In watching our Grove kids play Simple Christmas, Charlie Brown, I was reminded that it's not just Charlie Brown searching for meaning this Christmas, that really all of us have a little bit of Charlie Brown in us, don't we? I really resonate early in their, in their little play when he said the line, I don't feel the way that I'm supposed to feel. Right? Isn't it interesting that little kids can say things that actually hit deep, right? Is that Christmas really isn't in the decorations or the gifts or sometimes the, the lights and, and all the things that we think we need, but rather, peace really is, is found ultimately, not just in the season, but in our Savior. Right? And as as the kids shared with us this morning, that the purpose of Christmas is to really connect our heart to the life and power of Jesus Christ. You know, I'm reminded not just of that Charlie Brown story, but also of our Christmas story as we're studying Matthew chapter 2, and the journey of the wise men. Here we're in week 2 of our series, Follow the Star, and last week, we talked about the search for hope. And how the magi, the wise men, came from a far off land in search for hope, or having that confident expectation that God would do what he promised, and we shared how hope can be found even in moments of waiting, even in moments of tension. Well, this morning's message is entitled The Struggle for Peace. Because we're gonna take a look at two groups of people who encounter the same Jesus. Same moment of time, same area. Of life, but yet two very drastically different responses. And so that's why this morning's message is entitled The Struggle for Peace. And if you're taking notes, you can write this down. That Jesus should direct your life, not just decorate your holiday. Jesus to direct your life, not just decorate your holiday. In other words, peace arrives when you make Jesus Lord of your life, not just a guest for the season, right? And all the busyness and and things to do here as we approach the end of the year. It can, it can feel like we're making Jesus seasonal. When in reality, Jesus should be central in our lives. Now, before we dive into scripture and the story of the wise men to understand peace, let's let's briefly talk about what even does peace mean? What is, what does the Bible mean when they use the word peace? There's a few words that in Scripture, when they talk about peace, there's the Hebrew word Shalom. A lot of times in Jewish cultures, it was seen as a greeting or as an exit, right? And then there's the Greek word irene. And even Paul in his letters would open a lot of his letters with grace and peace to you. Well, in both cases, Shalom and Arene really communicates this idea of completeness, wholeness. Or to be restored. The idea there is that life is very complex. You know, if you think of a series of building blocks, or links in a chain. That when something is broken or something is missing, your life is not whole. When you think about anxiety. At its core is to be pulled in different directions or that something is missing. And so that missing piece is peace. Have you ever finished a, uh, finished a puzzle or almost finished the puzzle, you get down to the last little bit. And you're missing like one piece or a couple pieces. Does that frustrating anybody else? Right? It does me for sure, right? And sometimes life can feel that way. You think you get so many things in a row and you get down to it, but something's missing. You don't feel complete, you don't feel whole, and therefore you struggle to find peace. Or maybe there's others who are in very difficult seasons of life. You're in a valley, you're in a drought season, or maybe it's the opposite, it's a storm. And so how do you have peace in the middle of a storm, in the lowness of a valley, or in the dryness of a drought? Let's take a look at scripture, a few verses here before we jump into our Christmas story and see what does God's word have to tell us about peace. Jesus, once he told his disciples that he's about to leave, he actually follows up and says, you will be able to do greater things than I. And he says these words in John 14:26 and 27, says, but the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. So there is a peace that God gives, that's on a whole another level than anything this world has to offer. Paul, when he's writing to the church in Rome in Romans 5:1, said this, therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Think about that, that with the definition put in there. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have restoration, completeness, and wholeness with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That means that you are enough. That means that you have enough. That means that he provides everything that you need for godliness, purpose, and joy. How is that possible? How can I have peace when I have sickness? How can I have peace when I've been betrayed? How can I have peace when I've been broken? How can I have peace when I'm lacking? Because peace really is a person. See, in Ephesians 2:14, it says, for he himself, referring to Jesus is our peace. Who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh, the dividing wall of hostility. What I love about that is that not only do we have peace with God, we have peace with each other. Right? How can we have peace at the family holiday when Fill in the blank with that person that's gonna be there, right? Come on now, be honest. Like, if you have a a a a company gathering or a family gathering, there's probably somebody in the extended family that you're like, I would be OK if they got sick and couldn't make it this year. You know what I'm saying? And it got real awkward, which means that person might be in the room. And if you can't think of anybody that comes to mind, you might be that person for the rest of the family. Just say it. OK. But what I love about Peace from Christ is that when you have peace with God, that gives the opportunity to have peace with each other. Even in the middle of battles and brokenness and burdens and struggles, peace is possible because of because we have access to Jesus, who is our peace. In Colossians 3:15, it says, let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, to which indeed you are called in one body and be thankful. That If you let peace rule in your hearts, that means that oftentimes we let other things rule in our hearts. What's Making the decisions in your life. What's keeping you up at night? You know, I've shared this before, but think about allowing the peace of Christ to be the air traffic controller in your life. Right? There are a bazillion planes in the air, but the in the same way, you have a bazillion thoughts and feelings in your mind and in your heart. But as the air traffic controller, then determines which plane gets to land, so too, through the word of God, through the peace of Christ, allow which plane to land in your heart and to take residence, and let the other ones just go past. Right? So instead of worry, you can choose worship, right? Instead of, of guilt, right? You can choose repentance. Instead of pride, you can choose humility. Right? Instead of greed, you can choose generosity and and gratefulness, right? You get to choose which plane lands. In the airport of your heart, in the same way, do you let the peace of Christ rule in your heart? Because at its core, peace is not the absence of conflict, but rather peace is the presence of Christ, expressed in and through the life of the believer. So even in the valley. Even in the storm, even in the drought, peace is possible. Through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Charles Spurgeon wrote and said, put it this way, he said, peace is the rest of will that results, um, sorry, I was getting ahead of myself here. That's the next quote. It says, when Christ, when Christ reigns in your heart, peace rules in your life. When Christ reigns in your heart, peace rules in your life. That means that wholeness, completeness, restoration comes from a personal relationship with Jesus, not from our circumstances that are around us. Dallas Willard put it this way, Peace is the rest of will that results from confidence in God. In Matthew 11, Jesus says, come to me all those who are weak and heavy laden, and you will find anxiety and struggle. No, he says, come to me and you will find rest, right? Rest is possible because rest is found through the peace of Christ that comes only through the Holy Spirit and focus on the person of Jesus. I would describe this passage that we're gonna go through today as the tale of two kings. The tale of Two Kings. One with a capital K and one with a very small k. OK, let's read through this passage, then we're gonna walk back through and give you some historical context to better understand it. We're in Matthew chapter 2, beginning in verse 1, here of the Christmas story. Now, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king. Behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him. When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him. As in assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ was to be born. And they told him in Bethlehem of Judea, so it is written by the prophet. And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah. For from you shall come a ruler who will be shepherd, who will shepherd my people Israel. And then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word that I too may come and worship him. Now that was a lie. That was not his intention. But let's jump into it here. Last week, we gave a little bit of context for the wise men. So if you weren't here last week, I encourage you to go check out last week's message, but quick recap here, the wise men hate to break your nativity scenes. They were probably not there at the night, right? Cause they took a, took a long journey, could be months, could be up to 2 years, took a while for them to get there. So there are, and there's more than 3 of them, OK? And they were not actually kings, OK? They were seen as wise men, they were seen as magi. Magi is where we get our word magic. It's also where you get the word magistrate. And so they were representatives of a king. They were philosophers, they were interpreters of dream. They were spiritually curious pagan people. Right? And so they were seen as like sorcery, but then they were also seen as philosophy, and they were just curious, searching, trying to find God. So they were familiar with Jewish scriptures. And from the prophecies that are in scriptures, they see that, and then they see a sign in the sky, and they come to visit. Now, Jerusalem was about 5 or 6 miles away from Bethlehem. I know some of the younger kids wish it was 6 or 7, but um, and then, and so they come to Jerusalem and they're searching for the king, OK? They're searching for the king, and there's like, hey, where's the, where's, we've read your scriptures. Where is the king of the Jews? We saw the star, we saw the sign. And here they've made this long journey, and yet the people of God are only 5 or 6 miles away and they miss it, right? And so, King Herod, here's this thing here, that here's this threat. He says, well, what are we gonna do about this? So who exactly was King Herod? Who was King Herod? He was appointed the king of Judea by the Roman Senate in 37 BC. Now he would abruptly die, and I don't wanna mess up your calendars here, but probably around 4 BC. Like, wait, how does he die before Jesus was born? Well, someone who put the calendars together kind of overlap some things, and so really, Jesus was probably born around that time. OK, BC, so he wasn't born right at 0. that was the intention of the calendars, but don't, don't let that stress you out, OK? And so, but Herod the Great, self-appointed the Great. OK, was somebody who By worldly standards, he was doing great things. He was actually known as a builder. He built things like the Masada Fortress that you can still visit today. He built the Caesarea Martima harbor that you can still visit today. He built the Herodian Palace complex where you, you could still visit today. Probably the most well-known piece of construction that he's completed was actually expanding the Temple Mount. And so you can actually, if you've ever seen pictures of the Wailing Wall, or the wall where people go and put prayers, I have a friend, a pastor friend named Gavin, who's there this week. I see him posting. Uh, photos there at the wall like 2 days ago. And so you can go visit these places that that were built by Herod the Great. Now he wasn't Jewish himself, he was seen as an Edomite, but because he was placed and was hungry for power, he was sympathetic to Jewish causes, but rather he was using religion for political gain. I mean, no one would do that today, right? No, OK. Too, too, too sensitive. OK, we won't go there. Um, and so we have in here, and so he was using religion for political gain. And making these construction projects, but yet feeling and fighting against this constant sense of insecurity. And so while he was a skilled builder, he was very much a paranoid leader, so much so that if you even sniffed a threat in his direction, he would kill you. He killed his wife. Miriam. He killed his mother-in-law. Sorry, I would never do that to you, just so you know, we're good. Great mother-in-law right here. OK. Some of you elbowed though, like, oh, OK, um, don't do that. OK. But not only that, he even killed 3 of his sons. You would think, build this kingdom to give to your kids. No, he thought the kids were gonna take it from him. And so he killed 3 of his sons to the point where it's been said that Caesar Augustus said it's better to be Herod's pig than his son. And so after he hears the good news that we say is good news, that the angels say is good news of great joy, as it says in Luke 2. He didn't think of it as good news, he was troubled. And that's why he orders the killing of all infants in in Bethlehem, because they viewed him as a threat. But now it gives you a little more context because his nickname was the king of the Jews. So imagine somebody who's so insecure about all these threats, about losing power, about using religion for political gain by building all these constructions to call yourself Herod the Great, to have all of these things, to have these foreigners come in and say, we've read the scriptures. Where is this born king of the Jews? It's like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a second. Who's coming for my throne? Right? And because he's killed so many people, it not only was he troubled, he says, and all of Jerusalem was troubled. Right? Cause if Herod ain't happy. No one's happy, right? And so there's this dangerous story gonna take place, but what's fascinating, even in the danger, even in the evil, even in the darkness, we see the greater narrative, the meta narrative of Scripture and the gospel taking place, that in Matthew chapter 2 alone, we see four different prophecies that are fulfilled. It said that the wise men would come from the east following the light. That's Matthew 2:1 that was quoted in Isaiah, um that was originally quoted in Isaiah 9:2. It said that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem, Matthew 2:6. That was directly quoted then from Micah 5:2. Then we have that Jesus would live for a time and come out of Egypt, and see the family escaped Bethlehem there to avoid the persecution of Herod, and then came back once Herod had died. But what we find in Hosea chapter 11 verse 1, is that the Son of Man or the Son of God would actually come out of Egypt. And then the last one here is that even in the mourning and loss, said that there'd be people weeping for the loss of children in Matthew chapter 2 verse 17, that they're actually quoting the prophet Jeremiah 31:15. I say all this because even in the darkest times, even in the seemingly silence of God in the craziest moments, in the storms, in the valleys, in the droughts, God is still working. And so what do we do with this story? Because we have Herod, the king, with a very small k here, and then we have Jesus, the king, yet born humbly in a manger. And the wise men Who sought after him. Notice same Jesus, same God, same place, two very different responses, and one of them is gonna end up with peace. Let's take a look at this. Two responses to Jesus, the wise men inherit. First, if you examine the heart of the people in this Christmas story, we see that the wise men were humble. Where Herod was hostile. Right? The wise men came from a distance, gave up everything, brought gifts before, and bowed down and worship, right? They came with humility, where Herod came with hostility. Next, we see their motivation that the wise men came for surrender. Where Herod came from a place of self-preservation. Third, we see the attitude behind it, that the wise man came and received joy. Where the news of the birth of Jesus brought forth jealousy from the wise man. In action, we see that the wise men were willing to obey and follow the star, whereas Herod went under a fight for control. And then their posture during the Christmas season. was the wise men took a posture of worship, where Herod took a posture of war. And the outcome of all of this. Is that the wise men found peace. In fact, they found the Prince of Peace. Right? Another prophecy fulfilled there from Isaiah, the Prince of Peace be born. And what did Herod find? He found nothing but panic. Now, I am hopeful and optimistic that no one in this room has killed multiple family members and is trying to rid this community of all infants. And so you might be quick to say, I have nothing to do or nothing in common with King Herod. But if you look at that list. How many of us respond to the gospel with hostility? How many of us focus on self-preservation? How many of us, instead of joy, we find ourselves jealous. Instead of following God's word, we find ourselves fighting for control in our lives. Instead of coming to church for worship, we really come and enter the week with war. I'm gonna get what's mine. If you do all those things at the end, you will not find peace, you will find panic. See, sadly, we have a lot in common with Herod the Great. It's just we're trying to build our own kingdom. Right On family vacations, we love going to the ocean. One of the things I love at the ocean, uh, cause I cannot surf or anything, um, I'm more of a boogie board guy, which you just, you know, go on the board. You can't fall when you're already down. Um. And then, uh, but I also love building sand castles. Something I love, I'm over 40 years old, but love it. And then I find myself digging a hole. Now, I, I always forget that I love it until we get to the ocean, so I find, I don't bring the right tools. All I get left is I steal some toddler's little baby shovel, you know what I'm talking about? I don't steal it sometimes. Um, I wait till they leave and then just take it, right? It's fair game. It's, it's, you know, if they leave, it's their fault. Anyway, sorry. So here's this like grown man with a toddler shovel, and I'm, I'm building, and at first, I'm building with the kids, right? And it's fun, it's called parenting. And then the kids get bored and move on, but I gotta complete the castle. Anyone else tracking with me? Like I gotta complete the castle, so the kids go away, and what the problem is, they start going run down the ocean, so now they've left me. So now I'm just a grown man with a baby shovel building a castle. Um. But what I have not become successful at doing yet is judging the correct distance to build the castle, cause you want the wet sand, right? Cause dry sand doesn't work, right? It's just like you pat it down and you dump the bucket and it just kind of goes. And then um some of you weren't ready for the science behind sandcastle building, but you're gonna get it. Um, and so you wanna be wet sand, but you don't wanna be too close. Why? Because you're gonna build up this amazing, like, you could almost live in it, castle, that's what I have in my head, right? And it's just a pile of dirt with sand with like some spikes on it. Um, but if you go too close, what happens when the tide comes in? It's gone. Right? And as silly as that sounds, how different really, how different really are the kingdoms we're trying to build for ourselves on a weekly basis? Right. How many of us are waiting for the If I only get This, if I get the house, then I'll have peace. If I, if I get the promotion, then I'll have peace. If I If If coach puts me in the 4th quarter, right? Like Uncle Rico, OK, we say like, then I'll have peace. Like, if like how much money do you need in the account to have peace? How much, like, how much health do you need to have to have peace? Like we keep thinking it's like we keep thinking that peace is something we're chasing, like we're playing hide and seek, but it just keeps moving around. Or like if you're in the city and they got those guys with the cups and the shell game and you got like, you're like, you're like watching the world like trying to think, oh, peace is under that one. OK, nope, not there. pieces under that one. Nope. OK. And we're and we're searching for peace. When peace cannot and will not be found in anything of this world. Why? Because the meaning of peace is to be complete, to be restored, to made whole, and nothing this world gives you can bring you wholeness. There's always a bigger house, there's always more money, there's always a bigger struggle, there's always a battle around every corner. But the, the joy is in the fact that peace is possible, even in the middle of the storm, in the bottom of a valley. In the dryness of a drought. Peace is possible because peace is found in Jesus. And while we might not relate to Herod, There's a little Harrod in all of us. A little kingdom that we're worried about. Wait, if I believe in Jesus, I gotta. I gotta follow in my finances. If I believe in Jesus, I, I gotta speak differently. I gotta act differently. I gotta humble myself. I gotta, I gotta repent. I gotta turn, I gotta, I gotta turn from my kingdom and, and, and follow, be a part of his kingdom. And so it's easy to feel jealous and And to feel like we're struggling or self-preservation and and and and searching, but I, I wanna tell you this Christmas season. You don't have to struggle. Even in the middle of unanswered prayers, and in grief, and in sadness, and in questions and in doubt, peace is possible. Through the person in the power of Jesus Christ. You see, Herod tried to sustain his own personal kingdom. Where the wise men surrendered to the rule of King Jesus. That's where the piece is found. Because Jesus should direct your life, not just be. A decoration for your holiday. He he's not just a guest this holiday season. He should be central. He should be lord of your life. So I want to close asking these questions here. What area of your life do you need to surrender to Jesus today? In what area of your life do you need completeness, wholeness? Cause some of you are in battles right now. Some of you are, are struggling right now. But what's amazing about the Christmas story. Is that in Bethlehem. The most remote overlooked village, but not even the village, and not even in the inn, but in the stable, with the most overlooked people and and Joseph and Mary, using the first witnesses to be the shepherds, to be the the religious interpreters, not to be the rabbis at the temple, but these magi from far off. Came in and said there is good news of great joy today. The Prince of Peace has come, the King has come, that we have come now to surrender, to find joy. So if you are willing to surrender whatever struggle, whatever battle, whatever issues you have right now to Jesus, it's in that moment you will find peace because you will find him. Cause that piece that goes beyond understanding can guard your heart. What do you need to surrender? The Second question is this. Where are you searching for peace? Are you finding it in your own kingdom? Are you finding it in the search for stuff or popularity or power or control? Are you finding it in the God who came to earth to die on a cross for your sins and for mine? Next week we're gonna have a baptism Sunday. And I want to challenge you That if you are searching for peace, if you are longing through that, I want you to challenge you to To get baptized You don't have to get over and over again here, but if you've never gone public with your faith, if you've never decided for yourself, listen, we have uh people from a lot of different traditions and so we wanna honor that, right? If you've been baptized as a baby or dedicated, look, that that was your parents praying over, deciding something for you, right? It's a good thing. It's not discrediting any of that, but I wanna ask you, have you made that decision for you, since you've put your faith in Jesus? To be baptized as Jesus was baptized, as the disciples were baptized, as the early church leaders were baptized, all those after receiving the word. Would you be willing to make a declaration of faith by getting baptized to say, yes, I believe in Jesus. As you go under the water, symbolizing his death and burial, rising again to walk a newness of life, as it says in Romans 6:4. I wanna challenge you to talk to us, talk to me, let us know on the connect card, and get baptized next week. I'm telling you what you're gonna find is the peace that you've been struggling for, that you've been searching for. That's only found in him. Will you pray with me? Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the story of the wise men. God, thank you for the story of our kids in this church family telling us the meaning of Christmas. But God, I pray that we can come to you, not as Herod, trying to self preserve and control and fight for our own small little kingdom that ultimately gets washed away with the tide when all things are said and done. But when we come to you in humility, and surrender, and worship, and come to experience you, receive you as Lord and Savior in our lives, so that we can receive the good news of great joy, and the peace and the hope that is found in you and you alone. May you meet us where we are and give us a peace beyond understanding that only comes through your Holy Spirit in the name of your Son Jesus Christ. It's for your glory, we pray. Amen.