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Published: Dec. 17, 2014, 3:51 a.m.

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(Luke 2:9-11)(NLT) Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord\\u2019s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. \\u201cDon\\u2019t be afraid!\\u201d he said. \\u201cI bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. \\xa0

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(Luke 2:12)(NLT) The Savior\\u2014yes, the Messiah, the Lord\\u2014has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.\\u201d

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(Luke 2:13-14)(NLT) Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others\\u2014the armies of heaven\\u2014praising God and saying, \\u201cGlory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.\\u201d

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Jesus didn\\u2019t come to bring peace on earth, He came to the earth to bring peace.\\xa0

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(John 14:27) (NLT) \\u201cI am leaving you with a gift\\u2014peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don\\u2019t be troubled or afraid.

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(Psalm 120:6-7)(NIV) Too long have I lived among those who hate peace. I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.

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Losing Peace:

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0Distance.

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0Walls.

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0Escalation.

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0False belief.

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0Hostility.

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Hostility isn\\u2019t the emotions you are feeling toward the other person, it\\u2019s actually revealing the condition of your heart.\\xa0

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\\xb7 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0War. \\u2028

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(James 3:14)(NIV) \\u201cBut if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.

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(James 3:15-16)(NIV) Such \\u201cwisdom\\u201d does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

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(Ephesians 2:12) (TLB) \\u201cRemember that in those days you were living utterly apart from Christ; \\u2026You were lost, without God, without hope.

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(Ephesians 2:13) (TLB) But now you belong to Christ Jesus, and though you once were far away from God, now you have been brought very near to him because of what Jesus Christ has done for you with his blood.

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\\xa0(Ephesians 2:14) (NIV) For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, \\xa0\\xa0

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Pursuing Peace

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1. I\\u2019ll find peace when I make peace.

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(James 3:17\\u201318) (NIV) \\u201cBut the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.\\u201d

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(Matthew 5:9) (NLT) \\u201cGod blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.

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2. I make peace through reconciliation.

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(1 Corinthians 13:5) (NLT) \\u2026Love, \\u2026keeps no record of being wronged.

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(2 Corinthians 5:18) (NIV) \\xa0\\u201cAll this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men\\u02bcs sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ\\u02bcs ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ\\u02bcs behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.\\u201d

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3. I can\\u2019t reconcile until I\\u2019ve been reconciled.

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(Romans 5:10) (NIV) For if, while we were God\\u2019s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

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(Proverbs 16:7) (NKJV) When a man\\u2019s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

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(Romans 8:31) (NIV) If God is for us, who can be against us?

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