Joy to the World - Pt 1

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. (Psalm 95:1-3 ESV).

The Christmas season is for adoring Jesus. We are going to look at some of the many things the Scripture reveals to us that gives us pause during this season of patient waiting, hopeful expectation, soul-searching, and calendar-watching marked by Christians all over the world. There’s no biblical mandate to observe Advent. It’s a tradition that developed over the course of the church’s history as a time of preparation for Christmas Day. The English word “Advent” is from the Latin adventus, which means “coming.” The advent primarily in view each December is the first coming of Jesus two millennia ago. But Jesus’ second coming gets drawn in as well, as the popular Christmas carol “Joy to the World” makes plain. You may listen to it by Pentatonix at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xo64Q2ucQ8: Joy to the world, now we sing Let the earth receive her king Joy to the world, now we sing Let the angel voices ring Joy to the world, now we sing Let men their songs employ Joy to the world, now we sing Repeat the sounding joy Typically Advent begins the fourth Sunday before Christmas and ends Christmas Eve. This means the earliest it begins, depending on where that Sunday falls, is November 27th and the latest it starts is December 3rd. Christians throughout the world have their different ways of celebrating Advent. Some light candles. Some sing songs. Some eat candies. Some give gifts. Some hang wreaths. Many of us do all of the above. Christians have developed many good ways of extending the celebration of Jesus’ coming beyond merely the short 24 hours of December 25. The incarnation of the Son of God, “for us and for our salvation,” as the old creed says it, is too big a thing to appreciate in just one day. Indeed, it’s something the Christian will celebrate for all eternity. My prayer is that this little series might help you keep Jesus as the center your Advent season. He is, after all, the only reason we may have real joy! This is the “new song” we may now sing!