The Great Joy of Christmas

You have your copy of God's We're going to Make your way to

Luke chapter 2, where we have been last week and now this week

Luke 2 · chapter mention

as we walk through portions of the Christmas story, remembering

the greatest gift that's ever been given, Jesus taking on

human flesh, living among us. Live, die and defeat death on

our behalf. By the way, I've been meaning to

make a comment on all of you who served so hard and worked so

diligently to make our place of worship and just our entire

church beautiful this time of year as we celebrate Christmas.

So thank all of you who've gone above and beyond to make that

possible. I don't know if you've ever

asked yourself this question or not, but why do we say Merry

Christmas instead of Happy Christmas?

Anybody else ever wondered that? I guess not.

Maybe it's just me. Why don't we say happy Easter,

happy birthday? We don't say happy Christmas, do

we? I mean, that just sounds weird.

Well, going all the way back in history, some of the first

appearances of Merry Christmas, you can trace back to a couple

instances. Number one, it was used in a

letter documented in 1534 from the Bishop John Fisher to Henry

the Eighth chief minister, Thomas Cromwell.

And then it was also heard and popularized in the 1500s with

the English Carol. We wish you a Merry Christmas.

So why Mary instead of happy? Well, we don't exactly know.

Perhaps we never will know. Grammarians simply think it

might come down to a difference in the words and the intention,

right? Happy, they say, describes an

inner emotional condition, while Mary is more of a descriptor of

outward behavior, something that's active or spirited, maybe

even a little rowdy. We may never know the answer of

why. And you know what?

It really doesn't matter because did you realize the Bible

doesn't use either word, does it?

It doesn't use happy and it doesn't use Mary.

It uses a different word. We've already read it.

We're going to read it again as we read through the Christmas

story again and kind of focus in on this word out of verse 10.

You can be looking for it. Follow along in your copy of

God's Word. The Bible says this Luke 2 verse

one. In those days a decree went out

from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

This is the first registration, registration when Coronius was

governor of Syria and all went to be registered, each to his

own town. And Joseph also went up from

Galilee, from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city

of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was at the

house and lineage of David to be registered with Mary, his

betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time

came for her to give birth. She gave birth to her first born

son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a Manger

because there was no place for them in the end.

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field

keeping watch over their flock by night, and an Angel of the

Lord appeared to them in the glory of the Lord, shone around

them, and they were filled with great fear.

And the Angel said to them, fear not, for behold, I bring you

good news of here it is you ready.

Great. Say it with me.

Joy that will be for all the people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who

is Christ the Lord. The word is not happy, it's not

Mary, it is say it again, joy. It's joy for God sent the

messenger, the Angel to say, behold good news of great joy.

That's praise God, for how many people, for all people, for unto

you, that's including you this morning under the sound of my

voice. Every single human being who's

ever breathed a breath for you is born this day in the city of

David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord.

What is? Let's recall what we covered

last week. What is truly the good news of

Christmas? It is this announcement that

unto you, unto me, under every, under every man, woman, boy and

girl, for all people, unto you unto us is born a Savior who is

Christ the Lord. If you've ever wondered man, is

there just one sentence, one verse in the Bible that captures

everything. Then if I had to reduce it all

down and say what it's all about, if there was one verse

that explained Genesis to Revelation, if there was a story

in the in a sentence the of the whole Bible, what would it be?

This is a verse you need to know.

Romans 623. It says everything the Bible

says in a sentence. It says everything you need to

say in an elevator before someone gets off that you'll

never see again. For the wages of sin is but the

free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Ladies and gentlemen, that is the good news.

That is the story of Christmas being explained, that the wages

of our sin is death. The world suffering under the

curse of sin and death and darkness and despair.

And yet God did what He promised He would do by sending his one

and only Son, the one and only one who could be a Savior, the

Savior, Jesus Christ, the Son of God who made it all literally

becoming a man, remaining fully God, becoming fully man and

dwelling among us. This is why he was called

Emmanuel, which means God with us.

Y'all. It's been said by theologians

through the centuries. The incarnation, that is the

becoming man while remaining fully God is the greatest

miracle. It is the central miracle of our

fate that God became a man. For unto you is born this day a

Savior. There's not another Savior.

There's not many. There's one, and his name is

Jesus. This is the good news of

Christmas, y'all. This is not good news.

This is the best news. There's no greater news.

There's no more ultimate. You're not going to hear better

news on the planet during your lifetime or 1000 lifetimes.

And a Savior has been born for you for the wages of sin.

That was your sin. That was my sin is what is death

but the free gift of God. How does Jesus provide that free

gift? I say this repeatedly about

every Sunday so that you could say it too if someone asked you

for a reason for the hope you have because Jesus has done

three things for you. Those three things, Number one

is he has lived a sinless life for you.

The life that you and I couldn't live, Jesus lived so he could #2

be a sinless substitute sacrifice for you on the cross,

paying the debt of your sin, which was death, so that

thirdly, he could defeat death for you.

Jesus has lived for you. He has died for you.

He has defeated death for you. This is the news that changes

everything. For unto you, born this day, is

a Savior who is Christ the Lord. And this greatest of all news,

friends, gives us something no other gift can give.

And we've said it already, and it starts with AJ.

And it's not Mary, and it's not happy.

It's it's joy. It is joy, y'all.

The world is desperately looking for joy, is it not?

They may not realize it, really. Their pursuit really gets some

really gets after chasing happiness because they don't

really know anything about joy. So the world is constantly and

desperately looking for joy. All they know how to chase is

happiness, though. I picture the world's pursuit of

joy and something that I've participated in.

It's something you've participated in Whenever I've

gotten distracted from Jesus as my joy and finding my

satisfaction in him, I picture the world's constant pursuit of

happiness. Kind of like the carnival game.

You know, you go to a carnival kind of one of those classic

games is I didn't know what this was called so I had to look it

up, but I could picture it. It's the hammer game or what's

called the high striker game. It's when you take that hammer

and you try to pound some bullseye or a pad at the bottom

to make something go up really hard and strike the bell at the

top. You know what I'm talking about.

If you've ever played that kind of game, you know how

frustrating it can be. I mean, all the games are rigged

out of carnival, by the way, anyway.

But they make it this way so that it is.

It's just not as straightforward as it should be, right?

I mean, sometimes the strongest of men can walk up and swing the

hammer with all of his might. And guess what?

The thing just like barely moves.

The bell doesn't ring. Then this little girl come over

here and barely lifting the hammer and maybe taps it, all

the sudden Ding, Ding, Ding, right.

And you're like, what? How does that happen?

You know, I picture our pursuit of joy like trying to pick up

that hammer every day and we try to swing at what we think would

make us happy. We try to hit, try to win, try

to crush it, try to get ahead, trying to finally get it in.

Some days, some days, maybe the bell rings.

Some days it doesn't. Sometimes we think, man, we

finally got it all together. Finally today it's going to

ring. We swing, it doesn't ring.

Then somebody else walks up and swings a hammer that doesn't

look like the bell should ring, and it rings.

And you're like, this doesn't make sense.

What's going on? And even when it does ring, it

might make us temporarily happy, but one day it rings, the next

day it doesn't. Even when it does ring, the

happiness doesn't doesn't last. The new this, the new that, this

accomplishment, dispossession, whatever circumstance, it

doesn't bring us lasting, final, ultimate, all the way deep down

in our soul fulfilment. And yet this is what we

constantly chase. What is happiness?

Happiness is a temporary emotional high.

Happiness y'all is a positive excitement based on our

circumstances. Happiness is an emotional

reaction that's dependent on external factors.

But what is joy? What's the difference?

Joy is a contentment and satisfaction of soul.

It is a positive state of mind, heart.

And so that's possible. Watch this Regardless of 1's

circumstances, joy is dependent on the internal factor of the

Holy Spirit. Finally, joy is a spiritual

choice. The Bible mentions happiness two

to three dozen times. The Bible speaks of joy hundreds

of times. You can think about it like

this. Temporary happiness.

Temporary can come from almost anything but true, lasting,

ultimate, genuine joy only comes from one thing.

His name is Jesus for unto you is born this day a savior is

Christ the Lord good news of great joy, not happy, not merry,

but true lasting, genuine now and forever joy Jesus and Jesus

alone brings. If you're following Taking

Notes, I just simply want to explain to you from portions of

the Christmas story that Jesus and Jesus alone is joy.

And then we're going to pick up reading in Luke chapter 2,

Luke 2 · chapter mention

beginning verse 22. In a portion of the Christmas

story, we're going to draw out some of the reasons that Jesus

is and Jesus alone is joy. This is Luke 2 beginning in

verse 22. And when the time came for their

purification, according to the law of Moses, they brought him

up. That's Jesus to Jerusalem to

present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of

the Lord, every male who first opens the womb shall be called

holy to the Lord, and to offer a sacrifice according to what is

said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtle doves, or two

young pigeons. Now there was a man in Jerusalem

whose name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and

devout, waiting, waiting for the consolation of Israel.

And the Holy Spirit was upon him.

And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would

not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

And he came in the Spirit into the temple.

And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him

according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms

and blessed God and said, Lord, now you're letting your servant

depart in peace according to your word.

From my eyes have seen your, Don't miss this word.

My eyes have seen your salvation that you've prepared in the

presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles

and glory for your or to your people Israel.

And his father and mother marveled at what was said about

him. And Simeon blessed him and said

to Mary his mother, Behold, this child is appointed for the fall

and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed.

And a sword will Pierce through your own soul also, so that

thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.

And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter Ephanuel of

the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years,

having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a

virgin and then as a widow until she was 84.

She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting

and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour,

she began to give thanks to God and to speak of Him to all who

were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

The first thing I want you to see about the joy that is Jesus

is simply this great joy begins this joy I'm Speaking of begins

by faith in Jesus. Great joy begins by faith in

Jesus. I want you to look at that verse

30 where Simeon says from my eyes have seen your say it out

loud salvation. He says when he sees the baby

Jesus the Christ shot he literally my eyes have seen this

child is unto you. I Savior has been born.

Simeon says my eyes have seen your salvation.

Y'all Jesus is joy because Jesus and Jesus alone is salvation and

there is no joy like the joy of salvation.

Do you remember and do you realize that the world's

greatest problem is lostness and the only solution, the only

solution is the salvation that Jesus and Jesus alone offers.

Let me just remind us to be spiritually lost is to be

unsaved. What does it mean to be unsaved?

It means to be dead in our sin. The wages of sin is death.

Death means spiritual separation from God now and forever.

If nothing changes, this means we are destined, destined to be

separated from God under the just punishment of our sins

forever. This is what it means to be

unsaved, to be lost. And the further problem is, the

majority of people who are lost, guess what?

They don't realize that they're that they're lost.

They don't see their need for Jesus and for salvation because

they can't see their problem. Do you realize it is impossible

to truly appreciate a gift unless you understand how much

you need that gift? My wife one time gave me a gift.

She's given me more than one. But I remember one time, I think

it was birthday or Christmas. I don't remember.

I think it was birthday and we've not talked about this

right here. So this is just processing in

the moment. And this gift was something I

did not know existed. This gift was an Ember coffee

mug. Do I have any owners of an Ember

coffee mug among us? I see one.

You're like half a shame. Come on now.

Let's put that. There you go.

Anybody else? I see a proud one over here.

Yeah. OK.

I see a few. All right.

Some of y'all don't know what you're missing.

There we go, Joe back there. All right.

So I open up this gift and see this Ember.

If you don't know the Ember coffee mug is it is a

rechargeable built in battery heated coffee mug.

We're talking you can Bluetooth your phone to it to tell it the

exact temperature you prefer your coffee.

All right now don't look at me like that.

I'm not usually like that, all right, but I didn't pick this

out. My wife did for me, but she

witnessed me constantly returning to the microwave to

reheat my coffee because, you know, I get distracted studying

or working or something, and then all of a sudden it goes

cold and I go to the microwave. So open up this gift.

Let me just give you a piece of advice here.

You know when, well, let me just say what happened.

I opened up the gift and my immediate thought was that this

is what you don't say out loud. And I didn't say out loud.

Hallelujah. My first thought was this is a

waste of money. This is by the way, you're going

to get some gifts. Oh you she did get it on sale.

She said so a less a waste of less money.

But anyway, so so you don't you don't say that out loud.

I'm not that bad of a husband. So I'm thinking, OK, this is

what they make a microwave for. But my wife obviously went to

the effort to get this. Why not?

Why not try it? Sure enough, I don't know how

long I've had it now, at least a year.

It's like the only coffee mug I use literally.

And I, I don't want anybody else using it and, and using the

charge. I mean, I, I use it all the

time, right? I, I, I didn't know how much I'd

use quote need. I know that's a long stretch

right there. I didn't know how much I needed

an ember coffee mug until I got one.

Let me just ask you a question. Has God-given the greatest gift

you could ever receive and you've yet to realize how much

you need it? Have you yet to realize how much

you need it? For unto you is born this day a

Savior, because the wages of sin, that's your sin is death,

and my sin is death. There's only one and only

salvation. His name is Jesus.

There's only one solution to lostness.

It's confessing by faith. Jesus says word, believing in

your heart. God raised him from the dead.

The Bible says you will be saved.

It's impossible to truly appreciate a gift unless you

realize how much you need it. But maybe you're thinking this.

Call Kyle. He's a baby.

How much do I really need a savior born as a baby?

No doubt it was the minority of people, Simeon and Anna.

The Bible mentions no one else who actually knew what to look

for and how to appreciate God giving the greatest gift mankind

could ever received. And their eyes were attuned to

how it would come. But you see, most in Israel

thought what they needed was very different from what they

actually needed. You see, what they thought they

needed was political deliverance.

What they thought they needed was financial success.

What they thought they needed was physical health.

What they thought they needed was restored fortunes or

restored and reunited families. But what they needed most,

y'all, was God. What we need most, who we need

most is the One who made us His Son.

Jesus sent for us. Y'all John 17 three is an

incredibly clear verse and it says this and this is eternal

life. This is the opposite of

lostness. This is the opposite of being

separated from God because of your sin forever.

This is eternal life, that they know you, that they know you,

the only true God in Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

Y'all real life, abundant life, fullness of joy is to know and

walk with God. Does that describe who you are?

Do you know God and walk with Him?

If not, the greatest gift you could ever receive has been

given to you, and you've yet to receive it by faith.

Great joy begins by faith in Jesus.

Do you realize the human heart? The human heart has a giant God

sized hole in it that can only be satisfied by design by God

himself. You can try to stuff money in

it. You can try to stuff stuff in

it. You can try to stuff romance in

it, or physical pleasure in it, or financial career success in

it. You can just keep stuff and it's

going to dissolve like cotton candy.

It cannot satisfy you, only God can.

Eternal life is that they know you, and we only know the Father

through his Son, Jesus Christ. For unto you is born this day, a

Savior, who is Christ the Lord. If you've been saved, if you've

been saved and you know Jesus and the joy of salvation that

begins with Him, do you realize every single day that you wake

up, you have reason for joy? Not just because of your

salvation, but because you are better every single day than you

what, than you deserve because of what Jesus has done for you,

saving you from your sin, giving you life and the hope of heaven

forever? Y'all, Jesus is joy, and great

joy begins by faith in Him. But #2 great joy continues as

believers. It continues in our lives by the

good fight of faith in Jesus. Great joy continues every single

day as we fight the good fight of faith in Jesus.

You know, there's a reason that both Simeon and Anna are

mentioned in the Christmas story.

There's actually multiple reasons, but I want to draw out

just one of them. What is it that both this man

and this woman have in common? It ends with ING and starts with

AW. What are they both doing?

Waiting. And how long have they been

waiting? Any idea?

All their lives to Simeon, basically to his last breath.

He's like, God, I can die now. I mean, he's an old man.

How about Anna, 84 years old. She's outlived the normal life

expectancy. They've been waiting their whole

lives. What does it mean to wait?

Let me tell you what it means to wait.

It means to live with hope and joy when everything is not OK.

Let me say that again. You know what it means to wait.

They waited their whole lives. It means to live with hope and

joy. And let me be specific in Jesus,

whom they were waiting for, who they knew would come but hadn't

come yet. All their lives means to wait

with hope and joy, fighting the good fight of faith even when

everything's not. Oh, OK, it means to live when

everything's not OK, but with faith that one day will all be

made right. And this waiting well requires a

spiritual fight of fate. This is how we wait.

They waited their whole lives. What were they waiting for?

The consolation of Israel, the redemption of Israel.

You know, they were waiting for the day that God promised that

one day He would send one who one day would make all things

right. They didn't get to see the

completion of it. They did get to see the

beginning of it. Their eyes beheld the salvation

that God promised He would send, and they got to see the

beginning of it by seeing Jesus physically as they waited.

You know what? By the good fight of faith.

You know what Simeon and Anna would have had to battle every

day by faith? Doubt and unbelief, Fear and

anxiety, worry and discouragement, insecurity,

maybe depression. They had to fight all these

things every day when everything wasn't OK, believing it was all

going to be all right. As they look forward in faith,

fighting the good fight of faith in Jesus, making taking their

joy from him, knowing his promises.

You see, if you've been saved, brother or sister, you've been

blessed by faith. No, not to see yet Jesus

physically, but to see him spiritually.

And now, like Simeon and Anna, we too are waiting.

The full and final consolation or redemption or restoration

that Jesus has promised us too is one day coming.

When no, not all things are OK now, but one day all things will

be all right. We too are called to fight the

good fight of faith by waiting with joy and peace and hope in

Jesus, knowing one day he who was in control and who came the

first time is coming the second time to fulfill all the promises

that started some of you. Some of you are in a posture of

waiting more than others, maybe in a circumstance of longing for

all things to be made right more than others.

Maybe this time of Christmas is a particularly difficult time to

wait, gives us a time maybe that reminds you of some hurt.

Maybe a time that makes you feel confused or isolated or alone or

abandoned. A time that maybe feels dark to

you instead of what you feel like you see all around.

Are you in a season of longing and a season of waiting and a

season of hurting? Maybe life has not turned out

the way that you expected it to go.

Maybe longing for your family to be put back together again.

Maybe longing and wanting and hoping for and hurting because

you don't have a family of your own yet.

You've been waiting and seems like it will never come.

Maybe grieving the death of a loved one, or processing and

grieving A miscarriage, or waiting for a prodigal child to

come home. It seems far from God and like

they're never going to return. And you've waited and waited and

prayed and prayed or whatever general circumstance you may be

going through, wondering is God, are you in control?

It's not OK. It doesn't seem like it's ever

going to be OK. Are you waiting by fighting the

good fight of faith in Jesus? Simeon and Anna's stories are

reminders that when we wait and we're in postures or places of

pain and when everything's not OK, God doesn't forget us.

He sees us. He remembers.

And waiting doesn't mean you're doing something wrong.

Waiting is actually an essential part of the Christian life.

Gee, listen to some things the Bible says about waiting.

Lamentations 325 The Lord is good to those who What's that

word wait for Him? Does God do everything right

when we want him to do it? God is good to those who wait

for him, to the soul who seeks Him.

Isaiah 3018 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and

therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you, For the Lord

is a God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait

for him. Isaiah 4923 Those who wait for

me, God says, shall not be put to shame.

Do you realize no one who's ever waited on God has ever been let

down? I didn't say God fulfilled

everything, just the way we would have done it or how we

would have exactly. But God has never let down, let

go or neglected or walked away from those who have waited on

him. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German who

stood against the evil of the Nazi regime, said this the

Advent Advent means coming. We call Christmas Advent coming

of Christ the first time. The Advent season is a season of

waiting, but our whole life is an Advent season, he says.

That is a season of waiting for the last Advent, for the time

when there will be a new heaven and a new earth.

You see, Christmas reminds us that while we have so much to be

thankful for now, we as Christians are still living life

in a season of waiting. Waiting for the what?

The second coming of Christ, waiting for a new heavens and a

new earth. Waiting one day for the day when

all wrong will be made right, when King Jesus reigns and death

is no more in the curse of sin and struggle against.

It is not a daily fight. We have and we're perfectly made

an image of Jesus, seeing him face to face and experiencing

his presence forever. What a day that will be.

We're waiting, and that waiting requires fighting the good fight

of faith in Jesus. And that's where joy is found.

When days and times when everything's not OK, but we

know. We know in him all will be made

right. God has not forgotten.

He sees and He knows. This is the joy and comfort of

Christmas. His name is Jesus.

Jesus is joy. And great joy begins by faith in

Jesus. And great joy continues by

fighting the good fight of faith in Jesus, even when all is not

OK, but when we know all will be.

All right. There is 1/3 and final point

there. You're going to have to come

back on Christmas Eve and invite a friend to hear that one, all

right. And by the way, that

announcement video said 3:00 to 5:00 PM.

It's 3:00 and 5:00 PM. So don't be scared, all right?

Y'all want to share something to just I just this week, it's been

on my heart so clear as it relates to what we've just

talked about. Many of you know that we

celebrated the life of Nancy Smith this past Thursday.

Many of you are here. We prayed and thank God for her

last Sunday. Many of you may not know her

total story. I certainly didn't and it was

learning it even in the process of preparing to celebrate her

life that God blessed me even more through her than I had been

blessed previously. I just can't help but share it's

I think it's it's one of those practical things that I could

share at the close here. Nancy Smith was one of the most

joyful people I've ever known. Would you say Amen to that?

What I didn't know was that Nancy Smith was a woman who had

faced more difficulty and hardship than anybody else about

that I'd ever known. Without getting into all of

that, Nancy Smith was a woman who had experienced betrayal.

She's a woman who'd experienced physical abuse.

She was a woman who raised three daughters as a single mom.

She worked, started her own businesses.

Some of them were she was undermined and lied about and

cheated out of. Some of them stolen from.

Not just recently. Nancy had a neighbor who was

trying to, like, take part of her property, claiming it was

his own, tearing down a fence that she had put up on her

property. Nancy walked through cancer.

And you think about more hardships to face.

And I'm just giving you the tips of the iceberg.

So how is it that Nancy was one of those joyful people we've

ever known, but also someone who's walked through some of the

most difficult trials of life? How does that math work?

What? How does that happen?

What, what's going on in those circumstances to make this a

reality? The truth is here is here, here

it is. Bottom line, Jesus is either joy

or he's not. He's either joy or is not.

Nancy proved he was and you know how you know how she chose the

joy of Jesus. If you got the scene of the

videos we did as we celebrated her life or you heard her talk

about this, she would come up on one of these difficulties.

She'd be lied about. She'd be given a diagnosis.

She'd be trying to walk through the situation of a neighbor

trying to do something underhanded against her.

Then she said when she walked through those times or when she

was being abused, she, she said, Kyle, I, I, I would be, I would

want to choose the downward spiral away from God.

And you know what that downward spiral is?

It's the spiral of choosing anger and unforgiveness.

It's the spiral of saying, I'm going to be hard hearted and I'm

going to grow bitter. I'm going to hang on to this and

I'm going to not believe that Jesus is enough to give me joy

through this. I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm

going to play the victim in this.

And she said, Kyle, there were times I took that spiral and it

led me away from God and it robbed me of my joy that Jesus

would have offered me had I chosen and praised God.

She eventually learned how to choose the upward spiral, that

upward spiral she described as choosing to forgive.

If you think about it like this, if we've sinned against a holy

God, how big of a deal if somebody has sinned against a

lowly know nothing Sinner like me that we would be prideful

enough to hold on to it and choose not to forgive when God

has forgiven us. That upward spy was is chosen by

choosing forgiveness, by letting go of anger, by saying no to

bitterness, by saying Jesus, you can give me joy no matter what I

walk through and no matter what I face.

It says Jesus, your joy and I believe it.

Life's not easy. Life's not all OK right now, but

I know it's going to be all right.

Jesus, I know you're with me. You see me, you know I'm waiting

for you. I know no one's ever waited for

you has ever been let down. So God, I can live with joy no

matter the circumstances. If I just choose to trust you.

You're in control, you're good. My circumstances aren't perfect,

but I'm choosing Jesus, and Jesus is what?

And Jesus is either joy or he's not.

We just get to choose every time.

Every time life throws something our way, we're either going to

fight the good fight of faith, or we're going to fight it the

way the devil wants us to fight. That always takes us out, which

is the opposite of faith. It's unbelief, it's anger, it's

bitterness, it's hardness of heart.

I don't know which spiral you may be on.

I don't know if you're on a spiral, you might be where

you've never trusted Jesus for joy to begin with.

And today's the day you've realized there's a gift that's

been giving that you've never realized how much you need.

I'm going to invite you to step out from where you are and come

pray with me. Just say, Pastor Kyle, I need to

receive the gift of Jesus for my salvation.

Would you do that? You may be here and may be a

believer, but right now you're on the downward spiral because

you've just not trusted in the reality that Jesus is joy.

No matter what you face, you're letting the world, the flesh,

and the devil rob you of joy. And maybe you want to come get

on your knees or come stand here, bring a friend or a spouse

or a family and just say God. God, we got to change direction.

We're choosing to trust you. All's not OK.

It may not be OK tomorrow, but I'm trusting to believe it's all

going to be all right. Maybe you're on the upper spouse

will know somebody who's not. You want to come pray for them,

but listen, you can walk through the hardest things life has to

offer. But if you know the savior who

is joy, you can walk. You can walk different than

everybody else on the planet does.

And you know when you do, they're going to look at you

like you're weird because they don't know that math.

They don't know how that works. They they don't know how you can

be full of joy and yet be going through what you're going

through. It doesn't make any sense and it

doesn't. It's supernatural, but Jesus is

either joy or He's or He's not. You just got to make up your

mind. You got to decide who you're

going to go to. So what's it going to be?

It starts with Him. It continues by the good fight

of faith in Him. Father, I pray that we would

choose to believe that You are the joy that You offer the best

news that's ever been given. We've heard it's the free gift

to all who had received by faith.

God, I pray for the person who's here today who's never received

that gift, that by faith, today would be the day they'd have the

boldness to step out and come. God, I pray for those who may be

feeling far from you or wondering if waiting on you is

worth it. Today would be the day they

decide by faith that you are joy no matter what, and they are

going to stand in that joy and fight.

By faith, the good fight, they keep trusting you God, flip that

switch in our lives by the Holy Spirit and let the world witness

and watch the joy that's found in you.

And it's in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Would you stand with me, church family, I'm going to invite you

to come. You can get on your knees, you

can come pray, you can stand. If you can't kneel, come talk to

me. But you respond as Jesus leads

you this morning.