Sharing the Peace

The following was my newsletter article that was published this past week.  Just thought I'd share it here too.


“God’s peace be with you.”
Before the service even begins we spend a few minutes greeting each other in God’s peace.  Is this just a holy howdy and a nice thing to do?  

No, there’s more to it than that.  It’s an opportunity to show Christian love for one another, to give a hug to someone in the congregation who is hurting, to share joy with someone who has had something good happen.  

St. Paul repeatedly instructs Christians to “Greet one another with a holy kiss” (Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20, 2 Corinthians 13:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:26).  I somehow can’t see Iroquois county Lutherans resuming the exchange of a “holy kiss” with one another, but the idea behind the “holy kiss” continues. 

After Christ’s resurrection, when he appeared before his disciples, Jesus said to His disciples “"Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."  Through Christ we have peace with God and through Christ we can have peace with one another.  Because of Christ we can forgive those who have sinned against us and have peace with them.  In light of Christ we can ask forgiveness of those against whom we have sinned and have peace with them.

Jesus said, “So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”  (Matthew 5:23-24)  The sharing of the peace gives us a chance to ask forgivenss and grant forgiveness, it gives us a chance to reflect on the reality that we have peace with God through Christ and because of that we can have peace and should work to have peace with one another.

So the next them we share the peace before the service, remember the peace with God that is yours in Christ, the peace that we can have with each other because of Christ, and rejoice at the opportunity to share that peace with others!

In Christ,
Pastor Meyer

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