The good news of great joy is also for us to celebrate. At the time when Jesus was born, the first Christmas, angels appeared to shepherds in the field, and an “angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people (Luke 2:10, ESV). This good news of great joy is, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11, ESV).
Jesus is our good shepherd (John 10:14), and He came so that we would “…have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10, ESV). A “thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” (John 10:10, ESV). We must not let anything or anyone steal our joy. God wants each of us to have His joy in us. Jesus said “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11, ESV). Jesus had been teaching on how He is the true vine. We are the branches, and as we abide in Him, we bear fruit. A branch cannot bear fruit unless it abides in the vine. Jesus wants us to abide in His love.
Joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The “fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” (Galatians 5:22, ESV). When we receive the promised Holy Spirit (John 14:16), we then build our relationship with Him. I have seen in my life how I have been growing as I am learning more and more to allow the Holy Spirit to lead me. Surrendering my way of things, and following the Holy Spirit, and in that those fruits of the Spirit are more and more evident in my life. Not that we get it right all the time, but each day we are building our relationship with God, and He is transforming us. We set aside time to be with God; I love being in His presence. David wrote, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11, ESV). Such a pleasure; such delight in Who God is; such joy in Who God is. Not happiness based on our circumstances, but joy in Who God is.
Jesus endured because of the joy ahead of Him. We read in Hebrews 12:2, “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (ESV).
There may be waves, but look up. Those waves of struggles, pains, disappointments, fears, worries and issues around you and within you, that make you feel unsteady and afraid, hoping for solid ground. When you are not sure how you are going to get through, and you are struggling to keep your head up above the water because you are so tired. I am grateful that the strength I need does not have to come from me. The Lord wants to strengthen each of us. We look up and reach out to God; “…the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10, ESV).
Our joy is not based on circumstances around us, but we have joy in the Lord. Our joy is not based on how well we are doing, as at some point you will fail because you are only human. We human beings are not perfect and we do fail at some point, but we have joy in the Lord. Let us imitate what Jesus did, and endure, looking ahead to the joy before us. As with the church of the Thessalonians, who were noted by Paul as being imitators of the Lord, who “…received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 1:6, ESV), we too can be imitators of the Lord. We need to ask ourselves whether we are focusing our thoughts on those waves or looking to Jesus, and imitating Him by enduring in faith expectant of the joy ahead. It is our choice; joy is a choice. We can be more aware of what we spend our time thinking about. The awesome truth is we have much joy ahead.
We can encourage ourselves to rejoice always. The importance of rejoicing is emphasised in Philippians 4:4 to, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (ESV). We read in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 to “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (ESV). Thank God for who He is, and all He has done. I am not saying that the situations you are facing are not tough; in this broken world many people are facing incredibly difficult circumstances. I am another human reminding you to look up. To look to Jesus.
We rejoice in the Lord; we rejoice in Who He is. Jesus is our living hope, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3, ESV). We have a living hope; we rejoice in the Lord. In thinking on rejoicing in the Lord, there are so many truths of our awesome God to think on that I cannot mention them all here. We have much to rejoice in when we receive Jesus as our Saviour. I will share some of my thoughts that comfort my heart and make me smile.
We rejoice in His love for us (John 3:16), and we are precious to Him (Isaiah 43:4). We rejoice in His mercy and faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22 – 23). He is faithful to His promises (2 Corinthians 1:20), and wants to help you (Isaiah 41:13). God will never leave you or forsake you (Deuteronomy 31:6). God sees you (Psalm 34:15); you are not alone (Isaiah 41:10). We can pray all the time (Ephesians 6:18), and cast our burdens on the Lord (1 Peter 5:7). Jesus Name is above all names (Ephesians 1:21), and as we pray we can declare that the battle is the Lord’s (2 Chronicles 20:15). Jesus defends us (Isaiah 54:17), protects us (Isaiah 41:12), and fights for us (Psalm 110:1). Jesus is our rock, fortress and shield (Psalm 18:2). Jesus is our Prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6); we can have peace that surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7). We rejoice in His grace, and in being His Beloved accepted by Him (Ephesians 1:6). Our identity is in Jesus Christ, and we are who God says we are (not who others say we are). We are beloved children of God (John 1:12), when we receive Jesus as our Saviour. We belong to God (Isaiah 43:1). God created you, and knows you better than you know yourself, and cares about the big and small things going on in your life. Your Father God wants to provide for your needs (Matthew 6:11). God planned you before you were born, and has a unique purpose just for you. God wants to lead you (Psalm 32:8). God knows we need Him, and He is not expecting perfection. Jesus our Saviour, in His mercy and grace, conquered sin and death and that is the reason we can look forward to heaven. Our salvation cannot be earned by us, but is a gift from God as we accept Jesus as our Saviour. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8, ESV). We can say “…I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:18, ESV).
We have much reason to celebrate with joy. One of my favourite Christmas carols is called Joy to the World. We sing, we worship, we celebrate, we rejoice! The wise men from the east came to worship Jesus, not long after he was born, “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (Matthew 2:10, ESV). At Christmas time we indeed celebrate the good news of great joy; our Saviour Jesus being born. Joy coming into the world. As we enjoy our relationship with Jesus, His joy can be in us and our joy can be full. Praise God! Hallelujah!
Prayer
Dear Father God,
Praise Your Mighty Name! Thank-you for sending Your Son Jesus to earth, to be our Saviour. We celebrate with such joy. We rejoice. “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!” (Psalm 100:1, ESV) “Shout for joy to God, all the earth” (Psalm 66:1, ESV).
Thank-you for forgiving me in Your mercy and grace; I confess my sins. “Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” (Jude 1:24, ESV).
Thank-you to help me to look to You, and rejoice in You Lord. Thank-you that You “…have put more joy in my heart…” (Psalm 4:7, ESV). I do want Your joy to be in me, and welcome You Holy Spirit. You make us “…glad with the joy of your presence” (Psalm 21:6, ESV). I invite You to lead me this Christmas time, and in the times ahead, to share this good news of great joy, of Jesus our Saviour being born, with others.
In Jesus name, Amen.