Sin destroys peace – Scripture warns that a man’s own sin can destroy his peace, and that there is no peace for the wicked. But shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, means far more than a truce: wholeness, completeness, well-being. God created man in his image with four relationships intact – with God, with self, with one another, and with creation – and the fall fractured every one of them.
The promised child of Isaiah 9, the Prince of Peace, is the answer: through his cross, Christ reconciles all things to himself and breaks down the dividing wall of hostility, becoming himself our peace. Justified by faith, we now have peace with God, and that restored relationship works outward – peace with ourselves, with each other, and with the whole creation – which is why keeping that peace, through patience, forgiveness, and pursuing peace with all people, is a Christian’s ongoing responsibility.