“An angel of the Lord appeared to
them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I
bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has
been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in
cloths and lying in a manger’” (Luke 2:9–12).
“Suddenly a great company of the
heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests’”
(Luke 2:13–14).
On Sunday, I spoke about three aspects of joy; the first one
is one we don’t usually consider when we think about joy.
Joy and Pain are Strangely Connected
If you think about the Christmas
story, there really was no reason for joy the night Jesus was born. The
Israelites had waited hundreds of years for the Messiah. The Roman government
occupied and ruled over Israel. Emperor Augustus declared a world tax
(that is never good). Mary, a teenage girl was pregnant outside of wedlock. Joseph,
pledged to be married to Mary, had very little control over his own life. He
had to take his nine-month pregnant fiancée on a long trip to Jerusalem on foot
(or donkey). There was no place for Mary and Joseph to stay (Stables were often
caves with feeding troughs (mangers) carved into the rock walls.). Shepherds
were out on a hillside working the nightshift. They were not singing “I’ll be home
for Christmas.”
It was in this backdrop that we are introduced to message of
angels. The angels intrude, breaking with the ordinary. They show up in unexpected
places at unexpected times.
Jesus comes at just the right time in history.
The angels message: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news
that will cause great joy…”
The same message is for you and for me, “You are about to
experience joy.”
When we are going through pain or disappointment or
discouragement, we have to wait things out because of
the joy that will flood our hearts when God does his work. It is because of the
joy before us that we endure what we are going through today.
Even in the midst of hardship there is a longer, broader
view, a perspective that shows us that our trials can lead us to grow and
become mature in our faith. As we walk in relationship with God, we can grow to
experience a sense of joy that comes from understanding there is more than the
pain we’re facing.
One of my favorite passages in
scripture is Hebrews 12:2, which says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,
the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured
the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of
God.” What kept Jesus from disserting his
mission? The joy of having a relationship with us.
Read page 52 of The Star devotional.
Joy is Contagious
Have you seen pictures of when a
village receives a working clean water source? If not, here is a good one for
you: Water Aid Video
The exuberant smiles on the faces of
the people say it all—pure joy! The joy was experienced in the whole community.
The angel said the good news
of great joy is for all people. The
good news isn’t just for all shepherds or all Americans or all Christians. The
good news is for the world—everyone.
Psalm 96 puts it this way: “Let the
heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the
sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the
fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let
all the trees of the forest sing for joy. Let
all creation rejoice before the Lord, for
he comes” (Psalm 96:11–13).
Joy Leads to Worship
Worship and joy fit wonderfully together. When we worship,
we experience joy. When we experience joy, we worship. This is one of the
reasons we sing when we get together as a church. It reminds us of the joy set
before us.
In the Christmas story, the angel announced the good news of
great joy, and then the entire host praised God. The shepherds immediately went
to see the baby Jesus, worshiped Him, and then left telling everyone they met
about what they saw. “When they saw the star, they
were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they
saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him” (Matthew 2:10–11).
We can experience the same this
Advent season as we journey toward the birth of Christ and live in the truth
that the good news of His arrival is the salvation He brings.
Peter told us our walk of faith in
Jesus brings us a sense of joy: “Though you have not seen him, you love him;
and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with
an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are
receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter
1:8–9).
Name the Sorrow. Name the Joy
Sunday I suggested that you name the
struggle/season/pain/sorrow that you are going through. After naming it, cross
it out and replace it with the joy you expect to have when God completes his
work in you. For example:
Prayer
God, thank You for the good news of great joy that is for
everyone—that Your Son, Jesus, has come to save us. Please help us to
experience joy alongside the pain of life and to respond to joy in worship.
Draw us to Yourself as we draw near to Christmas, and let us be a source of joy
to others in this season and every season. Amen.
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This is by far my favorite picture when I think about the passage from the text in Isaiah that says, "Thou will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed upon thee, because they they trust in you" (26:3).
