Our text is from Philippians 4:4-7, our Epistle reading for today. Let me read it again. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness 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.” Here ends our text.
In just a few days, we will be saying “Merry Christmas” to one another. The word merry means festive or joyful. Yet for many people, Christmas is not a joyful time of year. Instead, it can be very stressful. There is financial stress because of the cost of gifts, food, and travel. Some grieve the loss of a loved one who has died. We are expected to gather with difficult relatives. There never seems to be enough time for work, shopping, parties, and family visits.
Yet, in the midst of our stress and anxiety, Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice. The Lord is at hand” (vv. 4–5). We will learn that because of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem, His death upon the cross, and His resurrection from the dead, there is reason to rejoice. The Gospel gives us an everlasting joy. It forgives our sin. It gives us a peace that the world can never give. And it helps us to be gentle with others.
Paul writes, “The Lord is at hand.” To begin with, I would like to talk about what this phrase means: “The Lord is at hand.” Then we will speak about joy, peace, and gentleness.
John the Baptist preached, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand” (Matt. 3:2). In other words, the Messiah—the promised Savior—is right around the corner. He is about to appear. So, the people confessed their sins and were baptized for the forgiveness of sins.
Advent is a time of repentance. We, too, are called to confess our sins and to believe in the Gospel.
The Pharisees and Sadducees, however, were unrepentant. They refused to believe that John was sent by God and that the Messiah was at hand. John warned them that if they did not repent, they would be cut down and thrown into the fire of everlasting condemnation. John said to them, “There stands one among you whom you do not know” (John 1:26). Jesus was standing among them. He was at hand. Yet the religious leaders refused to believe that John was sent by God and that the promised Savior was among them. The next day, John pointed to Jesus and said, “There He is. Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” The Lord was at hand in the person of Jesus.
Advent means “to come.” Jesus came in the past. He was born of the virgin Mary in Bethlehem and was laid in a manger. His public ministry began when John baptized Him in the Jordan River. During His ministry, Jesus fulfilled the Law perfectly. He loved His neighbor by giving sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf. He willingly laid down His life on the cross and was lifted up. The cross was the means by which innocent blood was shed as payment for our sin and for the sin of the whole world. On the cross, Jesus bore the wrath of God in our place and died. Three days later, He rose from the dead. There is now reconciliation with God our Father.
Advent means “to come.” Jesus came in the past, and He comes to us today. In other words, the Lord is at hand. He is among us this morning. We do not see Jesus, but we see water and the Word applied in Baptism, clothing sinners with the robe of Christ’s righteousness. We do not see Jesus, but we hear His forgiving word of absolution, and His Word is proclaimed from this pulpit. We do not see Jesus, but we receive His body and blood in the bread and wine for the forgiveness of all our sins.
The Lord is at hand. Jesus is present in water, Word, bread, and wine for us and for our salvation. He is close by. He is not far away. He is Immanuel—God with us.
Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. We are poor sinners. We have not loved God with our whole heart. We have sinned in thought, word, and deed. We repent of our sins, and we receive in the forgiveness of sins. We give God our broken hearts, and He heals us. We give Him our sins, and He gives us Christ’s righteousness.
The good news is that in Christ, God is merciful and gracious to you. He loves you and takes care of you. In Christ, your sins are forgiven, and God remembers them no more.
This is why we come to church. We come to receive the Gospel. We come to receive the God who became flesh in the womb of the virgin Mary and was wrapped in swaddling clothes. We come to receive the God who was nailed to the cross so that our sins might be taken away. We come to learn how to love one another. We come to learn how to live out our life in Christ.
So, “The Lord is at hand” means that God has come near to us in Jesus Christ. He is not far away. He is at hand. This is good news. And because Jesus is among us and with us, there is nothing to be afraid of. Jesus is with us always, even to the end of the age.
Let us now talk about joy. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.” Despite the stress and anxiety in your life, you are able to rejoice because of the Gospel. Despite the hostility from the unbelieving world, you are able to rejoice because Jesus is with you.
To rejoice in the Lord is not a command in the sense of a legal requirement. Paul is not saying, “you had better rejoice or else.” No one can force joy—not even God. Rather, Paul invites us to recognize the joy we already have in Christ. You are a baptized child of God; therefore, you rejoice in what God has done for you. Your sins are forgiven in Christ; therefore, you rejoice that God remembers your sins no more.
Money or the things of this world are not your source of joy. The Gospel is your source of joy. This joy is not seasonal, limited to Christmas. It is constant. Yes, we will have a Merry Christmas because Jesus was born to be our Savior. But we also live joyfully throughout the rest of the year.
No matter whether you have made mistakes you regret, your health is failing, or your friends have let you down, the Lord is still near. His love for you is not determined by the changing circumstances of your life or by your emotions. God has promised to work all things—even the bad things—for your good. If you are ever in need, then pray. Paul says in our text for today, “Let your requests be made known to God” (v. 6). God hears your prayers.
So, whom do we rejoice in? We rejoice in the Lord. We rejoice in what God in Christ Jesus has done for us and for our salvation. Where there is faith in Christ, there is true joy.
Let us now talk about peace. Paul says, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (v. 7).
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the angels announced to the shepherds that there is now peace on earth. The baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger is our Prince of Peace. Jesus is peace in human flesh.
Jesus died on the cross so that we may be reconciled with God our Father. Because of the cross and the open tomb, there is now peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. There is peace between God and man.
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Peace on earth is not achieved politically or militarily. It is not the elimination of crime, hatred, or violence. These will remain in our fallen world. Money cannot give peace of heart and mind. Psychology cannot ultimately calm the conscience. You cannot achieve lasting peace on your own.
Rather, true peace is found only in Christ. This peace calms our troubled hearts. The peace of God surpasses all human understanding. We cannot explain it. It is a gift from God.
Forgiveness and peace go together. If you have forgiveness, you have peace with God. The peace that surpasses all understanding is the peace of sins forgiven. Therefore, do not trouble yourself over past sins. They are drowned in the depths of the sea and paid for by the blood of Christ.
So, Jesus is our source of peace. He is our Prince of peace. This peace assures us that our sins are fully paid for by the blood of Christ.
Finally, because of the Gospel, we possess a gentle spirit. Paul writes, “Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand” (v. 5). The Greek word for gentleness is epieikeia. It also means mercy or kindness. Because God in Christ has been gentle and merciful to you, you are gentle and merciful toward others.
Between Christians there should be no animosity, hatred, or revenge. We are brothers and sisters in Christ—children of God. We should treat each other with gentleness. Yet, we also speak the truth in love. We are faithful to what God’s Word says. We should reflect Christ and His Word in our lives in what we say and do. We want our gentleness to be known to everyone.
So, because of the Gospel, we are given a gentle spirit. We pray that others may see Christ in us.
In summary, even though we may be filled with stress and anxiety during Christmas, yet we are able to rejoice in the Lord because He is at hand. God has come near to us in Jesus Christ. He now comes to us through His Word and Sacrament for our forgiveness and salvation. Because Christ is present with us we live without fear.
From the Gospel flow the gifts of joy, peace, and gentleness. Our joy comes from the Gospel and the forgiveness of sins. Our peace is not found in human effort or worldly solutions, but in Christ alone. This peace surpasses all understanding. And because God has been gentle and merciful to us, we live with gentleness toward others, reflecting Christ in our words and actions so that others may see Christ in us.
Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, Rejoice in the Lord. Amen.
