This message was preached by Senior Pastor, Robert Dennison, on December 22, 2024. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Audio Transcript
Good morning and Merry Christmas to you. We’re delighted to have you with us today. Our theme today is joy. Christmas was a pronouncement of true joy for the world, and it’s something that at Christmas time, we like to talk about—joy. We sing songs about joy, we read about joy, and everybody wants to have joy in their life. Because of that, we see an attempt for the world to produce joy in our lives that really only Jesus Christ brings to us.
When we think about all the Christmas traditions that we have, they’re meant to bring about this feeling of joy: lights, gifts, gathering together, eating food, having plenty of chocolate, and music. It all heightens this time of year. But sometimes after Christmas, and maybe for many people, when all of the lights and the tinsel and the gatherings are gone, people move back into not feeling joy and expressing joy. They may even move into a time of depression. All of this just shows that true joy doesn’t come through anything that this world has to offer. As much as we try, true joy comes in and through Jesus Christ.
What is joy? I’m going to give you my definition of it. You’re not going to find this in Merriam-Webster. True joy is a state of our mind that then directs our will and our emotions. And it does it in all circumstances and all situations, whether they are good or bad, so that we are happy, we’re hope-filled, we’re motivated, we’re encouraged, we feel content, and we are at rest. That is what joy is that God has to offer us.
The opposite of that joy doesn’t start with the mind. Instead, it starts with our circumstances and our situation. Instead of our mind directing our will and emotions, we let our circumstances—when they’re poor or when they’re good—dictate how we think and how we feel. When we let our circumstances and situations direct our emotions and will, we end up in a state of mind that can be sad, without hope, unmotivated, discouraged, discontent, and worried. That’s not the true joy that Jesus Christ has to offer us.
We’re going to be looking today at a lot of scripture that tells us about joy’s provision for us. Where does it come from? Joy’s characterization—what does real joy look like?—and completion. How can we really have complete joy in our life?
Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the joy that we have in Jesus Christ. Father, it’s our desire that our loved ones and everyone present here today, and people that we don’t know, would come to faith in Jesus Christ so that we might experience the joy that you make available to us. In your Son’s name, we pray. Amen.
Let’s look first at joy’s provision. Real joy comes through Jesus Christ, and that was the news that the angels gave. We go to Luke 2:10-11: “But the angels said to them, ‘Don’t be afraid, or fear not, for look, I proclaim to you good news of not just a little bit of joy, but great joy that will be not for some, but for all the people. Because today in the city of David, a Savior was born for you. Who is the Messiah? The Lord.'”
When Jesus came into the world, he brought with him the gift of full and complete joy. The Lord Himself reiterated this in John 15:11: “I have told you these things so that my joy, the joy that Jesus has—which is complete and full—may be in you now, and that your joy also may be complete.” The world tries to offer joy, but true joy only comes through Jesus Christ. He brought that joy to the world as a gift that first Christmas.
Then we find that when he left to go and be with the Father, he left us the Holy Spirit so that the joy that he presented externally now might dwell within us. In Galatians 5:22-23, we read about the fruit of the Spirit, and part of that fruit of the Spirit is true joy: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Joy’s provision is in Jesus Christ, and it continues in us by the power of the Holy Spirit.
What does joy look like? How do we know if we’re experiencing it or not? The Bible gives a lot of examples of what joy looks like and how it is characterized. The first example of true joy we find in John 16:20-22, when we read about a woman who is in labor: “When a woman is in labor, she has pain because her time has come. But when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the suffering because of the joy that a person has been born into the world. So you also have sorrow now, but I will see you again. Your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy from you.”
Just as a woman is in pain when she is uncomfortable and in the process of pregnancy and delivery, she still has joy when she’s looking forward to the birth that’s about to come about. When she gives birth to that child, everything is forgotten that led up to it. That was a bad situation, and this is what joy looks like. In the midst of circumstances that are dire and difficult, we still have this sense of joy in our heart.
Another time that there is joy is when there is conversion. We’re talking about when we know someone comes to faith in Jesus Christ, and we know that they’re going to spend eternity with us in heaven—whether it’s a loved one, a family member, or even a complete stranger. In Acts 15, we read about this: “When they had been sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria. On the way, they were describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles they were sharing. These people have come to faith. When believers heard that, it brought them great joy to all the brothers and sisters.”
One way that we experience joy is when people that we know come to true faith in Jesus Christ. Repentance is also another time that there is joy. In Luke 15, we read, “I tell you, in the same way there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.” We’re talking about repentance here. It’s a person that was walking their way according to the world, and when they come to faith in Jesus Christ, they completely turn, and now they walk in God’s path of righteousness. Not only do we rejoice at their conversion, but the angels in heaven rejoice every time they see someone turning to the Lord to follow him.
In John 3:28-29, we have the example of a wedding—a time when we have joy in our hearts. But it’s a very particular type of joy. Here it refers to just one person: “He who has the bride is the groom.” So we have the bride and we have the groom, but there are other people there. It talks about the groom’s friend, the best man, who is standing by and listening for the groom to come. “When he finally comes, he rejoices greatly at the groom’s voice. So this joy of mine is complete.”
If you’ve ever been a best man or a maid of honor at a wedding, when your friend gets married, you’re ecstatic about it. You might still be single; you may not be dating anybody at the time; you may have just broken up with someone. But you don’t let your situation make you sad because you’re rejoicing greatly that your best friend has finally found the mate for the rest of their life. So it is that we can have this joy in circumstances that may be poor or may be good.
Another example of joy is healing, especially when it’s an affliction or a disease that we think is impossible to get rid of. In Acts 8:7-8, we read, “For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed. The demons were cast out of them. Many who were paralyzed and lame were healed.” When these people with afflictions that were considered too difficult for the doctors to take care of—too difficult for medications, or exercise, or right eating—when those things were healed, there was great joy in that city. We can understand that when someone in our life who has a terrible disease or cancer is finally healed, how happy we feel about that.
Another characterization of joy is when there are answered prayers, especially when there’s an answer to prayer for something that we thought was probably impossible. Sometimes we pray about things and we’re like, “Well, God, we know you can heal this or you can take care of the situation,” but we still have a kind of doubt in our life because it just seems too large for him to take care of. Of course, we know with God all things are possible. He can take care of all things. But when there are these surmounting difficulties in our life that we pray about and God does answer those prayers, we experience abundant joy.
In Acts 12, we find that Peter was in prison. The church was fervently praying to God for him. As they were praying, there was an angel that came and released him from prison. But when we read the next verses, we see that people are like, “We’re praying for him, but we really don’t think that he’s going to get out.” It was such that when the girl went to answer the door, when Peter knocked on it, she recognized Peter’s voice. She immediately knew he had been released from prison, but she was so utterly surprised by it that because of her joy, she did not open the gate. She left him standing out in the cold and ran in to announce that Peter was standing at the outer gate. Everyone rejoiced because of answered prayer.
Another characterization of joy is the motivation that people have through difficult circumstances. In Hebrews 12, it’s compared to running a race. Preparing for the race may involve having an injury while you’re going through the race, but you’re still motivated because you’re joyful about achieving the goal of finishing that race. We are encouraged to run with endurance the race that lies before us, whether it’s difficult or easy, keeping our eyes on Jesus, who is the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
Jesus himself set the example of this motivation through difficulty. “For the joy that lay before him, he endured the difficulty of the cross. He despised the shame, and then he sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” He was able to go through that difficult time knowing about the joy that he was going to have when he sat down with the Father. Joy is characterized by motivation through difficulty.
Now we come to the third point: joy’s provisions in Jesus Christ. It continues in the Holy Spirit. We’ve talked about what it looks like with its characterization, but how does joy become complete in our life? We might say, “I’ve accepted Jesus Christ; he is my Lord and Savior,” but I’m still not experiencing the joy that we’ve talked about today.
First off, it does start with believing in Jesus. If you don’t have joy in your life that’s real, true, and meaningful, it may be because you’ve never placed your faith in Jesus Christ. “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace.” This happens, the scripture says, as you believe, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. In 1 Peter 1:8, we read, “Though you have not seen him, talking about Jesus Christ, you love him. Though not seeing him now, you believe in him, and you rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy.”
Our belief in Jesus Christ—placing our faith in him as Lord and Savior—leads to complete, true joy in our life that is promised to us. But maybe you’ve done that. Maybe you’ve accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you’re saying, “I still don’t feel real joyful in my life.”
Well, scripture tells us a lot of things that will help that joy to become more complete in our lives so that it can grow and blossom. One is just spending more time in prayer. In John 16:24, it says, “Until now, you have asked for nothing in my name.” He’s saying, “You haven’t been praying in my name. Ask now in my name and you will receive so that your joy may be complete.” If you don’t have complete joy in the Lord, maybe you’re not spending enough time in prayer. It’s a step that you can take.
The next thing we find about being complete in our joy is to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit. When we talk about the work of the Holy Spirit in our life, there are three main things that he does: he baptizes us, he fills us, and he anoints us. We see these three things happening throughout the New Testament. When we talk about him baptizing us, that’s when we come to faith in Jesus Christ. There is a spiritual baptism. This isn’t when you’re baptized publicly with water; that’s an external baptism showing what’s happened on the inside. But the Holy Spirit baptizes us once and for all when we come to faith in Jesus Christ.
Then the next word is that he fills us. But that filling is something that has to happen day after day after day. We submit ourselves to God the Father and say, “By your Spirit, show me what to say. Show me what to do. Show me what to think. Show me where to go. Guide every step of my way.” That’s how Jesus Christ lived. He didn’t heal anybody until the Father said, “Heal that person.” He didn’t speak any words except for what he heard from God the Father. We have to do that daily in our lives.
Unfortunately, sometimes we’re like children or teenagers. Christmas is coming soon, so when mom and dad ask me to do the dishes, I’m going to be very quick to do the dishes because I see that leading to joy in my life. But maybe after Christmas, one of your friends asks you to do something that your parents wouldn’t be happy about. But today you’re going to find joy in another way. God doesn’t want us to live our Christian lives that way, where we pick and choose every day. “Well, today I’m following the Lord, but tomorrow I’m doing something that I know he’s not going to be happy with.” That’s not being filled with the Spirit, and it doesn’t lead to joy.
Just to mention the last thing: the anointing of the Spirit. There are special times that he just anoints you to do something special on his behalf—something supernatural that you wouldn’t normally be accomplishing throughout your day. But mainly, we emphasize that to have complete joy, you have to focus on being filled with the Spirit on a daily basis. In Hebrews 1:19, it says, “Loving righteousness produces greater joy in our life. You have loved righteousness and you’ve hated lawlessness. This is why God, our God, has anointed you with the oil of joy beyond your companions.”
When you love what is righteous, when you love what is true, when you love what is good, and you hate evil and sin, it produces joy in your life. The difficult thing in our world today is that there are many things that, according to scripture, we know are wrong, but the world tells us, “No, this is okay. Things have changed. The Bible doesn’t really mean that anymore.”
It’s important that you spend time in God’s Word so that you can draw a line and say, “Yes, these things are good, and these things are bad.” By adhering to this and putting these things away and not glamorizing things on this side, it’s going to increase your joy.
In Luke 24, it says, “Worshiping Jesus—spending time worshiping him—leads to more complete joy.” It says, “After worshiping him, they returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple praising God.” Whether you spend time in worship at home on a daily basis or when we gather together as a body of believers, this time in worshiping the Lord helps to complete our joy for what God desires for it to be in our life.
Another way to complete your joy is to work on unity in the church. In Philippians 2:2, it says, “Make my joy complete by thinking the same way, having the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.” When we are united as a local body of believers in the church, when there isn’t dissension going on in the church, when there isn’t gossip going on in the church, when everybody loves one another and we have common goals that we’re working toward, this produces joy in our life. I think it produces joy in the lives of others as they look in and see that our church is healthy and united, and we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing with one mind and one spirit.
In 1 John 1:4, it tells us that when we share the Word with other people, it brings about joy in our life. John said, “We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.” John was joyful and happy when he was writing his letters and his gospel so that we could hear about the plan of salvation and the words of Jesus Christ. Now, you’re not writing scripture today, but you have God’s Word. Whether you’re sharing just a psalm with somebody that you read during the day or a verse that was meaningful to you, when you’re sharing that Word with people, it’s going to bring about joy in your life more completely than what you have without it.
That leads to the idea that leading others to faith in Jesus brings more complete joy in our life. “For who is our hope or joy or crown of boasting in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? Who? There are going to be people that are going to bring about joy in our hearts when Jesus appears, and he says, ‘Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy.'” He was saying, “Those of you who have come to faith through my ministry are going to complete my joy when I stand before the Lord someday.”
Ultimately, joy’s completion will come about when we see Jesus Christ face to face. “Now, to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory without blemish and with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.” Our complete joy will come about when we are finally in the presence of Jesus Christ one day.
So where does this leave us with application today? The first thing is, if you want joy in your life, you have to have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. There’s some basic understanding to know what that means. We always have this up here. Every Sunday, we talk about the good creation—that God made everything perfect. Adam and Eve had everything that they needed. There was no sickness, there was no illness, there was no disease. They didn’t have to worry about clothes, cars, or houses—all the things that are problems in our life today. They didn’t get sick. God made everything perfect, but they made a destructive choice and disobeyed God.
When sin entered the world, there was fear, confusion, blame, sickness, toil, and death. Because of that, the joy that God originally had given them in the garden was dispersed. But thank the Lord, he gave a gracious cure to their deadly condition. That gracious cure is that Jesus Christ came into the world so that once again we can have joy for all people. The joy is there. It’s like a Christmas gift. Jesus Christ has offered us a gift, but there has to be a right response from us to Him.
So we read in Romans 10:9 that we have to confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead. When that happens, we come to a saving faith. It’s like not just receiving a gift, but actually opening it, using it, and appropriating it to our life. If you haven’t come to faith in Jesus Christ yet, that’s something that you do in your heart. You say, “Lord, I’m a sinner. I understand that I have a deadly condition that only Jesus can cure for me because of what he did on the cross. Today, I want him to be the Lord in my life,” which means he’s the master; he’s the one in control.
If you really do that, then scripture says you’re going to be willing to tell others about that. But maybe you’ve accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you still don’t feel joyful. Look back on the list. Maybe you need to spend more time in God’s Word. Maybe you need to spend more time in prayer. Maybe you need to come to worship more regularly. Maybe you need to share a verse of scripture with someone at work or someone in your family.
All of these things will help to complete your joy. Lastly, looking forward to Jesus’ return—being excited about that—is going to bring joy in our life when we know that the fulfillment is coming, that all of this world and its evil will be made new. That’s when we talk about the new creation of the whole universe. But that new creation starts in us when we give our life to Jesus Christ.
May we have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your Word. We thank you for the joy that comes to us when we place our faith in Jesus Christ. Help us to make that joy complete by doing these different things, Father, that you have told us will bring about greater joy. Let that joy be something in us that other people see, so that they say, “I want to have what it is that you have,” and that we might have a chance to share our faith with them.
Kelly Jo and the worship team are coming to lead us now. I’m going to ask that you stand today. As we’re singing this last song, think through: What does God want you to do in your life? Does he want you to give your heart to Jesus Christ? If that’s your situation, look for someone after church who has a name tag so we can talk to you about that. But maybe you just need to ask the Lord what you need to do more of in your life that you might have more joy. After we’re through singing, just remain standing as Hunter comes up and gives us our benediction.