Always? Really?

 “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Rejoice always. Really? Yeah, right. I mean come on Paul. Really? Rejoice Always? I mean isn’t it more realistic to say rejoice most of the time? That would be hard enough. But always? I just don’t know about that. What do you think? Do you rejoice always? There are certainly many times to rejoice in life; the birth of a baby, a baptism, a marriage, graduation. Life is full of blessings and happy times. Life is full of moments to rejoice in. But it’s not always that way. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I don’t want to rejoice, I would much rather retreat. 

I had a conversation with someone a few years back, during this time of year.  “You know,” the voice on the other side of the line said, “with all the stress of shopping and paying the bills, it is just too much. It really makes me hate the holiday season.”  I was blown away. I mean if there is a season to be rejoicing it is certainly this season. And yet somehow the voice, perhaps overwhelmed by an unrealistic portrayal of the holiday season and the pressure of living up to that, had grown to hate the season. Rejoice? Not this time. Retreat seemed more like it.

What do you think? Rejoice always. Personally, I think Paul means it. He is telling the Thessalonians to rejoice always. And this is a group of people who are not having the easiest time being Christians. They are suffering from persecution. They are suffering from false teaching. It is no small or easy matter to be a Thessalonian Christian. And yet it is in this context that Paul instructs them to rejoice always. 

You and I live in a different world. But it is one that is safer, but not necessarily easier to live in. There is no lack of pain, suffering or injustice in our world. We deal with sickness and debts and rising expenses. There are so many expectations that are placed on us between work and school and home and sports and all the things that we do, that we can’t fulfill all of them. It is no small or easy matter to be a Christian today. And yet it is in this context that the instruction comes to you and me. Rejoice always. 

And let’s face it. We all know that even if things seem to be going along fine now, there will come a point in time when something happens that will make us want to retreat, and rejoicing will be the last thing we feel like doing. So what about those moments when I don’t want to rejoice? What about those times when all I want to do is retreat?

For you and me. When we are burdened with all the expectations that are placed on us in our lives. And rejoicing seems rigorous. It is in those times that we do need to retreat.  But not out in the middle of nowhere, though sometimes quite is nice. Not into ourselves, though sometimes understanding our thoughts and feelings is helpful. Rather when we want to retreat, we retreat into the arms of our God.

These arms are strong and comforting. You look down at the hands and see the scars from the nails. These arms are loving. These arms bring good news to the oppressed. The bind up the brokenhearted, they proclaim liberty to captives and release to prisoners. They comfort all who mourn. The give a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning. They give a mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. 

Our God was not content to allow us to be lost and separated from him by our sin. He was not happy leaving the creation broken without any hope or anything to look forward to. So through the death and resurrection of his son he has restored us to himself.  Which means that we have everlasting life. And in that everlasting life we have hope. So that no matter how bad things may be, we know that when all is said and done, they will be perfect. And so we look for that day when he will return. Because it is on that day that there will be no more pain or sickness. There will be no more sin or death. There will be no more tears. This is what Advent is all about. In this season we are not just looking for the celebration of Jesus’ first coming as a baby in Bethlehem. But we are also looking for his return.

And that is not all. We don’t have to just sit around and wait for that end to come. Because in addition to the everlasting life that we have for Jesus’ sake, we also have the gift of a relationship with him. We live in communion with our God. You and I are able to go to our God. We can go in good times and in bad. He listens to us. He comforts us. He provides all that we need. Not only can we go to him, but he comes to us. He comes to us in the hearing of his word.  He comes to us in the waters of baptism. He comes to us in, with and under the bread and wine in Holy Communion. When we want to retreat, we retreat into his arms. We retreat into the arms that were nailed to a tree.

It is in those arms, that you and I are then able to rejoice. It is in those arms that we are able to rejoice always. If we were on our own we would certainly not be able to rejoice. But in the arms of our God we can. 

Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that this means that we are to always be happy and to feel feelings of happiness and joy and excitement. We need not be manic. Rather rejoicing in the arms of God is knowing that he is there, right there with you. That he provides and will give you all that you need. And that he loves you so. With the Lord on your side, who can be against you? 

We rejoice in the arms of our God. Because of the close relationship that we have with him. Because of the communication that we share, our lives become conversations with our God. So that in all that we do we are praying without ceasing. Knowing God’s great love in our lives and promises to us, we are able to give thanks no matter what. We trust in the work of his Spirit and love the words he speaks to us. Testing what we hear, even the words of this sermon. Holding fast to what is good and staying away from what is not. 

And here is thing. And this is so cool. We have this life, this relationship with our God, but the implications of that do not end on an individual level. It doesn’t end with me and Jesus. Rather it carries on into our community here, and beyond that into the community around us. 

What a tremendous blessing to be surrounded by people who are living life in the arms of God. Who are able to rejoice always, pray without ceasing and to give thanks in all circumstances. And this is yet another good gift that our God gives to us. He has given you to me and me to you.  We are in this life together. We are in this mission, his mission, to go and make disciples together. Though we feel alone at times, we are never really alone. And so we rejoice. 

He has given us different ministries to participate in together. Things to celebrate and give thanks for. Ministries like altar guild, Fidelis guild, Sunday school and Stephen ministry. By the way, we rejoice with our Stephen Ministers as we commission three new ministers who have just this past week completed their training and will be assigned care receivers at the beginning of the year. For them and all the wonderful things going on in this place for life, we rejoice.

And this is the message of comfort given to the Thessalonians in our lesson. Though they are caught in the midst of persecution and trial, those things cannot separate them from the love of God in Christ Jesus. And so they have hope, they are able to endure, survive and rejoice. And perhaps the greatest comfort comes from knowing that God will indeed see this through.

And this is the message of comfort given to you and me. Though we are caught in the midst of pain, suffering, injustice, sickness, debt and expectations. We know that those things cannot separate us from the love of god in Christ Jesus. And so you and I have hope. We are able to endure, survive and rejoice. And perhaps the greatest comfort comes from knowing that God will indeed see this through.

Rejoice always? Yeah. Right. Because when we are in the arms of our God we are always able to rejoice. And may God bless you and me as we live out our lives in rejoicing, praying and thanksgiving. Amen.