John Wesley preached a sermon to an assembly at Oxford University where he addressed the understanding of an, “Almost Christian.” The Almost Christian is someone who, by all outward appearances seems to have everything in perfect order when it comes to being a devoted disciple of Christ. Just one thing keeps them from becoming an, “Altogether Christian.” Wesley would say that the one thing that keeps someone from experiencing the fullness of a life in Christ would be that they had not handed over control to the point that they experience the power that comes from a life in Jesus.

As we enter into Advent, we are following the book-study, “Almost Christmas,” meaning that, while we use the familiar buzz words of the Advent season, Peace, Hope, Love and Joy, we rarely every prepare our hearts to truly experience the fullness of these words that the birth of Christ brought to us. The peace that Jesus gives is not peace such as the world gives. The systems of the world and of humanity tell us that peace is achieved when our situation and livelihood is the way we want it to be. The peace of Christ, however, is a peace that is not based on power or control, but on a foundation of love and contentment. When we allow the peace of Christ to enter into our lives, we find that our situations no longer control us, and no longer influence the way we see others….