I love the scene in A Charlie Brown Christmas where Linus cites a portion of the Christmas story from the gospel of Luke: “Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be for all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Linus cites the familiar Bible verses in the midst of a distracted and busy Peanuts gang who’ve forgotten the true meaning of Christmas. As I think of that passage of Scripture, this question comes to mind: How does the good news of Jesus’ birth bring great joy?

Great Joy is Available! My wife and I have finally discovered the ease and convenience of doing our Christmas and birthday shopping on-line. You can purchase just about anything on sites like Amazon. But I challenge you to do a search for “great joy”. You may find a book or album with that title, but it’s not the kind of “great joy” offered by our great God. But suppose you conducted a search for the “great joy” announced to the shepherds and found that great joy is available. It exists and it is in stock! That’s the emphasis here for the shepherds outside Bethlehem must hear: “Good news shepherds! There is great joy out there to be had!” Great joy is available. And it is available to all people.

There is no waiting period for this great joy! Millions of Star Wars fans have been anxiously awaiting the release of seventh film Star Wars: The Force Awakens. And now the waiting period is over. Yet something infinitely more important and impactful has arrived – the birth of the King of Kings! The first to hear the birth announcement are not priests or kings, but shepherds. And they are told the wait is finally over! The promised Messiah, longed for by Israel, “is born this day in the city of David”.

This Great Joy is Something You Cannot Do Without! Apple CEO Tim Cook said of his company “Our whole role in life is to give you something you didn’t know you wanted. And then once you get it, you can’t imagine your life without it”. And for millions of people he is absolutely correct. Can you really imagine your life without your smart phone?
The angel announced to the shepherds that this bundle of great joy born in Bethlehem would be “a Savior”. As New Testament scholar Robert Stein writes, “we are the kind of people who need saving”. We are under God’s wrath because of our sin and to be saved from it. The good news of great joy is that this salvation has been provided in a Savior named Jesus.

Satisfaction is Guaranteed in this Great Joy! Companies like to market their products with the promise “Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back”. How do we know this “great joy” is not too good to be true? How can the shepherds know that this Savior is One Whom they cannot do without? Who is backing this offer of great joy? The angel answers this question by explaining that this Savior is “Christ the Lord”. The One Who has been born is the promised King . As the Son of David, he is fully man. Yet He is also fully God for He is Christ “the Lord”. He created His own mother, then entered her womb. And now, the Lord lay in a manger! Such a One is surely able to guarantee not only the satisfaction of our souls with Himself but also able to satisfy the demands of God’s justice as the God-man sacrifice on the Cross.

Dear friends, I bring you good news of great joy. Not only is it available and in stock, there’s no shipping and handling. And not only is there no shipping and handling, lo and behold, it doesn’t cost a dime! In fact, it is an insult to even try and buy it! This baby in a manger, our Lord Jesus Christ, purchased this great joy for you at the cost of His precious blood!