Advent week 3 - Joy

Advent Week 3 – Joy

Good morning One River,

We are entering our third week of Advent. This week the theme is Joy. But what is joy? Well, like the peace that we talked about last week, joy is a fruit of the Spirit. And a fruit of the Spirit is a gift given to us by God. It’s a power from Him, lent to us. Joy is something reserved for us as Christians, as Christ followers.

Now, if you Google joy, the dictionary definition is an emotional response. Their claim is that joy is merely an extreme form of happiness. I think this is quite possibly the biggest lie told to humanity. Joy is not merely and emotional response. It is not a biological reward for the seeking of pleasure. Joy is a gift from the Holy Spirit that transcends our earthly station or situation.

It’s something Yahweh has saved up for each of us and He freely gives. It keeps us in connection with Jesus and is the byproduct of a healthy relationship with Jesus.

Alright, let’s jump into some of the readings for today. I want you to notice there is a connection between joy and peace. But never between joy and happiness. It’s not expressly spelled out here, but you can read it between the lines.

Isaiah 61:1–2 (NIV)

The Year of the LORD’s Favor

61 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,

because the LORD has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives

and release from darkness for the prisoners,

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor

and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn,

Isaiah 61:10–11 (NIV)

10 I delight greatly in the LORD;

my soul rejoices in my God.

For he has clothed me with garments of salvation

and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,

as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,

and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up

and a garden causes seeds to grow,

so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness

and praise spring up before all nations.

This poem was written at an interesting time in Isaiah’s life. He would have penned this after the southern kingdom was losing to Assyria and probably while the northern kingdom was either in great distress or in the process of being carried off to Babylon. Yet he still writes about the joy of the LORD and asks for His righteousness to spring up before all nations. That’s some pretty dedicated language.

This next part is worked over as a call and response in the high churches for Mary’s Song, I’m just going to read it to you.

Luke 1:46–50 (NIV)

Mary’s Song

46 And Mary said:

“My soul glorifies the Lord

47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

48 for he has been mindful

of the humble state of his servant.

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—

holy is his name.

50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,

from generation to generation.

Luke 1:53–54 (NIV)

53 He has filled the hungry with good things

but has sent the rich away empty.

54 He has helped his servant Israel,

remembering to be merciful

This takes place when Mary visits Elizabeth, John the Baptists mother. They’re both pregnant at the time.

They whole city knows that Mary was pregnant before marriage. Joseph almost left her. Yet she still rejoices and takes time to sign a song asking Yahweh to remember those worse off than she is.

The next part of the reads sees us switch to the book of John. This is one of those Advent readings that jumps the main book of this year’s cycle and we’re hearing from John.

John 1:6–8 (NIV)

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

John 1:19–28 (NIV)

John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah

19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”

21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you the Prophet?”

He answered, “No.”

22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”

24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Ok, I want to step back here a little. I’ve brought up before that those closest to Jesus came from different religious and political backgrounds. Making Jesus the true ecumenical uniter. He was the one that actually brought us together.

We know that Zechariah, John’s dad was a temple priest. He would come when his yearly lot was draw and he would work the temple for his chosen season. John would undoubtedly have grown up in the Sadducaical priesthood. Zac would have been looking forward to his son taking his place in this work. John would have been clothed in the best clothes, and fed the best foods. Even if Zac and Elisabeth were not wealthy by the standards of the Sadducees, they would still have been wealthy by the standards of the general population.

None of the Gospels record anything about the childhood of John. We don’t know exactly what took place in his life that led him to the place where this story takes place. But John would have been over his skis here.

The man before us has change his entire position in life. He’s given us his wealthy clothes for animal skins. He’s given us his fine dining for locusts and honey, and He’s given up the temple for a river.

Baptism was a ritual cleansing. This was to take place in the temple. Under the watchful eye of the Jewish leadership including John’s father. He’s doing this in the wrong place. This would have been seen as sacrilegious.

He’s offering a place for repentance. This too, is the purgative of the temple and its priests. In the Jewish law, repentance can only be accomplished through animal sacrifice, not simple water baptism.

When asked about his authority he quotes Isaiah the prophet. He’s the one, he’s there to lay out the groundwork for the Messiah.

Later in this chapter John givens two of his disciples to Jesus.

John is always portrayed as this wide guy, who may be a little crazy. By this point in his life, he did not fit in with society, whether by choice or force or mental instability, it’s not really clear. He manages to pick up some students. He reminds me of the monks during the middle-ages. They took vows of poverty and walled themselves up away from cities.

Yet people knew where they were. They sought them out, and there have been many arguments made that these guys saved humanity. Even though in many ways they were not a part of it. They would shelter the sick and poor. They would offer refuge during wartimes. They would take in unwed mothers. They would do all the work of the kingdom, while trying to set themselves apart from it.

Many of them were prolific writers, and you know what they all had in common? They had wonderful spiritual lives and they had great joy.

We don’t know all of what went on with John. But in my experience, to pick up move away and cast off the gold, the garments, and the blessings of a rich life, to take on the rags and animals of wild. That takes a significant spiritual event. That takes Jesus. That takes peace, and trust and faith, and I think it takes joy. Not mere earthly happiness, but true Godly joy.

We’ve got one more reading for today.

1 Thessalonians 5:16–24 (NIV)

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil.

23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

Have Joy always. Paul is in the midst of writing instructions for Christians in Thessalonica to follow as they work out their lives. He’s telling them about the ‘Day of the LORD’, which is code for End Times. As I mentioned last week and before, Advent is about the celebration of the Christ coming as a baby. It’s a reflection and celebration of past events. But it’s also a foreshadowing of things to come. These are marching orders for a sound church; Always carry Joy, pray continually, give thanks to God. Do not quench the Spirit of the LORD. Test prophecy, reject evil.

He concludes with what is effectively a prayer. May the peace of God sanctify you and keep you blameless until final judgement.

I want to finish this up with a few thoughts on Joy that I read from RC Sproul. For those of you that don’t know, RC Sproul was a great theologian that passed just a few years ago. He founded Ligonier Ministries and was just all around a great Christian person. He also wrote a book about Joy. It’s a good read. It’s short, like 150 pages. He calls it a pamphlet. Which lets you know he’s a theologian, because nothing of any substance can be expressed in less then 500 pages.

He writes.

First, the joy that Jesus wants to see in us is His joy. Earlier, Jesus spoke to His disciples about peace, saying, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you” (John 14:27). Where does the Christian’s peace come from? It comes from Him; in fact, it is His peace. In like manner, His own joy is available to us, and He wants to see it abiding in us.

Second, He wants His joy to remain in us. He wants us to have a permanent joy, not a roller-coaster ride of moods shifting between joy and misery. If we want to be consistently joyful, we need to abide in Him.

Third, He distinguishes between His joy and our joy, and expresses the desire that our joy should be full: “And that your joy may be full.” Isn’t that what we want? We do not want a partial cup of the fruit of the Spirit. We do not want just a little bit of joy. We want all of the joy that the Father has stored up for His people. That fullness of joy comes from Christ. It is first His joy that He gives to us, and as we are plugged into Him, this joy that comes from Him grows, increases, and becomes full.

No one who is reading this booklet has ever experienced the highest level of joy that is available to the people of God. However much joy you have at this moment, there is more joy to be had. There is a fullness that awaits us as the fruit of the Spirit is nurtured by the true vine.

The more we abide in Jesus the more Joy we have access to. Like all the gifts of the Spirit, we have to want it. But we have access to it. Jesus wants us to have it. He wants us to ask for it and he wants to give it to us.

I mentioned before that originally Advent was seen as a solemn event. Meant for quite reflection. It was nothing like the high-pressure event that it’s become. Today was specifically set apart on the Advent calendar as a day for rejoicing. It’s here for us to ask for more of the LORD’s joy.

Let’s wrap up today with a traditional Irish blessing and seeking the LORD’s Joy-

“May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.”

“May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields, and, until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.”

“May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. May songbirds serenade you every step along the way. May a rainbow run beside you in a sky that’s always blue. And may happiness and joy fill your heart each day your whole life through.”