Joy Notes - What is it and where does it come from?

Recently, I had an opportunity to teach on joy. This is the first of three meditations based on those teachings…

Usually, when people define joy, they think about happiness and it is usually tied to pleasant circumstances. But, the Bible paints a different picture. In Ecclesiastes, the author says time and again that the pleasures of this world are vanity… in other words, they are empty - pointless - they do not satisfy. And yet - so many folks think their joy is somehow tied to those very things. Actually, there is often joy in temporal things - but that joy is fleeting. It does not satisfy.

True joy comes from the Lord. It is a supernatural joy that non-believers can NOT access. Joy means to rejoice or be glad - to delight in something. It is a "delight in life that runs deeper than pain or pleasure." It is a quality of life and NOT a fleeting emotion. Joy is ground in God Himself and flows from Him. (see Rom. 15:13)Believers can have eternal joy because it is based in the eternal inheritance that we have from the Lord.

Peter tells the believers in 1 Peter (1:1-9) that they can be joyful despite their circumstances because God, in His great mercy, has caused the believers to be born again to a living hope through Christ. AND, He has given us an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, will not fade away and that is reserved for us in heaven! This is great cause for rejoicing!

We were created to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Did you catch that? Enjoy Him. Find our joy IN HIM. He is the source of joy. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. (Ps. 37:4) Joy is the proper response to the character of God and the work of Jesus Christ. As believers, it is our JOY that sets us apart. When trials come, and they do, do we act despondent like the rest of the world? Or, do we rejoice, knowing that the trials test your faith?

Really this is a perspective issue. Is the focus on us or Him? If it is on us, we will quickly run out of joy. If the focus is on HIM - He is the power source. Jesus said that this inheritance (eternal life) is "like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." (Matt. 13:44) Why - because "in His presence there is fullness of joy" (Ps. 16:11) and all who take refuge in Him rejoice! (Ps. 5:11)

True Joy comes from:

• True knowledge and right-thinking about Christ.
• From our position in Christ.
• From abiding in Christ.
• From the Holy Spirit living in us.
  

The Goodness of God

O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

(Ps. 34:8)

Our Sunday school class is studying the attributes of God… a few weeks ago, we spent a fair amount of time talking about why it is SO important for us to have an accurate view of God… to know what God has declared about Himself through the Bible… warped foundations, after all, have a way of making houses unstable.

This week, we discussed the goodness of God… and I realized how vitally important it is that we understand that God doesn't just *do* good things - His very ESSENCE is good. He can be none other. Psalm 84:11 tells us that He doesn't withhold any good thing from those who walk uprightly. James 1:17 reminds us that every good gift is from Him.

As I studied for this lesson, author and theologian Wayne Grudem reminded me that, "Good is what God approves… The goodness of God means that God is the final standard of good and that all that God is and does is worthy of approval." As that sunk in, I realized how many times I think and act as if *I* am the final standard of good. If something doesn't seem good to me, how can it be good? And yet, I know that I am NOT good. I prove it daily.

God's goodness is constantly on display… through all that He created; in giving us the very breath that we breathe; even in the senses that He has given us to enjoy the many things He has created (like the sunrise this morning!) His goodness is also on display through other attributes - like His love, grace, mercy and patience! Through those attributes - it is often easy to see His goodness… but what about through His justice or His wrath? His goodness and holiness REQUIRE that He deal with sin… and the wages of sin are death. But in His goodness, He provided a way! I asked the class this morning - "is the Lord's day of judgment good or bad?" The usual response ensued… "depends on whether you are saved or not." But really - it is good. Period. God decides what is good - not us.

As usual, this is a perspective issue… we try to define things by our perspective - based on our LIMITED knowledge. But God is not limited in knowledge or perspective. If we don't believe and trust that He is good - and that He is working all things together for the good those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Rom. 8:28) - and if we don't rightly know His character (that He is all-powerful, all-knowing and that He changes not, etc.), then we can easily look at circumstances and conclude that God is not so good. This is wrong!

Another wrong approach is to disassociate God from anything that seems bad to us. J.I. Packer calls this "Santa Claus Theology". Essentially, Santa Claus theology disassociates God from anything heart-breaking (death, cancer, natural disasters, etc) and denies "that He has any direct relation to them or control over them; in other words, to deny His omnipotence and lordship over His world." But what kind of god is that? Certainly not the One presented in Scripture! We must not forget that good is what God approves. Even if it looks or seems bad to us.

Having right thoughts about God's character, and specifically His goodness impacts every area of my life! It causes me to worship Him more deeply - to be deeply thankful for all that He has blessed me with - from the simplest to the greatest! It also causes me to appreciate His patience - both with me - and with this world… And, I am able to appreciate His discipline. He is not leaving me as I am - but is daily conforming me further into the image of His Son.

These things impact the way I respond to others and to the circumstances of my life… since God is patient with me - I am encouraged to show that same patience to others… He has forgiven me MUCH - how can I not forgive others? When "bad" things happen - do I melt into a puddle of tears and distress as though I have no hope - OR do I press on trusting that God does not allow anything to come into my life that doesn't serve His purposes? And do I point others to this same truth?

The God of the Bible is amazing - and He is goodness defined. O taste and see that the Lord is good!