Christmas Is: Joy
Luke2:8-20 25 December 2011
INTRODUCTION: Virginia Brandt Berg:
I was standing in the doorway of a department store a few Christmases ago, enjoying a lovely nativity scene in a store window, when a mother and her little girl came hurrying by. Catching a glimpse of the beautiful scene, the child grabbed her mother’s hand and exclaimed, “Mama! Mama! Please let me stop for a minute and look at Jesus!” But her mother replied wearily that they weren’t even half through with their shopping list and didn’t have time to stop--and walked on, dragging her disappointed daughter behind her.
I have a feeling that a lot of us face the pressures and stress that come with the Christmas season
The strange thing is that most of us have created our own stress--We feel obligated to meet huge deadlines and enormous goals that we believe best fulfill the purpose of Christmas
I think we’re a lot like the unfortunate woman who in a last minute rush bought a box of 50 identical cards without bothering to read the verse inscribed on each one. She quickly signed and addressed all but one of the cards. Several days after they had been mailed, she came across the one leftover card and to her dismay discovered that inside it read… “This card is just to say, a special gift is on the way.”
Maybe you have some bad memories from Christmas-- Perhaps you remember back to a Christmas that wasn’t so joyful or happy and conjures up memories that are painful.
Maybe you lost a loved one at Christmas time
Your parents had problems and they had a huge fight on Christmas
You have memories of being alone and depressed during the holiday season
Christmas is supposed to be about joy
Nehemiah 8:10b – “Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
Joy is not based on our circumstances.
It comes from our relationship with God.
Rom. 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Galatians 5 lists “joy” as one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit
Dr. David G. Myers, The Pursuit of Happiness, before he wrote book, he discovered there had been 80,000 studies on depression and only 400 on happiness and joy.--Many times we focus on the negative and miss the joy available from God.
How do we discover the joy God intended for us?
--How do we find it at Christmas?
I believe our Gospel lesson this morning gives us some great insight into finding joy.
Three insights into finding joy, not just at Christmas, but continually.
I. CHOOSE TO HEAR THE MESSAGE.
We have to choose to hear the message
Most people know the Christmas story but they haven’t really heard its message
Matt. 11:15 – “He who has ears, let him hear.”
A lot of people hear with their ears but don’t really hear the message.
What was the message?It was “good news of great joy.”The good news was that a “Savior has been born”
Why the need for a Savior? Because every person is separated from God by sin.
That separation leaves a hole that we try to fill--If we don’t fill it with God, we try to fill it with things that will only bring more frustration and depression
If you’ll accept the message that a Savior is born, He brings a spiritual joy that you cannot find any place else.
There’s a Christmas card that says: If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so he sent us a Savior.
Fear can interrupt your joy
The angel told the shepherds – “Do not be afraid.”
In almost every appearance of an angel to share part of the Christmas message, he says, “Do not be afraid: to Zechariah, to Mary, and to the shepherds
The shepherds had a choice to make: --They could run and hide and not hear the message or they could trust the angel and hear the good news of great joy.
So we too have a choice, don’t we? We can choose to go our own busy way and never mind hearing what God has to say. Or better, much better, we can make the time to hear God’s message.
II. CHOOSE TO OBEY THE MESSAGE
Not only do we have to choose to hear the message, we have to choose to obey the message
The Bible ties joy with obedience to the Lord. The shepherds were obedient.
vs. 15-16- “When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.”
Imagine what it would have been like if the shepherds had never gone to Bethlehem; never discovered what the angel told them about.
Maybe years later, the shepherds would be sitting around the fire, saying “Remember when the angels appeared to us and telling us about the baby born Bethlehem. I wish we would have left the sheep and went to see if it was true.”
The same is true when we know that God wants us to do something and we choose not to obey. We live our life with regrets and we wonder: “I wonder what would have happened if I’d just done what God wanted me to do. But instead I chose my way.”
Maybe you’re living with regrets
It’s never too late to obey the Lord
Psalm 19:8 (NLT) – “The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight to life."
In the midst of all of our circumstances God can bring joy: Psalm 97:11 – “The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.”
Ill. A little girl and her mom viewing a manger scene. The girl just transfixed on Jesus. The girl asked, “Mom, did Jesus grow up and live happily ever after?”
Jesus was born to suffer--He’s described in Isaiah 53 as a “a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.”
Yet Jesus found joy in His circumstances, Hebrews 12:2-3 – “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. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
III. CHOOSE TO SHARE THE MESSAGE.
There’s no long-lasting joy without sharing the message.
Psalm 107:22 “With joy they should tell what He has done."
The greatest joy of the season is sharing the message of Jesus with others. If you’re the first person with good news, you want to be the first one to share the news. You call someone on the phone: “Guess what happened!!!”
You go see them: “Do I have good news to share with you!!!”
You contact them in some way to share the good news.
The shepherds shared their message with others.
“ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”
The word used in the original langauge translated as “told” is the word we get “evangelize” from.
The shepherds shared the “good news” of the “gospel” of Jesus Christ.
The message for this season is that Christmas is not about Santa Claus or family gatherings --It’s about Jesus Christ.
When we consider the absence of joy in our lives, it’s probably there because we have failed to declare the true meaning of Christmas.
We have spent too much time at Christmas celebrating a sentiment instead of celebrating a Savior.
A church in California on a major freeway that always put on their sign Jesus is the reason for the season. One lady that had recently moved to that area had to pass that sign every day on her to and from work. It really upset her so she wrote a letter to the preacher and tell him she didn’t appreciate the sign. At the end of the letter she wrote, “I don’t think the church should try to drag religion into every holiday.”
CONCLUSION:
A Letter from the Lord:
As you well know, we are getting closer to my birthday. Every year there is a celebration in my honor and I think that this year the celebration will be repeated. During this time there are many people shopping for gifts, there are many radios announcements, TV commercials, and in every part of the world everyone is talking that my birthday is getting closer and closer.It is really very nice to know, that at least once a year, some people think of me. As you know, the celebration of my birthday began many years ago. At first people seemed to understand and be thankful for all that I did for them, but in these times, no one seems to know the reason for the celebration. Family and friends get together and have lots of fun, but they don’t know the meaning of the celebration. I remember that last year there was a great feast in my honor. The dinner table was full of delicious foods, pastries, fruits, assorted nuts and chocolates. The decorations were exquisite and there were many beautifully wrapped gifts. But, do you want to know something? I wasn’t invited. I was the guest of honor and they didn’t remember to send me an invitation. The party was for me, but when that great day came, I was left outside they closed the door in my face and I wanted to be with them and share their table. In truth, that didn’t surprise me because in the last few years several closed their doors to me. Since I wasn’t invited, I decided to enter the party without making any noise. I went in and stood in a corner.They were all drinking; there were some who were drunk and telling jokes and laughing at everything. They were having a grand time. To top it all, this big fat man all dressed in red wearing a long white beard entered the room yelling “Ho-Ho-Ho”! He sat on the sofa and all the children ran to him, saying: “Santa Claus, Santa Claus” as if the party were in his honor! At midnight all the people began to hug each other; I extended my arms waiting for someone to hug me and do you know what? No one hugged me. Suddenly they all began to share gifts. They opened them one by one with great expectation. When all had been opened, I looked to see if, maybe, there was one for me. What would you feel if on your birthday everybody shared gifts and you did not get one? I then understood that I was unwanted at that party and quietly left. Every year it gets worse. People only remember the gifts, the parties, to eat and drink, and nobody remembers me. I would like this Christmas that you allow me to enter into your life. I would like that you recognize the fact that almost two thousand years ago I came to this world to give my life for you, on the cross, to save you. Today, I only want that you believe this with all your heart. I want to share something with you. As many didn’t invite me to their party, I will have my own celebration, a grandiose party that no one has ever imagined, a spectacular party. I’m still making the final arrangements.
Today I am sending out many invitations and there is an invitation for you. I want to know if you wish to attend and I will make a reservation for you and write your name with golden letters in my great guest book. Only those on the guest list will be invited to the party. Those who don’t answer the invite will be left outside. Be prepared because when all is ready you will be part of my great party.
See you soon. I Love you!
Jesus
Will you accept the invitation?
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