Are you familiar with the declaration made by angels who appeared to shepherds when Jesus had been born in Bethlehem? Here it is from various versions of Luke 2:14.
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” (KJV)
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (NIV)
“Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” (NASB)
“Glory to God in the heavenly heights, Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.” (The Message)
“Praise God in heaven! Peace on earth to everyone who pleases God.” (CEV)
All these translators agree – the results of the Creator coming into our world are glory to God and peace to humans.
Peace on earth. A favorite greeting and wish at Christmas time. I recently saw a home’s outdoor holiday decoration that included the old peace sign in Christmas style, and I think that’s fitting. 
Many are searching for and some are experiencing an authentic sense of peace. Jesus himself (all grown up and ready to die) promised it: “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful” (John 14:27 NASB). There is a security in Christ that gives us peace. Strength and assurance that don’t depend on circumstances for serenity. When life is troubled and chaotic, we don’t have to be afraid or worried or stressed out, for we know we can trust our Lord, so we are at peace. You can rest in God’s love, power, and purpose. As Big Daddy Weave sings, “I felt it when I asked you in, now peace on earth is in my heart…” Peace on earth.
There was, I believe, another dimension of peace which the angels were announcing. After all, when the angels first appeared the shepherds “were terribly frightened” (Luke 2:9). Even Mary, the soon-to-be mother of Jesus, when the angel Gabriel gave her the news, “was greatly troubled” (Luke 1:29). When grownup Jesus calmed a stormy sea, his followers “were fearful and amazed” (Luke 8:25). Frightened, troubled, fearful – not at peace. No doubt because this is Immanuel – they were alarmed because God was coming to be with them (the shepherds and Mary) or had come to be with them (Jesus’ disciples).
We need to understand the condition that humanity was in, the state of affairs that prevailed, the kind of relationship that existed between humanity and God. It was war. Humanity had rebelled against our Creator, refusing to continue as his image, his priest and partner caretaker of creation. Humans are victims and suffer the ravages of this war, but we are not victims only. The history of man showed that people born into this war were conditioned to continue the fight. Maybe this can be compared to a child born into a terrorist’s family – he is conditioned to fight the enemy, taught and trained, and the moment comes when he chooses for himself to hate and battle his supposed adversary. Humans were taught to war against God by living for themselves (sin) and deciding to explain life as something other than God’s good creation (idolatry).
So there was war. It’s described all through the Bible. (You can click on each reference and read the passages.) Exodus 7:5; Exodus 12:12; Exodus 17:16; Exodus 20:5; Leviticus 26:23-35; Deuteronomy 32:39-42; Psalm 2; Psalm 21:8-12; Psalm 78; Isaiah 3:1-2; Isaiah 63:1-10; Jeremiah 30:12-15; Lamentations 2:3-6; Acts 3:12-15; James 4:4.
Isaiah 63:10 briefly sums it up:
But they rebelled
And grieved His Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them.
War between God and man. So, when the angels announced that the Son of God was being born and thus Immanuel, God is with us on the earth, you can understand that it might have crossed someone’s mind that “we’re under direct attack by Almighty Lord!” That may account for some being “terribly frightened.” But, thankfully, that’s not what was happening. The angels emphasized: “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God” (Luke 1:30), and “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy…” (Luke 2:10) And yes, “On earth peace to men…” (Luke 2:14) By coming into the world himself, in Jesus, God was making peace with humanity. He was ending the war.
God did not end the war by destroying his enemy, which is what wars among nations are all about. God ended the war by reconciling his enemy. And he reconciled his enemy by taking on himself his enemy’s rebellion. Paul explains this in the second chapter of his letter to the Ephesians – I encourage you to read the whole chapter with this in mind. Here is a key section: “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who made the two (Gentiles and Jews) one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility” (Ephesians 2:13-16).
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote: “In an incomprehensible reversal of all righteous and pious thinking, God declares himself guilty to the world and thereby extinguishes the guilt of the world. God himself takes the humiliating path of reconciliation and thereby sets the world free. God wants to be guilty of our guilt and takes upon himself the punishment and suffering that this guilt brought us. God stands in for godlessness, love stands in for hate, the Holy One for the sinner. Now there is no longer any godlessness, any hate, any sin that God has not taken upon himself, suffered, and atoned for. Now there is no more reality and no more world that is not reconciled with God and in peace. That is what God did in his beloved Son Jesus Christ.”
Oh, and Big Daddy Weave continued to sing: “through this blessed holy child, God and man are reconciled.”
God has made peace with us. That’s the source and power for peace in our hearts. That’s the starting place for peace among all people. Being at peace with God, being done with fighting him – surrendering to become his image and to work with him – we can live with security and love conditioning us into new people. “Glory to God in the highest,” yes, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace…”
Here’s that Big Daddy Weave song: Peace on Earth