For unto us a child is born,

unto us a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:

and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

(Isaiah 9:6, emphasis added)

This bit about the Messiah being the “prince of peace” struck me recently, and I found myself asking why that title.  What does it teach us about Christ?

A prince rules over something or has charge of something.  If Christ is the prince of peace, then He has control over peace and over who gets it.  This peace is the kind individuals can have in their lives even in the hardest of circumstances.   Christ has the power to grant peace or not, and so, in order for us to have true peace in our lives, we must go to Him and make peace with Him.  We can have peace no other way.

The more people who have made peace with Christ and have reconciled themselves with God, the more our communities and nations can have peace.   That peace comes with unity and charity, not just as a ceasefire with hostility at the bottom.

(Bonus: Enjoy the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing "For Unto Us a Child is Born")