previously promised and described in Isaiah 9:6-7 as the “Prince of Peace”, who would establish an eternal kingdom of peace and prosperity, namely Jesus Christ, our Lord (Luke 2:11). And this purpose in His coming is announced by an entourage of holy angels as being for the glory of God displayed in His restoration of Shalom on earth (Luke 2:13-14).
This is what we are to celebrate in this season we have come to call Christmas. And in my next few posts I will focus on increasing our understanding of this amazing grace and the joyful peace that is the fruit of it (Galatians 5:22), as the God of peace, by the Holy Spirit, progressively multiplies it in the lives of those who love Him and seek Him with all their heart (Hebrews 13:20-21)(2 Thessalonians 3:16) (Jeremiah 29:11-13) (Philippians 1:6) .
Grace and Shalom × to you and your family this Christmas, 2024, and beyond.
Grace and Shalom to you also💛
Thanks, Sue.