Great Joy In Salvation

 

I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. - Isaiah 61:10

Many outside the Christian faith think of it as just being another belief system. They put it in the category or “religion” and equate it to Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, or any of the other religions of the world; but those of us whose faith has led us to experience Christ in a very real manner know the joy of his presence and the delight of dwelling in his house.

Peter, in his letter to the church wrote, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy” (1 Peter 2:8). Just like the old hymn says, “It is joy unspeakable and full of glory.”

I had talked with mark at work about the Lord and he was interested. After work we met in a nearby restaurant and I shared the plan of salvation with him. In just a few minutes he was ready to pray. We went out to my car and sitting in the front seat we prayed the sinner’s prayer together. When we had finished praying he opened his eyes and said, “Wow, I feel different.” He was forever changed by the grace of God.

It’s just as simple as that. When we call on the name of the Lord he hears us, forgives our sins, restores hope and places his joy in our heart. Peter calls our relationship with Christ, “inexpressible and glorious joy.” Shout to heaven – you’re redeemed and filled with his joy!

Prayer: I thank you Lord for allowing me to know the Christ and the power of his salvation. I thank you for the inexpressible, glorious joy that comes from knowing him. In Jesus name, amen.

Principle: Rejoicing comes from our heart when he clothes us with garments of salvation and arrays us in a robe of righteousness.

Affirmation: I rejoice in the salvation of my Lord and in the righteousness he has given me in Christ Jesus.

Reflection: How does Christianity compare to other religions like Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam? What does faith in Christ mean to you personally?

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Ransomed Of The Lord Return With Joy

The ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

 - Isaiah 51:11

Isaiah prophesied many things to come for Judah and Jerusalem. He wrote his prophesies more than 100 years before they began to come to pass. This passage concerns a time far into the future when the “Arm of the Lord” (v9) would bring restoration to Jerusalem and the people.

He jumps over the time of sorrow that was ahead and goes to the time of being redeemed. Our verse for today speaks of those who would be ransomed and return to the city of God, Zion. When that time comes they will be crowned with everlasting joy.

Some see this passage applying to Judah of that time. Others see it applying to the return of Christ and the eternal kingdom. Still others see it as applying to the church. There are applications for all three of these views, but as applies to us today, we can see the Lord reaching into the world and redeeming men and women by the blood of the lamb.

All of us were in bondage to sin and separated from the joy of the Lord. We were in need of someone who would ransom us from the terrible place that sin had taken us to. Then he, by the gracious act of sending Christ to the earth and ultimately to his death, made opportunity for us to be redeemed – ransomed by the blood of Christ. Yes, it is with Joy that we draw water from the wells of salvation.

We are overtaken with gladness and joy – sorrow and sighing have left us as we rejoice in the great gift of salvation. Hallelujah!

 

Prayer: I thank you Lord for the price you paid to ransom me from the bondage of sin. Grant me the ability to honor your gift and live faithful to your calling. In Jesus name, amen.



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Joy In The Harvest

Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like streams in the Negev. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. - Psalm 126:4-6

Winters can be hard on us. It’s not as hard for most of us as it was in the day when most people lived on the farm and raised their own food. In that day the farmer would harvest his crop and hope that it was enough to feed his family through the winter and spring and leave enough to sell or trade for the necessary things of life. And his hope was always that when winter is over he still has enough seed to plant a new crop.

In this passage Israel has gone through about 70 years of being kept from their homes and land. It was like a long winter. Now they are back home with just a small amount of seed and hoping for a bountiful harvest. As they sow there are many tears

of sorrow for what had been lost over the last 70 years. But there are also tears of hope; their hope is in their God and this psalm speaks of this hope: “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.”

We all have to face winters in our life. For many of us the challenges of life’s winter produces a sorrow that carries over into the spring when it is time to sow for a new harvest. Don’t allow the sorrow of hard times to prevent you from sowing for a new harvest. Sow new seed, even if it is in the pain of loss. For every Winter there is a Spring just waiting to bring forth a new harvest, but we must sow, even in tears, in order to reap a bountiful harvest.

Have you been in the Winter of life? It’s Spring. Go out and sow, even if it hurts. You will have a time of harvest if you will sow the seed. Remember; He who goes out weeping carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves.”
 

Prayer: Lord, don’t let me get stuck in winter. Grant me the grace to sow for a new harvest even when it hurts. In Jesus name, amen.


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Our Joy Is Complete Because

He Answers When We Ask

 

I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

- John 16:23-24

In this passage Jesus is speaking to several different situations. The first concerns him and his relationship with the disciples. Up until now Jesus has been pointing to the Father. The disciples had not been praying to Jesus at all, but only to the Lord God of their fathers. He tells them that he is going back to the Father and that they are now to come before God in his name.

Another aspect to the relationship the disciples have with Jesus is that they now are not going to look to him to be one to do the works of the kingdom, but it now becomes their responsibility. In another place Jesus told the disciples that they would not only do the things he did but they would do even greater things (John 14:12).

A third aspect to their relationship is that they had been experiencing measured amounts of joy in their relationship with Christ, but now their joy was going to be complete. That is they were happy when things were going good, but they felt threatened when things were not so good. Now they are going directly to God in the name of Jesus and Jesus promised that they would get what they were asking for.

What will make the difference now that Jesus is going back to the Father? Instead of being the middle of the lake in a terrible storm and having to go to Jesus for relief they are now able to go directly to the Father and they have the same authority as Jesus had to command the waves to be still. That produces great joy.

 

Prayer: Lord, help me to really believe in the authority that Jesus has transferred to me as a believer. Grant me the faith to believe, the courage to ask and the joy of seeing you do what you have promised to do. In Jesus name, amen.



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Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind… The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him , on those whose hope is in his unfailing love to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. - Psalm 33:12-19

The nation that trusts in the Lord is a blessed nation. The Hebrew word for blessed is esher. It means happy, or joyful. The nation that trusts in the Lord will have lasting peace and contentment. They will be happy or joyful.

The United States has been blessed for these few centuries because it was founded on a faith in the Lord God and principles of life found in his word. When the original 13 colonies of America made their declaration of independence from British rule they agreed upon a document that was signed by all of the representatives. We call that document the Declaration of Independence.

The Declaration of Independence begins, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Just as with Israel, God heard the cry of the people who were laboring under a government that did not treat them fairly, and he gave that people freedom from their oppressor.

Unfortunately, America has followed Israel in that as a nation we have not remained faithful to the God who gave us the liberty we cherish. And, just like Israel, if the leaders, and the people of America, will repent of their sins, turning back to the God our fathers, God will Bless us and he will restore what the enemy of our souls has stolen from us.

If we, as a nation, repent, he will restore us.

 

Prayer: Lord, I have recognized that our nation is moving off of the foundation it was built upon. Move our leaders to trust you once again. In Jesus name, amen.



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Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God, his holy mountain. It is beautiful in its loftiness, the joy of the whole earth… God is in her citadels; he has shown himself to be her fortress. - Psalm 48:1-3

In the days just after the first Pentecost of the Christian era many thousands of people came to Christ. In fact, there were so many people in Jerusalem becoming believers in Jesus that the Jewish leaders were afraid Judaism would become extinct.

From the day of Pentecost forward many thousands became believers. Some scholars have estimated that in the early days of the church there were as many as 80,000 believers in Jerusalem. That must have been something to see. If all of the believers acted like those did in the upper room in Acts 2 we could certainly see

why they created such a stir.

In this Psalm David envisions a time when the city of God would be established as the place from which God ruled the earth. The only thing we have today that comes close to what David was writing about is the congregational community that gathers to worship God in a place we call “the church.”

The corporate congregation of the body of Christ, or the church as we know it, is people coming together for worship, for fellowship and for just sharing their burdens with others. Typically we gather in a building, but church is not about the building, it’s about what happens when people gather in the name of the Lord.

Healing happens; Conversions happen; Restoration happens – and much more. The joy that is in those of us who are believers in Christ is the joy of the house of the Lord – that’s because we are the house of the Lord; we are his body, his church. Rejoice – God is in the house.

 

Prayer: Lord, I am thankful for the community of believers who gather to worship you and to give witness to your marvelous love. I am thankful to be your house. Thank you Jesus, amen.


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The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear?...One thing I ask of the Lord… That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord. 

- Psalm 27:1-6

No one in the entire Bible expresses the joy of being in the presence of the Lord any better than David. The imagery that he uses in expressing his desire for the presence of God is compelling. Dwelling in the house of the Lord conjures up pictures of just basking in his presence day after day.

In another place he writes, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God” (Psalm 42:1). You can see the deer running from his pursuers, and growing thirsty as gains he ground and the pursuing danger is far behind.

The cry of David’s heart for the presence of God stirs a hunger within us to also be in his presence. For many years now I have devoted the early morning hours to being with the Lord and I can tell you there is great reward in pursuing him when the day is fresh and our minds are not cluttered with the e the world.

Every day we are faced with all manner of distractions. There is the attitude of others; there is the natural desire of the flesh for the world; there is the need to provide…. And the list grows. If we don’t set a time to be in his presence, and the earlier the better, then we will never be able to get around to it.

Today is the day! Today make it a purpose that you will dwell in his presence. Start out with prayers of petition and thanksgiving and meditate upon his word. When you make the effort to start the day with him you will have his joy.

 

Prayer: Lord, I tend to begin the day with good intentions, but early in the day I allow the cares of this life to keep me from being with you. Grant me the grace and the persistence to be in your word and in your presence daily. In Jesus name, amen.


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Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. - Psalm 51:10-12

David had sinned. His sin was worse than the sins that most of us have committed. It started with adultery and ended with murder. In the verse for today, David was feeling the weight of guilt and he was feeling separated from God.

His cry is so typical of what we go through when we have sin in our life. You may not have been there, but most of the rest of us have. We have sinned and we don’t want anyone else to know about it so we go on as if it never really happened.

We continue to do all the religious things we have been doing; we pray piously, we read the Bible and go to church. We might even witness a little, but in the depth of our heart we know we have sinned and we haven’t really connected with God for quite some time.

Along the way something happens to make us feel our need of reconnecting with the Lord and we cry out, “Create in me a pure heart, O God.” It’s time for renewal. God is calling us to return to right relationship with him. So we cry out, “Renew a steadfast spirit within me.” We feel deserted and alone as we pray, “Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.” We are desperate, yet a little fearful as we petition him for renewal.

We long for the joy of his salvation, and again we petition him. “Grant me a willing spirit to sustain me.” Then it happens. The heaviness is removed and smile grows across our face as the joy of the Lord returns to our heart. In another psalm David wrote, “Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence” (Psalm 21:6).
 

Prayer: Lord, grant me a spirit of repentance every day so that I can be cleansed of anything that would hinder my relationship with you and steal my joy. Restore to me the joy of your salvation.

 
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Obeying His Commands Produces Joy

If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. - John 15:10-11

Remember times when you were a child and your mother said, “When I come back in this room you had better have it cleaned up,” and while she was gone you cleaned your room thoroughly; making the bed, even cleaning out from under the

bed, sweeping and straightening everything. Do you remember how you felt when she came back into your room and gave that smile of approval? That is what Jesus is talking about in this passage, except it is more than that.

There is a certain joy that is natural to us when we have done well, or someone has recognized our efforts. Our example above demonstrates that joy. The Greek word translated joy here is chara. It is very similar to the word used for a gift and it means calm delight. When we are doing our best and can see good results we have that certain sense of accomplishment that gives us satisfaction for having done well.

Then Jesus speaks of adding to our joy. He says, “I have told you this that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” It seems that he is telling us that there is a certain level of joy that comes naturally when we have done well, but he is adding his joy to that so that our joy is complete, or as full.

He appears to be telling us that when we live in the Spirit and fulfill his commands our joy will be raised to a higher level and we will be full of joy. This joy, this calm satisfaction, is what is so attractive in believers. People have observed the way Christians respond to stressful situations and said, “I don’t know what you have, but I want it.” That is the joy of the Lord.

 

Prayer: Lord, I tend to follow my own way instead of yours. Grant me the ability to walk in obedience so that your joy will be in me and my joy will be full. Amen

Restoring The Joy Of Salvation

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. - Psalm 51:10-12

David had sinned. His sin was worse than the sins that most of us have committed. It started with adultery and ended with murder. In the verse for today, David was feeling the weight of guilt and he was feeling separated from God.

His cry is so typical of what we go through when we have sin in our life. You may not have been there, but most of the rest of us have. We have sinned and we don’t want anyone else to know about it so we go on as if it never really happened.

We continue to do all the religious things we have been doing; we pray piously, we read the Bible and go to church. We might even witness a little, but in the depth of our heart we know we have sinned and we haven’t really connected with God for quite some time.

Along the way something happens to make us feel our need of reconnecting with the Lord and we cry out, “Create in me a pure heart, O God.” It’s time for renewal. God is calling us to return to right relationship with him. So we cry out, “Renew a steadfast spirit within me.” We feel deserted and alone as we pray, “Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.” We are desperate, yet a little fearful as we petition him for renewal.

We long for the joy of his salvation, and again we petition him. “Grant me a willing spirit to sustain me.” Then it happens. The heaviness is removed and smile grows across our face as the joy of the Lord returns to our heart. In another psalm David wrote, “Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence” (Psalm 21:6).

 

Prayer: Lord, grant me a spirit of repentance every day so that I can be cleansed of anything that would hinder my relationship with you and steal my joy. Restore to me the joy of your salvation. 



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