The Joy of Jesus!

"The Lord gives his people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to him."  - Dwight L. Moody

During this time of the year, we see the word "joy" used often in many different formats. And who would disagree that the word evokes feelings of happiness, rejoicing, and inner warmth? In addition to these examples, we find "joy" used a lot in the Bible.

In fact, it is used over 100 times in the Old Testament and about 60 or so times in the New Testament. Its wide usage alone leads one to believe that it has to be an important word. Therefore, I think it's one of those words that should definitely be examined a little more closely.

For sure, we could pick any number of instances where "joy" comes up in scripture, but to save time and space, I will direct you to one verse in particular, Hebrews 12:2 (NASB). Let's zero in on the part that says, "...who for the joy set before Him..." 

Using this as our starting point, we can ask the question, "What is this joy that was set before Jesus?" While there are many illustrations we could point to, I will suggest a few of the better known.

To begin, Jesus speaks of it in the joy of father who receives his penitent son back into his heart and home in the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11–32). Then, there's the joy of a shepherd who finds the lost sheep he had been looking for in The Parable of the Lost Sheep ((Luke 15:3–7).

Another case may be found in the Parable of the Lost Coin ( Luke 15:8–10), where a woman looks for a lost coin, finds it, and rejoices. What is the common denominator regarding the joy of Jesus, in all of these examples? It can be condensed to just four words: the joy of love.

And not just any ol' variety of love, either. It is that exceptional and wonderful kind of love which inspires us to call grace. We can also say that it is the strongest, most beautiful, and heavenly type of love. And, while we're at it, let's call it the joy of holiness and of absolute goodness.

As you can see, there's a lot more to the word "joy" than what we see on a Christmas card. We could all do a lot worse than to make Christ's joy our goal, not only during the Christmas season, but all year long. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! -Philippians 4:4 (NIV)

Scripture: Romans 12:12; James 1:2; Philippians 4:4; Galatians 5:22; Psalm 118:24

Prayer: Dear Jesus, it makes me feel so wonderful to release the joy inside that I receive from You. I pray that my happy heart will not only lift my spirits, but that I can share this same joy with everyone I meet, amen.

Have a blessed Monday!

Hailey