Rejoice Always...

SCRIPTURE

3rd Sunday of Advent
Philippians 4:4-7 (NRSV)

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.


ADVENT DEVOTION

Today's devotion gives us cause to pause. We are reminded to rejoice always.

I don't know about you, but that commandment sounds easier said than done. Just in the month of December we are inundated with stresses such as disobedient children, sick parents, unpaid bills, fractured relationships, increased work hours, and/or a school shooting to name just a few.

The truth is there is more than enough stress to go around for all of us! There is not one human being who escapes unscathed from the stresses that we face in body, mind, and spirit on the the planet Earth.

However, when I was a child, I was taught that there is a difference between being happy and being joyful. Happiness is conditional upon our circumstances, whereas JOY is a condition of the soul!

No matter what is going on in our lives, we can still be full of the JOY of the Holy Spirit! This joy is as a result of the Advent Truth that the "Lord is near..."

He is near enough to have been born in a manger. Near enough to have visited the synagogues as a child. Near enough to have ministered upon the earth for three years. Near enough to have suffered, bled, and died, before being resurrected and ascending into heaven. And now his Spirit is as near as the breath in our lungs and beat of our hearts, available to us at all times.

Hallelujah! Why wouldn't we be full of joy? Why wouldn't we act out of spirit of gentleness? Why wouldn't we lift all of our concerns to our loving God in peace and in prayer, trusting that God is well able to supply all of our need according to God's riches in glory?

And even before we see the answer to our prayers, let us begin to offer up a shout of thanksgiving, knowing that God has a good plan for us, not to harm us, but to give us a future and a hope.

We are children of the King, dear ones! Just knowing that we are so unconditionally loved and experiencing such a amazing grace on a daily basis ought to fill us with a contagious JOY that impacts not only our lives, but the lives of those around us!

When you are a person filled with JOY, you share JOY with everyone whom you meet. Won't you be a joy sharer today?

Being joyful does not mean that you ignore your problems, it simply means that you trust that GOD is bigger than your problems, and well able to help you to overcome them.

Be at peace, my friends, and may JOY be yours this Advent Season.


PRAYER

With thanksgiving I lift all of my concerns to you, O Lord. Fill me with your peace and with your joy. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The Love Gift

If you would like to hear Pastor Yolanda preaching this sermon, please click the link above.



SCRIPTURE

Third Sunday of Advent

Luke 3:7-18 (NRSV)
One more powerful is coming

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages."

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

 

SERMON


Today is the third Sunday in the Christian liturgical season called “Advent.” Advent is the start of the Church year and it begins four Sundays prior to Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. It is a season of waiting, hoping, expecting, and repenting as Christians remember the first coming of Jesus on Christmas morn in a manger and look forward to the second coming of Jesus from the clouds and in great glory!

In the past, I have understood Advent as a season of waiting, hoping, and expecting, but I did not realize that Advent was also so supposed to be a season of repentance.

It seems counterintuitive that a season filled with the jolly laughter and cheer of children and adults alike would also be a time for reflection, repentance, and change.

Yet, I suppose that it does make sense that part of preparing to meet our king would be to make sure that when He arrives we would be ready to meet Him!

In today’s Bible passage the people are in a season of Advent, though they know it not. For reasons that they probably could not even explain to themselves, they are driven out into the wilderness to listen to John preach, repent, and then be baptized.

In this CHRISTmas season 2009, I believe that God is still calling us to repentance. It seems that CHRISTmas brings out the worst in many of us as we engage in the sins of anger, greed, laziness, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony to name just a few!

In the face of the sinfulness of his day, John said, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

These words may feel harsh, but they were a much needed wake-up call then and now. After all, let’s keep it real during this holy-day season.

Although our economy has just begun to pull itself back from the brink of utter destruction, many of us have thrown caution to the wind and pulled out our credit cards ready to shop until we drop.

As we do, we become angry because we can’t find a parking space, greedy to have more than we can afford, prideful and anxious as we worry about whether our co-worker will spend more on us, than we spend on them, lustful for toys, jewelry, and other gifts that we do not need, envious of the haul under other people’s trees, gluttonous as we feed our stress with holiday food, and then lazy as we sit on the couch contemplating how we are going to pay for the bills we’ve racked up in December.

Lord have mercy on us all!

We have lost and/or forgotten the true meaning of CHRISTmas! It is time for us to “go down to the river and pray” in the same way that John’s followers did—bringing their sin and shame to God, seeking forgiveness, and repenting in truth.

When I was a little girl my Mama told me that “to repent” means to turn around and go the other way!

When John’s followers came down to the river they asked, “What must we do?” And John’s answer was simple. He said, in effect, turn around and go the other way.

He said if you have two coats and plenty of food--please share with others. If you’ve been robbing and stealing from others, stop immediately. If you’ve been accepting bribes or blackmailing others, be satisfied with what you have and do this no more!

Now in 2009 some of this advice may not feel pertinent, but the lesson at the heart of it truly is, for we must remember that CHRISTmas is about God abundantly sharing love, joy, peace, mercy, grace, and forgiveness with the whole wide world!

As we remember the true meaning of CHRISTmas, we too will be compelled to repent of our sin, turn around and go the other way, and share love and care with those in need of it!

It is so sad to me that so many of us live with so much worry, fear, anxiety, and stress during this holy season. Instead of anticipating the great JOY of celebrating Jesus’ birthday on December 25th, many people look forward to guilt and shame because they cannot make every dream of their children come true.

I believe that God is saying to us today, “Be at peace, children!” I can hear the words of the angel as it heralded Jesus’ birth.

The angel said, “Do not be afraid, 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger.”

Hallelujah!

Do not be afraid…CHRISTmas is supposed to be a day of great joy and peace for all people! And it can be, my friends, when we make up our minds to turn our backs on the anger, greed, laziness, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony that so many of us have been cultivating and instead water the seeds of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

As we wrap the gifts of the fruit of the spirit and put them under the spiritual tree of our hearts, we will find that we are able to relax, knowing and affirming that JESUS is the reason for the season!

In this holy day season we must trust that John’s words are true. He said that Jesus would come with “his winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

Praise God!

Aren’t you glad that Jesus comes ready and willing to burn away the chaff and sin of our lives when we come to him in true repentance?

John the Baptizer said “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

Glory to God in the Highest!

I get so happy-glad every time I think about the fact that Jesus baptizes us with the Holy Spirit and with fire!

For when we are filled up with the Spirit and with the Light of Jesus, it is easy to seek forgiveness, turn away from our sin, and live into the fruit of the spirit! When we are full of the Holy Spirit, we are compelled to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, house the homeless, visit the sick and imprisoned, care for the widows and orphans, do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God! When we are full of the Holy Spirit CHRISTmas becomes less about what we are going to get and more about what we can give to others!

As we meditate on John’s “River Prophesy,” we realize that it surely came to pass, didn’t it?

Over 2,000 years ago, Jesus was born into the humblest of circumstances. On that first birthday, I’m sure he didn’t look like much; after all he was wrapped in cloth and laying in a manger. But, looks can be deceiving for that simple gift, turned out to be the greatest gift the world had ever known--because it was wrapped in so much love!

That Love Gift grew into a god-man who fed the hungry, healed the sick, and raised the dead. One would think that a gift that extravagant wouldn’t have anything else inside, but it did. For one Friday afternoon Love gave Himself to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life and on Sunday morning, Love was resurrected from the dead with all power in His hands!

Isn’t that a great gift! The greatest gift of all has already been given. We have only to receive it with JOY and then pass it on to others.

We don’t need to worry about what to give others this CHRISTmas; just give them JESUS. He’s enough…

In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen…



INVITATION

There may be someone who is listening today, who has been anxious, worried, and fearful this holy day season and is ready to put all of their hope in Jesus this year. If that is you, won’t you pray with me today?

Dear God, thank you for the Love Gift named Jesus. I believe that you gave him to die on the cross and rise on the third day to save me from my sin and gift me with eternal life. I admit to you that I have sinned and fallen short of your glory. Please have mercy on me and fill me with the Holy Spirit so that I can share your Love with others. I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.



SPECIAL NOTE

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!

I would be honored if you would let me know about your decision today by clicking "YES" in the poll located in the upper-right hand corner of the good news blog in answer to the question, "Did God save you today?"

Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share the GOOD NEWS with others!