Today’s candle is JOY. When the angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds on the night of Jesus’ birth, he said, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people, for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)
The Bible is full of the JOY of the Lord:
Joy in the Cross of Jesus – “…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
Joy through Faith in Jesus – “…and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and through you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” (1 Peter 1:8)
Joy Lasts Forever – “Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” (John 16:22)
Joy in the Church – “For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? For you are our glory and joy.” (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20)
The kind of joy we have in Jesus does not come through emotional channels. It is a gift of God that is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23). God’s joy is permanent and cannot be stolen from you by sorrow or pain. The Psalmist said, “…weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). All of this great joy came to us in a little town called Bethlehem on a starry night, unexpectantly wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid down in a manger. It was humble joy. It was quiet joy. It was pure and unassuming joy. It was great joy.
There was a boy who wrote a letter to Santa. He wrote, “Dear Santa, there are three boys that live in my house. There is Jeffery; he is two. There is David; he is four. Then there is Norman; he is seven. I thought you ought to know that Jeffery is good some of the time. David is good some of the time. It is really important for you to know that Norman is good all of the time. Can you guess, I am Norman.”
Mark it down. The joy of the Lord is good, not some of the time, but all of the time. May the great joy of Jesus bring its unmatched goodness to you this Christmas season.
The Bible is full of the JOY of the Lord:
Joy in the Cross of Jesus – “…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
Joy through Faith in Jesus – “…and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and through you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” (1 Peter 1:8)
Joy Lasts Forever – “Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” (John 16:22)
Joy in the Church – “For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? For you are our glory and joy.” (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20)
The kind of joy we have in Jesus does not come through emotional channels. It is a gift of God that is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23). God’s joy is permanent and cannot be stolen from you by sorrow or pain. The Psalmist said, “…weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). All of this great joy came to us in a little town called Bethlehem on a starry night, unexpectantly wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid down in a manger. It was humble joy. It was quiet joy. It was pure and unassuming joy. It was great joy.
There was a boy who wrote a letter to Santa. He wrote, “Dear Santa, there are three boys that live in my house. There is Jeffery; he is two. There is David; he is four. Then there is Norman; he is seven. I thought you ought to know that Jeffery is good some of the time. David is good some of the time. It is really important for you to know that Norman is good all of the time. Can you guess, I am Norman.”
Mark it down. The joy of the Lord is good, not some of the time, but all of the time. May the great joy of Jesus bring its unmatched goodness to you this Christmas season.
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