"But the angel said to them, ’Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people’" (Luke 2:10, NIV).
Is it possible for God’s people to experience great joy in the midst of difficulty and pain?
We read in God’s Word, "Do not fear..." (Luke 8:50.) We also read in Luke 1:13, "Do not be afraid..."
Similar words are found in various passages in the Bible. In Revelation 1:17, Jesus told John: "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: ’DO NOT BE AFRAID. I am the First and the Last...’"
When Jesus was still with His disciples here on earth, "when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost...he spoke to them and said, ’Take courage! It is I. DON’T BE AFRAID’" (Mark 6:49-50).
He told also His followers in Luke 12:32, "DO NOT BE AFRAID, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."
We read also the account in Mark 5:35-36,"While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. ’Your daughter is dead,’ they said. ’Why bother the teacher any more?’ Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, ’DON’T BE AFRAID; just believe."
And in the Old Testament, we read these words in the New American Standard Version: "DO NOT BE AFRAID, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp. The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy" (Zeph. 3:16-17).
In Luke 2, verse 10-11, we are told NOT to be afraid, because the messenger brings "good news of great joy..." -- "a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord."
Let’s compare this passage with Acts 14:15-17. Paul and Barnabas told the people, "We are bringing good news..."
They were "telling... (them) to turn from these worthless things to the living God (see Acts 3:26).
Further, they said that this "living God" made heaven and earth and sea and everything in the.
Also, "In the past, he let all nations go their own way." And this God, "has not let left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food..."
Paul described this God more in Acts 17:24-31. This God who gives all men "everything else" -- does not refer only to physical or material things. If we will finish verse 17 of Acts 14, it says, God "FILLS YOUR HEARTS WITH JOY"!
We read also in Psalm 4:7-8, "You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety."
God does not want his children to be afraid, to fear, to troubled, or to suffer anxiety. He wants their hearts to be filled with joy!
The Apostle John wrote, "We write this to make our joy complete." God’s Word does not want our joy to be "half-baked" -- but COMPLETE or to the full.
Jesus Himself said, "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete" (John 15:9-11).
It was also His desire that our joy is not only complete, but it should not depart from us. We read His Words in John 16:22, "So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy."
The problem of human beings is that their joy is not complete. It is always taken away from them.
Why?
They are looking, or basing their joy on the wrong way.
It is not the earthly, or physical things that will bring us comple and evelasting joy. It is not the intention of God to ground our joy on those things -- not matter how desirable they may be.
Jesus even told His disciples not to be so happy with their spiritual accomplishments. We read in Luke 10:20, "However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Real joy could be realized through faith. Faith in God.
Complete joy and joy that will not be taken away is possible only in God and in His Word through His Spirit.
We read Psalm 119:111 in God Word of Freedom, "Your written instructions are mine forever. They are the joy of my heart." We read it in English Standard Version, "Your testimonies are my heritage forever,for they are the joy of my heart."
In the same Bible version, we read Psalm 43:4, "Then I will go to the altar of God,to God my exceeding joy,and I will praise you with the lyre,O God, my God."
Let us now return to New International Version and read Psalm 21:1-6:
"O Lord, the king rejoices in your strength. How great is his joy in the victories you give! You have granted him the desire of his heart and have not withheld the request of his lips. You welcomed him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head. He asked you for life, and you gave it to him -- length of days, for ever and ever. Through the victories you gave, his glory is great; you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty. Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence."
Only in God our joy is complete. Only in Him our joy will not be taken way from us. Only in Him our joy is possible, though what is actually happening around us dictates that joy is impossible!
Listen to Habakkuk:
"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights" (Hab. 3:17-19).
Do we begin to see and picture why the Good News is "news of a great joy"?
Do we realize why the Gospel tells us to turn from worthless things (that will give us incomplete and fleeting joy)to the living God?
Do we now appreciate the great blessing when God turned us, or enabled us to turn from our sinful ways of pursuing joy in other direction?
God wants us to experience the complete joy that we can enjoy in Him alone!
That’s why Paul declared in Acts 17:27, "God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him..."
The remaining part of verse 10 of Luke 2 states, "...of great joy THAT WILL BE FOR ALL THE PEOPLE."
Of course, it does not refer to evey single person. There are persons that the news -- "a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord" -- is NOT good, not a good news of great joy.
During the time of the birth of Christ, King Herod was among those persons, who regarded the news -- not a good news of great joy.
We read in Matthew 2:1-3, "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ’Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.’ When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him."
In the New American Standard, it says that King Herod was "troubled" --not joyful.
Herod sought Jesus not to bask in the joy of His Presence, but to kill Him.
God’s elect seeks and reaches out for Him, and they are able to do so, for faith was granted to them. And they experience His joyful Presence thorugh His Spirit.
We read in Luke 10:21, "At that time Jesus, FULL OF JOY THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT, said, ’I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.’"
Paul wrote, "... you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit" (1 Thess. 1:6.)
And we are so familiar with Galatians 5:22, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy..."
Through the Holy Spirit, enabling us to have faith in the Son of God -- to believe that God is our Mighty Savior, not only from sin, but even from fear and the Giver of exceeding joy, we can truly experience what Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:8 --
"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy"!
PRAYER: Our Father of Great Delight, we thank You so much for the blessing You gave to us -- the glorious joy in Your Holy Presence. We praise and honor You for the great favor You’ve given to your children. Let Your joyful Presence be enjoyed by more people. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.
