“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.”

Devotion based on Luke 3:8

We see the word joy all over the place at Christmastime. The songs are mostly upbeat and exude a tone of joy. The decorations are colorful and bright and are meant to put a smile on your face. Family traditions bring back joyful memories of Christmases past. Christmas is a season of joy!

However, the joy we find is often superficial. That sense of joy we hoped to find can be so easily overshadowed by grief, stress, failing health, and regret. If I get to the end of the Christmas season and find that real joy eludes me, maybe I’ve looked for it in the wrong places.

Real joy isn’t found in keeping up appearances. Real joy comes through repentance. John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus by preaching repentance. Repentance means acknowledging your sin and your inability to save yourself, and trusting in the forgiveness and salvation that come from Jesus. Repentance refocuses us on Jesus alone. Many in John’s Day found their sense of joy and security in outward ways, such as their family tree rooted back to Abraham, an Old Testament believer. They failed to recognize their need for Jesus, their Savior.

Repentance means recognizing that sin doesn’t bring the real joy it promised. Trusting in Jesus and his complete forgiveness does. Repentance means recognizing that real joy isn’t the product of your efforts but comes from the perfect work of Jesus, your Savior. Repentance produces fruit, which is not just keeping up appearances. Its fruits may vary depending on your situation and the sins of which you repent. But one of the fruits that repentance produces is joy. Real joy. Not just a smile on the face but sincere joy that comes from a heart that is completely forgiven. Real joy comes from Jesus, who transformed our hearts of stone and made us children of God for eternity.

Prayer: