One of the great hallmarks of being a Christian is joy. The angel announced to the shepherds in the field, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” The birth of Jesus clearly connects joy with Jesus’ birth. But what is joy and how can we get joy? Is joy the same as happiness? What causes joy and even more, what is it that sustains joy in our lives?

One of my core beliefs is that worship each Sunday should be a joyful experience, an experience that is uplifting, encouraging, inspiring and one to which you will want to return the next Sunday. But joy can be a real challenge in life, can’t it? Many of us have lost loved ones this year and our Christmases Past will not be the same nor will this Christmas Present nor in the Christmases Future. Some of us are unemployed and our future is uncertain. Some of us are alone this Christmas for the first time—through divorce, death, or empty nesting.

People are searching for joy and they endeavor to find it at the malls and at the local bars. Christmas parties will be abundant. The reality is that we look for joy, but the joy we find is short-lived, like a puff of smoke. Finding real and lasting joy in life is a tremendous challenge.

One reason why we are so often devoid of joy is because joy is not self-induced. Joy doesn’t come from shopping till you drop, nor from an I-pod. Joy isn’t found in a bottle of Bud Light, in a ‘joint,’ in porn or in a sexual tryst. Joy doesn’t come from watching the Christmas specials on television, nor from attending a Christmas Eve candle lighting service. Joy doesn’t even come from family togetherness. How long does that joy last? Can a Salad Shooter or I-pod bring joy? Sure it can—for about 15 minutes! A Christmas Eve candlelight service makes you feel good and brings warm, joy-bearing fuzzies, but it quickly dissipates by the time you reach your car in the parking lot. Joy isn’t an achievement.

Real joy is a by-product, a spin-off, a gift in response of something that happens to you. You felt that joy when the doctor told you, “That spot is just a shadow, nothing more.” But what if the news had been different? What if the doctor said, “We have confirmed that you have cancer.” Does that mean no joy? Doesn’t have to be. The good news is that even in the midst of your darkest night, you can still have real joy—with the emphasis on the real part. Why so? Because joy is a by-product. It comes from outside of you.

“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken…and everyone went to his own town.” Not much joy there. The hated Roman occupier was asking for even more taxes. Nobody was exempt. The lame, the sick, the old, the very young, the pregnant, the blind—everyone had to register in their hometown, wherever that was. No excuses, and no filing extensions. The emperor decreed it and it was so!

And then in the Bethlehem night, a baby cries. In the dark of the Bethlehem sky there appeared a brilliant light and the flutter of wings over a frightened huddle of shepherds, “Don’t be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy.” Joy is a by-product of Good News—THE Good News of a Savior being born, the Messiah is come.

To understand the good news, we have to set it in contrast to the bad news. The bad news is that though as hard as we try we cannot save ourselves from sin, from the flesh, from bondage, and from death. Political oppression is nothing compared to spiritual oppression to sin. You have probably heard it: if our greatest need had been for information, God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have seen us an economist. If our greatest need had been freedom from political oppression, God would have sent us a politician. Our greatest need, however, was bondage to sin and so God sent us a Savior to deliver us from bondage and set us free. The Good News is that Jesus, God’s Son, is born; and that brings us real joy. Until you know Jesus, really know Him, you will not experience real joy.

Joy is for everyone because Jesus came for everyone—“good news for all the people,” the angel declared. The religious and the secular, the reverent and the irreverent, the righteous and the unrighteous. God does not discriminate nor show favoritism. Jesus came for ALL people; no one is excluded. If you believe you are beyond hope and help, Jesus came for you. If you think you are way past grace, there is a Savior who gives “grace upon grace.” If there is no more hope in your tank, Jesus specializes in topping off your tank with hope. If you feel trapped by life’s circumstances, Jesus wants to take you by the hand and lead you out to freedom.

The truth and reality is that joy is not bound by our circumstances. You can enjoy joy no matter what you are going through. But if you base your joy on your circumstances then your joy will evaporate when the party is over, when the gifts are put away, when a loved one dies, when the ‘buzz’ wears off, when you lose your job, when your house is foreclosed. Joy, real joy, is not dependant upon your circumstances.

The shepherds that night in Bethlehem were locked in poor, menial jobs, left out in the cold of night. But when they heard the angel’s message they were overjoyed. Had their circumstances changed, not at all.

Mary and Joseph situation was difficult: not only ordered by the Emperor to register for increases taxes and nothing was more final than Imperial decrees, but great with child traveling a very long journey, away from family support and all alone in an hostile environment without lodging reservations or any other guarantees. They faced accusations of immorality, and found themselves caught between God’s will and public pressure. They were simple, no-name, middle-class, and powerless people doing what they had to do. Their situation was filled with joy-robbing circumstances. But still there was joy that we see in verse 19, “Mary treasured all these things in her heart.” The word ‘treasured’ means ‘to preserve’ that which is of value and worth.

Deep, real joy is not the result of what we do. Rather it is the result of what God does. Mary started by singing a song. The shepherds danced their way back to the sheep fields. People are full of joy because of what God did. Christmas reminds us that there is a force and power greater than ourselves at work in the world. In our battles with life’s circumstances be it oppression (spiritual and otherwise), family issues, death, employment, or malignancies of the body, mind or spirit, it isn’t all left up to us. Christmas reminds us that God acted in our world on our behalf. God took the initiative and chose to be involved in our world.

Do you have joy, real joy, wonderful joy? What is stealing your joy this Christmas? What is lying deep beneath the surface poisoning and polluting your daily life? If joy is on the external circumstances, then let me remind you that the cold, gray days of January are coming. You cannot have real joy doing battle with your circumstances.

What is stealing your joy this Christmas? Circumstances? Other people? Your choices? Joy is a by-product of the good news that is for all people. There is a Savior and He is the source of real joy. Let me invite you this Christmas to let go of whatever it is that is sucking the joy out of your life. Give it to God and let Jesus bring you real and everlasting joy.

Thank You for Taking The Time to Read This Message.
May God Use These Words to Help You and Strengthen You.