Chasing Peace

December 7, 2025

“You brood of vipers” John the Baptist says. That’s interesting. 

Peace. Today, we lit the candle of peace. Yet the scripture we examine is John the Baptist calling the Pharisees and Sadducees a “brood of vipers” and comparing them to a tree that will be cut down with a ready and waiting ax if they don’t begin to bear good fruit. Peace. These two ideas feel like they sit in contrast, don’t they? 

Every time I say “Peace” today, I want you to do me a favor. Take a deep breath. Like you mean it. Can you do that for me? Every time I say “peace.” Let’s practice together. How did that feel? Do we need to try again? Ok, every time I say “peace.”

In today’s Gospel we meet John the Baptist.

What is John calling for? He was preparing the way for Jesus. How did he do that? Sure, he led a baptism ministry. But why? He was baptizing people from the whole region around the Jordan with water. He wasn’t the first to use water for ritual cleansing. We can all relate to that concept, after a good shower you feel refreshed, a dip in the ocean can leave you feeling renewed, even walking in the rain can feel like a transformation. Perhaps one requiring a shower afterward, but I digress. 

John was the first to introduce a Christian practice of water baptism for repentance, a one-time act of “cleansing us” that prepares us for Jesus. 

A water baptism of repentance.

Repentance. Now that’s a word. What does it mean? To be sorry? To ask for forgiveness? Most parents have experienced many apologies from our kids. How many lacked honesty? A few… So is repentance just about the act of asking God to forgive us? Do you know anyone who regularly apologizes and almost immediately does the same thing again and again and again? Is repentance just feeling bad for what we’ve done? Woefully sitting in our shame? 

Some say that repentance means to turn around. To turn toward God and away from our sin. That’s absolutely valid. 

The Greek word used here for repentance is meh-ta-noh-eh-oh. Thayer’s lexicon says it means “to change one’s mind, i. e. to repent…to change one’s mind for the better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of one’s past sins.” 

It’s really two words we put together: [noeō], which means “to understand, to ponder, to think about,” and [meta], which means “with”: metanoeō means “to understand with, to use the mind with.” Reverend Clayton Killian says, “When we repent, we are using our mind to realize that we have done wrong, to hate/regret our sin, and to change our mind for the better.” It’s not just an action. It’s not just an emotion. 

It’s a decision.

Joel Otto, a professor at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary said, “Luther defined repentance the way the Bible does. There are two parts. The first is that we confess our sins; we acknowledge that we are guilty and deserve God’s judgment; we are sorry or contrite. The second is that we receive the forgiveness Jesus has won for us; we believe that God forgives our sins for Jesus’ sake; we are comforted. The Augsburg Confession summarized it this way. ‘Now properly speaking, true repentance is nothing else than to have contrition and sorrow, or terror about sin, and yet at the same time to believe in the gospel and absolution that sin is forgiven and grace is obtained through Christ. Such faith, in turn, comforts the heart and puts it at peace’.”

Peace.

In a “sorry, not sorry” culture how can we possibly find peace?

We see this from the youngest age. Jean steals Jane’s toy, Jane pushes Jean. Sorry, not sorry.

In high school, Tommy gets punched by Dave, he punches Dave back breaking his nose. Tommy says, “he shouldn’t have punched me, sorry, not sorry.”

In the boardroom, someone steals credit for your work, you actively work against their progress. Sorry, not sorry.

What an indignant way to live life. I’ve certainly done it. Many times. All of that resentment. All the hostility. All of the anger. It can certainly hurt others. But even more than that it is a Titanic sized obstacle to being at peace. Let’s come back to that in a minute.

What brings you peace?

Spending time with your family

Reading a good book

Knowing all of the bills are paid

Finding your independence

Surrendering to God

Praying

Do you ever chase your peace? 

This time of year especially, knowing there is so much to do, wrapping up work projects, studying for finals, buying and wrapping all of the presents, attending every church event, every friend’s party, putting up the tree, making life festive – but when Christmas Day arrives we can rest in the peace of a beautiful day with our loved ones. It feels like we are chasing that day earlier and earlier every year. But guess what? The date doesn’t change. It’s the same time every year. Why are we in such a hurry to get there? 

What if the act of chasing wasn’t hurried? What if we found those small moments each day to pause? What if we enlisted help to get the presents? Didn’t attend every party? What if we (sorry, Pastor Wes) skipped a church event or two? I can say that because Pastor Fritz is out of town. What if we bought presents early? Dads, the stores will actually allow you to do that. I KNOW! I kid, I kid. 

Let’s think beyond the Advent season.

What adjustments can you make to your life to find some peace? For me, it’s things like me time. Time with my daughter. Time with my husband. Being more proactive. Organization. Planning. Boundaries, knowing when I’ve given as much as I can before I’m left with only the dregs of myself to give those I love - including me. Chasing peace. When I have more peace, I am a better version of myself. Bottom line. 

Let’s have some real talk.

A few years ago, I found myself riddled with anxiety. Anyone could look at the events transpiring in my life and assign that anxiety as circumstantial. But it had been building to a fever pitch for decades. It was such a part of me, it fueled so much of what I did and how I showed up in the world. It pushed me to ignore my needs, my loved ones' needs. I had no idea what peace was. I understood it conceptually, but hadn’t really experienced it. And I’d had enough. I found my resilience at an all-time low.

So, I began my therapy journey.

My friends, therapy is a wonderful, beautiful, chain-breaking gift from God. My therapist asked me ridiculous questions like was I sleeping 7-8 hours a night? Was I eating at the same time each day? Was I making time to do something I loved? Was I exercising? You know when you’re taking a quiz to find out if you have - whatever it is, and if you answer no to 2 of the 4 questions you have it? It was a hard no on every single one. Remember when we were  talking about repentance earlier? I was using my mind to realize that I had done something wrong, and I made a decision to change my mind for the better. I decided to chase my peace. 

This sorry, not sorry culture empowers us to embody our hostility, our angst, our frustration, to be, frankly, the worst parts of ourselves.

We live so often in this space, that when we do feel peace, sometimes as infrequently as December 25th each year, we see it as a rare moment we have to hurry to get to so we can catch a glimpse. But this is the gift of repentance our Savior has given to us. It’s not to sit in shame, woefully living a life spent in regret. It’s about clearing out, decluttering, saying, “God that was not my best, I should not have done that.” And then making a decision to change. Making a decision to change. 

Making a decision to chase your peace. 

Accept the gift of repentance that John the Baptist was baptizing for, repentance to prepare yourself for a peace that surpasses all understanding. That peace comes from Jesus, and Him alone. Friends, go chase your peace. Peace. And do it today.