This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 1 John 4:9

According to my 10-second Google search and some very convincing movie buff articles, the first time “we come in peace” was uttered on film was for the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still. I have never seen this movie, but I have heard the quote being used over and over again. It has become synonymous with beings of a different world or place showing up for the first time in a strange land. I imagine that this phrase was not coined for the movie but has been around for a while. What intrigues me so much about these words is that their purpose is to help relay the message that the newcomers are not a threat. For one reason or another, the newcomers could be perceived as a threat, and to calm the other party, they simply state that they are peaceful.  I wonder how often that works. In fiction, I think this trope has been played on so many times that it has become common for it not to work at all. If you ever get the chance to use it, can you try it out for me? Interestingly, God felt the need to say this once. Do you know where? If you want to find out, you’ll have to keep reading. 

Okay, I won’t hold you in suspense for much longer. Jesus sat down with a Jewish Religious leader, and his conversation with him is recorded in John chapter 3. This religious leader’s name was Nicodeamous. During the time that Jesus came, the common understanding of the messiah was that he would come as a conquering king. The oppression of the Roman Empire had affected the Jewish community to the point that almost every reading of scripture was viewed in this context. They were seeking a commander. Jesus told Nicodeamous that He came in peace. Not in those words exactly. 

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:16-17 NIV

Jesus came into this world not to condemn it but to save it. That’s the mission that Jesus was sent to do. He came in peace to this world to save it. He came from the motivation of love. Peter didn’t understand this when he cut off the ear of a servant when Jesus was being arrested. Judas didn’t understand this when he tried to force Jesus into action by selling him to the religious leaders. Jesus did not come to destroy. 

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

All of Israel was looking for a God who would come back and get revenge on the conquering Romans. God instead came down as a lamb led to the slaughter. He didn’t fight back but showed the world love. This love was so great that Jesus says that there is no greater love to show another than if you lay down your life for a friend. That’s the God of the Bible. When He came, He told everyone, including Nicodeamous, that He came in peace and in love. What an amazing God. It makes me wonder about what kind of message I send others when I tell them about Jesus. Do I show them the God that came in love, or am I showing a God who they might see as destructive? Am I showing them a God who, like Revelation 3:20 says, wants to dine with them? I hope so.