Christian tradition has it that the cross of Jesus was equal length vertically and horizontally. Over the years, for reasons we won’t go into today, the cross has gotten longer vertically and shorter horizontally to the shape we have today. But, the earliest depictions of the cross have equal beams so that a circle can be drawn around it. The thinking goes that on the left side of the cross stands the people of Israel (of whom Jesus was a part), on the right side the Gentiles, the bottom earth, and the top heaven. Henri Nowen said, “the cross beams that are grounded on the mountain where Jesus brings all of the divergent points together into one circle of God’s great love.” 

The cross is the place where God, in his unimaginable love for the world, reconciles humanity and the world to himself. Or as the Scriptures proclaim today, “Christ is our peace.” Here is what we heard in our reading from the apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians this morning, “he [Christ] came to proclaim peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near…” 

For those of you who haven’t been able to join us the past two weeks, this is the third in a series of sermons on the fruit of the Spirit. Two weeks ago was the first fruit, love. Last Sunday the fruit was joy. Today, the Spirit bears the fruit of peace.

What does it mean to say that Christ is our peace? Think about what Jesus did in his life here on earth:

1. He was born in a lowly stable.
2. He taught his followers to turn the other cheek when they were attacked. “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.”
3. He instructed Peter to put down his sword because violence and attacking opponents or enemies or people that you don’t like is not of God.
4. He ate his meals with sinners.
5. He willingly suffered and gave his life for a people he loved, even when they did not yet love him back.
6. He forgave those who betrayed him.

Jesus lived a life of peace. He was peaceable. But, the Scriptures are clear that he didn’t just live a life of peace; as the apostle Paul says, he is our peace. His peaceableness is alive for us and to us in the here and now.        

The Christian story goes that in God’s good pleasure, he sent Jesus to live among us and die on the cross to bring peace. It may seem like an easy answer to say that Jesus is our peace. I certainly don’t believe that Jesus gives us easy answers. But, we must wrestle with the Apostle Paul’s words, written to a church in a place and at a time just as violent, if not more violent than ours: “For he is our peace; he came to proclaim peace; his purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two.”

In our reading from Ephesians, Paul claims that the crucified Jesus tore down the wall of hostility between Jews (the biblical people of God) and Gentiles (everyone else who were not part of the people of God), he meant it literally. It wasn’t a nice thought or a good feeling. He literally meant Jews and Gentiles were now part of one new humanity. Something concrete took place that made people who were previously at odds and enemies of one another into a new people. And, that of course, means that they had to learn to live together peacefully as brothers and sisters in community.

He is our peace. The biblical word for this is shalom. Shalom means wholeness, things put together in the right kind of way, the community holds everyone in it together in peaceableness and neighborliness. The gospel’s claim is that God’s shalom has come in Christ. The universe makes sense, all things hold together in him.

Of course, maybe you are still skeptical of this claim. If anything, the circle seems to be fraying. We seem to be less peaceable as a people than we were a decade ago or two or three decades ago. It is always easy to look back in time with rose colored glasses and think that things were better back then. That’s always been the temptation of the people of God. But in the last 10 years, social media and politics and our own egos seem to have given us as a people permission to be mean to one another, to look on someone who is different or thinks differently as an enemy, and to quickly belittle and demonize others.

We have long since passed the time when being Jewish or Gentile was a matter of religious significance. But, in our time, we are still building walls of hostility. What divides us as people, as children of God? I’m not talking about differences of opinion or matters of preference. Instead, what divides us and causes us to look at other people and not just see them as different, but as someone to oppose and win against and belittle and demonize? Our politics? Yes. What we believe? Yes. Where we are from in the world? Yes. 

The gospel message is that Christ is our peace. I fully believe that. He is our peace with God and he is our peace with our fellow humans. It is very hard, if not impossible, to claim the name Christian, follower of Jesus, and build walls of hostility. That doesn’t mean that standards of behavior don’t exist. But, we Christians cannot be in the habit or business of demonizing or demeaning or belittling others, no matter who they are. We certainly can’t be in the business of supporting violence against other people. Christ is our peace. The question is are we willing to be peaceable and neighborly in the way of Jesus? May the Lord work in and among us and among churches to produce the very important spiritual fruit of peace. 

Amen.