ā⦠our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in the power of the Holy Spirit and with full conviction ⦠And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spiritā (1 Thessalonians 1:5-6).
Joy! Would you say you have it? Given the present circumstancesāperhaps youāve been laid off, perhaps youāre somewhat concerned where this whole pandemic thing could go, perhaps you donāt feel like youāre up to the task of overseeing the kidsā school work, perhaps youāre isolated at homeāgiven these present circumstances, would you say that you have joy?
Note well, I didnāt ask whether you are happy; Iām asking about joy. Those are two very different things. Happiness is very much determined by your circumstances. In that sense no one is really happy given what we are all working through right now. Biblical joy, though, is not determined by circumstances. It is instead something that sustains us through all our circumstances!
We often think we want happiness. Especially in challenging circumstances we often pull out all stops to try and stay happy. But what we really need, indeed what we really want more than happiness is joy, biblical joy!
The Thessalonian Christians had it! They had it, despite living with āmuch afflictionā. Their life was difficult; their circumstances were nothing to be happy about. And yet, they were blessed with joy! Knowing how that is possible will help us in our present circumstances.
Itās possible, praise God, because verse 5 says, āour gospel came to you not only in word, but also in the power of the Holy Spirit and with full convictionā. That powerful, Holy Spirit-driven gospel did something to them and in them. Thus, verse 6, they became imitators of the apostles and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Even though the Christians of Thessalonica were going through difficult circumstances they became imitators of the apostles in terms of how they lived out this gospel message. But hereās something: they also became imitators of the Lord Jesus Himself. And again, all of that in the context of suffering. Yes, in that context, says verse 6, they received the word āwith the joy of the Holy Spiritā.
A difficult life. Challenging circumstances. Their new-found Christianity probably cost them their friends, maybe even their jobs. But yet, joy! How is that possible?
Itās a good question. Two things are wonderfully clear from these two verses. First, this biblical joy is connected very concretely to the Word of God, the gospel of our salvation in Christ. And second, itās a gift of the Holy Spirit; itās worked by the Holy Spirit!
So, to ask you even as I ask myself, do you have this joy? Perhaps that gets you thinking. Maybe that question even gets you worried. I am not sure I have it as much as I would like.
But then, brothers and sisters, we turn our attention away from ourselves and in faith go to the Word. This is a time, indeed itās always a time, to marinate yourself deeply in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is a time, indeed itās always a time, to be constantly in prayer petitioning our heavenly Father for the gift of the Holy Spirit so that you, too, might know this joy.
And what a blessing it is to have this joy! Because, what is this joy? Itās the assurance of the soul, gifted by the Holy Spirit as He causes us to grasp in faith through the Word the wonder of what we have in Christ. To make it personalāand feel free to say this aloud to yourselfābiblical joy is the faith that I hold deep in my soul, worked there by the Spirit, by which I know and believe with absolute certainty that I belong to my Saviour Jesus Christ as He is revealed to me in His Word. Do you hear echoes of Lordās Day 1?
Then your and my circumstances can leave us squirming, uncomfortable, feeling out of sorts, perhaps even scared ⦠but Iāve been gifted joy! Praise the Lord, I can know and believe that, in belonging to Him, my circumstances are under His perfect control. Joy, biblical joy worked in me by the Spirit, isnāt determined by my circumstancesāthe stress of overseeing the kidsā education, the fact that Iāve been laid off from work, the ⦠and we can all fill in our own situationābiblical joy isnāt determined by my circumstances. No, and how glorious this is: biblical joy is what anchors me in all circumstances. Biblical joy doesnāt ebb and flow based on my circumstances in any given moment. No, itās the one constant in all my circumstances.
Pray your Father in heaven to gift you with this joy through His Spiritās work in you. And, and this is really important too: be in the Word. Meditate on it. Search the Scriptures to find out what sort of God you serve. And youāll discover something: joy! Wonderful, biblical joy!