Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:4-9
This is one of those passages that always amazes me. Why is that? Paul’s circumstances. As Paul writes this in roughly 60 A.D., he is currently sitting in…prison. Things are not going well for the Apostle. He is worried and concerned about the many churches he prays for and serves on a daily basis. His future is unknown and uncertain. He is dealing with a congregation in the midst of an argument (see 4:1-3).
He has every reason not to rejoice (and would we blame him?). He has every reason to be sour, cranky, and agitated (most people we know would be, if not ourselves). He has every reason to be anxious, worried, and stressed (and we would completely understand). But, yet, Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”
Even in 2020? Yes, even in 2020! What has God blessed you with this past year? It certainly has been a challenging year in many respects, but God has still been good to us, despite all these things. I encourage you to reflect on this. Perhaps, make a list. I think you would be amazed to see how much you could come up with in 2020!
Even though things are not easy, we still can rejoice in the Lord. Maybe Thanksgiving was not like it normally was. Maybe Christmas will be similar, or normal family traditions will not be done. However, in Christ, we can always rejoice! We can rejoice in the love poured out on us. We can rejoice in the grace given and lavished on us. We can rest in the forgiveness and salvation won for us at Calvary, and announced at the Garden Tomb. The world, Satan, and our current circumstances, cannot take these things from us. They cannot rob us of these gifts in Christ…and the joy that they bring.
As Paul sat in that Roman prison (perhaps on house arrest), he realized this truth. It is why he could say, “Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say, rejoice!” Why? It is because in Jesus, he knew he could, and so can we.
In Christ,
Pastor Nick Kooi
(Originally published in Emmaus Footprints, Vol. XXII, Number 5, December 2020)