Themes of the Advent Story: Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy
Jesus Christ is not one more lovely story pointing to these underlying realities – Jesus is the underlying reality to which all the stories point. + Timothy Keller, Hidden Christmas: The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ
Joy | Good News of Great Joy
Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great 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.
+ Luke 2:10-11
Joy | Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room
All of Heaven and all creation sing
The wonders of His love!
Joy to the world,
The Lord has come.
Let earth receive her King.
Let every heart prepare Him room.
+ Isaac Watts, 1719 A.D., Joy to the World
Joy | Do You Hear What I Hear?
A toast, or roast, to one of my least favorite Christmas songs. + Sully
"A child, a child shivers in the cold, let us bring him silver and gold."
How about a blanket? How about some soup? A child's shivering in the cold!
"Throw some gold on him. He'll be fine. He's got pneumonia, but he's loaded. That kid is going to be somebody."
+ Tim Hawkins, "Do You Hear What I Hear?" Skit
Joy | Revere, Adore, Honor, Worship, Run, Glorify, Join, Sing
Revere
the census by which
your name was written in heaven.
Adore
the heavenly Birth by which
you were loosed from the chains of your fallen birth.
Honor
little Bethlehem,
which opened the door so
you could be led back to Paradise.
Worship
at the manger
through which you,
being without sense,
were fed by the Word.
Run
with the Star.
Glorify
Him
with shepherds.
Join
in the joyful chorus with angels.
Sing
hymns with the archangels.
I am persuaded that the Heavenly Hosts
join in our exultation and keep high Festival
with us today,
because they love men,
and they love God.
+ Gregory of Nazianzus, Constantinople's Church of the Resurrection, December 25, 380 A.D.
Joy | Warmed with Joy
Joy | Revere, Adore, Honor, Worship, Run, Glorify, Join, Sing
Revere
the census by which
your name was written in heaven.
Adore
the heavenly Birth by which
you were loosed from the chains of your fallen birth.
Honor
little Bethlehem,
which opened the door so
you could be led back to Paradise.
Worship
at the manger
through which you,
being without sense,
were fed by the Word.
Run
with the Star.
Glorify
Him
with shepherds.
Join
in the joyful chorus with angels.
Sing
hymns with the archangels.
I am persuaded that the Heavenly Hosts
join in our exultation and keep high Festival
with us today,
because they love men,
and they love God.
+ Gregory of Nazianzus, Constantinople's Church of the Resurrection, December 25, 380 A.D.
Joy | Warmed with Joy
Struggling and rejoicing are not two chronological
steps, one following the other, but two concurrent movements, one fluid with
the other. As the cold can move you deeper toward the fire, struggling can move
you deeper toward God, who warms you with joy.
+ Ann Voskamp
+ Ann Voskamp
Joy | One Grand Miracle
The (Christmas) story is precisely the story of one grand miracle, the Christian assertion being that what is beyond all space and time, what is uncreated, eternal, came into nature, into human nature, descended into His own universe, and rose again, bringing nature up with Him.
+ C.S. Lewis
Joy | He Rocks the Whole World
Have you ever seen wealth in such great penury? How could He who was rich have become, for our sake, so poor that He had neither bed nor bedding but was laid in a manger? O immeasurable wealth concealed in poverty! He lies in a manger, yet He rocks the whole world. He is bound with swaddling bands, yet He breaks the bonds of sin. Before He could speak He taught the wise men and converted them.
+ John Chrysostom, Christmas homily, 392 A.D.
Joy | He Rocks the Whole World
Have you ever seen wealth in such great penury? How could He who was rich have become, for our sake, so poor that He had neither bed nor bedding but was laid in a manger? O immeasurable wealth concealed in poverty! He lies in a manger, yet He rocks the whole world. He is bound with swaddling bands, yet He breaks the bonds of sin. Before He could speak He taught the wise men and converted them.
+ John Chrysostom, Christmas homily, 392 A.D.
Joy | Something Greater To Come
Celebrating Advent means learning how to wait. Not all can wait – certainly not those who are satisfied, contented, and feel that they live in the best of all possible worlds! Those who learn to wait are uneasy about their way of life, but yet have seen a vision of greatness in the world of the future and are patiently expecting its fulfillment. The celebration of Advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come.
Celebrating Advent means learning how to wait. Not all can wait – certainly not those who are satisfied, contented, and feel that they live in the best of all possible worlds! Those who learn to wait are uneasy about their way of life, but yet have seen a vision of greatness in the world of the future and are patiently expecting its fulfillment. The celebration of Advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come.
+ Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Joy | Remembering the Big Picture
Read the Gospel accounts of Jesus' birth. Then read Genesis 1-3. Then read Revelation 12. Then throw in Romans 16:20 for good measure. That's the whole Christmas story. It's not simply the poetic and sweet story of a child's birth, welcomed by stars and angels. It's a cosmic war story. A conflict between fundamental forces of good and evil. As Mary labored in a place far from home, heaven and hell thundered and took up arms. Remember that all of it—Jesus' condescension as a baby, His birth in a filthy stable, His sleep in a manger—reminds us of the muck He found us in. Remember, too, that the Christ-child's birth caused hell to erupt with fury. Remember that their resistance was futile. And remember, most of all, that the violence and humiliation of Christmas happened because God loved us enough to suffer all of it on our behalf and by our side.
+ Mike Cosper
Joy | Remembering the Big Picture
Joy | Seeing Good Gifts As A Glimpse Of The Giver
I tried to find joy in everything.
Searched a couple mountains.
Even thought I could get it from "two-for-fifteens"
That could fill my lungs with something higher
And inspire me like a Sistine.
It didn't work.
What did it
Was the finished work,
Brought me back to Himself.
Now I'm living in reverse
Seeing good gifts as a glimpse of the Giver,
Not the gifts as the giver,"Merry Christmas!" if the vision works.
If you've seen Him, then you get it,
An image no sentence could keep out of our mental prison.
+ Jackie Hill Perry, The Art of Joy
Joy | A Life Grown Large
I know my supreme need is joy in God and I know I can't experience deep joy in God until I deeply trust in God. If fear keeps our lives small, does a life that receives all of God in this moment grow large, too?
+ Ann Voskamp
Joy | Enjoy Each Morning as Christmas Morning
I tried to find joy in everything.
Searched a couple mountains.
Even thought I could get it from "two-for-fifteens"
That could fill my lungs with something higher
And inspire me like a Sistine.
It didn't work.
What did it
Was the finished work,
Brought me back to Himself.
Now I'm living in reverse
Seeing good gifts as a glimpse of the Giver,
Not the gifts as the giver,"Merry Christmas!" if the vision works.
If you've seen Him, then you get it,
An image no sentence could keep out of our mental prison.
+ Jackie Hill Perry, The Art of Joy
Joy | A Life Grown Large
I know my supreme need is joy in God and I know I can't experience deep joy in God until I deeply trust in God. If fear keeps our lives small, does a life that receives all of God in this moment grow large, too?
+ Ann Voskamp
Joy | Enjoy Each Morning as Christmas Morning
To be "in Christ" is to enjoy each morning as Christmas morning with the family of God, celebrating the gift of God around the tree of life.
+ Kevin Vanhoozer
Christ is all,
Rev. Mike “Sully” Sullivan
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