Friday, May 24, 2019
But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of
fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23
We are
looking at the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit, those qualities and
characteristics which develop in people who have genuinely surrendered to
following Christ. Today’s focus is on
the fruit of joy.
Images: Pixabay.com
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As with
the rest of Christian experience, with joy there is a problem with
counterfeits. It comes in the form of almost,
but not really. Looking at two
pictures illustrates this.
In the first
picture (which is the typical one you’ll get if you do a Google search for “joy”)
we see a guy who is jumping over mountains.
He is (if you’ll pardon the woeful pun) on top of the world. This giddy, exhilarated jumper projects that
some wonderful experience is his, and he’s celebrating. This is not the kind of “joy” of which the
Bible proclaims, although this kind of overwhelming happiness can be associated
with genuine joy.
The second
picture, a baby’s hand clutching the finger of a parent is relationship that
needs very little explanation; there is trust, dependence and a bond that goes
deeper than words. The first picture
pretty much depends on how you feel because of what you have, or
circumstances. The second only depends
on who you are. The apostle Paul has these
words to help us understand the difference:
Yes, what joy
for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.” Romans 4:8
Circumstances
can change like the weather, a promotion on the job, winning a scholarship
grant, hurricanes that wipe out life savings and memories, a doctor’s report
that says get your affairs in order,
or getting served divorce papers. But
joy, in the Biblical sense, only knows change in the sense of deeper
awareness. It is that growing sense that
you are truly loved with an everlasting lovingkindness:
Long ago the Lord said to Israel: “I have loved you, my people, with an
everlasting love. With unfailing love I
have drawn you to myself. Jeremiah 31:3
This is
the relationship that brings genuine joy, not a momentary
exhilaration or love affair with a new car, house, job, or circumstance that
can fade and whither as all substitutes for God will produce. Again, listen to Paul’s take on what being in
the Kingdom of God as a child of the king produces:
For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of
living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17
A life
lived in the fruit of the Holy Spirit is to be filled with God’s goodness and God’s
peace, and God’s joy; none of that depends on your family tree, your financial
portfolio, or what the world thinks of you.
It all depends on His love.
For You Today
Let the peace of Christ dwell in you today. Scripture finishes our devotional thought of
producing Kingdom fruit:
If your gift is to encourage others, be
encouraging. If it is giving, give
generously. If God has given you leadership
ability, take the responsibility seriously.
And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it
gladly. Romans 12:8
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[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The New Living Translation©
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The New Living Translation©
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