Jesus is God’s Greatest Gift of Joy!

Luke 2:8-11 Isaiah 9:2-7

Luke 2:8-11

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

Isaiah 9:2-7

2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.
4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.
5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

 

We have looked at Jesus as God’s gift and pathway of love to us. We have looked at Jesus as God’s gift of peace that makes us peacemakers. This morning, we focus again on the message of the angels to the Shepherds. Good news of great joy to all of the people!

Good news= gospel

Great joy= what we want to hear from God

All the people= Shepherds included.

 

Joy is an interesting gift from God. I want to be careful speaking about it because often people are not feeling joyful and they feel that they are missing something from God because of this. And while that is technically true, what I want to say is that joy is a feeling, but also an approach to life that can cause us to stay in joy and not fall out of it!

 

In what way is the coming of Jesus a source of great joy to all of the people? What do we see in Who Jesus is and What Jesus has done that is a source of joy for us to experience today and a pathway for the rest of our lives? I want us to see the two passages above as complementary.

The heart of our message is the description of Jesus in Luke 2:

11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

 

  1. Jesus is the Savior of the People

The Angels declare the babe in the manger to be our Savior!

  1. He gives light to those wandering in darkness

        The people walking in darkness have seen a great light!

Genesis 1 creation story is about all of creation and it is about our lives. It is certainly about the lives of the Children of Israel in Egypt!

  1. The earth was formless and empty and dark. All three of these things are a problem.

Darkness: day one: let there be light.

Formless: The heavens, earth and seas are created. This is where all of creation will be housed.

Empty: This is what God creates and blesses. All living things as well as heavenly bodies. The form of the seas is filled by fish. The form of the sky is filled by birds, the sun moon and stars. And the form of dry land is filled first by plants, then by animals, and finally by man who is created last.

 

Our own lives are dark, formless and empty until we come to know God. We know God when we find Jesus. And we are told to have faith, which means that we trust in Him as our light when it is hard.

Faith is the conviction of things that we do not see. When we see it we don’t have to have faith, we have sight.

Without faith it is impossible to please God. We must believe that God is. We must believe that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. We have to be diligent because things don’t work out right away!

 

  1. God shatters the yoke that oppresses us

4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.

What oppresses us is more internal that circumstantial. There is no way to make our circumstances right all of the time. If we are strong in our mind body and spirit, then we endure negative circumstances and wait for God to be our salvation.

Yoke of drug addiction. Yoke of anger addiction. Yoke of insecurity. These are not small issues. And yet Jesus offers us a different yoke. He offers us His yoke, which is easy and burden which is light. He offers us rest for our souls!

 

  1. Jesus brings peace without war!

5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.

 

We don’t have to win over other people in order to have peace.

Jesus is our Prince of Peace! How does Jesus gain peace? He submits to God, trusting in His will and plan. He loves and serves God and people.

How will Jesus bring peace to you?

Isaiah 42:

1 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth.

We are in the pathway of joy when we recognize our need for salvation and when we embrace the totality of God’s saving grace. Forgiveness, yes, and a life of righteousness following Jesus Christ that brings honor and glory to God!

The angels declare the babe in the manger who is the Savior is identified as the Messiah.

  1. Jesus is the Christ

  2. Christ means Anointed One

Anointing in the Old Testament is a sign of being set apart for a specific purpose. Jesus is set aside for a specific purpose.

The Messiah was the hope of Israel.

They waited for deliverance from their enemies. And so, they hope for peace through conquest.

Jesus seeks to bring peace through forgiveness! He is specially set aside for this task. God made Him sin who knew no sin so that we might become His righteousness.

Jesus is specially set aside to be the one to provide forgiveness and the gift of God’s righteousness to people who need it!

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called 

Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, 

Prince of Peace.

  1. He is our Wonderful Counselor before God

He serves as a counselor to us in at least two ways.

  1. He is our counselor, like a lawyer before God. He pleads for us before God. We have an accuser, we have a wonderful counselor. We have no right to make a plea for mercy before God. However:

Hebrews 4: 12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

 

  1. He is our Wonderful Counselor for life

Since sin in the world is ultimately our problem. And since the devil is the great promoter of sin, we are called to follow Jesus as our pathway of life. This is what it means to be yoked with Him!

For unto you is born this day in the city of David, A Savior who is Christ the Lord! Jesus is our Lord. What does that mean?

III. Jesus is the Lord

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

  1. He is the Mighty God

Because Jesus walks in gentleness and humility, it seems that people misunderstand who He is and underestimate what He can do. He is THE MIGHTY GOD! And He has all of God’s power and influence to bring to bear in our lives.

Romans 8: 31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[j]

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

  1. He is the Everlasting Father

As Father He is committed to bless His children. He wants His children to live well.

As Father He is committed to provide for His children.

As Father He is committed to disciplining His children.

 

His Fatherhood is not temporary. He will never leave!

Hebrews 13:  5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

6 So we say with confidence,

“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?”

Repeat that phrase together!

  1. God is zealous to do this

It honors God for Him to be your Father.

It honors God for Jesus to be your Savior.

It honors God for Jesus to be the light that directs your life.

It honors God for you to trust and wait on Him to act.

It honors God for you to know His love.

It honors God for you to know His peace.

It honors God for you to be filled with joy because of His grace in your life.

God has plans and purposes for your life. Those plans are founded directly on Jesus being the Savior and Counselor that we need. Our part is to trust Him.

Jesus said to His Disciples: Come and see. Come and follow Me!

Do not be afraid. For I bring you good news of great joy to all people. Today there is born in the City of David, a little baby who is the Savior, Christ the Lord!

Do not be afraid, instead…

Zechariah 9:

9 Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.