407. God will give Peace
Haggai 2:9 The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former saith the Lord of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts.
The people of God in Haggai’s day rebuilt the temple in Jerusalem, and the people were complaining that the second temple was nothing in comparison to the glory of Solomon’s temple. But Haggai prophesied that this present temple would be greater than Solomon’s. This second temple was refurbished in the days of Herod just before Jesus came to earth, but it still did not match the glory of the earlier temple in terms of physical beauty and glory.
However, the glory of this temple will still be greater because Jesus, the Savior, will come to this temple. The promise is that the Lord will give peace in this temple. Jesus declared himself, His own body, to be the temple of the Lord, the very presence of God on the earth. This temple became the invisible body of Christ, the Church made up of all believers in Christ. This spiritual temple grows out of the two previous physical temples and the physical body of Jesus. The body of Jesus was resurrected and the life of God enters the hearts of believers, and the Church becomes the presence of God on the earth.
In this temple, the Church, the Lord will give peace. The peace of God lives on earth in the hearts of all believers in Christ, and the people of God preach peace wherever they live, work, and play and pray. Through the Gospel peace is given: peace with God, peace with one another, and peace in the heart with oneself. This peace Jesus leaves with us when His Gospel is preached and heard, and it is not as the world gives. It is much deeper and longer lasting. The promise comes true: “in this place will I give peace.” When the Gospel is preached and presented in Word and Sacrament this kind of peace is given.
When we do not sense a peace inside we know where to go to get it. We go to church, we go to Bible study, we go to the Lord in His Word. When we receive the Gospel in faith God grants peace. Thankfully, we do not have to live very long without peace. We receive it in “this place.”