House Church Talk - sweet, sweet waters of everlasting joy

[jim.e.sutton at att.net]

I trust that the following will not be "news" to anyone on this list.  But we must never assume too much.  (Many neighborhoods remain unreached with the gospel today simply because believers assume that whatever should have been done has already been done.)

God's Joy

In an ancient time, a man of God once told the people of God: "The joy of the LORD is your strength."  (Nehemiah 8:10)

One of the signature marks of a new life in Jesus Christ is the joy of the Lord.  This great joy is rooted in the very center of the soul and spirit of the person who has been made right with God.

In the NIV (New International Version of the Holy Bible), Psalm 118:15 & 16 is translated this way:

Shouts of joy and victory 
resound in the tents of the righteous: 
"The LORD's right hand has done mighty things! 
The LORD's right hand is lifted high; 
the LORD's right hand has done mighty things!" 

And there's a great present-day Messianic Jewish song that says it this way:

Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents 
of the righteous of the Lord! 
Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents 
of the righteous of the Lord!
The LORD's right hand has done mighty things for us!
The LORD's right hand is lifted high!
The LORD's right hand has done mighty things for us!
The LORD's right hand is on high!
The LORD's right hand is on high!

(And we know that God's "Right Hand" is our own Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.)

In another psalm, the Spirit of God caused the following to be written:

Rejoice in the LORD, 
O you righteous! 
For praise from the upright is beautiful.
Praise the LORD with the harp; 
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.
Sing to Him a new song; 
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.
For the word of the LORD is right, 
And all His work is done in truth.
He loves righteousness and justice; 
The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, 
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; 
He lays up the deep in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the LORD; 
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it was done; 
He commanded, and it stood fast.
The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; 
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
The counsel of the LORD stands forever, 
The plans of His heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, 
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
The LORD looks from heaven; 
He sees all the sons of men.
>From the place of His dwelling He looks 
On all the inhabitants of the earth;
He fashions their hearts individually; 
He considers all their works.
No king is saved by the multitude of an army; 
A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for safety; 
Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, 
On those who hope in His mercy,
To deliver their soul from death, 
And to keep them alive in famine.
Our soul waits for the LORD; 
He is our help and our shield.
For our heart shall rejoice in Him, 
Because we have trusted in His holy name.
Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, 
Just as we hope in You.
(Psalm 33  NKJV)

How is it that joy and peace define a true Christian believer?  Why is the joy of Christ so unique in the world? 

The life that wanders alone in the darkness, ever fleeing and always avoiding the truth and the Presence of God, will not know real joy and peace.  Every human life needs to be reconciled with God (a condition that God Himself has already made full provision for in Jesus Christ).  Being spiritually darkened by sin, we need God's own Spirit inside us to make us alive again.

To know the joy that every heart longs for we must surrender our lives, and our very will, to the God of all creation, the Maker and Savior of humankind.  Yet the world system will produce every kind of excuse, every kind of deception and delusion in its efforts to keep every soul in line, every life under the control of darkness.  If you are outside of Jesus Christ, you are part of that system.

Thanks be to God, however, that the Lord is not passive in His work of salvation.  He does not sit idly by on a throne somewhere far away.  No, He's right here, speaking to human hearts and rescuing human lives every single day.  The Lord God is like a great shepherd (just as Jesus said) who goes out in search of the lost sheep, the straying lamb.  

If you're lost today, it's because you've been wandering alone in the dark.  If you have no peace in your heart, it's because you need to surrender your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ.  God's peace is an everlasting and infinite peace.  God's joy is an inexpressible joy.  God's peace and joy are ours in Jesus Christ the Lord.  Outside of Christ there is no real joy or lasting peace.

The apostle Simon Peter wrote to believers in the first century, talking about a joy that remains with us even when we face bitter difficulties and troubling setbacks.  He says:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith -- the salvation of your souls."  (1 Peter 1:3-9)

In the above passage, Peter uses the phrase, "joy inexpressible and full of glory" to describe the new state of heart and soul in the believer.  Sure, we Christians have our sorrows and our bitter times.  But nothing of this world is able to shake the joy and peace that is ours through Jesus Christ.  Nothing.

And the world simply can't understand that.  So they continually resist the grace of God.  And not only do they resist God's grace for themselves, but they will also try to keep you from the light, as well.  Why?  Because when anyone responds in faith to Lord Jesus, the light of God's Presence entering that life casts shame on those who prefer to remain in the dark.  

But for all who trust in Jesus, the joy and peace of God changes everything.  We no longer try to hide in the dark, fearful of shame and discovery.  We walk upright in the truth of God, allowing His Spirit to continually change us and teach us, making us over into the very image of God's Son (2 Corinthians 3:17,18).  And His joy and peace fills us, flowing outward from within the very center of our being.

If you want joy and peace in this troubled world, then you must turn your life over to Jesus Christ.  Trust in Him for the forgiveness of sin.  Trust Him for eternal life.  Trust Him to be your Lord in all areas of this life.  He will grant you peace and give you joy – joy unspeakable and full of glory, as the Scripture says.

Jim