Join us at Peoria Nazarene Church for our weekly worship gathering Sunday at 10:30 AM. You can also join us online via Youtube or Facebook.
Families are welcome to worship together for the season of Advent. Busy bags that go along with the sermon are available for kids at the welcome center each week.
In our contentious world of violence and discord, peace might seem like a fairy tale, especially the type of peace that gives us one voice and one mind, as Paul says in this Romans text. This seems impossible given the current state of things, where everything feels fragile or torn and conflict seems to reside just under the surface. But today is the Sunday in Advent when we light the peace candle and reflect on the peace of Christ and the possibility for peace in our world. We are left with questions about peace: Is peace possible? And is peace the absence of conflict, or is it something else entirely?
Romans 15 lays out instructions on how we ought to live with one another. Those who are strong bear with the failings of the weak. We care for our neighbors. We are to have the same attitude as Christ toward one another. These line up well with an idea of living at peace with others. But the. foundation of peace—this foundation of learning to live in community with one another—isn’t a removal of conflict, never approaching difficult topics or conversations, never having hard words with each other. Instead, the foundation is Christ. Aligning one’s attitude with Christ is what brings about one mind and one voice with which to glorify God.
This season is one when we talk about peace on earth often, but if Romans 15 is any indication, then it is true what the songwriters say about peace beginning with us. This isn’t about winning an argument or avoiding an argument but about what it means to build a foundation on Christ that ultimately leads to one mind and one voice with those around us.