“For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves… He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents….”

Malachi 4:2,6

The path to social and family peace, is through Christ. No one can change the heart like Him. We live in the shadow of conflict and ill will is never far from our experience. It’s easy to be upset with people and not easy to make sacrifices for people, especially people who annoy us.!

But God can break down our fences, which we put up to keep other people out. A common conflict area is family differences, where we get annoyed with those we live close to and share the closest of human ties. Family love can ebb and flow, and the circumstances of our lives sometimes pull us way from our nearest and dearest.

There is a point in every life, when it is time to move on and make our own decisions about what we will do and the shape our life will take. There is a time to trust God for all the things we need and to seek His forgiveness for all our wrongs. Now is the time to come to God and love Him and put our faith in what He has done for us. This bedrock love of God will give strength and substance to all other loves.

The Holy Spirit can change hearts in ways we do not understand, even hearts that don’t want His way. The power of the Spirit can even change that situation and cause us to see our need. His power is limitless, and when we actively seek Him, we will find Him. He is the bringer of peace, and He can turn our wayward minds to follow Him and find the delight in walking through life in His presence.

We find ourselves honouring God and holding His name in high regard. We are His people and we are earnest about living as He would want us to live. To love God brings massive reward. The Lord Jesus is referred to here, as the “Sun of righteousness.” This He is. He is the one who can make us righteous, even though we are not. All righteousness comes from Christ, and all righteous people are His people, because He has paid the price for their release from the bonds of sin and death.

As the healing rays of righteousness emanate from the Saviour Jesus, so we are covered by His perfect life and His sacrificial death. These rays fall on the people of God and we are full of light, and heat and peace. Only Jesus can conquer the power of sin in our lives. When we realise this we are full of Joy. “The joy of the Lord is your strength…”

So we gain freedom, power, comfort and joy to live our lives for God and to serve and share with other people this amazing provision made for anyone who will come and repent and believe. There is only one sun, the sun that shines in righteousness, and will give to any who seek that light and heat, and become alive to God.