Advent 2015 - Joy

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 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 2:8-12 

The third Sunday of Advent focuses on Joy. Joy is a central theme of the birth narrative recorded in the book of Luke. The angel's proclamation to the shepherds was one of profound joy - "great joy for all the people". The song Mary sings upon arriving at her cousin Elizabeth's home is filled with joy. What was it about the birth of Jesus that elicited such joy?

Place yourself in the story, if you will. The Jews in first century Palestine had a difficult time under the oppressive Roman occupation. For centuries, they had been awaiting the promised Messiah, the One who would finally deliver them from all of their enemies - political and religious. Their ancestors had endured waive after waive of invading Gentile armies - Assyrians, Babylonians, Greeks, and now the Romans. While the Romans allowed the Jews to maintain their religious practices, they detested the bloody temple sacrifices and looked down upon the locals as backwater hicks. The Romans lacked any compassion toward these strange foreigners, and didn't pull their punches in order to keep the Jews in line. Abusing their positions of power was seen as a badge of honor.

The Jews longed to be free from this oppression and endless taxation. They held on to the hope that one day the Messiah would finally come on the scene and set things right. I imagine they envisioned a return to the golden age of Israel as it might have been under the reign of King Solomon. Surely the Promised One of Israel would restore the "good old days".

And then the seemingly impossible happened. A young woman in a small village received a visit from a celestial messenger telling her, "You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end." (Luke 1:31-33) Mary may not have been educated like the good Jewish boys, but surely she knew enough of her nation's history and the Scriptures to recognize that this was the beginning of the fulfillment of the Messianic prophesies. I imagine she was quite giddy by the time she reached Elizabeth's home, in spite of the scandal she represented.

It's also interesting to note that joy bookends the story of Jesus' life here on earth. Not only was it a major theme of His birth, but also of His resurrection. Matthew speaks of the joy the women experienced upon finding the empty tomb (28:8), and Luke records the joy the disciples displayed at the time of His ascension back into heaven (24:52). In between, the crowds were filled with joy as Jesus entered Jerusalem prior to His arrest, trial and execution (Luke 19:37). In Jesus' final discourse with His disciples the night He was betrayed, He spoke repeatedly about joy (John 16).

If joy was such a central part of the life and ministry of Jesus, it only stands to reason that it should also be central in the life of His followers. Sadly, we regularly encounter "Christians" in the media who seem to be totally devoid of joy. There seems to be no end to the fear-mongering and misguided hatred coming from people who should be exemplifying joy. If you have placed your faith in Jesus, and truly believe the things He taught, there should be no reason for not having joy in your life.

Joy is more than just a feeling. Joy is not dependent on external circumstances. Happiness depends on such things, and can be fleeting. True joy wells up from deep within a person's spirit. It comes from knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is the Savior and that He has entrusted us with the gift of His Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us while we walk along our spiritual journey. Nothing can take our joy away from us - but we can freely give it up when we choose to focus on the temporal things of this world - pain, sorrow, anger, betrayal - that gladly fill the vacuum when we release our joy.

True joy also cannot be kept to oneself. Joy naturally spills out and blesses those around us. No one wants to be around someone who is sullen and grumpy all the time. It has been said that Christians should be the happiest people on the planet, but that is not always the case.

The trappings and traditions of Christmas tend to reignite the joy that we sometimes allow to flounder in our spirits. Unfortunately, for some people, that joy seems to go back in the closet along with the decorations after the tree has been put out on the curb. My prayer for each one of us is that we can experience and exude the joy of Christ(mas) all year long.

Have a blessed (and joyous) week!
Pastor David