Destroying the Chaos this Christmas
Pastor Jeremy Helmuth
The Path to Peace (Luke 1:79)
December 3, 2023
A deep LONGING for SHALOM
Satan is the author of confusion and chaos. God is the author of peace (shalom). On the first Christmas, the “prince of peace” came to this earth to overcome the “prince of confusion.”
Shalom
attached to
Preparing the PATH to PEACE
John the Baptist was a prophet who lived a rugged, isolated life in the wilderness. His diet was simple. His camel hair outfit and fiery sermons wouldn’t necessarily invoke an initial feeling of peace. Yet, he prepared the path of peace for everyone who visited him.
We
by
The path to
unlocking God’s
The path to
unlocking God’s
The path to
unlocking God’s
Discussion Questions
Do you have a deep longing for SHALOM?
The Hebrew word for peace (shalom) represents wholeness, rest, harmony, tranquility, completeness, health, safety, soundness, perfectness, no discord, welfare, fullness, goodness, and an absence of agitation. Do you long for this kind of peace in your life, but you are confused as to how to find it? What must you do right now to fill your soul with shalom?
Do you genuinely FORGIVE others?
In the New Testament, one Greek word for forgiveness means to “release” or “send away” (Eph 1:7; Col 1:14; Heb 9:22; Acts 2:38; Mt 26:28; Mk 1:4; Luke 4:18). The other Greek word for forgiveness means to “give grace” (Luke 7:36-50; Romans 8:32; 1 Cor 2:12; 2 Cor 2:7-13; Eph 4:32; Col 2:13; 3:13). If you want peace in your heart, then make sure you “release” the hurt that is trying to take root in the form of bitterness. How can you learn daily to give grace to everyone around you so that you can always be filled with shalom?
Why does REPENTANCE unlock God’s MERCY?
Meditate upon God’s mercy (Ps 86:5-7; Is 55:6-7; Eph 2:4-5; Lam 3:22-23). When God sees you repent, He pours mercy into your soul, which brings peace. When we repent, we hate our sin and want to turn from it. We are broken and want to change. If you are stuck in some kind of cycle of sin, have you considered how miserable you are because God is withholding His mercy (that is new every morning)? What will it take for you to truly turn from a sin and step closer to God?
Do you need to SURRENDER your RIGHTS to God?
Read the story of John the Baptist getting his head chopped off by an evil leader (Mt 14:1-12). That is unfair. Yet as John sat in prison waiting for the dreaded outcome, he knew a peace that transcended all understanding. Since we live in the United States, do we hold onto our rights so tightly that we are blinded by the fact that God wants us to daily deny ourselves so that we can follow His will for our lives?