Unending joy

I have had some moments of great joy in my life. What about you? As a sports fan (I have rooted for the Buckeyes, Vikings, Redskins, and Reds for most my life), I have known lots of “the thrill” or joy of winning. But even when the teams I root for win, there is always the next season, or even the next game. I attended the game that Tom Browning, (September 16, 1988) threw the first (and only) game in Reds history (they have played 21,538 games in their history). I have a friend who also had tickets for the game, but due to a rain delay to start the game, he went home thinking the game would be cancelled. He missed the game, missed history, and missed the joy of celebrating this historical moment. And now we wait for the next perfect game, the next season.

There is joy in accomplishment, whether that be professionally or personally. Yet this type of joy is fleeting and passes quickly as we move onto the next challenge, goal or event. It never sustains. It never carries us for long. It never is enough. We must always, using a golf analogy, pick up the ball, move to the next tee and start all over — even if the last hole was a hole in one. We find ourselves putting aside the previous joy in search of or chasing the next one.

Job 20:4-5 says, “Do you not know this from of old, since man was placed on earth, that the exulting of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless but for a moment?” Whether you trust the Lord and live your life to please Him or not, think of the momentary nature of our achievements in life, the joys of life. I remember the birth of our firstborn, a son. The anticipation of his arrival was eclipsed by his birth. Yet I remember clearly as if it were just this afternoon, getting him home, laying him down in the crib, walking into the living room, and saying to my wife, “Now what?” The joy of his arrival in our lives brought overwhelming joy, but with it this massive responsibility.

The angel declared to the shepherds, “Fear not, for behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy which will be to all people, there is born to you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” The long anticipated birth of Messiah, the Savior, occurred right in their very midst, and just as every child’s birth would bring joy, this one brought joy on a whole different scale. The joy Jesus brought wasn’t momentary or fleeting. It was the fulfillment of long ago prophecies and promises. It was God coming for sinful man. It was God’s Kingdom coming to bring peace and hope. It was joy indescribable! What is different about this joy and the joy of my team winning it all? This joy is based on the character and consistency of God’s sovereignty, that God is fully in control, which lifts the weight of our striving and working from our shoulders and places it on His. This joy brings gladness to our heart because if God is for us, who can be against us? This joy isn’t about the “next” thing, but a calm assurance that God works everything for HIs glory and our good, always. This joy remains because God is with us, Immanuel.

This joy is overwhelming because He came to save us from our sins, Jesus. This joy is constant because it is based on Him, not me. This joy is only muted by sin — unconfessed, unrepentant sin. If there is a lack of the joy of Lord in your life, it is because there is sin in your life. The lack of joy is sort of the “canary in the coal mine,” the alarm bell in life that there is sin and it needs to be dealt with immediately. God’s desire is that you live in joy continually, but sin or rebellion against HIs working in your life will short circuit His joy in your life. You cannot have both your way and His joy, it is one or the other.

As we come to the end of this Advent season, my prayer is that you know the hope, love, peace and joy that a life submitted and lived for Christ brings. And that these same four attributes are where you live as we look forward to the Second Advent, the return of Christ for His Bride, the church. Merry Christmas and Maranatha to all those who know and serve our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas…

Ron Tipton, Senior Pastor