The Strength of Joy

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4 "Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice!

5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication, and with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God.

7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4: 4-7 KJV)

Anyone who has even remotely attended church on Sundays, or has managed to even somewhat regularly keep the dust off of their Bibles will recognize this passage instantly, and rightly so, as it is one of the most powerful, and famous exhortations in all of scripture.

What I find even more powerful and compelling about this passage, however, is that it was penned by Paul the apostle, (under the direct inspiration of The Holy Spirit,) while he was in prison!

This obviously begs the question then, how in the world could one mange to be joyful under those circumstances?

This is a great question indeed, the exploration of whose answer I believe speaks to the distorted priorities of Christianity in the West, and cuts to the very heart of the ever growing dysfunction in the American Church.

Let's do our best now to define this word, as we cannot communicate effectively with each other until we do.

First let's have a look at Webster's dictionary definition of joy:

1.) a feeling of great pleasure or happiness that comes from success, good fortune, or a sense of well-being : GLADNESS

2.) something that gives joy

(a joy to behold)

Pretty self explanatory, right?

Now, let's take a gander at a much more Biblically accurate view and definition of the word joy.

Christianity (.com) defines it this way, "Simply put, Biblical joy is choosing to respond to external circumstances with inner contentment and satisfaction, because we know that God will use these experiences to accomplish His work in and through our lives."

This is a truly fantastic definition of joy from a biblical perspective. I think that it is key here to notice the distinction that the writer made between "external circumstances," and "inner contentment and satisfaction" based on the unwavering faith that we as believers have that God has, and will indeed again, use all of our circumstances, good and bad, to accomplish His will for our lives.

This is a pure and simple trust in the love, sovereignty, and all powerful and providing hand of our Heavenly Father, that He will make good come from what we trust Him with, even though we may not see how at the time, or even if He does it in a completely unexpected way that ends up totally surprising us.

God is certainly not against human flourishing, or success, at all; AS LONG AS IT IS FOUND IN THE CONTEXT OF, AND UNDER THE SUBJECTION OF HIS KINGDOM, AND THE PROPER PRIORITIZATION OF HIS PURPOSES, coming first in our hearts and lives.

That condition though, however easy it is to write or say, is an awful lot harder to surrender to, and execute in our lives, as Jeremiah 17: 9-10 clearly illustrates,

9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

10 I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings"

Here I turn to one of the most influential contributors to theology of the Christian Church that we have ever known, one whose thoughts and writings are still taught in seminaries to this day around the world, and whose contributions to our understanding of ethics have indelibly shaped even our current, modern society, St Augustine.

Augustine basically speaks of four levels, if you will, of happiness.

1.) Instant Gratification.

It's funny how NONE of us needs to be taught what this is, as from the time we are babies we intuitively know how to grab for what we want, when we want it, and we also of course instinctively know how to let out a scream that would make a banshee blush, when we don't get what we want.

Sure, we can laugh this behavior off, in light of how cute the baby is, and that not much else can be expected of it, and that's true.

But, when a person, twenty years, thirty, forty, fifty, or beyond behaves in a way remarkably similar to that aforementioned baby, it's funny how alarmingly ugly and repugnant we find that exact same behavior in someone who is supposed to be an adult, and for good reason.

"All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone". Blaise Pascal

If only more harkened to that wisdom, and endeavored to obey it. Oh the wars, and their immense casualties, both foreign and domestic, both literal and figurative, that could've been avoided. . . .

Level 2.) Ego Comparative.

The United States of America in particular, has unfortunately turned this level into a cottage industry, as the all-consuming, and passive aggressive pursuits of would-be neighbors is to merely to show off what kind of car they drive and how big their house is, as they tirelessly strive to keep up with the Joneses, even though they don't know who the Joneses actually are.

Yes, far too much of our society is based "outside-in" thinking, and on the erroneous belief that if I can successfully use my accomplishments to persuade you to tell me that I'm somebody, maybe then I'll really feel it, and believe it myself.

This very same thinking has preceded more alcoholics, drug addicts, domestic abusers, and suicide attempts than we could possibly count, as this way of thinking and attempt at living is diametrically opposed to the way that God has set before us.

Level 3.) Contributive

This level is certainly certainly closer to the Kingdom of God that the preceding first two, but in and of itself, is incomplete.

Those for instance, who don't necessarily have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, yet do display some character and moral leanings, will often exemplify those values through participation in some organization or entity, whose noble aim is to help others, like The Salvation Army, or The Knights of Columbus, or even a 12 step fellowship like Alcoholics Anonymous.

This makes me think of my own experiences in AA before I accepted Christ as my Savior and Lord. God was certainly working through those experiences to help shape me, and my character, and I did start to feel progressively more peace in my soul.

But, God's true aim was to prepare my heart to receive Jesus, as true eternal and lasting peace, much less the power at my disposal to overcome certain nagging sins in my life, had still somehow mysteriously eluded me.

Level 4.) Transcendent

This can only occur when one receives the GOD-GIVEN GRACE that only comes from Faith in Christ alone!

We, as human beings, all have a certain dogged calculus in our fallen and fleshly natures, and the unrenewed minds that accompany them, that shouts to us that somehow accomplishment, through the sheer unaided determination of our own will, can and will achieve the peace, relief, and spiritual rest, that our souls DESPERATELY crave.

Our hearts and our psyches then, become devastatingly disappointed when, time after time, this woefully flawed system of belief fails us, and our hearts, minds, and emotions, are left restless, discontented, and disturbed.

Because God's ways are "higher than our ways," The Kingdom of God is filled with great paradoxes and ironies that don't initially make sense to us, and are hard to fathom at first, until we begin to, out of total desperation initially, surrender to them and experience their miraculous results for ourselves!

Then, and ONLY then, do we begin to realize that true and lasting Peace doesn't come from any of our accomplishments, but instead comes only from receiving by Grace through Faith, the most precious results of the ULTIMATE accomplishment won by our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary on our behalf!!! 🙏🏼❤️🖐🏼

When we allow our old nature to die, we are completely open then, to receive HIS life which then mysteriously begins to fill us through the Power and Presence of The Holy Spirit!

As I close, here I rely on a particularly powerful and poignant interpretation of Galatians 2:20-21, found in the Message translation of scripture,

20 "What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

21 Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily."

As powerful a translation of scripture, and synopsis of what takes places in our spirits, hearts, and lives as believers, as I've ever heard!

It is this "life" and power then, not mine but Christ's, that flows in and through me, filling me with peace that passes all understanding, enabling me to be perfectly content even in the face of extremely difficult trials and situations, and unequivocally empowers me to share this unparalleled good news of the Grace and love of God with any and all who are hungry for it!

For it is this joy that "is my strength," (Nehemiah 8:10,) and that strength is what allows me to love others around me in spite of their faults, and be brave and secure enough to show others mine, and allow them to love me, all through Christ.

For it is this way of operating, according the principles of His Kingdom, that truly honors our heavenly Father, and satisfies our souls in the process, all for the Glory of God, both now and forever!

In Jesus' Name,

Amen

Questions and Reflection:

1.) Do I truly possess the Joy of The Lord in my heart, a quality far greater than mere circumstantial happiness?

2.) If I do have that joy, how is it showing both to myself and others?

3.) Have I once had that joy, and now it has been lost, or diminished? Why is that and what am I doing to get it back?

4.) If I do have this great joy, how am I sharing it with others on a daily basis? What can I do to grow in my effectiveness in doing so?

Prayer:

Almighty, and all Loving God,

We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for not sparing your only Son, but for freely giving Him up for us that we might receive the all powerful and sanctifying Grace that flows from the power of His resurrection!

Lord, we thank you so much for the joy that springs forth from that fact, and the ability to be truly satisfied and content no matter what storms or circumstances may come! May we always let your Power, the power of the Holy Spirit, flow freely through us as we endeavor to share that joy with others as we go about our lives, in the matchless, and mighty name of Jesus Christ, our Lord!

Amen 🙏🏼

We love all of you, and are Praying continuously for you!

God's richest Blessings,

• NDV