Valley View Chapel December 18, 2016 The Gifts of Christmas Part 3 Joy Luke 2:8-11. Introduction

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1 1 Valley View Chapel December 18, 2016 The Gifts of Christmas Part 3 Joy Luke 2:8-11 Introduction The popular song Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - contains a beautiful melody, heartwarming words and bad theology. Here s the problem with Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas: Life isn t like that and we all know it! Our troubles aren t out of sight just because it s the month of December. Our troubles aren t miles away because the tree is lit up in Rockefeller Center and Starbucks is serving their eggnog latte in red cups. If a Merry Little Christmas depends on our loved ones drinking hot chocolate with us by the soft glow of a perfect tree in front of a crackling fireplace, then most of us are just out of luck. True Joy Thankfully, the authentic and unsurpassed joy that is at the heart of the true meaning of Christmas has nothing at all to do with the sentiments expressed in Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. This Advent season we re looking at the gifts that God gave to the world on that first Christmas. Two weeks ago, Pastor Andrew unwrapped the gift of hope. Last week we opened the gift of peace. But another of God s Christmas gifts is joy. The 18 th -century New England preacher, Jonathan Edwards, in a sermon delivered to his congregation in Northampton, MA, declared that: The great enquiry of the world in general in all ages of it, is after happiness. Yet there is scarce anything that the world is more deceived about. And thus, therefore was no inconsiderable part of the errand of Jesus Christ, the great teacher of mankind, into the world, to instruct men wherein their true happiness consisted. What Jonathan Edwards called true happiness the Bible calls joy. The angel made an announcement to a band of terrified shepherds and it is recorded in Luke 2:8-10, And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. (NIV) So, what is the good news that would elicit such great joy or true happiness? The answer is revealed in Luke 2:11, Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. (NIV) The angel said: I bring you good news. What s so good about this good news?

2 2 Good news needs bad news It s ironic but true that really, really, really good news has to be preceded by really, really, really bad news. One of the most iconic photographs ever taken was shot by Alfred Eisenstaedt. It showed an American sailor spontaneously kissing a woman in a white dress. Eisenstaedt took the picture on August 14, 1945 in Times Square just as the announcement of the end of the war with Japan was made by President Truman. The photograph captured a moment of unbridled and unabashed joy. Joy was uncontained because the good news that the war had ended followed almost four years of incredibly bad news. Paul s letter to the Romans is the most comprehensive treatment of the good news of the gospel in the Bible. But the first three chapters of Romans don t contain good news at all. Romans 1:18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men. (NIV) Romans 3:10-12 There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." (NIV) Romans 3:20 No one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law. (NIV) Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (NIV) To prepare his readers for the good news to come, Paul painted a grim picture of the human predicament. The bad news that preceded it makes the good news of Romans 3:24-25 so good [We] are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. (NIV) It s because of the incredibly bad news that our hearts can leap for joy when we read the opening words of chapter 5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1 (NIV) It s because the news was so horribly, hopelessly bad that Romans 8:1 brings us such comfort: Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (NIV) If my doctor told me that he found no cancer in my body, that would be good news. It s nice to know that I don t have cancer. But then again, I ve never had cancer. Twelve years ago, my friend of more than 42 years, Jerry Dunn, was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He underwent major surgery and a rigorous treatment regimen. Four years after the initial diagnosis, he was told that the cancer had spread beyond the prostate. He took further treatment. Fast-forward eight years to the present. When we saw Jerry and his wife Diane on Cape Cod last month, he reported the doctor told him that he was cancerfree. Jerry s heart is full of great joy because the news had been so devastatingly bad.

3 3 Great joy Let s look again at today s text this time from The New King James Version. Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. Luke 2:8-10 (NKJV) The Bible says that the shepherds were greatly afraid. The Greek word for afraid is phobos from which we get the English word phobia. The original meaning of the word meant flight indicating a fear so terrifying that they just wanted to run away as fast and as far as they could. They were greatly afraid. The Greek word for greatly is mega. They weren t just phobos. They were mega phobos! They were so paralyzed with fright that they couldn t move! Now look at the next verse. Then the angel said to them, Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. Can you guess what the Greek word for great is when referring to the good news brought by the angel? If you guessed mega you guessed right! The angel declared: This isn t a time for mega fear. It s a time for mega joy! The Bible employed the word mega to describe both extraordinary size and extraordinary rank. Matthew 27:60 used the word to describe great size. He [Joseph of Arimathea] placed it [Jesus body] in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone [a mega stone ] across the entrance. (NLT) Hebrews 10:21 used the word to describe great rank: We have a great priest over the house of God. (ESV) The great priest, the great mediator between God and humanity is, of course, the Lord Jesus Christ. With the coming of God to earth in the person of Jesus Christ, mega fear is transformed into mega joy! Conclusion The best example of the mega joy which God gives to his people is illustrated by Brennan Manning in his book The Wisdom of Tenderness. Several years ago, Edward Farrell of Detroit took his two-week vacation to Ireland to celebrate his favorite uncle's 80th birthday. On the morning of the great day, Ed and his uncle got up before dawn, dressed in silence, and went for a walk along the shores of Lake Killarney. Just as the sun rose, his uncle turned and stared straight at the rising sun. Ed stood beside him for 20 minutes with not a single word exchanged. Then the elderly uncle began to skip along the shoreline, a radiant smile on his face.

4 4 After catching up with him, Ed commented, Uncle Seamus, you look very happy. Do you want to tell my why? Yes, lad, the old man said, tears washing down his face, his eyes still fixated on the magnificence of the rising sun: You see, me Father is fond of me. Ah, me heavenly Father is so very fond of me." Great joy for Uncle Seamus was looking at the awe-inspiring beauty and splendor of an Irish sunrise and crying out: Me heavenly father is very fond of me! On the first Christmas poor and humble shepherds looked in the manger at the Son of God and perhaps they too said with tear-stained face and joy-filled hearts: Me heavenly Father is very fond of me. Jesus came to reconcile sinful humanity to a holy God; to transform God s righteous judgment into gracious forgiveness; and to turn mega fear into mega joy. I have chosen to close with a video clip that, to me at least, is an example of the mega joy that ought to fill the hearts of everyone who has placed their faith in the Word-madeflesh.

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