A Song of Joy
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“A Song of Joy”
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Recently the top five Christmas songs of all time were listed:
1. Jingle bells.
2. Rudolph the red nose reindeer.
3. Blue Christmas by Elvis Presley.
4. Frosty the Snowman.
5. White Christmas.
I enjoy every one of the songs, and we play Christmas music in our car in our home during this time of year. But none of those songs capture the real meaning of Christmas; which is the birth of the Lord Jesus. But the song were looking at this morning is the first Christmas Carol, and it captures perfectly the joy that we should have as we think of the birth of Jesus. Now, I may not know a lot about you, but I know this; you want joy in your life! Every one of us wants to experience joy! And as a Christian you should have joy; it is God’s will for you to have joy. I’m not talking about a pep rally, past the spirit-stick, cheer-leader, cheer-master, shallow joy. I’m talking about a real-joy, a deep-joy, a full-joy that comes from a right relationship with God.
If you’re saved, and you don’t have joy in your heart, there’s something wrong. A Christian without joy is away from God. Because the Bible tells us, in his presence is fullness of joy.
The joy of the Lord is so important in the Christian life; joy is not optional; it is mandatory, it is a must for you as a Christian to have the joy of the Lord.
The fact is joy will make you an easier to live with.
The joy of the Lord will make you a better worker on your job.
The joy of the Lord will make you a better church member.
Joy is the most attractive quality of a Christian, and a church!
Our lives should be filled with joy!
Our church services should be filled with joy!
Our homes should be filled with joy!
If you are a sad, defeated, negative person with a sad face all the time, and doom and gloom in your voice, and look like you’ve have sucking on dill pickles; you’re not filled with the Holy Spirit.
But when we’re living a life filled with the Holy Spirit, and the joy of the Lord people see that, and they say what that person has is what I need, and it opens a door to share the gospel.
There’s something contagious about a Christian full of the joy of the Lord, there’s something contagious about a church full of the joy of the Lord!
The Bible says about the early church; at the height of their reaching the city of Jerusalem with the gospel, -“They were praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people”
Joy is not a side issue in the Bible, the word joy is used 250 times in the Bible.
The word rejoice is used 200 times the Bible.
450 times were told to be joyful and rejoice.
These verses we just read or filled with joy, rejoicing, leaping, blessing, and singing! The birth of the Lord Jesus brought great joy to all people, starting with these two mothers.
I want us to visit the home of Elizabeth and sense Joy, and hear the Joy in the conversation between Elizabeth and Mary. Both of these ladies are filled with joy and rejoice over the amazing mercy of God to send the Savior.
The angel Gabriel has just told Mary that she’s going to be the mother of the Messiah; and that her cousin Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age. Mary leaves Nazareth’s and travels almost 100 miles to the rugged hill country of Judea to the home of Zacharias and Elizabeth.
Elizabeth is six months pregnant; she has no way to know that Mary is coming to visit her, Mary couldn’t text her and tell her I’m going to be dropping by for a visit. Mary just travels those hundred miles and shows up at Elizabeth’s front door. Mary the younger of the two women, would give a formal greeting to Elizabeth the older woman.
Can you picture these two expectant mothers; one very young, and the other very old and very pregnant? Two miracles standing face-to-face, two women chosen by God to be a part of God’s plan of redemption.
And while Mary is greeting Elizabeth the 6 month old John the Baptist is leaping in Elizabeth Womb and Elizabeth is feel with the Holy Ghost (V:41)
Before Elizabeth could respond to Mary’s greeting, John the Baptist has a shouting, leaping fit in Elizabeth womb. John responded before Elizabeth did. In his presence is fullness of joy!
Now some of you mothers are sitting there thinking; what’s the big deal my baby kicked at different times also. One of our children kicked Tess so hard and often it bruised her ribs, I called him my field-goal kicker. But this is not talking about a regular kick or turn; it is a word that means to leap as a sheep in the field, to leap with delight.
John responded this way even in his mother’s tummy because he was a prophet, and this was his first prophecy. John was to be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb for the special purpose of being the forerunner, announcer of the Messiah.
Do not miss this; this fetus, yet to see the light of the world, experience emotion of joyous delight.
This is a testimony to the pre-birth person of John the Baptist. John would be about 9 inches long and weigh about 1 ½ pounds, he looked like a perfect miniature newborn. He had fingerprints, he could open his eyes for a brief period, and he was God’s prophet inside the womb of his mother.
But there’s more; Elizabeth filled with the Holy Spirit begins to bless Mary, and bless the baby in her womb, and says in amazement I can’t believe the mother of my lord has come to visit me.
Who was in the womb of Mary? A potential human being, a blob of tissue? No! He was the son of God, the Lord of glory?
Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, and without any previous knowledge declares that Mary is going to give birth to the Messiah. Oh how this most of encourage the heart of Mary, as Elizabeth told her you have believed God and you will have the Messiah.
Elizabeth is absolutely filled with joy, and a song and rejoicing, John the Baptist is leaping in her womb for joy and Mary is being encouraged and strengthened; and she begins to rejoice and praise God as well. And Mary sings in V:46-55, what is commonly called the Magnificat.
It is Mary’s song of joy; as she rejoices in God choosing her to be the mother of the Savior of the world.
In this song of joy we find three reasons we should have a song of joy in our heart.
The first reason you should be filled with joy is:
1. The Grace of God Displayed in Your Life!
V:46-48.
Mary’s song is the first of several songs in Luke’s Gospel; there is also Zacharias song, the Angels song, and Simeon’s song. Luke’s Gospel is the singing gospel; because when you know Jesus Christ he puts a song in your heart! What God has done in giving us Jesus Christ to be our Savior is something to sing about!
Mary sings and rejoices because of the grace of God shown to her.
V:46-47-She says my soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
Mary uses the personal pronouns my and me several times in these verses.
She says in V:48, that God saw my low estate in life and came to me. She says in V:49, that he that is mighty have done great things for me.
She is amazed at the mercy and grace of God to reach down to someone as lowly and humble as her, and choosing her to be the mother of the Savior.
The source of her joy was the grace of God in providing a savior for her!
V:47-“And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior”.
Mary says, V:48-“for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden…
She says God regarded, looked upon, gazed at with pity and divine favor upon me!
God saw me, cared for me, came to me, and changed the course of my life.
Mary knew that she was a sinner and needed a savior; she knew that God was showing mercy and providing a savior, and that filled her heart with joy. Jesus Christ in you is the source of joy!
Mary knew that she was not sinless, or perfect, she knew that she could not provide forgiveness for anyone! Mary was in need of the mercy forgiveness, and salvation as much as any other sinner.
And when she received the message that she was going to give birth to the Savior, she rejoiced in her soul and spirit; over the coming Savior!
There is no joy like the joy of knowing Jesus Christ as your Savior!
Jesus sent his disciples out to win souls, heal, and cast out demons. They came back rejoicing, saying Lord even the demons are subject unto us through your name. Jesus said to them:
-“Rejoiced not that the spirits are subject unto you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven”.
When the Ethiopian eunuch was saved in , the Bible says he went on his way rejoicing! He climbed in his chariot, took off burning rubber, put in a CD and began singing “He’s the chain breaker”!
Mary knew that Jesus was the Savior and she was rejoicing in her innermost being.
Do you know Jesus? Do you have joy in your heart?
Think about all that comes along with your salvation:
· All of your sins are forgiven.
· You are born into God’s family.
· The Holy Spirit of God lives in you.
· You have eternal life.
· Heaven is your home.
That ought to cause even a Baptist to shout Amen!
When I think of the grace of God that came to me in my low, sinful condition and saved to me, and changed me; it brings joy unspeakable and full of glory. The grace of God reach down and saved me!
Jesus did for me what no one else could do for me; he did for me what the Baptist couldn’t do, what my parents couldn’t do, what the church couldn’t do, what the preacher couldn’t do; He saved me, delivered me, rescued me, freed me from the penalty and power of my sin!
We have heard the joyful sound; Jesus saves, Jesus saves.
Mary said I rejoice in God my Savior, and V:46-my soul magnifies the Lord.
To magnify the Lord means- to make great, or to
Enlarge the Lord.
We know of course that God cannot be made any bigger, or greater that He already is. But he can be enlarged in your life, as you gain a fuller knowledge of his greatness and grace. The more you know about God and learn about God the more you can magnify, explain and present him to others. The fuller our knowledge of him, the greater our ability to enlarge him.
As Mary contemplated what God had told her; that she would give birth to the Messiah, as she meditated upon the word of God, the Old Testament prophecies of the coming Messiah the greater her knowledge became. No doubt on the
100 mile trip from Nazareth’s to the hill country of Judea Mary spent a lot of time meditating on the Old Testament Scripture, which filled her heart with joy! In this song Mary either quotes from, or allusions to verses from Genesis, Deuteronomy, 1st and 2nd Samuel, Job, Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Micah, Habakkuk and Zephaniah, as well as echoes from Hannah’s song.
It’s as if Mary tried to put the whole Old Testament into her song!
As Mary’s heart is enlarged, her knowledge of God increases her mouth opens to praise and exalt God.
This is exactly what happens to us when Jesus Christ is born in us; we begin to think greater thoughts of God, and as those thoughts well-up in our hearts they come out of our mouths in praise and appreciation for so great salvation!
Someone said, whatever you magnify you rejoice in.
What are you rejoicing in today?
· An old man may not give two cents about the gospel, but he feels real good when his grandkids come over.
· There are men who sit through church services absolutely bored by the songs and teaching, you’re only here because your wife wants you to be. But this afternoon, you’ll leap off the couch when your team scores a touchdown.
· Some of you young women feel complacent when you read the Bible, but you light up like a Christmas tree at the sales at the mall, and you will look for hours online at clothes that you can’t afford, but can’t spend 15 minutes in prayer talking to God who gave Jesus Christ to down the cross for your sins.
I am overwhelmed when I think of the grace and mercy of God to reach down and save a sinner like me!
The second reason you should be filled with joy is:
2. The Character of God Revealed in the Bible!
V:49-53.
As Mary continues to sing her song of joy she is praising God for his character that is revealed in the word of God.
Mary magnifies the greatness of God; she was interested in God being seen to be great; not herself. She doesn’t just tell us about what God had done in her life, but she puts the spotlight on God and tells us about His divine characteristics. In her song Mary praises God for:
· His mighty power.V:49.
· His Holiness.V:49.
· His mercy.V:50.
Mary is singing about and rejoicing in who God is! It is right for us to praise God for what he is done for us; but we need to praise God for being God!
· I rejoice that God is a Mighty God.
V:49-He that is Mighty…
A hero God, a victorious warrior!
We are talking about a God who does the impossible; he makes barren wombs conceive, causes a virgin to have a baby.
Was there any sickness he could not heal? Any demon he could not command? Any storm he could not still? NO! Our mighty warrior God; came in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, took our sin in his own body on the cross and died in our place. Our mighty warrior God was placed in a borrowed tomb… One, two, three, days he lay in that tomb dead! But on the third and glorious morning our mighty warrior God, who is the victorious warrior rose from the dead, and walked out of that tomb, and defeated sin death and the grave! Jesus Christ is the living, risen Savior who is mighty to save!
I rejoice in a God who is not weak, anemic, frail, exhausted, spent, running on fumes, ringing his hands, panicking and wondering what He’s going to do; no, no, no, no! Our God is the mighty God, warrior, hero, victorious God!
I rejoice that God is a mighty God!
· I Rejoice that God is a Holy God.
V:49-“Holy is His name…
God name and nature is Holy! God’s holiness is who He is, it is His essences.
The Angels around the throne of God cry; Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord our God! Whenever you have a fresh encounter with God like Mary has just had, you walk away with a renewed sense of the Holiness of God.
When you experience Christ born in you, you bow in praise and wonder that a Holy God could love someone like you; and you rejoice that He does through Jesus!!
Only Jesus can give you a right-standing before Holy God!!
· I Rejoice that God is a Merciful God.
V:50-“His Mercy is on them that fear Him…
Yes God is Mighty but He is also Merciful; the bible says God is rich in Grace, rich in Love, rich in Glory and rich in Mercy! Thank God He is a merciful God, if God were only a mighty God, and a holy God, we would be in big trouble! God loves to show mercy to those who respect and reference him, those who humbled their heart before God experience His mercy!
V:51-“The mighty God reaches down with his strong arm in mercy, lifting the humble to greatness.
God has mercy on the miserable, lost, and by his strong arm delivers them, saves them, and makes them his own.
God told Moses as he was preparing to stand before the Pharaoh; I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and God did!
God in mercy never turns away anyone who comes to him in reverence and repentance!
God in his mercy came to Mary in her low position in life, chose her, saved her and used her.
Mary is singing this song of praise because she was a sinner, and Jesus was the savior, and she was experiencing the mercy of God. The way up with God is down. People who humbled their heart and fear God like Mary will experienced the mercy of God.
-“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up”.
King David tells us in, , that God will not despise, reject a broken and contrite heart.
But on the flip side of that, we’re told in;
-“But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he said, God resist the proud, but gives grace unto the humble.
V:51-53-READ.
Mary looks back through the Old Testament, and points out that God wipes out the proud and puts down the mighty. I could give you several examples of this in the Old Testament; but I will give you just one- King Nebuchadnezzar. King Nebuchadnezzar walked out on his balcony one day, and looked over the empire of Babylon and said this is the great Babylon that my hands have built. And because of his pride, God scattered, brought down Nebuchadnezzar from his seat of power.
Somebody comes to the palace to visit Nebuchadnezzar one day, and says to the people who meet them, who is that person out there moving like a cow, and eating grass, with their fingernails long as an eagle? And the person, clears their throat, and says that’s king Nebuchadnezzar. And the person says, what happened to him? And the greeter says; that’s what we’d like to know.
V:51-“God scatters the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he puts down the mighty from their seats…
She sings and says that God, V:53-“ He feeds the hungry with good things; and the rich he sends away empty”.
God doesn’t have to take the riches away from the rich to send them away empty. God just allows them to become richer and richer and richer, until they realize that in all their riches their empty! To become so rich, you see the ultimate emptiness of materialism and stuff. It doesn’t matter how many zeros are on your balance sheet. I remember when I had no money, then I had a little money, then a little more money. But no amount of money can satisfy your soul!
Some of you sitting here this morning are proud of what you’ve done, and what you have accomplished.
You have studied hard, and worked hard, and you’ve done this thing, and that thing, and you’ve accomplished a lot in your life. Your resume is quite impressive. You say; I just had my year in review, I’m going to get a big fat bonus at the end of the year. Everybody thinks I’m wonderful, and I think so myself! I am position for advancement, I have a key-card, I can go anywhere in the building I want to. My stock options are up, and my career is expanding. So I decided I need to come to church, and improve my self-image. I need some spirituality, and to become well-rounded and rub shoulders with a new group of people, and get some religion.
Listen to me: Jesus Christ will not accommodate you, He will not accommodate you!
· He scatters the proud.
· He brings down the rulers.
· He sends the rich away empty.
Then what in the world I supposed to do?
God is so merciful; He brought you here, so you can hear, that you’re going to have to fall down on your face and acknowledge that God is holy and God is righteous; and you’re going to have to humble yourself, admit your Sinner, and walked down this aisle and say I’m lost, I’m coming to trust Jesus. God puts down the proud, resist the proud; but God gives grace to the humble! Proud, ruling, rich people are not by nature humble; and have no sense of spiritual hunger. That’s why it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
Because that person believes by self-effort, self- planning and hard work they can accomplish anything.
They think I can buy any ticket, fly anywhere, sit in any seat, buy any car, join any country club; and I will have my place in heaven! No you won’t! Not unless you bow at the cross in humility, repentance and faith in Jesus Christ you won’t!
Nothing in my hand I bring simply to the cross I cling.
The third reason you should be filled with joy is:
3. The Plan of God Fulfilled Human History!
V:54-55.
This will be a very short point; God chose Israel in his mercy and love, God helped Israel his chosen people. Had protected Israel that the Messiah might come from the family of Abraham. God promised Abraham in Genesis that his seed/family would number the Sands of the seashore, and the stars of the heavens, and from his family all the nations of the earth would be blessed.
That was God’s covenant promise to Abraham. That covenant promise was to be fulfilled in the baby in Mary’s womb. Through Jesus Christ all the families of the earth would be blessed; and salvation would come. And from Abraham, Jacob, and the nation of Israel God would carry out his plan of redemption. And throughout the Old Testament you see that God moved heaven and earth to protect his people Israel. To get them in the land of Canaan, and to protect the bloodline of the Messiah.
I can rejoice that God has carried out his plan in human history; and God will carry out his plan in human history. And what God has told us in this Bible will come to pass! And our future is as sure as the promises of God!
Today there can be a song in your heart; because of what God has done for you; because of who God is; and because God is in control of the future! The song of Mary teaches us to sing a song of our own; God has done great things for us, we praise him for the mighty deeds of our salvation- the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
We praise him for the gracious work of the Holy Spirit, who humbles our pride so we can lift us up to heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
Do you have a song in your heart today? The source of joy is Jesus Christ; come to Jesus today!