The Joy of the Resurrection
Introduction
Resurrection? Why talk about the resurrection at this time? It’s Christmas time, right? The reason why most of us are probably wondering is that we believe Christmas is just a holiday season. Because it’s just a holiday season, we expect food, fellowship, family reunions, festivities, and fun times. Nothing less, and nothing more. To talk about the resurrection seems out of sync with this general expectation. In fact, we hope that Christmas will last longer so that we can continue to enjoy these experiences. What we need is divine intervention to change our expectations about Christmas. (Luke 24:50-53)
Three Divine Interventions
- To remember the *Good News* about Jesus (Luke 24:1-8). – It’s easy to focus on external things during Christmas time. These are the things that can naturally give us happiness. But what if they are not there? What if the external things do not line up with what we expect Christmas should be? Only God can intervene to change our perspective about reality. Only God can help us to remember the Good News about Jesus, which is really the source of our true joy, not just during Christmas, but in every season of our lives.
- To recognize the *presence* of Jesus (Luke 24:13-35). – Our hopes and expectations can easily be dashed by events in our lives. When that happens, we become depressed and our faces are downcast. Our feelings tend to go up and down depending on our experiences. This is the reason why we are always longing for special experiences so that we can “feel” excited again. But what if the presence of Jesus is in ordinary events? It takes divine intervention for us to realize the presence of Jesus in ordinary events.
- To recover the *power* of Jesus (Luke 24:36-49). – When we focus only on one event about Jesus (for example, his birth), we tend to forget everything that Jesus stands for in our lives. He has called us to be His witnesses in this world. This is the reason why we need the Holy Spirit in our lives. Unless we think about the resurrection of Jesus and everything else about Him, we will be satisfied with a powerless Christianity that is merely about traditions. God has to intervene in our lives so that we can recover the power of Jesus again.
Conclusion
- True joy is *celebrating everything* about Jesus.
- “Consumer Christmas” can only give us temporary happiness.
- Let us ask God to deliver us from what is temporary to experience true joy throughout the year.
Sharing
- What are the signs of “Consumer Christmas” in your life?
- How can you and your family experience a true “Christian Christmas”?