We love the imagery of “Peace on Earth” during Christmas. We picture silent nights and tranquil snowscapes. But in reality, our world—and often our own families and communities—are defined more by division than tranquility. We live behind walls of political, social, and personal hostility.
If peace is just a warm feeling in our hearts, it doesn’t stand a chance against these real-world barriers. The Apostle Paul offers a more robust, even violent, view of peace. In Ephesians 2, he claims that Jesus Christ is our peace. Why? Because through His death on the cross, Jesus “broke down the dividing wall of hostility” that separated people from God and from one another.
For Paul, peace isn’t a passive state of mind; it’s a demolition project.
The Incarnation was God taking a sledgehammer to the barriers we build. Jesus came to turn strangers into citizens and aliens into family members, reconstructing us into a holy temple where God dwells.
This Advent, we aren’t just called to feel peaceful. We are called to join the demolition crew!
Download our 2025 Advent Devotional HERE