Spiritual Joy

Salvation has often been equated to a gift that can only be enjoyed if we take it. God won’t force us to accept his tremendous mercy and kindness, but why wouldn’t you want it? It’s a valid question that has boggled the minds of passionate evangelists throughout the ages, “Why wouldn’t someone want to go to heaven?” Yet as Jesus says in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

The Bible is filled with passages that help us see just how wonderful heaven will be, and how loving God is to make the way there possible for us. One of the most quoted passages in scripture speak to this; in John 3:16-21, “For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” However, it goes on to explain who can have this promise and why someone wouldn’t want it. He says, “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in Him. But anyone who does not believe in Him has already been judged for not believing in God's one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God's light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

How awful it will be for those who reject the wonderful offer of salvation made possible through what Christ did on the cross. However, how about the person that refuses to receive the gifts given to the believer?

We’re told that at the point when we recognize our need for a savior and turn to him we receive a powerful gift. Acts 2:38-39, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

At our conversion, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, and a large portion of the New Testament is helping Christians understand how to live by the guidance of the Spirit rather than the guidance of the flesh, or worldly things. Paul says in Galatians 5:22 that among the “Fruits of the Spirit” is joy.

Once the church began on the Day of Pentecost a new and exciting attitude swept over the believers. People eagerly sold property to help others, they met together every day studying scripture, praying together. Acts 2:46-47 says, “They were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people.” They really enjoyed the fellowship of other Christians.

Joy is a byproduct of living according to the Spirit, but is it something that many Christians experience? It seems so common to meet Christians that look and act like they’re miserable. Is this what the Spirit produces within us?

Many scholars have debated over the centuries about what it means to “quench the Spirit,” which is referenced in 1 Thessalonians 5:19, but also mentioned a little differently in Ephesians 4:30-32, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”

It saddens God to see us live contrary to what the Spirit guides us towards. Perhaps this is where Christians should seriously consider what it means when I live a life of constant negativity, or complaining, or any other attribute that diminishes the Spirit of God. At the risk of undermining the grace of God, when does a person unwilling to submit to the guidance of the Spirit fall from God’s grace? When does a person close their heart to such a degree that joy can’t be seen in their life? And, how might that impact the very message Christ gave us to spread to the lost and dying people of the world?

My hope is that we completely accept the gift of God, and in trusting faith, give our worries over to God, and by that process, experience the wonderful joy that comes from doing just that. Let’s encourage one another as long as we can… and do it with joy.