chapter 9, Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 1. And stand with me as you turn. Isaiah 9 verses 1 through 7, some familiar passages of scripture. So we begin the Christmas season. I want to look at verse, specifically verse 6 tonight, but we'll read these verses around it. Isaiah chapter 9, verse 1. Nevertheless the dimness shall nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation. When at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Nephetali and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea beyond Jordan and Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. They that dwell in the land of the shadow of death upon them had the light shine. Thou hast multiplied the nation and not increased the joy. They joy before thee according to joy and harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian. For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise and the garments rolled in blood, but this shall be with burning and a fuel of fire. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Read verse six out aloud with me, would you? For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Lord, we love you and we thank you for who you are. Lord, I think of these names that are listed concerning our savior, that he is wonderful, that he's counselor, that he is the mighty God, the everlasting father, the prince of peace. Remind us of the peace that you offer through your son, Jesus Christ. Feed us from your word and draw us near to you in your presence tonight. Lord, we need you. You said in your word, without me, you can do nothing, and we certainly need you tonight. So I pray that your Holy Spirit would stir and work in our heart, and we would know that peace that only Christ can provide. And Lord, as we go about this week, we would serve the Prince of Peace, be surrendered to the Prince of Peace, and know the peace that only he can provide. Lord, I love you, and I ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen. We sing the song, I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, their old, familiar carols play. And wild and sweet, the words repeat, of peace on earth, goodwill to men. and thought as though the day had come, the belfries of all Christendom had rolled along the unbroken song of peace on earth, goodwill to men. And in despair I bowed my head. There is no peace on earth, I said, for hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men. Yet peeled the bells more loud and deep. God is not dead, nor doth he sleep. The wrong shall fail. The right prevail with peace on earth. Goodwill to men. This passage scripture reminds us of that incredible promise. Peace on earth. The Lord said the prince of peace. Boy, there is a peace that only Christ can provide. That is for sure. Boy the world searches for peace in all different sorts of ways and really tries to cover up in all honesty for the absence of peace is what there is a desire to do. How do I know peace? I've seen folks with just everything it seems the world could provide and yet they were absent of peace. They had the material possessions of life, they had the positions of life and yet peace was absent. And I believe this. I believe that until you have the Lord, you can't really know true peace. Until you know that presence of the Holy Spirit of God in your heart, you really cannot have it. I remember there was a movement for a time, it may still be out there, but it would talk about peace through education. And I'm thankful for education, but there's been some pretty educated violent people in this world. You know, that peace education doesn't necessarily guarantee peace. Peace isn't something that you gain through possession, through education, through any other accomplishment. Peace is really something only God can provide. And we see an absence of it in our world. And this passage of scripture speaks of the Lord as the prince of peace, the one who has it, the one who's in authority. And I want to draw your attention to this as we think about the Christmas season, just this part about his nature, this matter of being the prince of peace. First thing I want you to notice here is there is a promised peace. Look at verse seven. Of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no end. upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." Boy, the Lord promises a coming peace, doesn't he? It says in that first part of verse 7, of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no end. God's telling us there's coming a piece of which there will not be an end. When we look around at our world today, specifically in the matter of government and society, there is not much peace. There really isn't. And yet of this pastor's scripture, he promises us that. I think of his first coming. When he first came, the Bible says in John 3, 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. His first coming, when he came that first time, he came out of love for all. In verse 2 of this very chapter we see about His first coming, it said, John 1 verses 4 through 5 says, And as His first coming, He came to bring out of the love of God. At His first coming, He brought the light. He said, I am the light of the world. As He would look at His disciples, He would say later, as the Father has sent me, so send I you. On another occasion, He would say, as long as I am in the world, or on another occasion, as long as I'm in the world, I'm the light of the world. And He would turn to His disciples on another occasion in the book of Matthew and say, ye are the light of the world. One of the great privileges of the Christian is that we get to shine the light of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ, into a very dark world. He came to shine light. He came out of love. He came full of grace and truth, the Bible says in John 1, 14. And the word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. He came with that. In Luke, he reminded of the peace that he brings. I'm sorry, the mercy that he brings. In Luke 4, verses 17-20, it says this, And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and the covenant of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister and sat down. And the eyes of all of them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. He speaks of his mercy, but he closed the book and didn't complete what was there. Because if you read what the Lord was reading from Isaiah 61, 1 through 2, it says, The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath anointed me to preach the good tidings in the meek. He sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all that mourn. The Lord concluded the reading of that because he said, I've come this time in mercy. I've come on this occasion to bind up the brokenhearted. I've come to shine a light on this world. I have come to love the world and offer them a means of salvation. That is why he had come. But if you go and read why he didn't conclude it, because what he's doing there at the end, how that verse concludes in Isaiah 61, reminds us of what he's coming back to do one day. And the day of vengeance of our God. and the day of vengeance of our God. Mike Revelations 19, 11 through 16. And I saw the heavens open to behold a white horse, and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True. And in righteousness he did judge and make war. His eyes were as the flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. And he had a name written that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron. And he treadeth the winepress, the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The Lord reminds us that one day he's coming to reign. He said the first advent, his first occasion of his coming was this matter of, for God so loved the world, and it was to bring the light to the world. It was full of grace and truth, and it was the mercy of God. But when he comes the next time, he's coming to reign. He's coming to reign. And in that reign, he gives us this promise, peace. We sang the song today, I believe, joy to the world. The Lord has come, you know, that that song we sing is Christmas is a good song for Christmas, but it's really speaking about what is yet to come. His second coming, when he comes to rule and reign and bring peace on earth and goodwill to men, because there is coming a day friend after his first coming, there was peace in the hearts of men, but there was no peace on the earth. But that peace is coming one day. Or think about that day, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord one day. There'll be a day for a thousand years after the rapture of the saints and a second coming as he rules and reigns when his name, he will be worshiped and there will be peace on this earth. The world conquered. There's gonna be a day when you and I leave this world behind, those of us who are saved, and we shall see him and we shall be as he is. This old battle with the flesh that we face day in and day out will be over. I like those verses in Galatians chapter five, verses 16 and 17. This I say unto you, walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. And these two are contrary one to the other so that you cannot do the things that you would. There's a battle waging in our hearts each and every day, a battle of the flesh against the spirit. This old flesh that I'm dragging behind me and this spirit of God that desires to love him, to please him and serve him. And yet that battle wages day in and day out. There's coming a day when this old flesh is dropping off and I shall see him and I shall be as he is, peace. The presence of sin completely gone from our life and we shall be as he is. There's coming a day when there'll be peace on earth. There's coming a day in which this old battle with the flesh will be over and there is a promised peace. This world will know peace. Folks look for peace there in the Middle East and I can tell you there's gonna be no peace there until he comes back, friend. That's just it. There may be lulls in the battle, but there will be no peace until our Lord comes back. There'll be no peace in this world. There may be moments of relative quiet, but the reality is there's gonna be no peace on this earth until the Prince of Peace returns. But there is a promised peace, and the Lord speaks of that. The government shall be upon his shoulders, and of his peace there shall be no end. This passage doesn't talk about just a promised peace, but it talks about a personal peace. Look at the beginning of verse 6 again. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders. For unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders. Bible says in Romans chapter five in verse one, therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Colossians 1 20 and having made peace through the blood of his cross by him to reconcile all things unto himself by him. I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven, reconciled peace or it says for unto us a child is given for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. Lord gave His Son that we might have peace with our God. That we might know peace. The Bible says in Scripture, it reminds us about who we were without Christ. For all have sinned and come short of the what? Glory of God. We've all used that illustration, no doubt, and sharing the gospel with somebody. That illustration that no matter how hard you work, you're always going to fall short. If we were to stand at the edge of the Grand Canyon and we were to all line up and we were to run to see who could jump across the Grand Canyon. Some of us might get a little bit further into the abyss, but nobody's getting all the way across, friend. You can't make it on your own. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is no way to make up our shortcoming through our own effort. Or there's folks this time of year will visit some place and light some candles and talk to a priest and look for some good works and some things that they can do. There'll be religions all over around our world in which they'll labor and continue to labor to somehow make up the gulf that sin has created and there is no way to make up that gulf is there. And they will strive to know a peace by outweighing their bad, by the labors of their good, and they will know no peace. Because they are at odds with God. At odds. And yet, the Lord made it up. I think of these verses in Romans 5, 6 through 10, it says, for when we were yet without strength, in due time, Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet preadventure for a good man, some would even dare to die. But God commended his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. There's a great gulf, and on our own, there's no way to know peace with God, but with Him, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you remember the day when you were at peace with God? I'm reminded of one of the pieces of the armor of God, and the Lord talks about having your loins girt about with truth, taking up the breastplate of righteousness, above all, the shield of faith, whereby ye shall bequench all the fiery darts of the wicked, taking up the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, but the one in which we stand, Your feet shod with the gospel of what? Peace. There's two things you do on your feet. You stand on them and you walk and run with them, right? To stand at peace. See, the gospel of peace is on our feet, why? Because I am at peace with my God. May of 1995 at Madera Baptist Church, this guy who was at enmity with God, who could not know peace with God, Because I put my trust in the Lord, I knew peace with God. Do you know peace with God? The peace that resides because of what God has done for us. It is a peace that only he can provide because there is one way to be at peace with your creator and your maker, and it is by the Lord Jesus Christ. This world cannot know peace until they know the one who provides it. You know, as we celebrate this Christmas season and, you know, we have all the activities that go around it, but you know what it's all about? That there was one who came that we might know the Lord and know His peace. That I might be at peace with God. That I could, because of what happened in that manger, because of what happened at Calvary in that empty tomb, that I could look back at a day when I put my trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and I became at peace with Him and know peace. There is a promised peace, but there is a personal peace that only Christ can provide. Lastly, I see this, we see a practice peace. See, there is a promised peace, there is a personal peace, but there is a practice peace. Look at the names that are listed here. Verse six again, it says, for unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called what? Wonderful, wonderful. And when I think of that word, I think of something. I think of praise. The Bible says in Philippians 4.4, rejoice in the Lord always. And again, I say, what? Rejoice. See, there's one thing to be at peace. There's another to practice peace, isn't there? Well, I tell you what, I got saved in 1995, but I can tell you this, not every day of that have I felt a peace. Now, I mean, to my eternity, sure. My relationship with God, sure. Settled in my life. I know that I'm at peace with God. I know that I'm his child. I believe in what he has said in his word. Not because of some manner in which I feel, but because he promised me everlasting life. Because he offered that to me. Because he sealed me into the day of redemption. He sealed me by that Holy Spirit of God. He will never leave me nor forsake me, and it is a settled matter. That I know. But I cannot say that I have always known peace and practiced it in my life. Trials come our way, they're inevitable aspects of life. I mentioned this in our Sunday school class, but this last week I was out at Heartland Baptist Bible College and we met with some of the students and recruitment and things of that nature. But one of the parts of it is they did a panel discussion with some of the students that were in there. So there was four of us pastors from the southeast and they went through and they asked various questions of us. And one of the questions was, what are the challenges that you face in ministry? What are some of the hardest challenges you face in ministry? You could go along the way. And you would find each one of us maybe different phases or different places in ministry. And everybody could list them. And I looked at him and I said, as it came my turn, I said, I will tell you something about ministry. Every place and every element of life has its own struggles and its own kind of heart. Sometimes we look around and say, I wish I was in that place or doing this work or I would rather, I'd like to trade that guy's struggles for my struggles, and I'd like to trade those things around. I promise you this, don't make those trades. God knows what you can take and knows, and he's not gonna give you more than you can handle. The ones you've got, just own them, all right? Don't try to make swaps. But I said, you know what, you can look at each place in either phase of life and the things that you go through, and I will tell you something, everything has its own kind of heart. The greatest thing you'll ever face is the one, hardest struggle you'll ever face is the one you look at in the mirror. Because friend, struggles come. They are inevitable aspects of life. You cannot stop them, God will allow them. He will test you, he will try you. But what will you do in the face of it? And you know what one of the first steps to knowing peace is? What is his name? Wonderful. Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say what? Rejoice. The ability to praise God. The Psalmist would say my heart is fixed. Oh God, my heart is fixed. I will sing and give praise. And praise is not just for the good times. Praise isn't just for Sunday night, it is for Monday morning. For Tuesday morning. Praise isn't just for when we sit there and everything's going the way we want it to go, and everything's unfolding the way we want it to unfold. No, praise is for the times when, like Paul and Silas, you find yourself in prison. Praise is for the times when, like Daniel, you face the lion's den. Praise is for the times when you're facing the fiery furnace. Praise is for the moments in which we struggle and face our battles. And there is a peace that comes when we rejoice in His name. And in the face of struggle, we can still say, He is wonderful. Wonderful. Have you worshipped Him and praised Him? Not only in the good times, but in the difficult times. Wonderful. to practice that. Notice his next name, it says, and he shall be called wonderful. And then this statement, counselor, counselor. I often seek counsel. There's about three guys and sometimes five that when things come up, I'll give them a call and say, hey, I need some counsel on a matter. Maybe there's a minister thing, ministerial thing, or maybe it's just something else of life. And I might call someone who's not a minister. I need to, I have a question about, a financial matter, something of that nature. We seek counsel. In a multitude of counselors, there is what? Safety. Only the fool seeks no counsel, right? You know, there is only one that is omniscient, and his name is Jesus, right? There's not a one of us that knows all things. Nobody here. There's only one who needs no counsel, and his name is God. His name is the counselor. And where does he counsel us from? Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my what? Path. Let me read some of the previous words that precede that. I have refrained my feet from every evil way that I might keep thy word. I have not departed from my judgments, for thou has taught me. How sweet are thy words unto my taste, yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth. Though thy precepts, through thy precepts I get understanding, therefore I hate every false way. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. And who is it that teaches us from his word? Well, his name is the Holy Spirit of God, isn't it? The counselor. You wanna practice peace in your life? Then run to his word. Run to his word. There's a priest that comes in rejoicing in the Lord. And I will tell you this, things that rob our peace often want to keep us from praise and keep us from the word. You ever notice that? Whenever it is that you struggle and you face the absence of peace, a trial, a wrong, whatever it may be, your old flesh is gonna go a complaining. Our old flesh is gonna go a belly aching, right? I remember when the Lord called me to preach, and I was sitting in that auditorium at Shawnee Baptist Church, somewhere over in this direction, and the Lord called me to preach. I remember it very clearly. I had had some kind of push as a young person, and I had kind of gotten away from it, from the Lord just leading me that direction. And I decided, as you know, I wanted to go into project management. We'd been around construction. I loved the idea of watching buildings go up, right? seeing dirt on the road, dirt there and nothing there and then watching those buildings go up. I thought, that's what I'm going to do. So I'm going to join the service. I'm going to serve for a few years. I'm going to get out and go to college. I'm going to do that. And that was what I was thinking. 19, I was thinking that. So I was sitting there and I remember that message was being preached from the book of Isaiah and the need that our country had. And I remember it just as if the Lord spoke to my heart sitting there. I didn't put you here, Seth, to be a soldier. And I didn't put you here to be a businessman. I put you here to be a preacher. And I remember it. And I remember my argument. Lord, I am reserved. I'm a quiet person. Standing up behind the pulpits on the regular or on any occasion is really not me, okay? I remember sitting there and saying, Lord, I've seen the struggles of ministry. My dad is a preacher. I will serve you whatever way you want, but I would rather not do that, okay? Anything you want, but not that. And then, one day, something happened. I surrendered three weeks later. Okay, Lord, I surrender. On Wednesday night, Lighthouse Baptist Church in Marion, Indiana, I went forward. Had nothing, I don't know what message was preached that. It was the message that I heard three weeks ago that kept nagging me that I couldn't get rid of, right? You know, there's been times, I never regret it for a moment, but there's been times in the middle of a struggle that I have gone back to the Lord and said, Lord, I told you so. Remember, Lord, I told you so. I blew that message. Lord, there is somebody else that could say it better. I blew it, right? There's been times when I sat there and said, Lord, remember those struggles I really wanted to avoid? I told you, right? And I complained. And I murmured and I belly ached, right? And the Lord would look at me I told you to do it anyway. He is, I'm reminded of who he is. He is wonderful. He is the counselor. So where do we go? Back to worshiping and back to his word. Back to worshiping and back to his word. There is a peace. There is a promised peace. There is a personal peace. There is a practice piece. Do you want to know it? Rejoice in the one who is wonderful. Run to the counsel of his word and let his word that sharper than a two edged sword pierce your soul to the dividing of sunder. Let it convict your heart. Let it break your heart. Let it encourage your heart. Let it bring you to a place of surrender to who he is and let him work in your life. He is wonderful, he is counselor. Notice what it says here. The mighty God. The mighty God. When I think of that statement, as I think about wonderful, I think about praise. When I think about counselor, I think about direction through his word. And when I think about the mighty God, I think about trust. The mighty God. Who is the mighty God? He's the one that could say a few words like, let there be light, and there was light. He is the one who could say, let us make man as our image, and we were made from the dust of the ground. He is the one who could lean over us and breathe life into our nostrils, and man became a living soul. He is the one who can uphold all things by the word of His power, and He is the one who can sustain all things. He is the one who always has been and always will be. He's the one who can see into the past with clarity and see into the future, because to Him it's already done, because He is eternal. That is who He is, the Almighty God. He is the one who parted the Red Sea and brought Pharaoh's army to its knees. He's the one who made water come from the rock and manna from heaven and sent quail to feed His people. He's the one who made the shoes of His people not wear out as they wandered in their wilderness, nor their clothes wear out. He's the one who parted the Jordan River and made the walls of Jericho fall. He's the one who won the victories for the people as they entered into the promised land. He is the one who made, it wasn't David that made Goliath fall. It wasn't David's great ability. It was God who guided that little stone to the forehead of Goliath and made him fall. It was God who made the men of Israel more than all the, just not in number, but in might, and gave them the strength to conquer their enemies. It is God who made fire fall from heaven upon Mount Carmel. It is God who did those things. The mighty God. And yet we question him. And yet we question him. And he says, you wanna know peace? Trust. Trust. I will tell you, most times we're lacking peace because we fail to trust. You know that verse, boast not thyself of tomorrow for thou knowest not but a what? day may bring forth. I got in the habit of this. And I read somebody who was about ordering, you know, just schedule and things of that nature. One of the things they said is, write out your ideal week, right? And so you sit down, you say, if I could, this is the way I would like Monday to unfold Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and here's the ideal week. And this is the way it's supposed to work, right? You know how many times it really happens, right? Sometimes it does. But not all the time. I don't know what today, tonight holds. I don't know what tomorrow holds. You know, but there's one who does. He knows every turn of every moment. He knows it. And he has the power to bring me through it, and he promised he will. The mighty God. Trust. See, if you will know peace in your heart, you want it, Rejoice. He is wonderful. And don't let a trial or this world tell you anything different. He is wonderful. He is the counselor. Grab that Bible and you'll find some counsel. Let his word work in your heart and you'll find some counselor counsel. He is the mighty God. There is nothing too big for him. And there is no one too small for him to work in their life. No one. What is man that thou art mindful of him? You know what trust does? It brings us to a place of surrender, doesn't it? We don't just surrender to folks we don't trust. We just don't do that. I think of each one of my kids. You don't get the pool in the backyard, and each one of them, sooner or later, they look at the water, and they like to go around in their floaties, but it's even hard sometimes when they're little to get them in the water in the floaties, right? Sooner or later, they come to the edge of the pool, and I'm standing there, And I'll say, jump. And they're like, what? They don't say it, what, like that, but they're just like, no, right? Jump. And I stand there holding out my, jump, jump. Now the water's there, and it is over their head, and they're not wearing their floaties, and it is deep. And if they go in on their own, they're in big trouble, right? Jump. Sooner or later, they jump. Why? Trust. Trust. They trust that the guy who's standing there telling them to jump is gonna catch them. Right? You know what the key to surrender is? Trust. It is faith. The reason we sometimes struggle to turn things over and surrender to the Lord is because we just aren't willing to yield our faith and our trust. Surrender demands faith. It demands it. I'm going to surrender to God. I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercy of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect what? And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. You know what one of the battles is for young people? It's for them to trust that the good and acceptable and perfect will of God is better than the world. Right? See, and be not conformed to this world, why shouldn't I go out there and be like the world? Look at all that they have. Be not conformed to this world. Why shouldn't I embrace the things of the world? Why shouldn't I pursue the things of the world? Look at everything that is there. Because it is better in the perfect will of God. So how do I make that decision? Trust. That what God says about him and about his will is better than what the world says about theirs. and that God's will is even better than your will, and what he has for you is better than what you have for you, so I'm gonna surrender to what he has, trust. We struggle with trust, or with surrender, because we struggle with trust. The mighty God. I promise you this, if you really, truly wanna know peace, you're gonna have to trust him enough to surrender to him. There's a story that was told about Lord Nelson, the great British naval officer, The admiral and the English were fighting the French and the English had won. A French general came to Lord Nelson's ship to surrender, but that French admiral came with all his regalia, dressed smartly as, you know, and he came with his shining sword hanging there at his side and walked up to Lord Nelson, the victor, and put out his hand to shake the hands with the Lord Nelson. Lord Nelson stepped back and put his hands behind him and said to the French admiral, your sword first, sir. Lay your sword at my feet before you endeavor to shake my hand. Lay your sword at my feet before you endeavor to shake my hand. If you're gonna shake my hand, then you're first gonna have to lay that sword on the ground and surrender. You don't get to go to God with your sword and the sheath doing what you want and shake the hand of God. No, you must trust him and surrender to him. You must submit yourself to him. And what is it that produces that? Trust. You have a circumstance or an issue of life, you're going through it and it's hard, and you have to do something sooner or later, or I don't know why you're doing this, but I'm surrendering what you're doing, and I'm gonna trust you. I'm gonna trust you that you know best. I'm gonna surrender. And you know what you'll find? Peace. Wonderful, counselor, the mighty God, and then this next one, the everlasting what? Father. Boy, this is a verse about the New Testament, about what was coming. It says here in this verse, it says, for unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder. His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father. You don't see God spoken of much as Father in the Old Testament. Because that's something that's the product of being a child of God, right? To as many as received him, to them give you the power to become the what? The sons of God. Boy, that was a relationship established there. And so you don't see it much in the Old Testament. You see it here as God's speaking about what is to come. When you think about a father, what do you think of? One who provides, right? One who provides. When you pray, who do you go to? You go in the name of Jesus, but you're going to who? Your Heavenly Father. You have a mediator in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you have the Holy Spirit of God to teach you in your heart, but the one who's gonna answer your need, the one who's gonna meet those things, is your Heavenly Father. My kids are trusting their father to have food on the table. Not to cook it, that wouldn't be good, but to have food on the table, right? They're trusting their father to make sure that the gas bill is paid. Now I'm gonna keep it at like 66, all right? 67 in this winter, right? But they're trusting their dad to make that. They're trusting their father. You know in this verse, your everlasting father is the one you go to and you call upon and you ask to meet the need. I think of the scripture where he says here in Philippians, he said, be careful for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. He said, be careful for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds. An everlasting father. See, practicing peace is when I can rejoice in him as wonderful. When I can run to his counsel and his word. When I can trust in him as the almighty of God. When I can call upon him as my everlasting father. I can know peace. Peace. There's a promised peace in this world. There's coming a day, friend, when this world will be at peace. He will rule and reign one day. Oh, the Antichrist will be defeated, that battle of Armageddon will unfold, and the Lord will rule and reign, and Satan will be cast for a thousand years into a bottomless pit in that old beast. At the end of that thousand years, he's going to let him loose one more time to give everybody that's left the choice. When that battle unfolds, for all of eternity, they'll be cast forever. And guess how long that peace will last? Forever. There's coming a day when this struggle that you and I have with this old flesh in our life, and this struggle we have with the world that tries to lure us away, and that old devil who whispers the lies of Satan in our ear, there's coming that day when those battles will be completely defeated and we will know peace. Friend, and there is a personal peace that though this world may be at war, that this guy can be at peace with his God. And it came by way of Calvary. But there is a peace that must be practiced in our life. Practiced. Wonderful. Wonderful. Isn't he wonderful? Isn't he wonderful? worship him, rejoice in him, the counselor. And there's a place from which he counsels us. He used over 40 different men over a period of 1,500 years and inspired them to write his word down so that you and I, and he would preserve it from then till today so that I can pick up a reliable word and I can open it up and I can find his Holy Spirit's counsel through his word and no peace. The almighty God, that I can trust when what he says doesn't seem to be what I look, when I see what he says in light of this world, and yet what I see in the world seems to be larger. He's still the almighty. In his word, I find out exactly who he is, and I trust in who he is. And the everlasting Father, that if he loved me so much, he would give me his own son to die for me. When I bow my knee in prayer, He will hear. And he is my father. My kids, when they come to me with a need, I will give it. And not all their wants, right? They asked for a Polar Pop tonight on the way home and asked for a Mountain Dew. All right, it's not happening, Samuel, all right? Right? But if you need some food, right, it's gonna happen. There is a need. To the best of our ability, we will meet it. We have a heavenly father who has deeper pockets than mine will ever be, who has a greater reach than I will ever have, who has a greater knowledge than I will ever know, who always has been and always will be, and guess what? He's my dad. I would like to say my dad is bigger than your dad, but we've got the same one, right? The almighty God, the everlasting father, Practice peace in your life because the Lord is the prince of peace. I don't lack peace because of what's going on in the world. I lack peace because of what's going on in here. I can't control out there. I have no power over that. I wish I did sometimes. Not really. I can't see very far, so I'd probably make wrong choices. But there's one who can, and he lives right here. Rejoice in him. Seek the counsel of his word. Rest and trust and surrender to an almighty God. Cast your care upon him for he careth for you and no peace. Let's pray together. Dear Lord, I love you and I thank you for your word. I'm thankful for what we have as a result of Christmas in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. Lord, I pray that we would each practice peace. We've got our struggles individually. We've got our hardships and our trials They vary by person. And yet you offer peace or you also will answer those needs. You'll meet them as we cast our care upon you as we bring those matters before you. You're ready to listen to hear and answer. And I pray that we would do that. that we would know your peace, to be at peace with God through your son, and know the peace on the inside as a result of walking closely with you. Let us walk out of here tonight knowing the peace of God. Heads bowed and eyes closed. How many of you can say, Preacher, I'm at peace with God, I'm saved? As far as that goes, I'm settled on that. I'm a saved man, or lady, and I'm at peace with God. Would you raise your hand as a testimony and say, Preacher, that's me. Thank you, and put your hand down. Is there anybody here tonight that'd say, Preacher, I'm lacking peace, and I can tell you why. I don't really know that I'm at peace with him. I don't know that I'm saved, but I want to settle that this evening. Is there anybody like that? You say, Preacher, pray for me. Let me ask you this then, Christian, how many of you say, Preacher, the Lord has spoken to my heart? Maybe on one of those matters, God reminded you, He's wonderful. He's the counselor. He's the mighty God. He's the everlasting Father. He's the Prince of Peace. But you say, Preacher, the Lord has spoken in my heart this evening. Would you raise your hand? Would you stand with me? And as that pianist begins to play, as God has spoken to your heart, do business with the Lord. And maybe it's to lift a certain matter up before Him, your everlasting Father, to carry those things before Him. But as God has spoken to your heart, do business with the Lord this evening.