The Prince of Shalom
‘For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’ — Isaiah 9:6
‘Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King:
peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”’ — Charles Wesley
Last week, Donald Trump received the inaugural ‘Fifa Peace Prize’ at the draw for the 2026 World Cup.
How... interesting.
But regardless of your opinions on Trump, Fifa, and the legitimacy of this shiny new ‘prize’—it begs the question: what is true peace?
We tend to think of peace as the absence of something—of conflict, war and hostility.
Peace is a good night’s sleep free from anxiety and worry. It’s people getting along without insulting and hurting each other. It’s nations agreeing to stop fighting and killing one another.
But the Bible gives us a much fuller, comprehensive and ultimately more glorious definition of peace.
Shalom.
Shalom isn’t merely the absence of conflict, but the presence of something greater. Shalom is completeness, wholeness, well-being.
Shalom is life as God created it to be—people living in harmony with themselves, each other and God. Shalom is the fullness and blessing that comes when our whole lives are aligned with God’s pattern and design.
Shalom was what Adam and Eve enjoyed in the Garden of Eden, where they dwelt in perfect communion and blessing with God and one another.
Shalom is what was shattered when Adam and Eve set themselves up in rebellion against God and rejected His created order by eating from the tree (Genesis 3).
Since that tragic day, humanity has lived in a state of enmity with ourselves, God and one another. In this fallen, sin-ravaged world, we feel restless, unsettled and anxious, striving for a sense of inner peace and completeness that no thing in this world can ever deliver.
Driven by fear and envy, we compete and war against and kill our fellow image-bearers for resources, land and prestige.
Worst of all, we curse and reject the God we were made for communion with.
We long for shalom—and yet it always seems to evade us.
So, where is shalom to be found?
Shalom is a Person
The good news is that shalom isn’t just a limited commodity that we need to compete and strive for.
Shalom is a person—Jesus Christ.
As Isaiah 9:6 majestically declares, He is the ‘Prince of Peace’—the Prince of Shalom.
The Son has existed for all eternity in shalom—a state of wholeness, completeness and blessing in communion with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
In a stunning act of divine love and grace, He stepped into our fallen world so that we, too, could enjoy His shalom. By shedding His blood on the cross, He made peace between us and God, taking on Himself the Father’s wrath against sin so that all who trust in Him could be reconciled to God:
‘For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.’ — Colossians 1:19–20
At the heart of the Christmas story—at the heart of the gospel— is the promise of shalom. It is the hope that all who put their trust in this infant King, this ‘Prince of Peace’, can live in peace, blessing and unbroken communion with God the Father now and for all eternity.
True shalom is to know that our sin is forgiven, that our future is secure, and that we are beloved sons and daughters of God. Through our union with Christ, we now share the same status before the Father as Christ does—we can approach Him in freedom and confidence, without fear of judgement or punishment (1 John 4:7–19).
This shalom isn’t just something we enjoy ourselves. The work of restoration, reconciliation and renewal that Christ is bringing about in us, He is also bringing about in the whole of creation.
World peace won’t ultimately be achieved by the Fifa-Peace-Prize-winning politicians of this world. It is the work of Christ, who ‘made peace with everything in heaven and on earth’ (Colossians 1:20) and will one day return to make all things new—ushering in a new creation free from war, strife, violence and death (see Revelation 21).
Until then, we are called to be people of peace—to show others the same forgiveness that has been shown us, to bring reconciliation where there is division, and to build communities of shalom in a world full of division.
Now we have peace with God, we are called to invite others to enjoy that same peace for themselves by putting their trust in Jesus: “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9).
If, today, you feel anxious, unsettled and fearful about the state of the world, look to Jesus. The shalom you’re looking for can only be found in Him—and He delights to give it to His beloved people: “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27).
May you know the depths of His shalom during this Advent season!
With love,
Mike
