“And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.'” Luke 2:10
There have been times in Biblical history, that God has revealed His glory in a very manifest way, but primarily to great men and women of faith, either because they were already such, or He would make them to become great. Their greatness did not lie in their inherent abilities, situation, and accomplishments, but the blessing of the greatness of God to their hearts and minds. From the patriarchs to the prophets, and what we might call the “heroes of the faith,” God chose to reveal His glory in such a manner, and magnitude, to accomplish in their hearts such a reverence and response to the revelation, that He could then, in answer to their faith reveal what He was going to do on earth, for the sake and purpose of manifesting His glory to multitudes. However, there is one singular event, one so important and yet so discreet, that because of all going on around it, this “small, humble thing” barely is seen. It will even take an angel of the Lord coming to shepherds guarding their sheep in a field at night, when all is still and calm, to clearly announce an event that will transform thousands, even millions of souls by the blessing of God. Scripture tells us that “…the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them.” God had quietly broken through the noise, clamor, and occupations of the world, to reveal His glorious will to shepherds. Why? It has to do with the response to the revelation. When later, three wise men came from the east inquiring in Jerusalem, “Where is He that is born king of the Jews,” Herod sought to kill the child born in Bethlehem, this the Savior of the world. This was not the case with the shepherds, who, once overcoming their fear because of the enormity of the revelation, came to find Mary and Joseph in a stable, the “babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” (Lk.2:12) God had quietly broken through all that is of this earth, even that which was in opposition to Him, to reveal the greatest birth of all time and eternity, for it was the announcing that He had provided mankind in its entirety, even though only a small portion would respond to Him, with a Saviour who was Christ the Lord. He would be the anointed One, chosen before the foundation of the world, and yet prophesied about from the beginning of time. This message would be one of “great joy,” not only in the reaction to it, but the very experience of God giving to the shepherds His joy. That joy, as we read in the gospels was to be known throughout the world as the very fruit and manifestation of the Life of Christ in the believing heart. The joy of which the angel spoke was the response of such “glad tidings,” but also, it was to be the realization and manifestation of the Christ, in and through the lives of those who would believe in Him as Savior and Lord. It was to be a fulness of joy, a confirmation, like the peace of God, of the presence and power of this babe of Bethlehem, one day to die for the sins of the world, and yet, would rise from the dead, to come, inhabit the heart.
There is power in joy, that joy given by God the Holy Spirit. Paul writes that we are to live by it every day, rejoicing in the Lord always. God’s word through Nehemiah to Israel in a time of great need was: “…the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (8:10) This joy is given in true worship. God said: “…I will make them joyful in My house of prayer.”(Is. 56:7)
Dear Father, Fill us with joy. In Jesus’ name, Amen.