Hearts Longing: For Joy

Many times, it seems that our joy is anchored to our expectations. When we have high expectations, we must enjoy everything we hoped for in order to be joyful. When they are low, joy becomes more attainable. We might even be surprised by joy. Today, we meet a man who was disappointed with Jesus—John the Baptist. He had hoped that Jesus would usher in a righteousness revival. Instead, he found himself languishing alone in prison for preaching the truth. He sent his disciples with an important question: Are you the One that God promised to send? Jesus’ answer brought everything into focus. Jesus was doing the very things that God had promised through his Old Testament prophets like Isaiah. Jesus was performing incredible miracles and proclaiming the good news of salvation. His response to John was straightforward—just because I am not the Messiah you expected does not mean I am not the Messiah you need. In this message, Jesus resets our perspective and recalibrates our expectations so that we might have lasting joy. When our joy is anchored to Christ alone, we will be joyful in all circumstances.