From my Christmas letter to my family in Christ Jesus,
The past year 2011 has brought many changes, some of which hurt deeply, brought significant alteration, and still others brought wondrous joy. We together share a common love for Christ our LORD, one another and extended family. Our losses are never in a vacuum, we are tied together with an eternal love which transcends the physical and gives meaning to all trials and blessings great or small.
I write you as your servant. This year I learned again how little I know and how much I hope to learn. I wanted to share my heart with you all regarding a few things and to say to you in writing, I love you all very much, thank you for being a part of my life and for your continued encouragement of me and my family. Words alone cannot express the depth of gratitude owed to each of you.
We were blessed to see Pastor Voytek come to us and share a passion and love for Christ’s church and outreach which helped to soften the departure of Pastor Jay. Through this transition we have grown and continue to grow as we evaluate ourselves as a congregation and individuals. We hope Rehoboth will continue to grow, mature and become a beloved and cherished place of worship for an ever growing family in Christ. It is the work being done now which will yield fruit as the LORD wills.
This year I learned how joyful sorrow can truly transform our way of thinking, practicing prayer, dealing with trials, and submitting to the LORD. I wanted to take a moment to share with you these insights in the hope they might help us together as we travel the road of sorrows in a world which is not our home.
Sorrow itself is something very profound. We experience it but take little time to really evaluate it; more often than not it owns us emotionally and we welcome its departure. But as Christians we have been given insight into the meaning of life, its purpose, brevity, value, source, frailty and more. At Christmas time we focus on the birth of Christ, the gift of His love, service, sacrifice, death and resurrection. But the Spirit shares these words with us:
“… since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
(Hebrews 12:1–2, NKJV)
Joyful sorrow is a part of our daily lives. It is the blessed love of Christ showered out in every breath we take, in the delight of celebration, rejoicing in our salvation, trembling in humility, crying over sin, and suffering through trials or temptations. Through all these things we are fully sustained by, from, through and to Christ Jesus our LORD and savior. It was the promise of service, the fulfillment of obligation, and the absolute certainty of the covenant agreement from the foundation of the world which our LORD looked toward as the “joy that was set before him.”
In the Gospel of John Christ discusses the necessity of sorrow surrounding his death which would end sorrow and usher in joy.
“A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.” Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is saying.” Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’? Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you. “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. “These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.” His disciples said to Him, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech! Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:16–33, NKJV)
Our sorrow is great because hearts converted by the Spirit clearly recognize sin in the external world and internally within us. This is the greatest sorrow God’s children carry with them- they are not worthy of the blessed gift of the Holy LORD. Inexplicably at the same time this is our greatest joy- to be accepted, loved, and mended. Our joy is great because of the sacrifice of Christ; His sacrifice should also invoke a deep sorrow within us.
When read carefully God’s Word displays the interconnectivity between sorrow and joy, peace and tribulation, sacrifice and reward; these are present to provoke a deeper understanding of the blessings we have received and to demonstrate the intricate purpose of our infinite God. Often the sorrows we experience are there to invoke in us the humility we lack apart from trials and suffering. The Apostle Paul was keenly aware of this fact when the Spirit prompted him to write:
“We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” (2 Corinthians 6:3–10, NKJV)
The wondrous gift of life with all of its imperfections, sin, sickness, corruption, and death are meaningless apart from the love of God, the sacrifice of Christ’s blood, and the redemption purposed from all eternity. Life itself cannot be separated from these elements since they were always part of Gods blessed decree and eternal purpose of love for His elect. Because we love and are given insights, we mourn, struggle and continue to live and breathe as we work out our salvation in fear and trembling.
This fear is not the terror or horrified composure of humanity without the knowledge of God, whose darkened understanding leaves them holding onto nothing in the face of total annihilation. This trembling is not the shiver of sickness or whelmed emotions. Our fear forms from the given understanding we are ever in the presence of the Almighty LORD of the universe; who lives within us through His Spirit even in our darkest moments; who upholds and supports us; and this knowledge strikes us with awe. This is our fear- it is equitable, firm, and purposeful. We tremble in the face of great trials secure in this knowledge- while the LORD may choose to free us from such trials; He also commands them for our good. He takes us in hand like hardened clay, cold and unyielding. With passion, love, care and purpose He changes us from what we are and forms what He intends us to be. At this we tremble, we fear, we rejoice and with sorrowful joy give thanks to the One and only God Almighty whom through Jesus Christ our LORD was pleased to redeem us from ourselves and the wrath which is to come.
This Christmas I am filled with joy and sorrow. I hope these words help you to see more clearly why they go together.
All my love,
Matthew J Davis
