Why is authentic joy something Christians need to be concerned about? Why does it matter that we are happy?
The short answer is that God commands us to be joyful, throughout both the Old and New Testament. It is an earth shattering concept that we are commanded to feel a particular emotion. We do not have immediate control over our emotions. We can fake it, and often do, but we can’t just snap our fingers and become authentically happy. Those who struggle with depression understand this particularly well.
We can understand God calling us to do certain things, but the idea that we need to feel a certain way is hard. We are called to possess something that we cannot possess in our own power. We cannot produce our own joy, but it must be produced within us.
There is a joy that God offers us that is beyond our most joyful moments, but there is a threat to our joy that is also beyond our understanding.
But where does our Joy come from? It comes from a person: Jesus Christ. CS Lewis titled the story of his conversion “Surprised by Joy” because he was startled by the notion that there is a connection between God and joy. We cannot get that kind of joy from any other person, or any material thing. As Lewis writes:
Put first things first and we get second things thrown in: put second things first & we lose both first and second things. We never get, say, even the sensual pleasure of food at its best when we are being greedy.
Back to the passage: the shepherds are in the fields watching the sheep. An angel appears and, as people always do when they see an angel, they basically wet themselves. But the angel says not to be afraid – that it brings good news, “evangelion” – often used to describe a king returning victorious from a battle. And this news brings “great joy” – because “to you”, the shepherds themselves, is born a savior. And not just any savior, but the promised Anointed One.
Joy at this news permeates these first few chapters of Luke. Elizabeth, Zechariah and even the unborn John are joyful at the heralding of Christ. Simeon and Anna likewise rejoiced at seeing the infant king.
Why do we need a savior? What blocks us from joy? Sin, the separation from our creator, is the deepest and darkest fate possible. We live under a curse, exposed to and deserving of the wrath of God. The only one qualified to lift that curse is the one who God sent in the flesh, who lived the life we could not life and died the death we could not die.
In John 15-17, Jesus prays that the joy that exists between him and the Father would extend to his disciples. Joy is the emotion of salvation.
How do we then define authentic joy? Joy is the good feeling that is produced by the Holy Spirit that causes us to rest fully in Jesus’ life and death and resurrection and reign for our salvation.
– Sermon Notes, Chris Gorman, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA
Luke 2:8-20
Something went wrong with the bible. Please make sure that you are requesting a valid passage! If this problem presits please contact joshuawiecorek@outlook.com