Jesus: God with Us

12/14/21-12/25/21

The Shalom of the Prince of Peace

By Michael Youssef, Ph D.  12/23/21

Before Jesus came, we lived under a burden of sin from which we could not escape, with a gulf between us and God that we could not bridge. The broken world had long been pining for peace. Sin is a heavy burden, and separation from God is the deepest ache of the soul. But God knew exactly what we needed, and He wanted us to know who was coming. Seven hundred years before Jesus’ arrival on earth, He shared the good news of who Jesus the Savior would be: The Prince of Peace (see Isaiah 9:6).

In Hebrew, the word king and the word prince are used interchangeably. That means that the prince embodies the power of the king. He has all the authority, the ruling delegation, and the royal standing of the king. So Jesus is not just the Prince of Peace; He is the King of Peace. As the King of Peace, He alone is the author and giver of peace.

In Hebrew, the word for “peace” is shalom—a far more meaningful word than our English equivalent relates. Shalom means complete well-being—not just a feeling of mental or emotional clarity. It means being complete, being whole, and lacking nothing. It settles unrest; it fills the empty. Wherever Jesus went on earth, He brought wholeness. The blind saw. The sick were healed. The storms were calmed. The sinful repented.

Shalom cannot exist in a heart that is devoid of Jesus Christ. It cannot exist in a heart that is divided between a love of God and a love of the world. So how can we get this peace? To experience the peace of the Prince of Peace means surrendering every part of our lives to Him. We can know lasting, eternal peace because Jesus Himself became our peace through His sacrifice (see Ephesians 2:14-18).

Our peace cost Jesus a great deal as He died on the cross for our sins. He suffered so that we could find joy, contentment, and peace in a reconciled relationship with the Father. Through Christ, the barrier of sin separating us from God is destroyed. Through Christ, we can know peace in the midst of the storms of life. Through Christ, we can experience wholeness and contentment.

Prayer: Prince of Peace, show me areas of my life that I have not surrendered to You. Help me to lay them at Your feet. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

“[T]he LORD blesses his people with peace” (Psalm 29:11).