As I conclude, this series of posts based on a sermon about joy, we ask what are our reasons to rejoice? This is other than of course the most important reason, that we have been saved, and our glorious God has done so much for us! But at times we all need a gentle prod, so here some good reasons: 1. Joy is commanded Deuteronomy 12:18 says: ‘You shall rejoice before the LORD your God in all your undertakings’. Psalm... Read more
Yesterday we spoke about depression and I finished by saying that when you’re depressed it is still possible to rejoice. There are two senses in which this is the case. Firstly, God does offer us a stream of joy inside our heart that somehow means that you can be “sorrowful yet always rejoicing.” The other way in which Christian can always rejoice is by choice. Rejocing is a verb. It is something we can do even when we don’t feel... Read more
I only mentioned Clinical Depression in passing when I preached the sermon this series is based on, due to time constraints. But I was careful to do so, and to stress that for some Christians antidepressant medications are helpful (see the previous post). One of the joys of a blog is that you don’t have such space issues. So here I will intersperse an extra post covering two important caveats to the teaching I have been sharing so far on... Read more
In Psalm 16, David goes on to say ‘I bless the LORD who gives me counsel…’ There is a great Joy in receiving God’s word. The truth is that the Bible is a great source of joy. Psalm 119:162 “I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil.” The idea there is that treasures are hidden in the word. Sometimes reading the Bible may even seem boring, you may read verse after verse with little noticeable benefit, but... Read more
Towards the end of the previous post in this series on joy we spoke about contentment. A major cousin of contentment is gratitude. We see this in verse 6 of Psalm 16: ‘The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places…’ I love that phrase. I feel a bit like that. I look at my life and I think: my goodness, how did that happen? I have a job I love, I have a home I love, I have a... Read more
Today I continue this series on joy. Psalm 16 continues, ‘The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply…’ It is important for us to reason that the reverse is also true. If you seek God you will have joy but if you seek idols you will have sorrow. In a way, it is the same point but in reverse that we started answering the question “where do we get joy?” with. God calls us to flee idols and... Read more
As we continue in this series on joy, the next reason the psalmist gives for joy is the people of God: ‘As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight’. These are very strong words, which underline the passion and joy David felt in the people of God. Church is not meant to be something you come to on a Sunday morning and sit there while other people entertain you. We... Read more
As I continue to post on joy based on a recent sermon I preached, today we ask: How Can We Get Joy? Where does joy come from? Where can it be found? The word ‘therefore’ in verse 9 of Psalm 16 points back to the rest of the Psalm. It says: ‘Therefore, my heart is glad…’ Why is your heart glad David? ‘Well, it’s glad because of everything I’ve written so far in this Psalm.’ So let’s go back to... Read more
This is now the third post in a series based on an edited transcript of my recent sermon on the Life of Joy. Today we ask, where does this joy come from? and how should it be expressed? 1 Thessalonians 1:5 speaks of ‘…joy of the Holy Spirit’. It is joy that is both in the Holy Spirit and it is joy that is from the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5 lists the fruit of the Holy Spirit: love, JOY, peace,... Read more
Today I continue to serialise an editted transcript of a sermon I preached on joy which you can also watch or listen to. What is this joy? What is this full life? What is it? The joy God gives us is clearly not just a happy feeling, as we will see, but it is a happy feeling. God really does want you to be happy and, as I have said already, many people think of Christians as miserable people. They... Read more
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