All of us growl like bears, and moan sadly like doves. We hope for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far from us” (Isaiah 59:11).
Peace is the fruit of righteousness and justice. When strife erupts into protests and demonstrations the cry for justice is lost among the cacophony of voices competing to be heard, competing for power. When power is the goal of protests, justice will be forfeited because unrestricted power by its very nature suppresses the weak. The ancient prophets of Yahweh lamented the corruption, oppression, and sinfulness of the people of God. The “kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6) had degenerated into “growling bears and moaning doves.” The “growling bears” are locked in combat over territorial rights. The moaning doves lament the absence of peace.
The source of all human conflict is separation from God (Isaiah 59:2). Adam and Eve were driven out of paradise because they chose the knowledge of evil over the Tree of Life. The world into which the first humans were exiled is full of “thorns and thistles” and “fiery serpents and scorpions” (Genesis 3:18; Deuteronomy 8:15). Humans “run to evil, and they hasten to shed innocent blood… devastation and destruction are in their highways” (Isaiah 59:7). Those who were created to bear image of God now reflect the character of snakes and spiders (Isaiah 59:5-6).
Because the world is a dangerous place, with predatory humans lurking in the darkness, we have become excellent architects of walls and fortresses. We build walls – the Great Wall of China, the Berlin Wall, the Israeli West Bank Wall – for security. But the very existence of the walls signifies warfare. Also, we build invisible walls – walls of silence, walls of segregation – because we resist negotiation and confrontation.
I have carefully heard and read the many responses of our current racial conflict. Some are helpful, most are not. The words of the prophet reveal the deceitfulness of politicians, protestors, and false prophets:
“No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly. They trust in confusion and speak lies; they conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.”
The lies become myths that serve the political narratives of parties in conflict. The myths become reality for the neurotic masses. Justice will never prevail unless truth and righteousness are is its foundation. “They do not know the way of peace, and there is no justice in their tracks…” (Isaiah 59:8).
So, a cloud of darkness has covered the land. “We hope for light, but behold, darkness… we walk in gloom” (Isaiah 59:9). The most haunting words of the prophet are “your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). If God is hidden from our predicament is there hope?
The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them… For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore (Isaiah 9:2, 6-7).
The promised Child is Emmanuel – God with us. The Christ was heralded with the words “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased” (Luke 2:14). He declared, “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force”(Matthew 11:12). We proved him to be right. True to our violent nature we greeted him with the cries of “Crucify Him,” nailed him to a cross and put him to death (Matthew 27:22 ; Acts 2:23).
However, “God raised him up again” (Acts 2:24) and he has triumphed over the rulers and authorities of this present age (Colossians 2:15). The incarnate and exalted Son dwells among us, amidst our perennial conflicts. The Prince of Peace came to break down the walls we have so skillfully erected.
…you were at that time separate from Christ, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity… (Ephesians 2:12-15).
In Christ, humans again bear the image of God. In Christ, humans who were alienated are brought together. In Christ, hatred is overcome by love. In Christ, humans “are no longer strangers and aliens, but… fellow citizens… of God’s household” (Ephesians 2:19). As the people of God we are called to be Peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). There is a profound distinction between a peacemaker and a peacekeeper. A peacekeeper keeps the conflicted parties apart in order to maintain an uneasy truce. A peacemaker brings the conflicted parties together. As peacemakers Christians are given the “ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18).
As ministers of reconciliation we must be willing to prophetically confront difficult conflicts with the possibility of new alternatives (2 Corinthians 5:17). Martin Luther King, Jr. could dream of an American society “transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.” Ronald Reagan could envision a world without the Berlin wall. Christians are gifted with the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit has gifted the church with words of wisdom and knowledge (1 Corinthians 12:8). Christians must envision a new creation in which righteousness and justice prevails, and we must be ambassadors of that new creation as we dwell in this present age. Our churches must not echo the sounds of growling bears and moaning doves. Instead, Christian leaders must transcend the growls and moans and speak Spirit inspired words of knowledge and wisdom that reconcile humans to God, and to each other.
