The fruit of the Spirit: Joy
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy … (Galatians 5:22).
There was once a Christian who could not contain his joy in the Lord. He would continuously add his loud “Amen” and “Praise the Lord” to the prayers and ministry he enjoyed so much. The church he attended became a little uneasy about his enthusiasm, but unsure about what to do. Until one of the elders came up with a great idea. The brother was quite poor and had a large family, so the elder suggested that, as winter was approaching, they bought the family some blankets. When they presented the brother with the blankets, he was overcome by their kindness. The elders then asked the brother if he would tone down his expressions of praise in the meetings. He said he would try. The first week he did very well. The second week he was struggling. The third week he stood and in his loudest voice said, “Blankets or no blankets, Praise the Lord!”
I can still remember a brother who did a similar thing in the meeting I grew up in. I don’t think he was drawing attention to himself; he was simply expressing what we all feel in our hearts. This joy comes from the experience of God’s love for us. We see it in the lame man in Acts 3:8 when he stood up, walked and leapt while praising God. And, at the other extreme of circumstances, we see it in Peter and John and later Paul and Silas, when they all experienced profound joy in the most adverse of circumstances (see Acts 5:41 and Acts 16:25). Of course, joy is not always loudly expressed, but it is something God wants us to enjoy as a reality in our lives. It is not reserved just for the special times like birthdays, anniversaries and weddings. God wants to pervade our lives with His joy – the joy we have when we look back to Calvary, look up into heaven to see Jesus living for us, and when we look on to the joy of His return. This joy is known by faith in the Lord Jesus: “Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8). In Luke 15 the Lord Jesus illustrates the joy of the Trinity in finding the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. This joy is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). Its source is in God, not in ourselves. It is compelling that in the chapter where Jesus teaches us about how we live fruitful lives for God, He also says, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). The joy is in the Person of Christ and becomes our experience through abiding in Him. John, who was there when Jesus said these words, later wrote, “that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full” (1 John 1:3-4).
But there will be times in our lives which are very painful and bitter – times, like the present crisis, when faith will be tested, and we will feel at our lowest. It is not by mistake that God allowed the prophet Habakkuk to give voice to these experiences. He writes of a time when the fig tree may not blossom, the vines have no grapes, there are no olives, the fields produce no harvest, and there are no herds or flocks. Then, in the face of all this desolation, he writes, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:18).
God has saved us; God will keep us and one day He will rejoice over us with singing. May we know His joy in our hearts, “blankets or no blankets.”
