The word ‘joy’ is found over five hundred times in the Bible. You can simplify the major passages regarding joy into three categories:
Think about the trials you had before you began to follow Jesus. The same trials are still here, but your attitude should be different.We don't find joy because of trials. The trials themselves aren't a good thing. In fact, they're often filled with evil. But in the midst of the trials, we find joy. Why? Because we know they are tools in God's hand. If you work with wood, a lathe just gets rid of that rough, coarse, splintering wood. We'll think of trials as a lathe in the hands of God. He's getting rid of all that rough, coarse, idolatry, selfishness, and egocentrism that is keeping us from really reflecting the love of Jesus.
- Joy comes from God’s blessing in good times
- Joy comes when we say ‘yes’
- Joy comes when we see God’s hand in trials
Think about the trials you had before you began to follow Jesus. The same trials are still here, but your attitude should be different.We don't find joy because of trials. The trials themselves aren't a good thing. In fact, they're often filled with evil. But in the midst of the trials, we find joy. Why? Because we know they are tools in God's hand. If you work with wood, a lathe just gets rid of that rough, coarse, splintering wood. We'll think of trials as a lathe in the hands of God. He's getting rid of all that rough, coarse, idolatry, selfishness, and egocentrism that is keeping us from really reflecting the love of Jesus.
Finding Joy in Your Everyday Life
The way to find joy is to see all of life as a gift of God's grace. Not just the good times. But the bad times, not just the mountaintops, but when the bottom is falling out. No one ever modeled this better than our Lord Jesus. The author of Hebrews explains this in Hebrews 12. The author says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.”
That's a good thing for Jesus' followers to do. Fix our eyes on Him every day. The pioneer and perfector 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. It doesn't say that Jesus looked at the cross and said, That's a good thing. It doesn't say Jesus looked at the humiliation of the Roman cross and said, That's a great thing.
No, it says it for the joy set before him, knowing he would hear from the Father one day when he had been crucified and suffered for the sins of the world and ascended to heaven he would hear “Well done, good and faithful son.” And for that Jesus suffered. Why? Because he trusted God. Because he saw all of life, even that ugly, rugged, vicious Roman cross, through the eyes of faith.
That's a good thing for Jesus' followers to do. Fix our eyes on Him every day. The pioneer and perfector 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. It doesn't say that Jesus looked at the cross and said, That's a good thing. It doesn't say Jesus looked at the humiliation of the Roman cross and said, That's a great thing.
No, it says it for the joy set before him, knowing he would hear from the Father one day when he had been crucified and suffered for the sins of the world and ascended to heaven he would hear “Well done, good and faithful son.” And for that Jesus suffered. Why? Because he trusted God. Because he saw all of life, even that ugly, rugged, vicious Roman cross, through the eyes of faith.
Happiness is Conditional
This is a good time to make sure we're not mistaking happiness for joy because those are two very different things. Happiness seems to be the American dream. It comes from the old English word hap, which means chance or luck. If you've ever said perhaps, you had the word happen there. If you've ever said haphazard. If you've ever said happenstance, you can start to pick this up. Happiness depends on circumstances. Happiness is conditional when things go well. We're not all happy when things don't go well. I'm a fan of happiness. You probably are too. Today I would prefer more happiness than sadness or madness. In fact, I would prefer all the experiences that bring happiness to be in my life every day, all the time. Of course, that's unrealistic. But if you ask me what I prefer, I would prefer happiness. But the truth is, hap changed for me.
Joy Comes From Grace
Joy and grace come from the same Greek word. If you know anybody named Cara, that's the word, joy. In Greek, it’s the word for joy. If any of you know anybody named Chris, it's a Greek word for grace. Joy comes from grace, not just in terms of word origin, but in terms of God's plan. That's the secret. Joy comes from grace. Happiness depends on the situation. Happiness always is conditional, but joy depends on whether I see God's grace in that situation. The situation doesn't change—our worldview changes. The situation is the same. Our vision is what changes. And so in good times or bad times, when you're at the top of the mountain, or when you're at the bottom of the barrel, you can find joy, if you will look for the grace of God.
In fact, you can reverse that and say if today you don't have any joy, it's simply because you have not looked for God's grace.
In fact, you can reverse that and say if today you don't have any joy, it's simply because you have not looked for God's grace.
Next Steps
This Christmas if joy seems scant, look for it in a different way. Don't look for happiness that comes and goes. Look for joy. By looking for God's grace, you'll always find it.