Joy!

This past Sunday was the third Sunday of Advent. The candle on the Advent wreath is a different color than the others, and it represents joy. If your church tradition embraces the liturgical year and its trappings you may have witnessed someone lighting the pink candle in your congregation last week. There is anticipation and preparation of Christ’s advent – His incarnation among us – at this time of year. There is also joy. Joy in the wrapping of gifts, cozy fireside chats, and festive parties to celebrate the season. But the joy of knowing and following God goes beyond the time of year when we remember Jesus’ birth. As Christians this is an apt time of year to remember that we are receiving “the goal of our faith; the salvation of our souls”. (1 Peter 1:9) That’s why we can be filled with “inexpressible and glorious joy” when we anticipate and prepare for an encounter with Christ at Christmas.

But for some, struggles don’t let up just because it’s Christmas. In fact, when going through a rough patch, the holiday season can intensify the feelings of pain or disconnectedness and make the lights and music feel jarring because of the internal turmoil over circumstances. How can we find joy in any circumstances? Why are we instructed to look for this aspect of fruit from the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives and how can we participate?

I came across an unlikely scenario describing joy this week in my reading of Nehemiah. And because I had just spent time preparing a short devotional for church on the joy candle of the advent wreath, my reticular activating system was highly attuned to notice references to it. In addition to the more common Bible verses about joy, these descriptive situations reminded me of my role in participating in acquiring joy.

Here’s the background story: Nehemiah has returned to Jerusalem to assess the damage to the walls and the city and to come up with a plan of action to return things to their former function. Ezra the priest has already been back in Jerusalem from exile for some time, working on rebuilding the temple. Once both structures had been completed and a genealogical record of the families who had returned had been taken, everyone gathered to hear Ezra read from the Law that God had given Moses in the desert. Before we look specifically at the joy passages, take a moment to appreciate the setting as Ezra stands before the people with God’s Word:

¹ …all the people assembled as one man in the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel.

² So on the first day of the seventh month Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand. ³ He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate in the presence of the men, women and others who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.

⁴ Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion. …

⁵ Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. ⁶ Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, "Amen! Amen!" Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. (Nehemiah 8:1-5)

In my head I’m singing the song from the movie “Flashdance” right now… “What a feeling!” What anticipation! What energy! What stamina to stand listening to someone read Scripture for several hours! Think they had a vested interest in what Ezra had to say after living in a foreign land among a foreign people for a whole generation? I believe the people were not only listening attentively; I believe that they were starving for the truth and the cultural relevance that only God’s Word could provide to them at that time. They weren’t just interested – they were desperate. That’s a perfect time to assess the reality of a situation and of a relationship with God. Nothing to lose and hearts ready for God to interject Himself. Been there? Yeah, me too.

Now for the joy. The people weren’t feeling it at first. What they heard made them weep out of conviction and grief for their years of disobedience and separation from God. But that wasn’t God’s purpose for the gathering. Look at how it plays out:

⁹ Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, "This day is sacred to the LORD your God. Do not mourn or weep." For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law.

¹⁰ Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:9-10)

Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength. Do you love it?! How can we participate in entering into joy? By facing our weakness and appropriating His perfect strength! Joy is not choosing phony happiness and smiles in our pain. It’s finding a solid foundation underneath our pain to buoy and strengthen us because our core truths are never compromised. It’s an eternal perspective that never loses sight of our eternal blessings, which are ours now. Look at how Paul says it:

⁹But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

There is joy in weakness.

But wait. There’s more. Since the political and religious leaders had encouraged the people to celebrate instead of mourn, they found yet another reason for joy:

¹² Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them. (Nehemiah 8:12)

God’s commandments to us are always good and always for our provision and protection. Intellectual assent to that fact without full understanding and conviction doesn’t equal joy. But there is deep satisfaction in the knowledge and assimilation of God’s values and directives for our lives.

There is joy in understanding God’s Word.

Don’t good things come in 3’s? There’s one more. The next day the people discovered, through reading more of the Law, that they were supposed to be celebrating by building little temporary structures and living in them. (For more information on The Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles) go to Deuteronomy 16:13-17 and http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday5.htm.) So guess what they did?

The whole company that had returned from exile built booths and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated it like this. And their joy was very great. (Nehemiah 8:17)

Admitting weakness leads to a hunger for God’s truth. God’s truth is meant to be understood. And ultimately, our understanding is meant to lead us to life change – obedience. Yes, the people are happy to be back in Jerusalem, observing the customs and festivals prescribed in the Law. But their real joy comes from being in the center of God’s plan for them.

There is joy in obedience.

There is joy in understanding God’s Word.

There is joy in weakness.

Come, Lord Jesus. Make our joy complete by infusing us with your Spirit and your perspective.

• In which of these three areas have you experienced joy? Where is it a particular challenge? How could you bring that to God in prayer this week?

• Read John 16:17-24, James 1:2-4, and 1 Peter 1:3-9. What are the catalysts that lead these writers to direct us to respond with joy? How is that possible? What does that look like in your life?

• When is joy most difficult for you to identify? Where can you go in Scripture to give you encouragement or information you may benefit from in your spiritual journey?