No Peace Without Violence

All along I thought this was a season of peace on earth, good will toward men. But then I read the Gospel lesson appointed by the church for this third Advent week (Matthew 11:2-15) and am quite taken back. It's all about John the Baptist, that rough, tough, tell it like it is guy who scorned luxury to live in the desert and dine on wild honey and locusts. Some diet! This is no push-over man. He's not bent this way or that like some politicians by whatever favorable wind is blowing his way. He's a prophet, a Nahvi (Exodus 7:1), a man called by God to trumpet openly and powerfully the Word of God. And when he does violence occurs.

John's preaching out on the other side of the Jordan river caused a wave of excitement among the Jews. The crowds were longing for change and he gave them what they were asking for. He announced the imminent coming of the long-awaited Kingdom. The messianic King was in their midst and he, John, was being sent by God to announce his presence. "So get your house and your lives in order," he shouted. "Get rid of all the lies, the greed, the lust and the selfishness that fills your lives. Admit it, confess it and be cleansed from it by the water of this river. It's time for a new beginning, a new start for your lives. The Kingdom of God is upon you!"

They responded to his message by the hundreds. The wave of excitement grew until it swept across the land. This was their time. They believed it. They poured out to hear John's message, pushing, shoving, demanding and forcing John to baptize them and tell them more. Who was the Messiah? Where was he hiding? When would he appear? Would the Romans indeed be driven out? What was to happen next?

Jesus affirms John's preaching. In himself, Jesus, the Kingdom has indeed come. He is the King and not only was John his forerunner and a prophet, he was more than a prophet. He was the last of the ancient prophets to forecast the Messiah's coming. The King has arrived and John is the one to proclaim his presence with unquenchable passion.

This peace we Christians like to sing about today is also not brought about without violence. By using that peculiar word Jesus is telling us that we, like John, are called by the living and risen Christ to move out with confidence, zeal and determination to capture the world around us and those living in it for the Kingdom. In our hands is the same sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17, Isaiah 49:2). With it we are indeed doing violence to the demonically controlled kingdoms of this world.

I'm all for peace, but not the make-believe kind offered by princes and politicians. The only lasting and eternal peace is the kind that comes when we accept the message of Christ the King and kneel before our him in homage and faith. The Prince of Peace has indeed come, but the peace he brings came at the cost of his violent death at the hands of adversaries who passionately hated him. The same intensity marks those of us who proclaim his coming. Through power of that Word the Holy Spirit is conquering the hearts of men and the Kingdom is being established. This is the only kind of peace that will survive into eternity.