Second Sunday of Advent – The Sunday of Peace
Message “Peace Be with You”
Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-10, John 20:19-23
Today we stand in the second week of Advent, the week of Peace.
Advent is a season of waiting, but not empty waiting. Advent is the time when God invites us to lean forward, to expect something real, to hope for a world we have not yet seen. And today, Scripture shows us what kind of peace we are waiting for.
It is not small.
It is not sentimental.
It is not fragile.
It is a peace that breaks into the world. A peace that transforms lives. A peace that refuses to accept injustice. A peace strong enough to make all things new.
We heard from Isaiah 11 and John 20. At first, they sound far apart: one is a grand vision, the other a small and frightened room. But together they show us one truth:
God’s peace begins in places where peace seems impossible.
1. The Promise of a New World (Isaiah 11)
Isaiah gives us a picture that almost takes our breath away. It is a world where nothing harms anything else. Where beings that cannot live together now will one day share life:
Wolves and lambs
Leopards and goats
Lions and cattle
Children playing safely in places where danger used to be
This is not a peaceful feeling. It is a peaceful creation. A whole world reordered: a world where every life is safe, and every creature can flourish. A world filled with the knowledge of God as water covers the sea.
This vision is not meant to make us escape from reality. It is meant to re-shape how we see reality. It tells us that the world as it is—violent, divided, unfair—is not the world as it will be. And God calls us to long for this future, to lean toward it, to refuse to accept anything less.
Advent peace is not passive. It is hope with its sleeves rolled up. It is the kind of peace that says:
“The world can be changed, and God will change it, and God will start with us.”
Isaiah’s vision is a future that demands our attention now, a future that asks us to prepare a path for its arrival.
And this is where John’s Gospel leads us next.
2. Peace in the Locked Room (John 20)
John 20 shows us people who are not peaceful at all. The disciples are afraid. They have locked the doors. Their world feels dangerous. Their hearts are full of confusion, guilt, and disappointment. Their future feels dark.
This room looks nothing like Isaiah’s vision. It is not a peaceful world. It is a small, closed, tired, frightened place.
And this is the place Jesus enters.
He steps into the room no one can enter. He comes into the fear no one can calm. He stands in the middle of their confusion and says words that sound almost impossible:
“Peace be with you.”
This is not a soft whisper. This is not a gentle suggestion. This is the peace of God breaking in: a peace that carries the power of resurrection. A peace strong enough to overcome death itself. A peace that refuses to leave the world as it is.
“Peace be with you” is not a warm feeling. It is a new reality. A peace that does not wait for fear to go away. A peace that walks into fear and transforms it.
Jesus shows them His wounds—not to shame them, but to show them that peace is born through suffering. Peace does not ignore pain; it goes through it and transforms it.
And then He breathes on them. He gives them the Spirit. He sends them back into the world.
When Jesus speaks peace, He creates a new future. He tells the disciples:
“Go into the world that is still violent, still divided, still unjust, and carry this peace with you.”
Peace does not mean escape. Peace means mission. Peace means being sent.
3. Peace That Refuses to Ignore Pain
At this point we must say something true and honest: when Scripture talks about peace, it does not talk about ignoring suffering. It does not talk about silence in the face of injustice. It does not talk about being polite while others are hurting.
True peace is not the peace of the powerful who want to keep things the way they are. True peace is not the peace of calm streets built on the fear of the poor. True peace is not the peace that tells the wounded to be quiet.
Scripture speaks of peace that lifts the lowly, breaks chains, restores dignity, and brings justice.
The peace of Isaiah is a world where the vulnerable are finally safe. The peace of Jesus in John 20 is a peace given to people who feel crushed and afraid.
Peace comes to those on the edge: to those who suffer, to those who long for a different world. And because peace begins with the wounded, it must always stand with the wounded.
This is the peace Advent invites us to prepare for: a peace that heals, a peace that protects, a peace that liberates.
4. Peace Begins Small, but It Does Not Stay Small
Isaiah shows us the big picture of the future. John shows us a small room in the present. And Advent shows us how the two meet.
The great peace of God begins in small places:
In tired hearts
In anxious homes
In fearful communities
In those moments when we do not know what to do next
God’s peace does not wait for our lives to be perfect. God steps into the room as it is. God steps into history as it is. God steps into the world as it is.
And from that small beginning, peace grows. It grows like a shoot from a stump. It grows like breath becoming life. It grows like light in the darkness. It grows like hope in the weary—until it fills the whole earth.
That is the movement of Advent: from small to large, from fear to courage, from suffering to healing, from injustice to righteousness, from locked rooms to the peaceable kingdom of God.
5. So What Does This Mean for Us?
It means that the peace God wants to bring into the world must begin in our rooms: in our lives, in our fears, in our small, closed, quiet places.
Peace comes when we dare to open the door. Peace comes when we tell the truth about our pain. Peace comes when we refuse to ignore the pain of others. Peace comes when we stand with those who are suffering. Peace comes when we believe the world can be more than it is.
And peace grows when we live like people who are waiting for a better world: a world Isaiah saw, a world Jesus began, a world God will complete.
Closing
Brothers and sisters, on this second Sunday of Advent, hear Christ’s words again:
“Peace be with you.”
This is not a gentle wish. It is a promise. It is a mission. It is a future breaking into the present.
May this peace reach the fearful places in your heart. May it open the locked doors in your life. May it draw you toward God’s dream for the world. And may it send you out to join God’s work of healing, justice, and restoration.
This is the peace Advent promises. This is the peace Christ brings. This is the peace the world longs for.
Amen.