[Advent] Prince of Peace Isaiah 9:6; Ezekiel 1

Devotional

Day 1: Advent expectation: the Prince of Peace draws near

Advent is a season of expectation—some joyful, some heavy. Whether you’re excited about presents and gatherings or carrying grief and loneliness, the heart of this season is that God came to us—present and near. Jesus is the Wonderful Counselor when your heart aches, the Mighty God in your storms, the Everlasting Father who carries you, and the Prince of Peace who meets you in the fog. Peace has a name, and His name is Jesus. In the chaos or the quiet, you are invited to open your hands and welcome Him again. He loves to bring peace right where you actually live. [05:12]

Isaiah 9:6 — A child will be born for us; a son will be given. The weight of authority will rest upon his shoulders. He will be known as a counselor full of wonder, the God who is mighty, the Father who never ends, and the ruler who brings wholeness and peace.

Reflection: What expectation—joyful or painful—are you carrying into this week, and how will you invite Jesus, the Prince of Peace, into that specific place today?

Day 2: Peace begins where hurry ends: be still

Our lives often feel like a snow globe in the hands of a four-year-old—constantly shaken, noisy, and unclear. The invitation is to be still so you can see Him clearly, to let the flurry settle until His glory comes into focus. Shalom—peace—is born from pardon; a forgiven soul is a peaceful soul. Sabbath rest is rooted in God’s finished work, not your relentless striving. Slow down, breathe, and let your soul catch up with your body so you can know He is God, here and now. In the stillness, peace begins to rise. [04:46]

Psalm 46:1-3,10 — God is our safe shelter and our strength, always close in trouble. Even if the mountains crumble into the sea and the waters roar and foam, we don’t have to be ruled by fear. He calls us to stop our striving and learn again that He alone is God.

Reflection: When and where will you carve ten quiet minutes today to be still before God, and what will you do with your phone so you can truly be present?

Day 3: Lay down your wings; surrender your weight

In Ezekiel’s vision, the glorious beings lowered their wings when the voice of the Almighty sounded. What was most impressive about them went quiet in reverence; they laid it down and listened. Peace is not the absence of pressure; peace is the presence of surrender. Many of us carry heavy packs of fear, guilt, and expectation through our day and wonder why we’re exhausted and restless. Jesus invites you to drop the weight at His feet and rest your soul in His care. You can lay it down—He cares for you. [03:58]

1 Peter 5:7 — Turn over every worry and burden to Him, because He is attentively caring for you.

Reflection: What is one specific weight you’ve been carrying like a backpack, and how will you “lay it down” this week through prayer and by telling a trusted friend?

Day 4: Tune your heart to hear and obey

Like an old radio, your heart needs tuning; there’s a lot of static out there. When the noise lowers and the posture is humble, the signal of God’s voice becomes clear. In the throne room, wherever the Spirit went, the living creatures went—no detours, no delays. Peace is found not in what we tell ourselves but in what God tells us, and then walking in it. Reading His word and carving out time to pray are not extra credit; they are how we hear and follow. Obedience is not a burden—it is a pathway to joy and peace. [06:21]

Ezekiel 1:12,25 — Wherever the Spirit moved, the living creatures moved straight ahead without veering. And when they stood still, they let their wings rest, and a voice came from above them.

Reflection: What is one clear nudge from Scripture or prayer you’ve been postponing, and what first small step of obedience will you take in the next 24 hours?

Day 5: Rest in the finished work; walk in blessed obedience

Sabbath rest means Jesus really finished the saving work; you are not on an endless plan to pay Him back. From that rest, obedience becomes response, not repayment; His commands guard you from what destroys and guide you to what satisfies. This is where peace flourishes—under grace, in step with His voice. There is no condemnation in Christ; conviction simply draws you closer to God and to people. Start where you are: purity in a relationship, serving with your gifts, giving faithfully, stewarding your body, reconciling where there’s harm. From rest, take the next faithful step and receive His peace. [05:47]

John 19:30 — Jesus cried out that His redeeming work was complete, then bowed His head and released His spirit.

Reflection: Where are you trying to “pay God back” through striving, and how will you rest in His finished work while taking one concrete act of obedience from that rest this week?

Sermon Summary

Advent is about expectation—some of it joyful, some of it heavy. In this season I invited us to aim our anticipation toward the God who came near. Isaiah promised a Child whose shoulders would carry real authority and whose very names meet the ache of our souls: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Today I leaned into that last name—Prince of Peace—by standing in Ezekiel’s vision of the throne room. Those radiant, otherworldly creatures laid down their thunderous wings the moment God spoke. That posture is a mirror for our own souls: if we won’t quiet our lives, we won’t hear his voice, and if we don’t hear his voice, we won’t know his peace.

I walked us through a holy pattern that appears across Scripture: they see, they fall, then they hear. Peace doesn’t arrive by adding more noise or control; it comes as we still the soul to see God, surrender our weight to him, and tune our hearts to obey. Peace begins where hurry ends—when the snow globe stops shaking enough to see clearly. Shalom grows where pardon is believed and Sabbath rests in the finished work of Jesus, not our striving. That’s why David, under pressure, could say, “Be still and know that I am God.”

Peace is not the absence of pressure; it is the presence of surrender. Like the beasts lowering their wings, like taking off the weighted pack, we cast our anxieties on the One who cares. Then we listen. We tune the dial—Scripture and prayer—until the static gives way to the Spirit’s leading. Wherever the Spirit goes, we go. Obedience isn’t God stealing our joy; it’s his pathway to it. So I asked hard questions about purity, serving, giving, and stewardship—not to condemn, but to invite us into blessing. We ended by praying together, three times, asking Jesus to help us see his glory, fall before him, and hear his voice of peace. My hope is simple: that we would leave with lighter souls, quieter hearts, and a fresh readiness to obey the Prince of Peace.

Key Takeaways

1. Peace begins where hurry ends Peace is hard to receive at the speed of our lives. Stillness clears the fog so we can see God’s pardon and rest in Christ’s finished work. When the heart is quiet, the soul remembers whose hands hold the world—and us. Be still, and you’ll find your peace has a name. [65:06]
2. Surrender is the doorway to peace The creatures lowered their wings; Ezekiel fell to the ground. Peace isn’t about removing all pressure, but about laying down control—our fears, expectations, and secret weights—before the One who speaks. Casting our anxieties is not passivity; it’s worship. Surrender creates room for God’s presence to be our calm. [69:29]
3. Tune your heart to obey Like an old radio, our hearts need intentional tuning—through Scripture and prayer—so the static of life gives way to God’s voice. The Spirit leads; our peace deepens as we respond promptly and wholeheartedly. We don’t drift into obedience; we decide it. Where the Spirit goes, we go. [75:05]
4. See, fall, then hear God Across Scripture, people who encounter God first behold his glory, then hit the ground, then hear. We often reverse the order—demanding words without wonder and direction without devotion. Reverent posture is not theatrics; it clears the soul to attend to God’s voice. Peace grows in that humble pattern. [62:52]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[46:30] - Advent and holy expectation
[47:42] - Isaiah’s prophecy and calling
[49:32] - A child is born: His names
[51:24] - Longing for peace in the fog
[51:40] - Turning to Ezekiel’s vision
[56:38] - Shaken by the throne room
[58:56] - Wings down: posture of worship
[62:52] - The pattern: see, fall, hear
[65:06] - Peace begins where hurry ends
[69:29] - Peace means surrendering our weight
[70:20] - The weighted-pack illustration
[75:05] - Tune your heart; obey the Spirit
[83:44] - Advent prayer and invitation

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
- Ezekiel 1

Observation questions

According to Ezekiel 1:25, what did the living creatures do when the voice spoke from above the expanse? What might their wings have symbolized? [58:56]
In Ezekiel 1:28, what sequence does Ezekiel report after seeing the glory—what three movements happen in order? [01:02:18]
How is the movement of the creatures described in relation to the Spirit in Ezekiel 1:12? What stands out about that obedience? [01:15:55]
What throne-room imagery surrounds the One on the throne (brightness, rainbow-like radiance), and what does that communicate about the source of light? [01:00:16]

Interpretation questions

When the most glorious beings “lower their wings” at God’s voice, what does that reveal about true strength, status, and worship? What might that mean for human tendencies to self-glorify? [59:44]
The pattern “see, fall, then hear” recurs across Scripture. Why might hearing often come after surrender rather than before? How could reversing the order lead to confusion or restlessness? [01:02:52]
“Wherever the Spirit would go, they went”—what does this teach about guidance, trust, and the pathway into peace? [01:15:55]
“Peace is not the absence of pressure; it is the presence of surrender.” How does that redefine the kind of peace being promised in Advent? [01:09:29]

Application questions

Where is life running too fast for you to notice God? Identify one daily window this week to turn off noise, sit in silence, and “lower your wings.” What will you do in that time—Scripture, quiet, or simple breath prayers? [01:05:06]
Name one specific weight you are wearing right now (fear of the future, secret grief, addiction, relational fracture). What would it look like to take off the “weighted pack” and lay it down before God today—who will you tell, and what step will you take? [01:11:44]
What is one clear area of obedience you’ve been delaying (purity, serving, giving, stewardship of body or words)? What concrete next step will you take in the next seven days? [01:18:23]
Which regular practices will help you “tune the dial”—Bible reading plan, set prayer rhythms, fasting from media, journaling? Choose one and set a time and place for it. [01:15:05]
Think of a recent nudge from God you kept postponing, like a child asked to clean the kitchen. What keeps you from acting promptly, and what will immediate obedience look like this week? [01:17:03]
Where do you tend to rely on performance instead of Christ’s finished work? How would embracing pardon (“It is finished”) change your anxiety or hurry in that area? [01:07:37]
Try the prayer, “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace—help me see your glory, help me fall before you, help me hear your voice of peace,” three times this week. When will you pray it, and what posture will you take? [01:24:10]

Sermon Clips

Do you know I mean I say it often but has that sunk in because we live our lives as if we have to pay him back
We live our lives as if we don't fully have the full Sabbath rest that we are called to that's rooted in his finished work
But shalom
is peace because the war is over

Church son of God daughter of the King of Kings we will never know Jesus as the Prince of Peace if our lives are too loud to notice the glory of God
We are never gonna understand God as peace if we're too busy flapping our wings and trying to get other stuff done
And so the question is is have you experienced him in this way

So when all of these these people are having this experience with God and they're writing down the Scriptures Paul has the same experience on the road to Damascus right
He experiences God and this is the holy pattern that we see
They see the Almighty they fall and then they hear
Here's the problem
I think many of us in the room today long to hear the voice of the Lord but we have not stopped long enough and fell on our face to be able to hear it

Like they had that and the thing that was most valuable probably to them the thing that was most glorious about them the thing that when they flapped their wings it sounded like thunders
When they heard God's voice they silenced
They laid it down
Because it didn't matter how awesome and powerful and mighty and thunderous their wings were God was speaking
And so they laid down their strength
This represents submission reverence attentive worship
Honestly I think this is a heavenly picture of what every human heart was made to do

It's truly understanding that you have been forgiven
A forgiven soul is a peaceful soul
Do you realize and recognize that all the sins you've ever committed in your entire life have been wiped out by the dry eraser of God's love and mercy and grace

When God speaks to people that we see in Scripture this is their posture
Their posture is to see the glory of the Lord and then to allow that to make them fall on their face before Him as though dead it says in Revelation
And then to quiet your soul enough to hear what God is saying

So here are three ways that I was journaling that God was saying to me how I can experience Jesus as my Prince of Peace
The first one is to see
To see
To still my soul so I can see Him clearly
Peace begins
where hurry ends

I think we're just a busy people living in this fog of anxiety and fear and noise
We've got social media and news that's so loud in our ears and we're constantly turning on Alexa and having to play music and we're listening to all this stuff and the noise is just growing and growing and growing and we're not taking enough time in silence before the Lord
It's kind of like life is a snow globe in the hands of a four year old
Just shaking it constantly

Because our world can be pretty chaotic
I mean this morning if anybody was out earlier this morning I mean I was driving and it was just fog
It was fog as far as I can see
And that's how it feels in life sometimes
That life is just foggy and you don't know what's coming next

And some of the things that he shares are pretty heavy pretty dreary
Some of the things he's sharing is like hey you're doing it wrong
Stop it
There's destruction coming
But then all throughout this this prophecy of Isaiah we see these glimmers of hope
And these glimmers of hope are nothing of this world
These glimmers of hope are of a of a coming savior

That's foolishness because it would be foolish for him to go throughout the rest of his day with that and just wear that as if that was part of his life
But we live that way
We live carrying all of these burdens and the invitation that we see in Scripture is to fall
So what weight are you carrying today
We're all doing it
You're not exempt from this
What weight are you carrying today

The invitation for us to experience the peace of God is for us to first see to still my soul so I can see him clearly
So we can see God at work
We can see his power
We can see his love
And then the second one is that we would fall
That we would fall

But I have some observations here that I want to share with us before we dive into this passage
First the beasts were not focused on each other or themselves
Like these things are more glorious than anything in our world
But as humans I think collectively we are very self focused and selfglorifying

And then an everlasting Father one who is a shepherd who is with you and he is present
He is carrying you through all of the afflictions and the pains of life
Because life can be really hard
And today we're going to look at what it means to experience Christ as the Prince of Peace
Does anybody want to experience some peace today
Yeah peace in the chaos right

I know for some there's even an anticipation of of maybe some negative stuff
Maybe you the holidays are hard for you
Maybe maybe you've lost a loved one or you feel alone on the holidays
And so so your expectation or or your your your expectation expectation of something coming is is is a negative feeling
But but what Advent does it's a season of expectation expectation of an arrival
And over Advent we spend these four weeks to tune our hearts and our minds to remember that the God of the universe came to us

And so we're out in public maybe you're at the mall you're hanging out and you see a girl with pretty eyes or pretty hair and you're like oh whoa look at that
Or you see a guy with big cannons and guns and you're like yeah I want those arms right
And so we go to the gym and we try to look a certain way and dress a certain way and do our hair a certain way so that the attention is on us

God invites us to lay down all of our weight all of our pain all of our hurt all of our past trauma all of our sin but for some reason we go throughout our day wearing our weight as if we're doing God a favor and we're not experiencing the peace of God and we don't know why and so you could do a couple more with that
You can go sit down with that

But when they heard the voice of the Almighty
they stopped
In fact it says they laid down their wings
Those wings represented so much
I mean all of their power all of their might all of their beauty was in the wings
I mean like have you ever played that game when you're out to dinner with somebody and you're like hey if you ever had a superpower what would it be
What are the top three
Super strength super speed and flight
Right
How cool would it be if I could just like walk outside like Superman right

Understand this that peace is not the absence of pressure
It's not the absence of pressure
Peace is the presence of surrender

God cares for you
We trust God for eternal salvation to save us from an eternity damned to hell
But we're not going to trust him with our problems
our addiction our hurt our pain our fears

The beast lowered their wings to listen
Ezekiel listened from the ground
Our posture matters
To hear God I need to fall
I need to quiet my own voice
I need to listen for what he has to say
And so we see we still our souls so we can see him clearly
We fall we surrender our weight so that we can worship him freely

And over the last four weeks we've been looking at what this means to us for you and for me
Because I know that there's a majority of the room that are coming here because you believe this
Like you've experienced God in these ways
He is your Wonderful Counselor
When you've had seasons of heartache and pain and distress you've gone to God and he has given you counsel
You've gone to his word and he has given you counsel and you've listened to his voice
And then and then you you've got this Mighty God
And I want you to know we don't worship a weak God
We don't worship a dead God
We worship a God who is mighty to save
We worship a God that is in the boat with you in the midst of storms

I think we're so busy going through life and we're so busy doing all of these things and we've got the internet at our fingertips and we think that just reading and reading some articles and stuff is going to get us to hear the voice of the Lord and we fail to stop
We fail to see the Almighty God
We fail to fall before Him
Can I ask that of you
I think if I went around and asked each and every person here especially those in the back that don't like sitting close to me
what if I asked you and I came up to you hey when was the last time you fell
before the Almighty and you quieted yourself to hear His voice

When we're in that posture of surrender maybe how some of you might even be right now then we've got to hear
We've got to hear what God is saying
I need to tune my heart so I can hear his voice obediently
Back in the day there was something called a radio
Does anybody remember what those are
It was this big box and we had one in my living room growing up and there's these dials on it and kids you probably don't know much about this but there are these like magical invisible waves that fly through the air and they're called sound waves and this box picks them up but there's a lot of static that's out there and then you have to take these dials and you have to tune in the dials
Anybody remember doing that
Or in your car right
You're tuning in the dials and then what happens
All of a sudden the noise the sound begins to come through more clearly

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

How does shalom flow from divine pardon?

Why is peace found in surrender, not control?

What pattern prepares us to hear God's voice?

[Advent] Prince of Peace Isaiah 9:6; Ezekiel 1

Devotional

Day 1: Advent expectation: the Prince of Peace draws near

Day 2: Peace begins where hurry ends: be still

Day 3: Lay down your wings; surrender your weight

Day 4: Tune your heart to hear and obey

Day 5: Rest in the finished work; walk in blessed obedience

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

[Advent] Prince of Peace Isaiah 9:6; Ezekiel 1

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