Biblical Joy Endures All Things
Biblical joy endures all things because thats what Jesus did. He knew that there was a greater joy coming that he had yet to experience.
For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:2b CSB
Even though we cant feel joy, and even though we may be feeling the exact opposite of joy at times, it is the one thing as Christians that inspires us to endure all things.
Think of the early church and even believers today who are being persecuted. Why did they not give in under the pressure of mockery and torture?
Why did Jesus not give in and call his angels down to save him from the cross? Because He was looking forward to the joy of one day being in the Fathers presence with all of us.
We are saved from sin and death, for a life with Jesus on this earth, to one day enter into the kingdom of Heaven in order to worship God and be loved by him for eternity. This joy has got to outweigh whatever we are enduring in this life now.
You are being guarded by Gods power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. You rejoice in this, even though now for a short time, if necessary, you suffer grief in various trials.
1 Peter 1:5-6 CSB
This isnt because were all that, its because God loves us so much that He was willing to send Jesus to die for us. Now, Jesus is seated at the right hand of God with all authority and all power in His hands.
What Does The Bible Teach Us About Joy
1. God, Himself, is the source of our joy
Galatians 5:22-23 gives us a list of the fruits of the spirit and joy is listed there as one of the byproducts of the Holy Spirit living and abiding in us. This chapter in Galatians tells us that it is possible to live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit , meaning that He will naturally produce His fruit in our lives as we live for Him.
God alone can produce true joy and He does that naturally through His Spirit living in those who have put their trust in Him. Its important for us to understand that only God Himself can give us the ability to respond to lifes difficult circumstances with that inner contentment and satisfaction.
2. We can choose to respond to lifes trials with joy when we consider Gods purpose for those times of suffering
Its true that only God can supply genuine joy. However, there is a key technique in James 1:2 to help us. Once again, this verse says, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials. Notice the word count.
Some other English versions of the Bible translate it, consider. Its a word that means to systematically scrutinize or to examine as in taking an exam . The idea here is that the believer should thoroughly list the potential advantages of this situation to gain a better understanding of God may want to accomplish.
3. It is possible to have joy to the fullest even during lifes most difficult times
Joy Comes When We Continually Praise What God Has Already Done
For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord I sing for joy at what your hands have done. How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts! Psalm 92:4-5
Not only does reflection fill us with joy, it makes us glad. But Psalm 126 adds the dimension of joyous laughter.
Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, The Lord has done great things for them. The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Psalm 126:2-3
Paul writes about the reason for remembering. I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day 2 Timothy 1:12 .
Of all bible verses about joy, perhaps no passage speaks to the joy of remembering better than in Hebrews 12.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 .
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The Holy Spirit And Joy
Lest we think joy or happiness is an attribute only of the Father and the Son, let me call your attention to these verses which link the joy of the believer with the Holy Spirit:
52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit .
17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit .
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit .
6 You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit .
The Holy Spirit is the means by which the joy of our Lord, the joy of our Master, is conveyed to the believer. The presence and ministry of the Holy Spirit produces joy in the life of the Christian. We must imply from these verses that those who are not Christians, in whom the Holy Spirit does not dwell, do not and cannot experience Gods joy. This was certainly true of the scribes and Pharisees described in Luke 15 and elsewhere in the Gospels.
Doing Gods Will Increases Our Joy
As many Christians can attest, being involved in the spread of the Gospel brings joy to the believers heart. Personally, when I see someone become a follower of Jesus or I know that someone has discovered a truth from Gods Word that will encourage him or her in their walk of faith, I cannot help but feel a sense of joy. The apostle Paul also experienced this often in his ministry . The writer of Third John experienced the joy of ministry, I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
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What Are Bible Verses About Joy
When we face trials, we are prone to wander and there are instances when we would trade committing disobedience for a few minutes of an attempt to experience joy.
Bible verses about joy give hope to the downhearted and uplift the weary. The scriptures remind every believer to look ahead and find joy in the knowledge that our God is able. We can all be knowledgeable about the power and strength of Christ but this knowledge should be applied in our lives. The joy the Bible speaks of can only be made perfect in complete trust and obedience.
Joy Of The Lord Brings Us Hope
If you have been with me for awhile, you will notice that I talk about hope A LOT. This is in part due to the hopelessness I felt wading through the pain of losing a child. It is also in part due to the number of people whose actions show how hopeless they feel. These feeling of hopelessness rob us of a future and destroy our present. We are never hopeless when we have Christ.
If you are feeling hopeless, lean into Christ, he will meet you when you seek him.
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit Romans 15:13
The joy of the Lord does bring us hope and that hope carries us when nothing else can! For more verses on hope check out this series.
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
The Bible tells us that our joy comes by looking ahead. Ahead to life after this one. We dont need to dwell on the pain and suffering in this world because it is not our home.
For more posts on hope, check out this series!
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Bible Verses About Joy
There are 214 uses of the word joy in the NIV. Of those verses, nearly a quarter of those verses are found in the Psalms. For this reason, we can establish our principles of joy from the Psalms, then finding corresponding Bible verses about joy in other sections. Here is what we learn from what the Bible says about joy.
How To Keep A Joyful Heart
Keeping a joyful heart amidst trials is never easy. It is a constant test of our faith and commitment to God. To keep a joyful heart, we must never falter to choose to have faith and remain in the joy that comes from trusting God. When our soul clings to His promises, nothing can move us and doubt cannot take hold of us. Remember that joy and doubt cannot coexist in a Christians life as this is an indication of doubting that God can deliver us.
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Bible Joy Truth #: Trusting God With Our Future Brings Undeniable Joy And Peace
It seems strange to find joy by trusting in someone else, but I’ve seen over and over in my own life that my deepest joy comes when I learn to just be still before God and trust that He is figuring everything out for my good.
One thing I’ve learned about joy in the Bible is that God doesn’t promise that joy has to make logical sense for the circumstance. He just promises that He will provide it when we trust him .
Here’s a Bible verse about joy that beautifully illustrates this incredible truth: You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy .
And then there’s this scripture on joy that always tugs at my heart and gives me great hope:
Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy .
Friend, we don’t have to fully understand joy to be able to embrace it during life’s toughest seasons. That is one biblical truth about joy that I regularly cling to!
Where Is Your Joy Coming From
Where do you seek to get your joy from? If you can be honest, what do you run to the most? How are you feeding your mind? From personal experience I can tell you that when my devotional life is healthy I experience more joy. When I get too consumed by TV or secular music I begin to feel empty.
We were made for Christ and while some things are not inherently bad, too much of those things can take our heart away from Christ. We have to remove these broken cisterns in our lives to drink the water that Christ has to offer. Joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. However, if we quench the Spirit we can miss out on all that the Holy Spirit has to offer. Most of us are missing the beauty of Christ because our hearts are in other places.
Let us repent and have that change of heart that leads us back to Christ. Anything that may be hindering you, cut it off so that you can fully experience Christ. Become more intimate with Him. Go to that special place to get alone with Him and get lost in His beauty. Dont allow your love for Christ to become common or to remain common. Seek Him and set your heart upon Him. Allow Him to remind you of who He is and what He has done for you on the cross.
26. John 7:37-38 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.
Happiness vs joy
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Bible Verses About Happiness And Joy
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Since the early 1920s believers have added their voices to a chorus, written by George Willis Cook. Ive got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart You may be able to finish the chorus for yourself. It is a timeless song, because we all desire to have joy in our life. The fact that people search for Bible verses about joy, reminds us that joy can be elusive.
Joy, like any other attitude, can come and go. It is not guaranteed simply because we are believers. We must put ourselves in the places where experiencing joy is a possibility. Studying joy in Scripture helps build an understanding of how to put ourselves in places where it is possible to find and maintain an attitude of joy.
But what is this elusive thing called joy? According to Dictionary.com, joy is the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying. This is nice but we could experience this by eating bacon. Is there a better definition?
Joy is setting the soul upon the top of a pinnacle it is the cream of the sincere milk of the Word. Spiritual joy is a sweet and delightful passion, arising from the apprehension and feeling of some good, whereby the soul is supported under present troubles and fenced against future fear. Patti M. Hummel, Glorifying God
The Importance Of Biblical Joy
Without biblical joy, wed be left to rely on circumstances in life to make us happy and bring us joy. That would work out great during family vacations and when things are going our way, but what happens when life gets hard?
We need a joy that we can hold onto no matter what is going on in our lives, a joy that is always accessible to us. That joy is not found anywhere else other than in a relationship with Jesus.
With Jesus, we know that we will be in heaven with Him for eternity, and even while were still here on earth, we have the Holy Spirit to help us and bring us joy when we need it.
Even in the hardest, darkest, and most chaotic times of our lives, Jesus is there, and he is offering us true joy because as Christians, we know this world is not our home. We belong with God, and every trial we are facing is nothing compared to the glory that is coming.
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.
Romans 8:18 CSB
The Bible is full of stories of real peoples brokenness and hardships, yet somehow it is also filled with songs of praise to God and stories of incredible hope and joy.
Today, we can find true, lasting joy in Gods word and by asking the Holy Spirit for help. Because of this, biblical joy is accessible to us even in the worst of times and is found in having a relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ.
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Joy Comes When People See Christ In Us And Exclude Us From Their Ungodly Actions
This may sound like a strange principle, yet it has real validity. Quite often we feel bad when we are left out of activities, thinking that there is something wrong with us. But is it possible that they leave us out because there is something right about us? David spoke of those with evil motives:
Even though powerful princes conspire against me, I fix my mind on what You require. Yes, Your testimonies are my joy they are like the friends I seek for counsel. Psalm 119:23-24
Even when Davids enemies were hunting him down and closing in, he was able to compose joyful psalms of praise to God. He rejoiced in his understanding that God, His Father, could flatten any army, resolve any conflict, and confuse the plans of those who sought to kill him. He was joyful in the Lord. Ronald f. Youngblood, Nelsons New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
A similar situation of opposition occurred in the book of Acts: So the message of the Lord was spreading through the whole country. But the Jewish people stirred up some of the important religious women and the leaders of the city. They started trouble against Paul and Barnabas and forced them out of their area. So Paul and Barnabas shook the dust off their feet and went to Iconium. But the followers were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit Acts 13:49-52 .
What Is Joy In The Bible
There is a familiar verse in James 1:2 that humanly doesnt seem to make much sense. In this very practical New Testament letter, James begins his important teaching about facing trials by writing this, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials .
Its probably true that most readers may hear that verse and respond by asking a salient follow-up question, How can that possibly be true? James teaching doesnt quite make sense. How is it possible to have joy when we experience lifes various trials?
The process of learning to respond with joy during times of trials in life must begin with a conscious awareness that God is at work in our lives and that He has a tangible purpose for why we may be experiencing these trials.
In other words, if we have put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our own personal savior , and if we believe that His Word teaches us that God is at work in our lives , then we will come to the logical conclusion that trials, suffering, and difficult times in our lives are ultimately designed by God and that He has a specific purpose for us in mind.
The Bible makes this point in this same passage. Lets look again at James 1:2, but lets add verse 3, My brethren, count it all joy, when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience .
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