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We pray that over the last few weeks that our discussion about advent, specifically the representation of the candles on the advent wreath, has been helpful in getting you closer connected to our Emmanual, Jesus, during this holiday season. We have covered hope and peace so far in the last two episodes, and in this episode we will be looking to see how “Joy”, the third candle, speaks into our stewardship.

Advent Week 3 – Joy –  which represents the third advent candle is also called “the Shepherd’s Candle,” and the shepherds’ section of the Christmas story is very much about joy!

The shepherds are mentioned in Luke 2:8-20. In these verses, they were watching sheep in their pastures when an angel appeared to them, and what joy they had (after their fear!)

 

Hope Recap

Hope is a firm expectation that a desired future will be achieved! Our hope is not ultimately in our own health, wealth, and prosperity in this life alone, but ultimately in God providing for us now, and also the reality of being with Him one day in the life to come. It is based on the promise of Jesus Christ overcoming all of the brokenness and suffering that this world encounters. When we have this hope and expectation, that gives us hope for today as we walk through the here and now as we walk through the financial, physical, and spiritual difficulties that we face every day.

 

Peace Recap

Because of our confidence in our eternal reward, we have peace in the here and now. No matter what is happening in the economy, your job, your health… no matter what kind of difficulties you are facing, you can have peace in the storms of life.

 

What is Joy?

Joy is one of the fruits of the spirit. People have also stated that Joy is more of a state of being than of emotion.

 

Is Joy a Result of Choice? Or is it a natural conclusion?

Joy is a natural result of an internal reality AND it is also a choice. You can’t help but make the choice to be joyful when the inward reality is that you have confidence in God that He will meet your needs, both now and in the future! How could you not leap to joy when you process this in its truest sense? In bringing in our last two episodes here, when one has hope, which will result in peace in the storms of life, a solid and Biblical outcome would be that one would choose joy.

Now I (Drew) am not a catechism type of person, but after talking with Tim and Tyler (who are catechism people) there is a good connect of the Heidelberg Catechism #1 with the representative word…joy.

Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 1

Q: What is your only comfort in life and death?

A: That I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from all the power of the devil. He also preserves me in such a way that without the will of my heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, all things must work together for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit he also assures me of eternal life and makes me heartily willing and ready from now on to live for him.

 

Where does Joy come from? Knowing and Believing that:

  • I am not my own
  • Jesus has paid for my sins
  • He preserves me
  • I have eternal life
  • I am free from the power of the devil
  • I am protected
  • All things work together for my salvation
  • I am assured 
  • I am enabled to live for Him

 

“Rejoice in the Lord, Always” (Phil 4:4)

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. (Philippians 4:4, ESV)

As we think through “joy, ”we can see and understand this:

  • Joy is a command.
  • Joy is something we pursue.
  • Joy is a state of being (as we said in our opening).
  • Joy is a result of God’s work in us and in the world. 

There are many verses in the Bible that we could look at pertaining to joy.  We would like to share with you just a few that we thought would cause you to think through this great command and privilege when it comes to our faith…and our stewardship.

Romans 5:1-5: –  Peace with God Through Faith

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

Great verses, and interesting that verses 1 and 2 have all three aspects of the Advent Wreath, hope, peace, and joy!

 

Battling the Opposite of joy, sadness.

Sadness is labeled as one of the opposites of joy. Sadness is not a place where we are to camp out, and in fact, sadness is a place where we all visit, but staying there is detrimental to our wellbeing.  One way that we can move away from sadness is to look at the things that are robbing our joy, and with that, we ought to move towards Christ and pursue Him in our lives and attitudes. 

Another way to shift from sadness to joy is to allow yourself to enjoy God, and enjoy his blessings. Look at the sunrise, and the flower, and see the beauty of God in creation. Be still. Go back to your hope in the future, and the peace you have with God, and allow God’s joy to well up within you. 

We can’t work our way to joy. It is a gift and a command. In the presence of God, there is joy. If there is no joy, it is because we are cutting ourselves off from the presence of God (in experience, not in reality). Joy is a natural result of the experience of the presence of God in our lives.

 

What are some additional and practical ways to “get” joy?

One ought to conduct a sober analysis of their condition, and repent of sin. 

The Bible describes sin as a barrier that blocks the Spirit from working in our hearts. The Bible says that sin:

  • Quenches the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19)
  • Grieves the Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) 
  • Separates us from God (Galatians 5:16-17)
  • Hardens us (Ephesians 4:18)
  • Hinders prayers (Matthew 6:12)

And all of these rob us from our joy in our lives! Sin blocks us from the experience of God’s presence, which in turn blocks us from the experience of joy in God.

 

Stewardship Application:

Because of the peace and the hope we have in what Jesus has done for us, we can have joy! Not only in the salvation that He has brought, but in our financial life as well!

How do I have joy when:

  • I lost my job…
  • Or when the economy is running double-digit inflation? 
  • When there is more month…and no more money?
  • When there are auto repairs needed beyond my financial means right now
  • When overtime is not offered anymore and that was keeping us afloat
  • When retirement should be coming, but there is not enough income to meet even simple retirement needs
  • When your working hard at staying true to your budget, yet there always seems to be a challenge each and every month…

When in bad circumstances, we are called to rejoice in the Lord (Philip. 4:4). What that means is that we rejoice that God gets to show himself faithful in my life and circumstances.  And, when we rejoice in the Lord, we can be like the Apostle Paul and NOT JUST be content in ALL circumstances despite our financial challenge, lack or stupidity, but REJOICE also that HE is the one working things out for YOUR JOY and His glory, through your life and circumstances!

 

Next Steps

 

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