LEARNING DAILY

Luke 2:10, Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be for all people.”

“The first thing the angel said was, ‘Do not be afraid!’” That was what Jonathon Moore. Lead Pastor at NorthRock Church, stated in his message this weekend. He continued, “There are 365 ‘do not fears’ in the Bible; that’s enough for one each day of the year. The Good News is that the Savior is born! That brings good news to all people – all who accept Him as their Savior. Those who do, do not have to live in fear, anxiety, nor have to stay where you are now stuck.”

Pastor Moore stated, “there are things that impact one’s joy like something tragic or something simple or something we just thought might happen. Christmas reminds us we can still have joy regardless of our circumstances” Let me remind you at this point that joy and happiness are not the same. Happiness is an emotion that is centered around how one is feeling; it is affected by some form of pleasure or contentment. Happiness is temporary and can be based on self-centeredness. Joy is something one can have on a constant basis because it is based on being concerned more about others than about self.

The angels said, “I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be for all people.” The “Good News”, the best news ever, is for “all people”.  Pastor Moore stated, “Joy comes when we hear the “Good News”!” Circumstances may cause one’s happiness to turn to some other emotion, but knowing and believing Jesus Christ came to set us free from sin and death brings joy into our hearts that is always constant! The angels seemed to be giving the shepherds an invitation to go find the “Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger”. When the angels left them, the shepherds went as fast as they could to find Him – which they did!

Pastor Moore’s final point was “Joy is activated when we respond to the invitation”. Luke 2:20 tells us, “Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and see as it was told them.” Can you imagine what the shepherds experienced that night? Their lives were changed forever, filled with the joy of seeing the Savior of all who would believe; that joy would never leave them.

“For all people.” That includes you and me! Just like the invitation was given to the shepherds to find the Savior, each person today, is given the invitation to seek Him, accept Him as their Savior, and to walk the narrow way with Him as Lord! There is no greater experience that is able to bring “joy” into one’s heart! The invitation is for each of us to walk with Jesus each day knowing that “He will never leave nor forsake us” and that with Him we are walking into eternity in His kingdom. There is no greater joy than that!

 

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