Joy Discovered

Joy for the Christian can no longer be found in the things of the world. He understands that the world is passing away.

1 John 2:17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

 And so he understands that there is more to this life than indulging the flesh looking for joy. When he tries to find joy like his neighbor does, with the things of this world, he finds them to be only temporary and hollow. He has become a new creation and there is no going back.

 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

 A Christian's joy now consists in following Jesus. He finds joy in trying to be in this world what Jesus was. A Christian finds joy in what Jesus found joy in. Jesus found His joy not in immersing himself in the things the world had to offer but in setting himself apart (sanctification) for God and His will. In His prayer toward the end of His earthly ministry Jesus prayed these words.

John 17:13-21 "But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. ¹⁴ "I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. ¹⁵ "I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.  ¹⁶ "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. ¹⁷ "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.¹⁸ "As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ "For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. ²⁰ "I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; ²¹ that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

In this prayer there are a couple of points that speak directly to the issue of joy that we are dealing with. The first is that Christians are a different breed of person. Christians are, in Jesus' words, "not of the world." Christians do not live in the world like those who are "of the world." The second is that there is a sanctification or a setting apart that happened at the time of conversion through the Word of God and that continues to progress as the Christian lives his life. Jesus said, "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth," and also "For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth." These things Jesus spoke in the world so that our joy made be made full in each and every Christian.

So how do we experience joy? We do so by immersing ourselves in the life of Jesus. We do so by loving what He loved, by doing the will of the Father. Most of us find doing the will of God difficult and so we don't try. We are then forced to try to find joy in the world like our unsaved friends and we are surprised when this kind of compromise is ultimately unsatisfying. Paul boiled his life down like this,

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

This is nothing new, but it is a type of death. The Christian has to be willing to pick up his cross and follow Jesus, which means to die to self and begin to live first and foremost for God. It is a leap of faith as well, to lay aside the things the world says brings joy and take up a life that the world laughs at and scorns. To follow Jesus, to talk about Jesus, to exhort and admonish others to live the crucified life, to be willing to die if necessary seems almost too much to ask. The issue is a matter of faith. Is this so surprising? The world tells us that living for our flesh is the source of joy and God says that joy comes from living for Him and for our neighbors.

1 Peter 5:6-7 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, ⁷ casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

Who will you listen to? Who will you place your faith or trust in? As for me and my house… Who cares for you? The choice is before you now. What kind of joy do you want? Do you want a lasting deep joy or a shallow fleeting joy? May the Lord guide and strengthen you as you determine to live for Him.