The Joy of the Lord is Your Strength: Rediscovering God's Promise of Great Joy

This Christmas sermon explores the biblical promise of "great joy" announced at Christ's birth and how believers can maintain this joy despite life's hardships. Pastor Darren contrasts manufactured human happiness with authentic God-given joy—a deep-rooted contentment based on unchanging divine promises and eternal spiritual realities. The message addresses how bitterness can erode Christian joy and calls believers to return to the transformative moment of their salvation. Through the nativity story, the sermon emphasizes that Jesus was born in humble circumstances and wrapped in grave clothes, symbolizing that He was born to die so that all people—regardless of status, background, or sin—could experience the inexpressible joy of salvation. Pastor Darren challenges the congregation to let the joy of the Lord be their strength, to drop bitterness, and to become beacons of light that draw others to Christ.