“REJOICE!”

Third Sunday in Advent C 2006

Philippians 4:4-7

In the midst of this Advent season, there is a word that we receive today that is refreshing and uplifting, a word that stands apart from the dire warnings of John the Baptist as he stood on the banks of the Jordan River calling for the people to “bear fruits worthy of repentance.”  This is a different kind of word, a word from the Apostle Paul which, in many ways, was the philosophy upon which his life was built and his ministry was based.  That word is “Rejoice!”  “Rejoice!”  Isn’t that a great word? It is a word that jumped out at me when I read it in preparation for this sermon.  It is a word that I needed to hear and have emphasized in my life in what are short, busy days and long, dark nights.

There is often too much of life that works against our ability to rejoice.  Every day we face worries about time, money, family, illness and death.  These worries take away from us a spirit of joy.  Over-burdened and over-whelmed by the trials and hardships of every day life, we forget or are unable to rejoice.  Why should I rejoice if a loved one is sick or in the hospital, you might ask?  How is it possible to rejoice when the world is in conflict and there are wars raging, you may wonder?  It is possible only because of the One who has come to be with us, the One we know as Jesus. 

As the Apostle Paul says, “The Lord is near.”  He is the One who has already come to be with us in the flesh and blood of a human being.  He lived among us so he knows and has experienced what we go through in this life.  As the Crucified One, he has taken upon himself our sins and the sins of the world, suffering the pains of death on the cross.  As the Resurrected, Living One, he was raised from the dead by the power of God so that we might have a new life now and hope for everlasting life for when we die.  He is with us now through the presence of his Holy Spirit.  As the Ascended One, he promises to come again in glory at the end of time to bring us to be with him forever.  Is that not reason enough to rejoice?  Joy is not to be an occasional experience for exceptional people.  Rather, joy is for all people, people like you and me, at all times, in the midst of daily life.  Knowing that “the Lord is near” gives us the ability and opportunity to “Rejoice in the Lord always.”  So that we don’t miss it, Paul repeats himself, “again I say rejoice.”

            I have over the years learned that joy is not based only upon the external circumstances of our lives, but rather it is an inner quality where by we recognize and acknowledge that God is in our midst here and now.  I learned this mostly from my father and mother who possessed this inner quality and expressed it in and through their lives.  As people of faith, they loved the Lord and loved his church.  They gave their lives in loving service to the Lord Jesus and worked in the ministry of the church.  Both my mom and dad are gone now.  My dad died thirteen years ago and my mom died just over a year ago.  Those were sad and difficult days, but in the midst of the grief of their passing, there was great joy because of their faith.  They knew the Lord and had the confidence of a sure and certain salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus.  They were not afraid to die, but longed for that day when their time came because they knew that they would be with Jesus and with their loved ones who had died before them.  They knew the promise of Jesus when he said, “because I live, you will live also.”  Their funeral services were not solemn occasions, but celebrations, not only because of the lives they lived on this earth, but for the life they would live into eternity.  It is perhaps a strange thing to say, but their funeral services and the fellowship that followed were fun experiences as we shared that time with my extended family and the many friends and members of the church who experienced their faith and their ministry.  They knew the Lord in both the happy and sad times, in both life and in death.  That, my friends, is a reason to rejoice!

            I do know, however, as we all do, that there are those for who joy is a stranger.  They lack the joy in life because of past failures and faults not forgiven.  We are often slow to believe in divine forgiveness, or live in the grace that the Lord provides through his death and resurrection.  We don’t believe that it could be true.  We hide behind a prison of our own making, keeping our sins to ourselves, living with the burden of guilt and shame.  To know the Lord is to know that God’s desires to forgive us and make us whole.  God’s grace is wider than the ocean and deeper than the sea.  To accept God’s grace is to find our home, that place of comfort and peace.  If there is one thing we believe as Christians, it is to know that if we confess our sins and ask for forgiveness, God will forgive us.  As the Bible says, “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.”  Forgiveness and grace are change agents.  It is the way God transforms our lives and our relationships.  It is God’s way of restoring the joy in our lives.  If you have sinned, confess it to God and Rejoice in the Lord always.

            Another reason for a joyless life may be a result of one’s outlook in life, one’s temperament or disposition toward life.  We know those people who continually take the dark view of life.  They are often cheerless.  In fact, it seems as if they are almost proud that they are pessimists.  For them, the world is heading in a downward spiral with no end in sight.  What good is there to be found in the world?  Where is the presence of God in the evil that surrounds us?  To know the Lord, however, is to know of God’s goodness and generosity.  Everything that we are and everything that we have is a gift of a good and gracious God.  Again the Bible says, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.”  To know the Lord is to receive the fruit of the Spirit which includes joy.  To know the Lord is to remember the words Jesus spoke to his disciples: “I have said this to you, that in me you may have peace.  In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”  Be filled with the fruit of his Spirit and Rejoice in the Lord always.

            No matter what, God is there to fill us with joy through his Son Jesus.  Who better to share this word with us than the Apostle Paul who faced persecution for his faith and the possibility of death while sitting in a dark, lonely prison cell.  But it is from there that this word came to him: Rejoice!  The reason he can say this is because he knew the Lord and the Lord’s loving presence in both the good and bad of life.  For him The Lord is near.

            There is a short reading I’d like to share with you.  It talks about the joy that comes from God.

If you accept God’s love, you will permit Him to bear the fruit of joy in your life.

            If you accept the love of His people, you will share in the joy that comes from knowing them.

            If you share the love of God with others, you will also share the glad tidings of great joy.

            If you share your love by sharing yourself, you will find joy in total giving.

            Without love, there would have been not Creation, for God made the world and you to love and bring Him joy.

            Without love, there would have been no angelic message at Bethlehem, for God sent His Son to bring good tiding of great joy to all people.

            Without love, there would have been no Calvary, for God gave His love and His Son so that the world might know the joy of sins forgiven and heaven opened.

            Without love, there would have been no Pentecost, for God sent His Spirit to minister to His people and help them know the joy of His presence with them day-by-day.

            Without love, there would be no body of believers, for God has brought us together in His love so that we might share His joy and ours with one another.

            Take love - God’s love and the love of His people - and get joy, too!

            The time of preparation is almost over, only one week left.  As we wait for the Lord’s coming and the celebration of Jesus’ birth, let us live with a spirit of joy.  Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice!  Amen.