Glad Tidings of Great Joy

Keller: 

We write this to make our joy complete.

1 John 1.4

Christmas means joy—“glad tidings of great joy.” Here in verse 4, the passage ends on the same note. John is saying, “My joy will not be complete until you have the same joy in fellowship with God that we do.” The idea of joy is important in the writings of John. In John 16:22 Jesus promises that his followers’ joy will be unshakable, because the “full measure” of Christ’s own joy will be reproduced in us (John 17:13)—a remarkable prospect. 

The joy of which the New Testament speaks is, of course, happiness. But it is not the kind that is a fizziness or giddiness that goes away in the face of negative circumstances. It is more like the ballast that keeps a ship stable and upright in the water.

When we lived in Philadelphia, we bought a home on the side of a hill. In fact, the whole community there was originally called “Hillside.” We noticed that, no matter how hot and dry the weather got in the summer, it was always cool and moist in our basement. We wondered about it until one of the longtime residents of the neighborhood told us that there was a subterranean stream of water that ran down the side of the mountain, just under the foundations of our homes. Even when there was a drought and agonizing heat, in our basement it was always cool and comfortable. Psalm 1 uses this same image to describe the godly man or woman, who is like a tree not dependent on rainwater because its roots are near a river of life (Psalm 1:3). 

The joy that Christmas brings, the assurance of God’s love and care, is like a subterranean river of joy, a fountain of mirth, that will always reinvigorate you no matter the circumstances of your life.