JOY TO THE WORLD

JESUS: The author and only hope for true joy

It may be an odd title for a post in June, but when a godly thought comes to mind, it should be shared with those who care to listen. In a world where missiles are aimed at a people for nothing other than a demonically engineered hatred toward those whose differences are, at best, superficial, while deep-seated character flaws that Christians understand to be sin in the eyes of God are the same in all.

JOY TO THE WORLD IN A WORLD AT WAR

Earlier today, the stanza that made me sit up and take notice was four.

"He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness,

And wonders of His love..."

In a world where virtually all of God's righteous and loving commands are constantly broken by religiously ignorant, self-centered, and sinful deniers of the one true God in the person of Jesus Christ, there are constant martyrs for the truth.

JOY TO THE WORLD IN A WORLD THAT WILL BOW THE KNEE

Let us consider the words of the third stanza.

"He rules the world with truth and grace," (The Bible stands as a monument to the accuracy and reliability of God's promises, His sacrificial love, and for paying the price for man's sinful choices and cold heart toward Him. "And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness, and wonders of His love." The world never proves God's righteousness and wonders of His love more than when they go to war and kill out of pure and defiled hatred others while they themselves are equally, if not more, evil than the ones they kill. God is not at all like sinful people. God punishes the guilty; the Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father, and the same love flows back and forth from the Holy Spirit, Father and Son. There is no pride, no selfishness, no lies, and no evil of any sort. God always proves His righteousness, His love, and His grace.

JOY TO THE WORLD IN A WORLD WHOSE FATHER IS THE DEVIL

The God who revealed Himself to Abram called him to a land defiled by idolaters even as he was one until being called by an eternal Father of an eternal Son. When the Son showed up and confronted the religious mafia of ancient Israel, He proclaimed to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. "Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. "You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. "But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. "Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? "He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God." John 8:42-47

Whenever godly Christians stand up and proclaim harsh truths, as in John 8, they often face criticism, even from other believers who say they are being too harsh. During the Great Awakening, preachers sent by God with the truth, both the loving part and hellfire and brimstone, on more than one occasion saw their hearers fainting for fear of God. We are so far removed from such preaching today that we are the ones who need to feel the flames at our feet, so we may begin to preach as they did.

JOY TO THE WORLD LYRICS

ONE TWO

Joy to the world! The Lord is come! Joy to the earth! The Savior reigns!

Let earth receive her King; Let men their songs employ;

Let every heart prepare Him room, While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains

And heaven and nature sing, Repeat the sounding joy,

And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing. Repeat the sounding joy,

And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing. Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

THREE FOUR

No more let sins and sorrows grow, He rules the world with truth and grace,

Nor thorns infest the ground; And makes the nations prove

He comes to make His blessings flow The glories of His righteousness,

Far as the curse is found, And wonders of His love,

Far as the curse is found, And wonders of His love,

Far as, far as, the curse is found. And wonders, wonders, of His love.