HOPE OF ALL THE EARTH
Third Sunday of Advent - Joy
December 14, 2025
SCRIPTURE
MATTHEW 1:18-19
This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah cam about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
MATTHEW 1:18-19
This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah cam about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
Children are often wonderful teachers, especially when they're receiving gifts. Most adults have learned how to express thanks and appreciation for even the most mundane and disappointing of presents:
"Socks! How did you know?"
"What an unusual jumper, thanks so much!"
"My goodness, what an interesting flavour this cake has; thank you for baking it yourself!"
Children, on the other hand, have often not learned this etiquette and are sometimes brutally frank in their assessment of such presents. If they are unhappy or uninterested, they often show little hesitation in expressing their true feelings.
Yet how often do the most unexpected things lead to the most joy? How often do the most unusual, seemingly uninteresting things bring the most pure and unbridled joy to our hearts? There's a reason clichés become clichés--because, more often than not, they're accurate. We've all seen (or been!) the child playing with the box more than with the toys it contained.
Joseph could not have been expecting much joy. Matthew presents this earth-shattering, reality-changing news in stark terms: "Before they came together, [Mary] was found to be pregnant." There's no sense of drama; no hint of the heartache, the disappointment, the anger Joseph must have felt at the news of this seeming betrayal. Joy must have been far from his mind and far from his heart.
The fact of the matter is, when we look at the first Christmas without the veneer of greeting cards and nativity scenes, it's a mess. Yet God redeemed it! From that mess he brought life, light, hope-he brought what many of us will remember singing once upon a time: "joy unspeakable and full of glory."
Many of us have messy lives. Many of us will even have a messy Christmas. But we know, as Joseph surely discovered, that God can weave that mess into a tapestry of surpassing beauty. He can redeem that mess and use it to bring inexpressible joy.
Our mess is not the end. God can take it and use it to bring us to a place that seems impossible and unreachable—a place of genuine, soul-deep joy.
"Socks! How did you know?"
"What an unusual jumper, thanks so much!"
"My goodness, what an interesting flavour this cake has; thank you for baking it yourself!"
Children, on the other hand, have often not learned this etiquette and are sometimes brutally frank in their assessment of such presents. If they are unhappy or uninterested, they often show little hesitation in expressing their true feelings.
Yet how often do the most unexpected things lead to the most joy? How often do the most unusual, seemingly uninteresting things bring the most pure and unbridled joy to our hearts? There's a reason clichés become clichés--because, more often than not, they're accurate. We've all seen (or been!) the child playing with the box more than with the toys it contained.
Joseph could not have been expecting much joy. Matthew presents this earth-shattering, reality-changing news in stark terms: "Before they came together, [Mary] was found to be pregnant." There's no sense of drama; no hint of the heartache, the disappointment, the anger Joseph must have felt at the news of this seeming betrayal. Joy must have been far from his mind and far from his heart.
The fact of the matter is, when we look at the first Christmas without the veneer of greeting cards and nativity scenes, it's a mess. Yet God redeemed it! From that mess he brought life, light, hope-he brought what many of us will remember singing once upon a time: "joy unspeakable and full of glory."
Many of us have messy lives. Many of us will even have a messy Christmas. But we know, as Joseph surely discovered, that God can weave that mess into a tapestry of surpassing beauty. He can redeem that mess and use it to bring inexpressible joy.
Our mess is not the end. God can take it and use it to bring us to a place that seems impossible and unreachable—a place of genuine, soul-deep joy.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION OR DISCUSSION
What is something unexpected in your life that has led to deep joy?
Acknowledging, naming, and feeling our raw emotions is an important part of healthy and mature emotional intelligence in the life of an adult.When bad things happen to us, especially when they are surprises, after we have allowed ourselves to feel negative emotions about the situation, how can we then turn around and consider what joy might come without denying or dismissing or ignoring our valid negative emotions?
What is something unexpected in your life that has led to deep joy?
Acknowledging, naming, and feeling our raw emotions is an important part of healthy and mature emotional intelligence in the life of an adult.When bad things happen to us, especially when they are surprises, after we have allowed ourselves to feel negative emotions about the situation, how can we then turn around and consider what joy might come without denying or dismissing or ignoring our valid negative emotions?
PRAYER
Write a prayer asking God to help you learn how to better hold joy in tension with your own negative emotions.
Write a prayer asking God to help you learn how to better hold joy in tension with your own negative emotions.