As we close our Christmas series, we must have one more study on an attribute that can only be given by God, through Jesus, and that is joy. Joy is often compared to happiness but in reality, happiness is fleeting while joy is everlasting. Where does true joy come from and where can we get it? Let’s find out as we study the gift of joy.

So far we have discussed how Christ’s birth gave way to hope, love, and peace. So now we must discuss how His birth brings true joy to our lives. We must first recognize that without His birth, there would be no death and therefore, no resurrection. If there is no resurrection, then there is no hope and also no joy. However, this is not the case. Jesus did come and die and rise again and so we have hope, therefore, we can have joy because of this. We know that this life is not the end but a beginning, so we can have joy in this.

We must remember our joy comes from God and the Spirit. Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope”. We are filled with joy because of God. Galatians 5:22 also exclaims that having the Spirit living within us produces joy in our lives.

The joy we possess as Christians is something that is inexpressible. 1 Peter 1:8-9 says, “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” None of us have seen Jesus in the flesh, yet we believe and have faith. Peter says that we can have joy that is inexpressible because we know what the result of our faith is, eternal life. No matter what happens to us in this life, we know that we will receive eternal life in Christ Jesus and that alone is enough to have true joy in God.

This is why James says that we can “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds” (James 1:2). We can consider the trials joy because even the hard times last only a short while compared to the eternity we get to spend with God.

We must also remember that we have the joy of Christ living within us. John 15:11 tells us, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” We can have true joy when Christ’s joy lives in us. If his joy lives in us, then our joy is full because we have Jesus. Without him, our joy is incomplete and therefore, we never experience true joy.

As we conclude our study on what Christ’s birth brings to us, let us not forget the reason for the Christmas season. Christ came and was born, died, and resurrected. Therefore, because of these things, we can have hope, love, peace, and joy all of our lives. Lets us remember always, the birth of Jesus and what it means to all of us.