“Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, and be Thyself our King of Peace.”
This line from the final stanza of John Mason Neale’s lovely Advent hymn has always struck me as a lament that never goes away. From our relationship to the Holy Trinity, marriage and family, and finally community and country, there are too many “sad divisions.” This stanza paraphrases an old Latin antiphon for St. Mary’s Magnificat, sung at Vespers on December 23rd. The antiphon is translated as: “O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver, the hope of the nations and their Saviour: Come and save us, O Lord our God.”
Your life together at home, in the community, and in church can only be unified if it finds unity in Jesus. Jesus is the King of kings, the anointed Lord. Whether you or they want to believe it, Jesus reigns over everyone and everything. Yes, “the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against His anointed” (Ps 2:2). But “He who sits in the heavens laughs […] Therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling” (Ps 2:4, 10-11). Our political, home, and ecclesiastical institutions would do well to submit to Jesus rather than continue to resist His rule.
There are many ways to resist Jesus as we sin against one another, causing these “sad divisions.” We gossip about each other instead of holding our tongues. We act with arrogance rather than serving with meekness. We are quick to speak but slow to listen, failing to understand one another. We avoid opportunities to serve others helpfully. We judge and refuse to forgive instead of bearing each other’s burdens. We neglect to listen to Jesus or speak His Word to our children and friends. We take advantage of the authority God has granted us in our homes, churches, and communities, abusing our neighbors rather than loving them. We live as if God did not matter and as if we matter most.
The only antidote to our “sad divisions,” which are on full display on social media, in national headlines, in the letters to the local paper, and too often in our churches, is Jesus. Jesus is our Emmanuel, God with us with grace and mercy, forgiving all sins. He tears down the dividing wall between God and man, the sin that separates us. He overcomes the sin that estranges husband and wife, children and parents. He absolves the “sad divisions” of our religious adherence to (false) political doctrines. He gives you to see one another as sinners for whom He died and forgives.
If you want to see Jesus’ rule heal “sad divisions,” look to how He rules in His Church. "I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy, Christian church, the communion of saints (communion sanctorum), the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting." He comes with forgiveness, life, and salvation. Only His shed blood can heal all wounds, reconcile brothers and sisters, and set aside old grudges. If you’re looking for peace and unity in your life and community, the only tried and true way is to be forgiven and forgive in Jesus’ holy Name. Trite euphemisms won’t do. “You are forgiven in Jesus’ Name!” And forgiven, you pray in faith, “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Jesus is your King of Peace for every realm of life, healing all our “sad divisions.”
