Christmas – ’tis the season of Joy!

There is coming a time when even the creation will rejoice …

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
    let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
    let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes,
    he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.
(Psalm 96: 11-13)

The desert and the parched land will be glad;
    the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
    it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
    the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the Lord,
    the splendor of our God.
(Isaiah 35: 1-2)

David A. Steen, PhD in Biological Sciences writes in his devotional, God of Wonders:
Did you have any idea how many biblical passages mention the inanimate creation expressing the emotions of joy, gladness, and jubilation? …  If these lines are to be believed, the mindless and insensate surely do sense their Creator and respond with gladness. … We are the blessed ones who actually do have senses that inform our minds so that we can think about what we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. Thus we have all the reasons to be glad, to be joyful, even jubilant because our God reigns. If the inanimate and insensate are glad and expressive, how much more should we be praising God and rejoicing because He lives?

Isaac Watts captured this same theme in his hymn, Joy to the World, written to encourage us to celebrate the second coming of our King!  We’ve adapted the song for Christmas, making it a celebratory announcement of the birth of our Lord.  Notice in the first verses how Watts emphasizes that all nature will sing … and will repeat the sounding joy!

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the world, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

How much more should we be praising God and rejoicing because He lives?

We don’t have to wait for Sunday … or for the second coming of our King.
We can praise Him now for He is Emmanuel, God with us!

 How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is!
He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ,
and takes us to the high places of blessing in him.
Long before he laid down earth’s foundations,
he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love,
to be made whole and holy by his love.
Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family
through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!)
He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish
gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son.
(Ephesians 1:3-6)

Let’s not let creation out-praise us! Let your JOY ring out!