And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
This is a most familiar text for the Christmas season. In this passage, you will notice that the hosts of angels were praising God saying, “Glory of God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men”. Here, I want to ask you a question. When did real Peace come on Earth? When was Peace between God and men established? The answer is: only when Jesus shed His blood and died on the Cross there was peace between God and man. The Bible says the curtain in the temple separated the Holy of Holies was torn from top to bottom. Paul also says in Ephesians 2:14-15 “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace”.
And again, in Colossians 2:14-15 he says “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it”.
This leads us again to another interesting question. If peace actually came on earth at the time of the death of Jesus, then how come the angels sang “Peace on Earth” at the birth of Christ? Again, the answer for this is “God calls those things which are not as though they were” Romans 4:17. Thirty-three and half years in advance God declared and proclaimed through the angels “Peace on earth and good will towards men”.
Beloved, the message for you and me is – call those things, which are not as though they were! Call into existence the things which are already given to us in Christ. Everything is provided, every blessing, miracle and all that we need pertaining to life and godliness is already given to us through the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ though His Death, Burial and Resurrection.
Often, we waste too much time in trying to struggle to get those things, which are already given to us in Christ Jesus. Therefore, by faith just CALL for your solution or answer in Jesus’ Name. Here is a good illustration. When there was darkness on the face of this earth, God didn’t talk about darkness but He spoke the solution or the answer. God said, “Let there be Light” and there was light. Similarly, we also as God’s children have to speak God’s promises and God’s Word for every area of our life.
In Psalm 138:2 David says, “..For thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name”. God honors His Word and God is behind His Word to fulfil it. So Beloved, don’t look at the present situation. Don’t be discouraged. Your situation will change “The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith..” (Romans 10:8). Just speak the Word “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4
Learn to live by the Word of God, “For the Just shall live by Faith” in God and in His Word.
God bless you!
Bro S. R. Manohar