JOY TO THE WORLD
My heart is always full of Christmas! As I sang one of my favorite Christmas songs in my heart and mind, Holy Spirit brought this message for you.
It appears to us believers that the world has gone insane. Many forces have aligned themselves against the will of God. The world seems to have lost its moral compass, and Christians have become targets of mockers, unbelievers, and politically correct “woke” leaders.
That is precisely how the evil one wants us to see current events. Don’t go there.
Don’t let the evil one and those who follow him steal your Joy. We are at the beginning of a great reversal. There is a worldwide outpouring of belief, and the Gospel is being taught and accepted all over the earth. Of course, the corrupt news media does not report the truth. Don’t go negative. Believe in the power of the Gospel and the message of the Love of Jesus, and do whatever you can to help spread it.
As we teach folks that Jesus loves them so much regardless of their behavior that He suffered the most horrible, painful death any human ever could or will to buy them for Himself, and that He has forgiven all of their sins past present and future and that all He requires of them is that they believe in Him, the world is joyfully and gladly receiving his message and believing Him.
As folks receive the unqualified love that Jesus freely gives them, they are beginning to love themselves. As they love themselves they are learning to love others, and that love is turning the world around.
RE-JOY YOURSELF!
Joy and happiness are decisions, choices that we get to make. No force or person or thing outside of us can make us happy.
Jesus said these Words to God the Father just before He was crucified:
“But now I am coming to You, and I say these things while I am still in the world so that they may experience My joy made full and complete and perfect within them, filling their hearts with My delight.”
(John 17:13)
One of the last lessons Jesus gave us was that His desire was for our joy and gladness to be His joy and gladness and that we would have it completely.
“I have loved you, just as the Father has loved me.
If you keep My commands and obey My teaching, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. I have told you these things so that My Joy and delight may be in you, and your Joy may be made full, complete, and overflowing.“
(John 15:9-11)
Holy Spirit led Paul to urge us to re-joy ourselves:
“Rejoice (re-joy-yourselves) in the Lord always delight, gladden yourselves in Him; again I say Rejoice!”
(Phillippians 4:3)
Just knowing, believing, and having Jesus in us is enough reason to Re-joy ourselves. If having Jesus does not make us happy, nothing else will.
Again, Holy Spirit taught us through Paul that Joy and peace come through believing:
“May the God of your hope (joyful expectation and celebration) so fill you with all joy and peace in believing that by the power of Holy Spirit, you may abound and be overflowing (bubbling over) with hope.”
(Romans 15:13)
Holy Spirit spoke to us through Peter about the Joy that comes from believing:
“Without seeing Him, you love Him; though you do not even now see Him, you believe and believe in Him and delight and thrill with inexpressible and glorious triumphant, heavenly Joy.”
(1Peter 1:8)
Some of the greatest Gospel messages are written in
the Christmas Carols we should sing daily. Here is one of my favorites. It explains simply why we should live in Joy and Happiness.
“Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing
Joy to the Earth, the Savior reigns
Let all their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding of Joy
Repeat the sounding of Joy
Repeat, repeat, the sounding Joy
He rules the world with Grace and Truth and
makes the nations rise.”
God relinquished control to men when He chose to give us free will. He is only in control of those who give Him control. For those who believe in Jesus and make Him their Kings, He rules with Grace and Truth, not judgment and works. That is enough reason for us to be filled with Joy and Gladness.
We should strive to live like little children on Christmas Eve, faithfully, joyfully, and happily celebrating
the great and precious promises that Jesus gave us, wrapped up for us, and presented to us, whether we can see them now or not. We should be just like those children who do not doubt that they have been blessed because we have been.
“SIMON PETER, a servant and apostle (Special Messenger with a Special Message) of Jesus, to those (Jesus believers) who have (past/present tense) received like precious faith (when we believe Jesus we receive His faith) with ourselves in and through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus (not our behavior):
May grace (God’s willingness, ability, and power that has done those things for us that we can not or will not do for ourselves.)and peace (perfect well-being, all necessary good, all spiritual prosperity, and freedom from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts) be multiplied to you in the complete personal, precise and correct knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
For His divine power has (past/present tense meaning already) bestowed (freely given) upon us ALL (Meaning ALL) things that are necessary for life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence.
Through these, He has bestowed His precious and exceedingly great promises upon us.”
(2Peter1:1-4)
This is why we should be full of Joy and Gladness! Our Joy should be complete and overflowing regardless of what we see, hear, speak, touch, or taste. It’s up to us.
RE-JOY YOURSELF
