Dr. Garland Christmas devotion

Joy, the gospel of Luke is filled with it. It is Luke’s story, not Matthew’s with his account of the slaughter of innocents, that makes us think of Christmas as a time of joy. In Luke’s birth narrative, people sing a lot. Mary breaks forth in a triumphant fortissimo, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:46–47). When Zechariah comes out of his mute stupor, he “was filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaimed, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them’” (Luke 1:68). The angel brings tidings of great joy to shepherds (Luke 2:10), and then a multitude of the heavenly host belt out, “Glory to God in the highest heaven” (Luke 2:14). Two devout saints, Simeon and Anna, who had long given watchful service in the temple erupt in praise when they encounter the holy family who had come to the temple to present their child to the Lord (2:21–38). Even though they were looking for it and praying for it all these years, joy burst forth out of the blue and they both could sing, “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord in this little baby.”

For manifold reasons, not everyone feels joy at this time of year. Unlike the children in the picture above, many cloak as best they can their true feelings of sadness and smile for the picture. We are supposed to be joyful at Christmas, but I think joy often eludes us when we try to be joyful. All kinds of valuable things come only as byproducts of another process, and so it is with joy. Joy comes as a byproduct of serving God. It comes when you truly believe that God has a plan for this sin-sick world and that you are living in accord with that plan. It comes when you seek to impart joy to others, not when you are trying to bring joy to yourself.

I am amazed at what Paul says about the Macedonians, “For during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part” (2 Corinthians 8:2). Christmas is also known as the season of giving because, as Paul expresses it, “You know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). I think that a “wealth of generosity” combined with a desire to give of yourself to serve God and others as Christ did yield a remarkable byproduct—an abundant joy that does not switch on and off with the seasons or turn on only when the camera is pointed your way.