Because Joy Has Come (Why Christmas part 4 of 4)

Luke chapter 2, verse 8. There the author of the Gospel of Luke records, "Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. And then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'"

God, we pray that you would open our eyes. Increase our joy as we remember and consider your coming to this world. Your coming has brought the increase of joy. Your coming makes possible the transformation of those who were once dead in trespasses and sins, that we would be alive together with you for eternity.

We thank you, Father, that you love the world so much that you gave your only begotten Son, that whosoever puts their trust, their confidence, their faith in you should not perish but have everlasting life. We pray, God, that we would experience that everlasting life in a way that you described, that it would be abundant and full. In that abundance, it would be evident that you have brought that work and life about in us.

So transform us by the renewing of our minds, not just our minds, but the way that we live, so that we would show forth your glory. We ask this in Jesus' name. And all God's people agreed and said, "Amen." You can be seated.

The 17th-century Christian philosopher, Blaise Pascal, wrote, "All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end."

The cause of some going to war and of others avoiding it is the same design in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. The motive of every action of every man is towards this: the pursuit of happiness. Our own nation was founded on that ideal, among others, but that is one of the core premises, one of the core ideas of our nation—the pursuit of happiness.

Pascal said in the 17th century that all men seek for it. They are all in the pursuit of it. Now, some may argue whether or not that is true, whether or not all men are seeking for that. But one thing is certain: I've yet to meet a person who does not want to be happy. I have not found that person yet. If you know that person, maybe you can identify them and point them out. I hope they are not here in this place because we are all seeking joy. We are all seeking happiness. I believe that God fashioned us in that way; He hardwired that pursuit into us, that desire.

When you consider who God is, as He is revealed in the Scriptures, the pursuit of ultimate happiness, the pursuit of ultimate joy, finally leads to Him. Though people may take paths and go down little alleys that seem to bring happiness, in the end, those things do not ultimately satisfy. That is why the 20th-century philosopher wrote, "I can't get no satisfaction." There are people seeking satisfaction, happiness, and joy in all kinds of different things, but none of those things ultimately satisfy. All of those wells run dry.

Jesus said rightly, "If you drink of this water, you will thirst again." But there is a well, a source of ultimate joy and happiness that is abundant, full, and enduring. As the Scriptures reveal, it is found in God. For King David, in Psalm 16:11, said, "In your presence is fullness of joy, and at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." The joy that comes from God is a joy that is abundant, overflowing, and enduring. At the beginning, there was joy. We have considered these truths many times here at Cross Connection, even in just the last several weeks.

We often go back to the first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis. You can turn there if you'd like, to Genesis chapter one. It's an easy book to find. There in Genesis chapter one, we find a famous verse. In fact, it is the verse that most people have at least read if they've tried to read the Bible, because it is the first verse. They may not get much further than that, but at least they read this: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." This is Genesis chapter one, verse one.

Of course, Genesis one continues with an accounting of what we commonly refer to as the six days of creation. On the seventh day, God rested. In that passage, we see how God creates the heavens and the earth. He brings light, plants, and animals, and ultimately, He creates man in His image. He fashions man from the dust of the ground and breathes into him the breath of life. At the end of each of those days of creation, as God beholds what He did, He says, "It is good." The summary of it is given in the 31st verse: "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good." So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

All of God's creation, everything that He had made, all that we can see and even that which we cannot see, was declared by God to be good at the very beginning. It is right and ultimately just as God intended it to be in that moment. We are told that God made man in His image and that He made man to walk in relationship with Him. Genesis chapter two goes on to describe that relationship in more depth. From what we can deduce in the opening chapters of the Bible, man and God had a oneness relationship. God, even at that time, came and walked with the first man, Adam, in the cool of the day in the garden that He had made, which He had given as a gift to humanity.

So, at the time of creation, there was relationship and unimpeded connection between God and man. Because Psalm 16, verse 11 says, "In Your presence is fullness of joy," there was joy in that creation. God made His creation.

He made man in the midst of His creation to experience and express joy. One of the ways that He created from the very beginning for them to experience and express that joy was by forming woman from man. He brought her to man and joined the two as one flesh. He made them one in what we refer to as marriage. Marriage is the institution of God, not the creation of society or man. God created it, and He defines it.

At the very beginning, He brought one man and one woman together and joined them as one. We know from what the wisest man who ever lived, Solomon, had to say in Proverbs chapter 5, verse 18. He says that we are to rejoice with the wife of our youth. There is joy in the garden, even in that. God created that marriage union between Adam and Eve for them to experience and express joy. Solomon reiterates this in Ecclesiastes chapter 9, verse 9, where he advises us to live joyfully with the wife whom we love.

In Genesis chapters 1 and 2, we see them joined together, created in relationship with God. There is joy in His presence, and they are experiencing and expressing that joy in the marriage relationship with one another. So, point number one on your outline: in the beginning, there was joy.

Now, that is only the first two chapters of the Bible. If you've read those, you know that they end on high notes. Unfortunately, the third chapter of the Bible does not end on a high note; it ends on something of a low note. In Genesis chapter 3, we find the extreme low of humanity. The fall is described in this chapter.

I have spoken many times here at Cross Connection about the fact that the Bible is laid out with an overarching story that begins with creation, then immediately moves to the fall of humanity. The bulk of Scripture deals with God's redemptive plan. It moves from creation to the fall to redemption, and ultimately, we look forward to restoration. Those are the four segments of the Bible. The portion that deals with redemption is the longest, but ultimately, it is the plan that God had in mind before the foundation of the world.

In Genesis chapter 3, we see the fall described, and within the fall is the loss of joy. When you go through Genesis 3, which is not very long, I encourage you to read it. There are a number of words that stand out.

That fall described in Genesis is filled with all kinds of sorrowful words, and they dominate the text. In verse 10 of Genesis chapter 3, we read of fear. In verse 13, there is deceit. In verses 14 and 17, we encounter a curse. Verse 15 speaks of enmity, while verses 15 and 16 describe pain and sorrow. Then, in verse 17, we find toil. In verse 18, we read of thorns, and in verse 19, we again read of sweat and death. Verse 21 reveals that there is sacrifice, and in verse 22, we see the presence of evil. Finally, in verses 23 and 24, we read of exile. All of these elements are heavy results of the fall that occurs in Genesis chapter 3. Fear, deceit, a curse, death, toil, sacrifice, and evil all stem from that moment.

The Apostle Paul touches on this theme in Romans chapter 5, where he states, "Through one man, sin entered the world, and death through sin, and death spread to all humanity for all sinned." Sin and death came and spread to humanity, bringing misery.

Point number two on your outline is the human experience. After the fall, it is characterized by misery. All you have to do is look at the world to confirm this. No one has to look very far to see that the human experience after the fall is indeed marked by misery.

To a certain extent, we might be able to tune it out or turn it off by shutting off the radio and avoiding the news, entertaining ourselves with the hundreds of channels available. There are ways we might bury the misery and pain that occur in the world. However, from time to time, there is no way to escape it. It is ever-present.

When major events happen—such as an earthquake, a tsunami, a series of tornadoes, or a hurricane—or during a terrible war when we hear about the associated atrocities, there are moments when we cannot remove ourselves from the misery of this world. It is constantly there, even if we try to ignore it.

Can you imagine what it's like for God, who is all-knowing and all-seeing? All of that rises before Him constantly and perpetually. Some of you may have seen the movie "Bruce Almighty" with Jim Carrey. It may not be the best movie, but there is an interesting part where God gives Jim Carrey the opportunity to have power over a certain area. At one point, he starts hearing all these constant voices bombarding him, and he can't get away from it. It's driving him crazy, and he asks, "What is this?" Those are prayers, constantly coming before God—the problems, the misery, the suffering, the sorrow, and the pain that result from the curse described in Genesis chapter 3. The world is under this misery.

However, I'm here to tell you that it's not as God intended it. It's not as He purposed it. Yes, in His foreknowledge, we find in Scripture that God has foreknowledge of future things. He certainly knew that it would be as it is, but it is not as He designed it to be. As a result, even before the foundation of the world, even before He said, "Let there be light," God had planned a redemptive plan. He knew the fall would come, and He knew that redemption would be necessary.

As you read through the Old Testament, the books between Genesis and Malachi, before you get to the book of Matthew and beyond, you see that God is hinting at what He desires, what He wants to bring, and what He is going to do in His redemptive plan. As I've talked about before, God is the gift-giving God. Like many gift-givers, He loves to leave hints about the gifts He is giving.

Do any of you like that? You have a gift wrapped under the tree for someone, and you want them to open it so much that you want them to know what it is, but you have to wait until December 25th. Maybe you can't wait long enough, so you open it on December 24th or let them open it then. Along the way, between when you bought it, wrapped it, and put it under the tree, and the time they open it, you're leaving hints. God does that. He does that in the Old Testament through men called prophets. God, through visions revealed to the prophets, shows a better future—a future that is not...

Marked by misery, the human experience is characterized by suffering. However, a future defined once again by joy is promised. In the beginning, there was joy, but because of the fall, sin, and death, humanity faces a bleak existence. Yet, God has a better plan, which He reveals to individuals like David, Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, Micah, Daniel, and many others in the Old Testament through special revelation.

A couple of weeks ago, we looked at one of those texts in Isaiah chapter 9. You can turn there if you'd like. If you turn to about the middle of your Bibles to the Psalms and then turn to the right, you'll come to the book of Isaiah. It's a long book. In Isaiah chapter 9, God speaks through the prophet Isaiah to the nation of Israel, announcing that one day, someone will come to bring restoration and redemption.

The most famous verses in this text are verses 6 and 7, which appear on Christmas cards and various decorations during the holiday season. There we read, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder. He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end. Upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order and establish it with judgment and justice from this time forward, forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

We are told about this one who will come to bring restoration and redemption. He will arrive as a little child, born, as chapter 7, verse 14 states, of a virgin. We are even informed in other places about where he will be born and the timing of these events. This child will usher in a new rule, characterized by light coming into darkness.

In verses 1 through 5 of Isaiah chapter 9, we see that this rule is not only about light but also about joy. In verse 3 of that same passage, the prophet speaks of God, saying, "You have multiplied the nation and increased its joy. They rejoice before you according to the joy of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil."

The coming of this one, this child that will be born, this son that will be given, is going to increase joy unto all people and rejoicing. It is like the joy when the harvest comes in. For us, living in the 21st century, this may not seem like a big deal because there are probably not too many farmers here. I know there are a few people who grew up on a farm, and so you understand the joy of the harvest.

The only way to really update this for our language would be to compare it to the joy you feel when you receive a Christmas bonus, if you got one. There is a little bit of joy there, perhaps not an expectation of it, but it came unexpectedly after you worked for it. The joy comes, and then it is like the joy of those who divide the spoil. Again, we are not living in the 8th century BC when armies would go out against each other, and the victors would take the spoil.

Perhaps the best way to describe this would be the experience of the winning team in the locker room after the Super Bowl. Anything is possible; it is possible with God. The joy experienced there is the joy described in Isaiah chapter 9. However, there is a problem with that joy of the harvest and the joy of dividing the spoil: it is temporary. The prophet Isaiah is trying to speak of this in ways we might grasp, but we cannot fully articulate it because that joy only lasts for a little while; it is gone quickly.

Yet, the joy that God brings is enduring and expansive forever. Isaiah says, "You have multiplied the nation and increased its joy. They rejoice before you according to the joy of the harvest; they rejoice like the men who divide the spoil." Many years later, in several chapters after that, the prophet Isaiah prophesies again in Isaiah chapter 61. This is an interesting passage because it is one that Jesus himself read about 700 years after the prophet Isaiah wrote it. He read it in a public venue, in a synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth.

On the Sabbath day, they gave to Him the scroll of Isaiah. He opened to this point and read from this passage. After He read from this passage, He sat down, and everybody looked at Him, waiting for His application. What was He going to say after He read this? He said, "Today this is fulfilled in your hearing."

Jesus informs us that this passage, written by the prophet Isaiah 700 years before He came, is directly pointing to Him. Look at what it says in Isaiah 61, verse 1: "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor." Good tidings means gospel, good news. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. He is to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

The prophecy goes on to mention "the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes." Notice this: "the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness." They may be called "the trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified."

Mourning, ashes, and all of these things—sorrow—are descriptive of the human experience after the fall, the misery under which all of humanity finds themselves. Yet here, the prophet Isaiah pictures and envisions a better day when one who is going to come will be anointed of God. That word "anointed" is "Mashiach" in the original Hebrew, and when translated into Greek, it is "Christos" or "Christ."

He would come as the anointed Christ. The Spirit of God would be upon Him. He would come preaching good news, the gospel. He would come healing those who are sick and setting captives free. He would open the prison to those who are bound, but He would also give the oil of joy to those who are mourning—those who are under the misery and sorrow of the fall.

The prophet Isaiah says there is going to come one who will increase joy. In Isaiah chapter 9, verse 3, there is going to come one who will give the oil of joy for mourning. The prophets continue through the Old Testament, but ultimately, the prophets point to something greater.

On your outline, they foresaw the advent of joy. They revealed where that bringer of joy would come from and what he would come for. In Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, we are told that this bringer of joy would come to destroy death and Satan. In Genesis chapter 12, we learn that he would be from the family of Abraham. Then, in Genesis chapter 17, it is revealed that he would come through Abraham's son Isaac. In Genesis chapter 25, we find that he would come through Isaac's son Jacob. Finally, in Genesis chapter 49, we are told that he would come through Jacob's son Judah.

Judah had twelve sons, and it is through this son that the bringer of joy, the bearer of joy, would come. In 2 Samuel, we discover that he would be of the royal line of King David. The prophet Isaiah, as I already mentioned, said that he would be born of a virgin; he would be God incarnate, God in human flesh. The prophet Micah, in Micah chapter 5, tells us that he will be born in the city of Bethlehem.

Throughout the Old Testament, God, through the prophets, foresaw a greater future, a future characterized not by misery but marked by joy. He indicated where all of this would come about: from this child that is going to be born, the Son that is going to be given. He will destroy the curse and Satan. He will be of the family of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Judah, through the line of King David, born in Bethlehem to a virgin.

All of these details are very specific and point to this one who would come. The prophets looked forward to the day that would dawn and bring these things. That is what we have been thinking about and considering over the last several weeks: the advent of Jesus, which is celebrated every year at this time in our culture. In other cultures, it is celebrated at different times, but here in the West, we celebrate on the 25th of December.

Whether it happened on that day or not, we celebrate the coming of Jesus. It doesn't matter if that was the day or if it was not the day; we celebrate that joy came to the world. We celebrate that he came to set captives free, to heal the brokenhearted, and to remove the misery of the stain of sin and death—not just for a moment, but eternally. The advent of Jesus is the dawning of the fulfillment of those prophets.

They looked forward to a better future with hopeful expectation. One of the family of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Judah, through the line of King David, was born of a virgin in the city of Bethlehem. As we saw in Luke chapter 2, there were in the same country shepherds in that area, out in their fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

Behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. They were greatly afraid. It is an awesome thing that God, through a multitude of angels, revealed the coming of joy to just regular tradesmen, playing their trade out in the field as shepherds. He wasn't announced or revealed to King Herod or to the political powers of the day, but just to those who were experiencing the misery and sorrow of death.

The angel came to them, and they were greatly afraid. The angel said, "Don't be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings." This is the very same thing that the Messiah would bring: gospel glad news of great joy, which will be to all people. I bring you the gospel of great joy, not the minimal sort of experience of joy that we might find in a Christmas gift that someone gives us for a temporary period of time.

It is not the minimal experience of joy that the Super Bowl-winning team will have until the next week when they realize they have to do it all over again and that 40% of the team is going to be cut. So what if you have a big ring? What does it matter at the end of the day? Those minimal experiences of joy, even though we may think they are the highest things one can experience in this world and in this life, are not what the angel announced to the shepherds.

He said, "I bring you the gospel of great joy, which is for all people." It is not just for a very small segment, not for the culturally elite, not for the wealthy, not only for the poor, not for those who are whole, and not only for those who are sick, but for all people at any time.

And all time, in every place, it is good news of great joy for all people. He announces, "There is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord." This will be a sign to you: you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling cloth, lying in a manger.

When Jesus stepped onto the scene of humanity, He came as the embodiment of joy; it is His very nature. Not only is He the embodiment of joy, but He is also the path through which we can access joy. He opens the way and opens the door so that we can lay hold of and apprehend that which was lost in the fall, as described in Genesis chapter 3.

Remember what He said to His disciples in the Gospel of John on the very night that He would be betrayed, the very night that He would begin to stand trial—a mock trial—and be condemned to die. He said to His disciples in John 15, verse 11, "These things I have spoken to you that My joy may remain in you and that your joy may be full." What things was He speaking to them? He was speaking to them the Gospel; He was speaking to them good news. He says, "These things I have spoken to you that My joy may remain in you and that you may have it in fullness and for eternity."

Jesus preached and proclaimed that we would receive and experience maximal joy—not just temporary, but enduring joy. Furthermore, a couple of chapters later, on that same night in John chapter 17, which is commonly referred to as the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus, He prays to God the Father. He says in John 17, verse 13, "But now I come to You, Father, and these things I speak in the world that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves." I am proclaiming these things so that they, this world, all people, would have My joy fulfilled in themselves.

This brings us to point number four on your outline: the Christian experience should be characterized by joy. The human experience after the fall is characterized by misery, but the Christian experience should be characterized by joy.

Characterized by joy, it should be evident in us. John chapter 14, verse 6, states that Jesus declares He is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father but by Him. This means that He is the path to joy because, in the presence of God, Psalm 16:11 says there is fullness of joy, and at His right hand are pleasures forevermore. Jesus opens the way through which we can apprehend enduring joy and fullness of joy.

The one who is brought near to God in Jesus is a Christian. The one who is brought near to God in Jesus is the recipient and experiencer of increasing and abounding joy. That is what our lives should be marked by as Christians. One of the things, not the only thing, but at the least, it should be evidence that we have this joy. Paul, in Galatians chapter 5, speaks about the evidence of those who have the Spirit of God dwelling in them. This is one of the ways that Christians are described as those who are the temple of the Holy Spirit. It is written in 1 Corinthians chapter 3 and again in 1 Corinthians chapter 6 that the Spirit of God dwells inside the person who is a follower of Jesus, that is, a Christian.

One of the evidences of the Spirit of God residing in us is joy. Paul states it like this in Galatians 5:22: "Now the fruit of the Spirit is joy." There are other things as well: love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness—these are all great and wonderful things that you can't buy at the supermarket, and you can't go to school to get. These qualities are the evidence of the presence of God in us. Therefore, the evidence of the Spirit, the fruit of the Spirit, is joy. It should be a part of our lives; our lives should be marked by it, and people should see that as a part of who we are.

Being the case, point number five is that the church is to experience, express, and extend joy. Because Christians are the recipients of this joy in Christ, we are to experience it, express it, and extend it to others. On that point, I would say that if the experience and expression of Christianity in your life—if you're a Christian today—if the experience...

The expression of Christianity in your life that you extend to others should not be one of melancholy or a joyless countenance. If our expression of the Christian life is a dour, pitiful experience, then we are doing it wrong. Why would anyone want to be like us? Why would they desire what we have if we walk around lamenting that everything is terrible, that the world is falling apart, and that it is all going to get worse? If all men seek joy, and we have found it in Christ, then we should reflect that joy in our lives.

If the Bible is true, and if Jesus is who He claimed to be, then we should possess this joy, and it should be evident in our lives. People should want to know how to attain that joy because they have been seeking it, and we seem to have it while they do not. It is astonishing to read articles and interviews of powerful people or celebrities who, despite having everything, find themselves empty. They may have received awards, such as an Academy Award or an Emmy, yet they feel that it is all for nothing.

I remember a pastor friend of mine named Joey Buran, some of you may know him. He was a professional surfer who won the pinnacle of surfing, the Pipeline Masters, back in the early 1980s. About a decade ago, I helped him move from Vista to Orange County. While we were at his parents' house retrieving some of his belongings, he pulled out a trophy from underneath a bed in a spare bedroom. It was the Pipeline Masters Champion trophy, covered in dust. I remarked that most people would display such an achievement prominently, but as Joey began to talk, he shared that it was the lowest day of his life when he won that trophy.

He explained that after winning, he stood on the platform, received the trophy, and posed for pictures. Within five seconds, a storm rolled in and drenched everything with rain. He found himself alone on the beach, holding the trophy, and questioning, "Is that it? Is that all it was?" In that moment, he realized that everything he had dedicated himself to had ultimately left him feeling empty.

Down into the worst depression of his life, he ultimately found his salvation, which is a good thing. It was the recognition that what he had aimed for, what he sought after, didn't bring him fulfillment. In our lives, it ought to be evident; people ought to see love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and the like. They ought to see these things.

We ought to experience joy. To experience means to come in practical contact with an event or occurrence that leaves an impression on someone. Has your contact with Jesus left such an impression upon you by His joy that you are expressing it to others? To express means to convey in words or by gestures in our conduct. It should be seen in our lives. Has our experience of joy in Christ begun to work its way out in our words, gestures, and conduct on a daily basis?

Now, I'll admit that this is not necessarily an easy thing. We all go through things day to day. We all have tasks and difficult situations that we encounter, which do not necessarily result in the expression of the overflow of joy. All of us face those sorts of things, and there are challenges we encounter regularly that don't default to an overflow of joy. So, I confess that it's not easy.

However, I'm not suggesting that we manufacture some sort of Joel Osteen-ish plastered smile and walk around as if everything is great, even when the situation we are going through doesn't warrant that. There are certain things we experience that do not warrant just a plastered smile and the phrase "everything's okay."

It's interesting to reflect on my experience when I was preparing to move to Germany about ten years ago. I was taking classes on the German language, and one of the common practices in our culture is to ask people how they are. We don't expect them to actually tell us how they are. In fact, if they were to share that they were not doing well, we would probably respond with, "I didn't want to hear that."

In German, the way of saying "how are you" is "Wie geht's?" This phrase is an instant marker that you're an American, because they never ask each other that.

In Germany, people often respond to inquiries about their well-being with a sense of skepticism, as if to say, "Why are you asking that?" This reflects a broader cultural tendency where, when someone asks, "How are you?" we typically respond with, "Everything's great," even if that is not the case. However, there are certain situations that do not warrant such exuberant happiness on our faces, as they do not represent the reality of what we are experiencing in that moment.

For the Christian, our joy does not find its foundation in this world or the circumstances of our lives. Instead, it is rooted in what God has promised us through the restoration of the resurrection. Our joy is not based on our job, our relationships, the house we own, the car we drive, or the money we make. While we may encounter situations in life that call for a different reaction or expression, the underlying current of our lives is one of joy. This is because the trajectory of our lives is directed toward being with the Lord, where there is fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore at His right hand.

Charles Spurgeon articulated this beautifully when he said, "When you speak of heaven, let your face light up and be irradiated with a heavenly gleam; and when you speak of hell, your everyday face will do." For the Christian, our orientation is toward eternity, which is secure and set in Christ. Our hope is not dependent on our works, our righteousness, or any other factor but Him. Our trajectory is set on heaven because He came, died, and rose from the dead.

Therefore, we should be those who experience joy, express it in the way we live, and extend it to others. To extend joy means to hold it out toward someone, to offer it, or to make it available. Jesus exemplified this in His life and teachings.

He commanded, didn't He? Go into all the world and preach glad tidings of good things. Preach the gospel. The call or commission upon the Christian's life is to extend what we have in Christ. One of the things we have in Christ is enduring joy, and so we are to be those who are giving this out, extending joy to a joyless world, to a world that abides under misery.

Even though we find ourselves in the same cesspool of misery, we know that we're not there eternally, and we know that we're headed in a different direction. I always point in that direction. I don't know what another direction is; we're headed somewhere else, not in this place forever. He commanded us to extend it, to cause it to cover a large area. This is another definition of the word "extend": to cause the joy of the Lord to cover a larger area.

We must, if we're going to do that, experience joy ourselves. You can't give out what you don't already possess. We need to be those who learn what it means to experience the joy of God in Christ, and that it would begin to affect the way that we live. It should be expressed in the way that we interact with one another.

The sad reality is that because of all the trappings that hang on to Christmas in our culture, sometimes we're just drawn down to a base level of a bad attitude. There is too much traffic, too many people in line, and the thing you went to the store to get is no longer there. The thing that you bought isn't what you thought it would be, or it broke—whatever it may be, we're caused to come down, and we lose our patience. We lose our joy, and we in no way represent Jesus, who is supposed to be the reason for the season.

So, God, transform us. Change us. Make us more like You. Help us to experience this joy not just at Christmas time, but every single day of the year. Help us to experience it, to express it, and to extend it to others. If the Bible is true and Jesus is who He said He is and who we believe Him to be, then we have the answer for a world that is in misery. It is the joy that is found in Christ.

The Advent, which we celebrate this week, marks the arrival of Jesus and the advent of joy that has come to the world. This joy is what all men are seeking. Blaise Pascal, in the 17th century, stated that what all men seek has come to the world and is available. If you are a Christian today, then you have this joy, and it is essential to ensure that you extend it to others.

It is my prayer for myself and for you that this week we do just that. You may have a couple more days of work, and of course, you will likely be with family members as you gather together on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The greatest thing we can offer someone else this holiday season is the joy that we have in Christ. Amen.

Would you stand with me as we close in prayer? Jesus, the Scriptures reveal that because of what you did on the cross 2,000 years ago, we who have put our trust in you are heirs of you. We inherit you and your glory, along with all that is indwelling in your nature: love, joy, peace, kindness, patience, and gentleness. These qualities, described in Galatians 5 and other places, are ours in you.

God, I pray that we would take possession of these gifts, that we would experience them, and that they would be expressed in our lives. Through this, we can also extend them to others. I thank you for this time of year when, at the very least, people are desiring to experience joy. I pray, God, that it would be very clear in us that we do have that joy. Make it a part of our lives this week. We ask this in Jesus' name.

He spoke to our people and expressed his gratitude by saying thank you.