Joy to the World
How can you make room for Jesus?
Verse of the Day
“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.”
Today’s Devotional
Great joy for all people. That sounds really good. I think we could all use some news that causes great amounts of joy for everyone.
The popular Christmas hymn “Joy to the World” has these lyrics:
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And Heaven and nature sing
The joy that the the Scripture refers to is so simple and also complex. The simple part is that Jesus has come. He had arrived!! But it wasn’t that simple. He was a baby, not a king, and not born to a royal family. He had no political or military ties that might free Israel from Roman rule. This was not the King that was expected. His death on the cross was 33 years away. On the day of this angelic proclamation, Jesus did no miracles that we humans could recognize. The miracle of God taking human form was only known by a few, and I would bet that even they did not fully grasp what was happening. The birth of Jesus was a heaven ordained beginning. The beginning of the end of the separation between man and God. THAT IS GOOD NEWS.
The angel calls Jesus “the Messiah, the Lord.” The Savior. The Master. And for that day, the celebration was that Jesus had arrived on earth. He had years to live before he would begin His ministry. The angels understood the magnitude of His birth. It really is good news that should cause great joy. Even today.
The line from “Joy to the World” that stands out to me is: “Let every heart prepare Him room”. When I have guests coming to my house, I get things ready. I make sure the sheets and towels are clean and that things are picked up and that we have cream for their coffee. So how do I prepare Him room? How do I make room for Jesus in my life? I am in no way saying that we need to “clean up” our lives for Jesus. That’s His job. But I am saying that each one of us needs to be intentional about making room for Jesus in our life each and every day.
Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare Him room.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How can you make room for Jesus today and receive your King?
How can live today with the joy that Jesus offers you?
Write out the lyrics of one of your favorite Jesus-focused Christmas songs and see if anything stands out to you.