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1 Peter 4:12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

Rejoice to participate in suffering?

At first glance this is a strange pairing of thoughts to put rejoicing next to suffering. But yet it is not the only place in Scripture that puts joy at the center of our challenges.  So what enables joy, even in the midst of challenges?

Perhaps before getting to a couple of examples, Peter puts forward when the joy will manifest most fully…”when his glory is revealed.”

For the follower of Jesus, the reality is following Jesus and putting his Word into practice is not always easy.  Subtle or overt persecutions make it tempting to give up and walk away from Jesus to avoid the suffering.  Yet, Peter puts the vision out in front of us and reminds us that when we see Jesus in all his glory, in person or on the last day, the joy will be overwhelming!  All the suffering will be forgotten for the presence of the glory of Jesus surrounding us.

An example comes to mind: A pregnant mother.  (I tread lightly as I don’t want to put words or emotions into a pregnant woman’s mind!)  Having a baby is not easy.  Morning sickness.  Cramping.  Weight gain.  Sleepless nights…and more.  Then contractions, labor, and the pain of pushing a baby out into the world.

Why would any woman go through this suffering? (perhaps some are saying, “I DON’T KNOW!”) For the glory of a little baby in their arms.  For many it seems that the intensity of the pregnancy and the birthing processes are left behind when they hold their little son or daughter in their arms for the first time.  A face cringing in pain turns to a face beaming with tears.  Joy overwhelms all the suffering they just went through.

The Apostle Paul uses a similar picture to contrast the enduring of suffering with the glory that will bring joy:

Romans 8:18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

We can have joy in our sufferings as we keep focused on the glory of God that will be revealed and we will get to experience.  Suffering is no fun, but in comparison to the glory that will be revealed, they are miniscule.  Suffering is hard, but when you struggle, look into the manger of Bethlehem and see the glory of God revealed in his Son who came to promise you one day your suffering will cease and the glory of heaven will be yours.

This perspective brings joy to our suffering!

Apply: While your circumstances may not change, how does the perspective of God’s eternal glory change your perspective on suffering?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to this world to suffer for us so we might be overjoyed when your glory is revealed to us.  AMEN!

Devotions this week based on Sunday’s Message: JOY is the Heart of Christmas! (LISTEN HERE)

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Matthew 1:22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Is this a verse you would put on your mirror to give you joy every morning?

Perhaps not your first choice.

If you wanted a “joy” perspective on your day, you might choose something like Philippians 4:4, “4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”

However, joy and rejoicing in the Bible and for the believer is a result of God’s work on behalf of his people.  In two short passages, the Spirit of God gives us three great reasons to have joy connected to the birth of Jesus in the manger of Bethlehem.

First, the birth of Jesus testifies to the faithfulness and truth of God.  For centuries the Lord had promised his people he would send one to overcome the problem of sin.  Promises are only good and only believed if the giver of the promise is willing to follow through on their promise.  While a long time in coming, God followed through.  The impact for us, is we know that ANY promise God gives is one that he has or will follow through on.  So pick your favorite promise.  If there is any doubt God was serious when he gave the promise, simply look in the manger of Bethlehem and remember not only did this take “place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet,” but it took place to assure us that every promise God makes will be fulfilled.  This is a reason for joy!

Second, God can do the impossible! “A virgin will conceive and give birth to a son…” Biologically, this doesn’t work.  Yet in God’s eternal plan and by his infinite power, it worked.  God combined the humanity of Mary with the divine of his Spirit to bring Jesus as the God/man into existence.  A human of human conception wouldn’t be enough to carry out God’s plan of salvation, but God working the miracle of taking on human flesh was exactly what had to happen to bring about the human impossibility of the salvation of souls.  Often we are faced with our human limitations and do not see the answer or the solution.  Where do we turn?  We can give up or we can give it to God who can, as he wills and sees best, work the impossible.  How do we know? The virgin DID conceive and DID give birth to a son.  God did and still does work miracles.  This is a reason for joy!

Third, God is with us.  The fact that God would leave his throne in heaven to live among us is amazing of itself.  Yet knowing that God IS with us, is a reason for joy every day.  Why?  Going through life alone can be intimidating.  We look for parents, friends, spouses to journey with us.  When all alone, life can be full of fear.  When you think of a past time you were afraid, it helps when someone is with us to go through that.  Consider the evening of the resurrection of Jesus.  The disciples were afraid and locked behind closed doors.  Look what changed the fear to joy:

John 20:19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

When we feel we are navigating life all alone, all we need to do is peer into the manger of Bethlehem and be reminded that God IS with us!  This is a reason for joy!

So, maybe Matthew 1:22-23 would be a great passage to put on your mirror to look at and read every morning to remind you three reasons for joy:

God is faithful.

God is powerful.

God is present.

For these reasons, we can rejoice in the Lord…ALWAYS!

Apply: Which of these three reminders do you need the most today?  How does this reminder help to bring joy to your life?

Prayer: Lord thank you for being faithful, powerful, and present…and taking time to prove it by being born in a manger in Bethlehem.  AMEN.

Devotions this week based on Sunday’s Message: JOY is the Heart of Christmas! (LISTEN HERE)

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Come, Thou long expected Jesus

Born to set Thy people free;

From our fears and sins release us,

Let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel’s strength and consolation,

Hope of all the earth Thou art;

Dear desire of every nation,

Joy of every longing heart. (Christian Worship 6:1)

 

I can hardly wait!

Only 13 days until Christmas!

As a kid, the countdown was palatable.  You knew that when December 25 came, it was time to open presents, have special food, and enjoy time with family.  You couldn’t wait.

But what if you didn’t know the day?

Parents do this all the time, right?  “Maybe tomorrow?”  “Maybe next week?”  We make our kids wait indefinitely…perhaps hoping they would give up and stop asking.

Can you imagine waiting not just for a few days, a couple weeks or even a full year…but for decades, centuries, millennium?

At what point would you give up and just figure it will never happen?

I can imagine, it would be challenging.

No wonder the words of the angels would “cause great joy” because the waiting was finally over.

The Messiah, “Anointed One,” God had promised years before had now been born as a baby in the manger of Bethlehem.

Charles Wesley in the 1744 hymn, “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” captured the essence and heart of the message of the angel.  Packed into the baby in the manger of Bethlehem was multiple reasons to have joy.

1. He would set his people free from the fear and consequence of sin.

Galatians 4:3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. 4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.

2. He would provide rest for our hearts and souls.

Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

3. He would give strength and encouragement.

Ephesians 3:16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

4. He would give hope to the earth.

2 Thessalonians 2:16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.

The next time you have a hard time waiting for God to work, look at the manger of Bethlehem and remember that joy comes when we allow the faithfulness of God to work in the way and timeline he determines is best for us. 

Apply: What are you having a hard time waiting on God to do?  What does it look like to allow God to work in his time and way in your life?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your faithfulness and always working the events of my life to the glory of your name…and the perfect timing of your plan for me.  AMEN.

Devotions this week based on Sunday’s Message: JOY is the Heart of Christmas! (LISTEN HERE)

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“You’ve got to see this!”

When someone comes running to you out of breath and wants you to come and see, their energy, their directness and bated breath compel you to go and see what they have seen.

This is the perspective that comes from the angels as they came to the shepherds on the night of Jesus’ birth.

“You’ve got to see this!”

Once the shepherds got over their fear, they went to see what the angel had told them.

Luke 2:10 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. 

The reason I perceive the angels enthusiasm is because the message they had to bring was one of “good news” and the KNEW it would cause great JOY for all the people.

All people!

Not just the shepherds.  Not just Mary and Joseph.  But EVERYONE who heard the news.  

Because the news was nothing BUT good news.

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

Perhaps for centuries the angels had been waiting for the direction to “go and tell.”

Like a child who has an amazing secret who can barely contain their energy and enthusiasm, were the angels waiting for the Lord God to say, “OK, now.  Go and tell the world the good news.”

Good news is easy to tell because you know it will bring external happiness and internal joy.  The message of Christmas is intended to generate and INTERNAL joy.  While the external circumstances were amazing of a baby born of Mary and Joseph (who doesn’t like to tell people of a birth of a new baby?), yet the joy was from the faithful work of the Lord.  The birth wasn’t just another baby.  The baby was “Messiah.”  The baby was “Savior.”

In Jesus was the culmination of the plan and promises of God.  In the baby of Bethlehem was captured God himself in human flesh come to this earth to live with us, die for us, and rise to assure us.

Joy is generated because of the work of God on our behalf.  When we see the love, grace and mercy of God at work on OUR behalf, this…THIS causes great joy inside of us.  To think that God thought enough of you and me to send his Son into this world is truly good news that causes great joy.

This joy is not determined by our current or external circumstances, but simply by the faithfulness and grace of God working on our behalf.  In the manger of Bethlehem is the greatest gift you and I could ever receive.  He is a gift that causes great joy in every circumstance of life.  It’s this gift we will reflect on this week as the heart of Christmas focuses on the joy God gives to us in the manger of Bethlehem.

Apply: If you were the shepherds, how would the words of the angels affected you?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your love and faithfulness to send Jesus for us.  This is truly good news that instills great joy in our hearts.  Let that never be forgotten or falter.  AMEN.

 

Devotions this week based on Sunday’s Message: Peace is the Heart of Christmas! (LISTEN HERE)

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John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

To end the week, let’s hear Jesus’ words and allow them to sink into our hearts. 

Here’s the key truth that has resonated in my heart.  Does it resonate with you?

If we seek peace in things that are temporal, our peace will be temporary.

If we seek peace from the ONE who is eternal, our peace will be eternal.

Jesus gives us a peace the world cannot give…yet we still are tempted to seek a peace from the world. 

We seek peace from our wealth.  We seek peace in a stable career.  We seek peace from the work of politicians and governing officials.  We seek peace through avoidance.  We seek peace through alcohol and other addictions.  We seek peace by escape and mindless entertainment.  

The list goes on, but the peace doesn’t.  All the world can do is offer a temporary peace.

Which God knew and chose to do something about.

The Baby born in the manger of Bethlehem was the eternal Son of God.  The peace that he brought to earth was the favor of the almighty, eternal, loving God who wanted to give us a peace the world could not give.

Our hearts will still get troubled, worried and afraid.  When they do, the source of peace is still the same: Jesus.

The peace he gives allows our hearts to be calm amidst the chaos and challenges of the world around us.  Why? Because with Jesus we have our biggest problem of sin covered, we have the one who can do all things on our side, and the one who rules over all doing so for our blessing and benefit.

So as you peer in the manger of Bethlehem, receive God’s gift of peace.

He assures you everything is whole, balanced and right with him.  When shalom is secure with the Lord, we truly have a peace that transcends all understanding.

Apply: What changes when you find eternal peace with the gift of Jesus?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for sending Jesus to bring a true, lasting, eternal peace to my heart.  AMEN.