Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Joy to the world!

The Lord is come; Let earth receive her King!

Probably one of the most popular Christmas Carols.

Those words were penned by Issac Watts in 1719.

A piece of music known as “Antioch” by Frideric Handle Antioch was used for the melody and it has been a standard in hymnals ever since.

Watts based his song on:

So, what is joy, and how does it relate to happiness.

Some people might say it’s the same thing, but it’s really not.

In looking at the history of the word happiness, you find the word is linked to circumstances.

In German the word luck and happiness are the same word.

If the circumstances around us, our relationships, our job or school, the activities we do in our free time are good, we are happy, and of course, you could easily add to that list.

So how is joy different from happiness?

While happiness is tied to circumstances, joy is a choice that is not tied to circumstances.

Happiness might be brought about by eating a piece of chocolate or getting all green lights as you drive through town, but this happiness doesn't last very long.

As soon as someone pulls out in front of you, your happiness is gone.

Happiness is an emotional response while joy comes from within.

Happiness resides on the face, while joy resides in the heart.

According to the Benedictine Monk, David Stiendl-Rast, Joy is the happiness that doesn’t depend on what happens.

In The Christmas Experience, Kyle Idleman writes; “Joy is an inner sense of well-being and satisfaction that endures through good times and bad, it abides through happy experiences and sad circumstances.

You see, joy is a gift that God gives us when we allow Him to be the Lord of our lives.”

This morning we will be looking at the joy that was brought into the world some 2000 years ago.

We are going to turn now to that most famous of Christmas story passages, Luke Chapter 2.

I was raised in the church, I have heard the Christmas story many times.

I have even been in a few Christmas plays, in church and in school, back when such a thing was allowed.

I suppose most people know something of the Christmas story, but even as someone who was raised in the church, for much of my life I have accepted the Christmas story as just a series of events that just sort of happened and when all was said and done, everything just ended up sort of fitting together and provided for us what we now know as the Christmas story.

I don’t see it the same way anymore.

As I study the events that comprise the Christmas story, I have come to realize that every detail of the Christmas story, was planned by God.

Things did not just happen to work out.

They worked out according to the perfect planning and timing of a God Who is in complete control of everything.

As we go through some of the details of the Christmas story this morning, I want you to come away with a since of awe at how God orchestrated all of the events in a very special way.

That, to me, is a huge part of the joy of Christmas.

Joy of Prophecy Fulfilled

Now let’s look at Luke chapter 2.

Joseph and Mary both lived in the town of Nazareth.

This is over 70 miles north of Bethlehem.

And we know that Old Testament prophecy states the Savior will be born in Bethlehem.

Now these days we don’t think too much about a 70 mile trip.

We might well drive that far just to go shopping at some favorite place.

That is just about the distance that Audrey and I drive every Sunday just to be here.

But in Mary and Josephs day, 70 miles was not an insignificant trip.

We don’t really know if Joseph and Mary were even familiar with the prophecy, but they did know that they had to make the trip in order to be registered.

It was a dictate of the King.

They had no choice.

So, God, Who is in complete control, moves the mind of the pagan Roman Ruler, Caesar Augustus, to decree a census to be taken so that Mary and Joseph might return to Bethlehem and prophecy might be fulfilled.

Back in the days of Caesar Augustus they did not send out people to go door to door to take the census, to take the count of the people.

I think we did our last census on the internet, they didn't do that either.

No, each person was required to return to their home town, the place of their lineage, in order to register their information.

Both Joseph and Mary were a part of the Tribe of Judah and specifically were direct descendants of King David, and because of that, they were required to go to the Town of David, otherwise known as Bethlehem.

And there you see Joy in Fulfilled Prophecy.

The next joy we will explore is:

Joy of First Notice

Think for just a moment as if you had the mind of God, none of us do of course, but just think about it for a minute.

You are about to send your only Son into the world.

He is about to be born into an earthly existence through the means of an earthly mother.

Now consider who you, as God, are going to announce this miraculous birth to.

I am thinking Kings of different lands, or maybe the High Priest or some other great Spiritual Leader.

That is what comes to our mind if we try to image God’s mind, but Scripture tells us in many passages that God does things differently than we do.

So, who does God choose?

Well, that brings us to the next Area of Joy in the Christmas Story

God chooses shepherds.

Basically, he chose farmers, he chose stockmen.

What an unlikely choice this is.

Shepherds were at the low end of the social order.

Shepherds were pretty much the bottom of the totem pole in many ways, and these shepherds were the ones working the night shift!

Not exactly a lofty position.

Shepherds were considered ritually unclean just by the nature of their job.

They were denied the chance to go to the temple and become clean as they would be in the fields attending the sheep.

Shepherds were considered untrustworthy and were not qualified to testify in court.

Yet of all the choices God had for recipients of this the most important of messages, He chose shepherds.

Have you ever wondered why?

I’d like to give you two of the reasons why, I believe, He chose shepherds.

I’m sure there may be several others, but I think these two give us a vivid picture of the reality of what the future held for Jesus.

The 1st reason is that:

The Shepherd is Dedicated to His Sheep

We also see this in:

Shepherds had a unique relationship with their sheep.

They lived with the sheep, walked with the sheep, talked with the sheep, slept out in the elements with the sheep.

They continually put themselves in harm’s way to protect the sheep and were willing to lay down their life, if need be to save the sheep.

When all was said and done, that was exactly what Jesus did.

He walks with us as He walked with the disciples.

He talked with us as He left us His Word, and He still talks with us today as well.

He experienced life in much the same way we experience life.

And in the end, He put Himself in harm’s way when He laid down His life for us, His sheep.

Jesus was the Good Shepherd.

The second reason:

The Shepherd Represents the Lowly of Humanity

I think it is significant that the first announcement of the birth of Christ was to the most lowly of the citizens around Bethlehem.

God knew that the news of the savior was going to have a bigger impact on the humble people of the society than that of the ruling class, the leaders, and politicians of the day.

The leaders of society in that day felt no need for a savior.

They had “the fix in” you might say.

Their worldly ways had served them just fine.

They had managed to keep their nose high enough in the air so as not to care, or even give official notice, to those of a lower rank.

By the social order of the day, to ignore the plight of those of a lower station was almost a requirement of their station.

In some ways, the situation has not changed a great deal even today.

Those in the loftier positions have little regard for those on the margins of prosperous society.

And even the churches attended by the upper members of society are often little more than social clubs and networking opportunities for their members.

Now let’s look at the next Area of Joy in the Christmas Story:

Joy of the Arrival of Christ

Notice verse 10.