“When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.” - Matthew 2:10-11 KJV
Yesterday we celebrated Christmas - the birth of Jesus Christ. Today, just as the wise men did in Matthew 2, we continue to rejoice with exceedingly great joy!
Over the last three weeks, we have learned about the hope, peace, and love of God displayed in the birth, death, and resurrection of His son. Week One, we learned that we can have surety and confidence in God - that He is trustworthy, His Word is true, faith founded in Him will not fail, and there is hope in the promises of God. Week Two, we learned that God cares for us and Jesus, the Prince of Peace, has a much better eternity prepared for us. His peace surpasses all human understanding and He gives “peace at all times and in every way.” Week Three, we learned we were sinners and enemies of God, but out of His love Christ died and reconciled us to Him. Christ was and is the ultimate example, the perfect picture, of love. He asks that we follow Him and “not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.”
What response can there be to all of this except for joy?
Christ has set us free (Isaiah 61:1, Romans 8:1-2, Galatians 5:1) and “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). We have been adopted into the family of God (Galatians 4:1-7, Ephesians 1:5, 1 John 3:1). In Matthew 5:1-12, Christ blesses the poor in spirit with the kingdom of heaven; the mourners with comfort; the meek with the inheritance of the earth; those that hunger and thirst after righteousness with satisfaction; the merciful with mercy; the pure in heart with seeing God; the peacemakers with sonship in the family of God; and those persecuted for righteousness' sake with the kingdom and reward of heaven.
What response can we have except for joy? To borrow from Chris’ Tomlin’s song How Can I Keep From Singing: “How can we keep from singing His praise? How can we ever say enough? How amazing is His love. How can we keep from shouting His name? We know we are loved by the King and it makes our hearts want to sing.“
The Lord has provided a plethora of reasons to choose joy. Each day of our lives, we can wake up and choose to have an eternal mindset based upon the Lord. “...The joy of the Lord is our strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). Each day we must wake up with the thoughts of Psalm 118:24 - “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Our continual state of being should be a reflection of Philippians 4:4 - “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.”
Thank you for joining us in our advent series. May the hope, peace, love, and joy of Christ continue to be ever present and dwell in your hearts and minds throughout not only the Christmas season, but every day of your life.
