RESTORING JOY (Psalm 126:1-6)
12-17-2017
Introduction: Growing up in
India, Christmas season used to be one of the happiest seasons for me. Our
parents never gave us gifts, yet there was such a joyful atmosphere at home, enjoying
great food, and the company of each other, we were just happy to be a family.
We found great delight in small things. On the contrary, in the western world, Christmas
with all its commerce, has become one of the most hectic times of the year,
sending many into debt and stress.
The
happy scenes of Christmas we see in the movies often don’t reflect what goes on
at home. Many families get really stressed out at Christmas. In spite of all
the gifts Kids turn out to be unhappy and ungrateful. On the other hand,
something like “Operation Christmas Child Project” is bringing cheer and joy to
many kids around the world.
Why
is it that Christmas turns out to be an unhappy event? An article from the BBC
gives a few reasons why.[1] 1. In the run-up to
Christmas, adults are often really busy at work. They have to balance this with
getting all their food and present shopping. It can leave them short of money
and short-tempered. 2. Relatives you see rarely and have little in common with
often turn up at Christmas, which can lead to bad feelings in the house. 3. Adults
often drink more than usual at Christmas. This and all the other stresses can
lead to arguments and even violence.
4.
Many kids' parents are separated and they have to split Christmas between two
homes. Their parents' relationships are often not good, which can be really
upsetting. 5. Some kids live in difficult circumstances. They might be homeless
or living in poverty. How is your Christmas season turning out to be? Are you
becoming unhappy, sad and depressed? How
can we approach this season differently?
RESTORING JOY, Psalm 126:1-6
I. A
LONGING TO BE RESTORED:
For
the past two weeks we have been following a few of the prophetic promises of Isaiah,
who predicted that God would not leave Israel in exile but one day He would
restore them back to their own land. The Psalmist recorded how they were
treated by their enemies while they were in exile. Psalm 137: 2-4, “There on the
poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our
tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!
How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land? we hung our
harps.”
This
lament indicates the heart of the people of Israel who disowned their God and
the holy city Jerusalem. They grieved to see Jerusalem playing puppet on a
Babylonian stage. The exiles instruments turned to silence. They couldn’t sing
songs even though their captors demanded them to, their hearts were heavy, they
cried out to God to restore their fortunes.
Vs
1-3 “When
the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed. Our
mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was
said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” The Lord has done
great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” As a fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecies,
Persian King Cyrus conquered Babylon in 539 BC, and he issued a decree allowing
the remnant of Israel to return to their homelands and rebuild their cities and
temples.
According
to the decree the remnant returned to Jerusalem, only to find out the city was
in absolute ruins and its gates had been burned with fire. The initial years of their return and
rebuilding of their city were not easy. There was a famine in the land, food
was scarce, on top of that they had to pay high taxes on their fields,
vineyards and homes inorder to get grain.
They
were borrowing money to pay taxes by subjecting their sons and daughters to
slavery. These and many other unpleasant things were happening. They remembered
their absolute agony in the foreign land, and compared it to their current
struggles in their home land, they couldn’t have been more joyful. For Israelites
the actual experience was so unexpected and seemed more like a dream than
reality. Every time they thought of the great things the Lord has done for them
they couldn’t help but break forth in joyful singing. Now living in their own
land, with gratitude they sang this song of Ascents.
How
does this apply to us today? The Israelites longing to return to their home
land is similar to the longing of every human heart to return to God. St. Augustine recognized his restlessness
when he said, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless
until it rests in you.” Because of that inner longing to be with God, we become
restless and un happy when we are asway from God. We long to be restored. How
can we know the way back to God?
II. A
PRAYER FOR RESTORATION
Vs-4-6,
“Restore our fortunes, Lord, like streams in the Negev. Those who sow with
tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to
sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.” This whole Psalm
is a prayer for restoration. The Israelites prayed to God to restore their
nations’ fortunes like their best streams in the Negev.
What
do we know about the Negev? It is a desert region south of Beersheba, which is
utterly dry in the summer, but their streams quickly fill up and flood with the
rains of spring. The Psalmist is praying, in the same manner God will restore
Israel’s fortunes so that they will change from nothing to everything in
abundance. How did God restore their Joy?
It
was through their sowing tears of repentance over sin, Israelites reaped the
harvest of a joyful restoration to their homeland. Though their immediate
longing was fulfilled yet they did not stop praying for their future restoration,
because they knew that their ultimate joy of being in God’s presence only be
fulfilled when the Messiah establishes his Kingdom.
III
JESUS RESTORES JOY
Jews
had been longing and waiting for the Messiah for thousands of years, has it
ever happened, or do they still have to wait for a messiah to come and
establish his Kingdom? The longing and waiting for the messiah is the true
essence of the Advent season. Christmas is not about Santa Clause, rain deer,
Christmas trees and gifts. Though it is lovely on Christmas day we unwrap or
gifts and enjoy one another’s presence, let’s remember Christmas is all about
the unwrapping the greatest gift that God has sent into this world over two
thousand years ago.
God
unleashed his joy into this gloomy and dark world through a tiny baby who was
born under unusual circumstances, in a town of Bethlehem in the mountains of
Jerusalem. Let’s see how joy was
unfolded surrounding the birth of the Messiah. The angel told Zechariah that
his wife Elizabeth will bear him a son, they will name him John and he will be
a joy and delight, and many will rejoice because of his birth. Luke 1:13-14.
The
Angel Gabriel told Mary that she was going to have a child and she was to give
him the name Jesus. After that rather puzzling news Mary sets off to see her
cousin Elizabeth, when she heard Mary’s greeting, the baby in Elizabeth’s womb
leaped for joy. Luke 1:44
When
the shepherds were tending their sheep at night, an angel of the Lord appeared
and said, But the
angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will
cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a
Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” Luke 2:10-11.
Fast forward, that boy grew up and became a man.
He healed
the sick, raised the dead and taught about the Kingdom of God. He encouraged
his disciples to ask him anything in his name and he will give it to them so
that their joy would be complete What does joy look like? How is biblical joy
different than the joy we find in this world? The joy we find in this world in whatever
means may be, it only gives us temporary pleasure and it is incomplete. It
could quickly disappear when an adversity strikes us. Rick Warren, notes, “What’s
the easiest thing for you to lose? Your glasses? Your keys? Your mind? The
easiest thing of all to lose is your joy. You can lose it with one phone call
or email, a letter or conversation. You can watch a commercial on TV and lose
your joy. It’s the easiest thing in the world to lose.”[2] On the other hand, the
joy Jesus gives to his followers will remain in them and with them and nothing
or none can ever be able to take it away from them.
Jesus
tells us how we might experience true joy. "As the Father has loved Me, so
have I loved you. Now remain in My love. If you obey My Commands, you will
remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father's commands and remain in His
love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may
be complete." (Jn. 15: 9 - 11)
On
this third Sunday of Advent, how is your soul? Is it in despair? Is it
disturbed? Do you feel, you have lost your joy? How can we find our way back to
God? Answers to these questions can be found in this golden prayer of David, “You make known to me the
path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at
your right hand.” Psalm 16:11.
My prayer
for all of us is that during this advent season, we will slow down from the mad
rush, think and ponder the true meaning of Christmas. May our souls be
restored, strengthened, and energized as we find some time to linger in the
presence of God. May we find true Joy not in the material things but in
meaningful relationships. May we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and
savior and the true reason for this season, and share this great joy with
others. Amen!
