Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

How would you define the word joy?

How would you define the word joy?

Maybe words like gladness, delight, happiness would be used as synonyms for joy?

Listen to webster’s definition

the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires

the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires

The fulfillment of one’s desires seems like a good definition to me.

the greek word xara can be translated the experience of gladness

Joy is the desire of human heart.

Everyone wants to be happy, to have joy

well-being, success, delight; these are all words that are welcomed, right?

Joy is something that is talked a lot about during this time of the year

The joy of Christmas

Joy to the world is one of the songs that we hear played and sing at church

What will people be looking to for joy this Christmas season?

children will be looking for presents to bring them joy

we all know how short lived that is

maybe some adults are looking for joy in presents

many adults will be looking for joy in the gathering of family, but that is short lived as well right?

I have heard more than one person this year talk about how they dread Christmas, it is not a time of joy because a family member will not be there this year and so it is a time of sorrow

And that can be a hard thing for sure

But what I want to talk about is everlasting joy that is ours because of the coming of King Jesus.

Not a joy that is here today and gone tomorrow, not a joy that is shallow but a joy that is sure, that is solid, that endures

Four steps in this sermon

Joy in God’s Presence

The first thing that I want us to see is that the Bible teaches us that true joy, joy that endures, is found in God.

In other words God alone truly satisfies the human heart.

God alone fulfills the longings of the human heart.

True joy is found in God’s presence.

This is a theme that we see again and again

But let’s go back to

Notice the text says, in your presence there is fullness of joy

There is an abundance of joy,

When this word is used in reference to food it speaks of one having his or her fill, being content

One having all that they want.

It speaks of filling up or completing something, that which is brought to fullness or to completion.

Listen here is the idea,

In God’s presence there is perfectly complete joy.

There is nothing in this world, there is nothing in all of creation that provides perfectly complete joy.

Oh we might think this thing or that thing or this person or that person will satisfy us, that they will complete our joy but there is nothing or no one that can complete our joy other than God.

The loss of Joy

Listen to the prophet here

This verse is true for humanity.

For Adam and Eve there was joy and dancing in the garden, but sin has turned dancing into mourning.

Of course we talk a lot about joy during this time of the season but it does not take much to realize that much of the so called joy around us is empty, that it is passing, that it is not complete.

The reality is that there cannot be everlasting joy outside of the Presence of God.

We saw a couple of weeks ago that Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden

They were kicked out of God’s presence and outside of God’s presence life is full of heartache, frustration, sorrow, grief; all of the enemies of joy.

The world, unbelievers know nothing of this kind of joy.

It is really sad but as we look around us the world is constantly chasing or maneuvering or manipulating trying to find joy that will last and yet it is like the proverbial carrot on a stick.

It always seems to be right before them but it can never be grasped.

There sin has separated them from God, therefore it has separated them from lasting joy, from contentment.

Ironically the very things that they believe will bring them joy (idols) are the things that are keeping them from joy because they are keeping them from God.

But Brothers and sisters though we have tasted the joy of God’s presence the reason that we don’t experience perfect lasting joy in this life is because of sin, it is because we do not know the consummation of our salvation yet.

Sin separates from God and therefore separates us from true joy

But the good news of the Bible is the promise that though our joy has been turned into mourning, though we do not know God’s presence; God will turn our mourning into joy, God will welcome us back into His presence.

The Promise of Joy

Promises of joy in the OT

The birth of Isaac, he laughs, and how this points to the greater seed of Abraham to come.

Psalm

Isaiah 9.

Isaiah 25.

.

Isaiah 40.

I

Zeph.

3.14-20

The King and the Joy of His People

In Zephaniah the people are exhorted to rejoice and exult.

Joy has returned, God will have a people of joy and we are told why this is true, how is it that there is a people that will be marked by true joy

The Lord has taken away the judgments against you

How has the Lord taken away the judgments that were against us?

What is the language here?

You were guilty, justice demanded your blood, justice demanded your condemnation because of your sin and your rebellion against God and yet God has taken away the judgment that was against you.

The Good News that we celebrate as believers is this right,

This is the same type thing that we saw in

This is why the angels sang

that the Son of God became flesh and dwelt among, that He came and lived yes; but also that He died to take away our sin, that He died as a substitute in our place

This is what makes Christmas so joyful

Col.

This last verse leads to the next thing that we see in Zephaniah

2. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst (v.15b)

The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst

We also see the restoration of God’s presence.

Brothers and sisters, we tend to think

coming of Jesus

came to die for us

in Jesus we have forgiveness of sin

and we just leave it there but that is not the end, if that was the end there would not be joy, if that was the end brothers and sisters then we would not have an infinitely glorious hope.

Ultimately why did Jesus come?

He came to bring us to God.

He came to restore us into God’s presence so that it could be said of us

The Lord is in your midst

The promise of Christmas is this brothers and sisters, that one day because of Christ, all who are in Him will know the perfect, everlasting, indescribable joy producing and joy increasing presence of God throughout all of eternity.

Oh Christian, why would you get distracted from your King and all that He has done for you this Christmas season.

Focus on Christ

Don’t fall for the lie again that there is more joy in this or that than there is in Christ

Pursue Christ

Use the Lord’s Day wisely, turn off the distractions today and focus on Christ and what He has done for you and the hope that you have in Him

Unbeliever, you can have this hope in Christ as well.