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I am fascinated by the reality that in light of weighty, global, geo-political, and eternal realities, that the Holy Spirit of God is concerned with our personal joy. That seems bizarre – not a negative bizarre but an odd bizarre. Is joy really that important?
Before I explore this phenomenon of joy, I feel an urgency to remind us of the magnitude of the Kingdom because the world continues to cough up incredible news that has the potential of drawing Christians’ eyes off Jesus. As I write this, the morning news is filled with reports that Israel killed the leader of Hamas while he was in Iran. The Middle East teeters, again. The political drama between Trump and Harris is ratcheting with their sycophants singing predictable songs. The Olympics opened with unfortunate controversy. And for Houstonians, the ongoing fiasco that is/was Centerpoint Energy.
The screeching of the world seems to make reminders about the magnitude of our Father’s Kingdom continually urgent. So, reminder. The Kingdom of God is far greater, bigger, more substantive, more powerful, more LIFE giving, and beautiful than the world in all its production. When you see the world show off its insanity, corruption, and conspiracy, do not be alarmed and do not shrink back.
If you are in Christ, then you are filled with the Holy Spirit, adopted into our Father’s family, and a member of the His kingdom. In Psalm 2:2-3, David sees all the armies of the world aligned against God,
The kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!
Can you see the collective might of man’s military arsenal, and the wisdom of its strategists, standing against the LORD? How would He respond to the threat? Is He worried? Does He have enough armament to engage the fight?
David gives the LORD’s response in verse 4,
He who sits in the heavens laughs…
And then,
The Lord scoffs at them.
Haha…This is the response of a dad whose seven-year-old son bucks up against him and thinks he finally has a chance against his father! This is trash talking in its Divine perfection.
Let us ensure in all this insanity that we are Kingdom-minded, running God’s race, reaching people to make disciples.
In so doing, one of Christianity’s great distinctions is joy. Christians should be the most joy-filled people on the planet. Certainly, the war of life can be exhausting, and we are not always smiling, but the Christians snap back to joy should be robust.
Apologetics is a fancy word that names a field of theology concerned with defending the faith. Apologists are gifted at arguing and rationalizing powerful reasons why Christianity is the only way to life in the one true God. Logic is the weapon of choice in the Apologists arena.
I think, though, that a more powerful defense of the faith than battling truth claims may be the presence of joy. What if Christianity produced such powerful joy that non-believers wanted what Christians were having? How does one argue against joy?
Hey, quit being so joyful.
You have too much joy – I don’t want that much.
Your joy is lame.
In the last Overflow we looked at joy in Jesus from John 15:12. Now how about a burst from the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:22? In this passage, Paul lists the fruits of the Holy Spirit. While there are nine total fruits, let’s only look at the first two and see what we can learn about joy. He writes, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy…”
First, the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write this list about HIS fruits. The Holy Spirit chose which fruits to name and in which order to name them. The Holy Spirit wanted JOY to be the second fruit people read when they learned of what He can do in a person’s life. Clearly, joy is important to the Spirit.
Second, you cannot give what you do not have. The Holy Spirit can produce the fruit of joy in you because the Holy Spirit has joy to give! When you conceive of the Spirit, what do you conceive? Is He a person? A mist? A mystery? Do you see Him as One full of the perfection of joy? In the same way we considered the facial expression of Jesus, if you do not see the Holy Spirit as joyful then you will struggle to experience His joy for you.
So, according to the inspiration of the Spirit Himself, you should experience joy in your relationship with Him. The first recipient of the Spirit’s joy is you!
Third, the Holy Spirit is more powerful than _____________. There is nothing – no force, no person, no persons, no corporation, no government, no military – more powerful than the Holy Spirit. The force of the Holy Spirit is infinitely more than all other forces combined. Therefore, the joy of the Holy Spirit is stronger than the darkness of this world and the negativity of our circumstances.
Fourth, the Holy Spirit has joy for specific reasons. The Holy Spirit has joy because He is one third of the Triune God. He has joy because He is loved. Accepted. Powerful. Whole. Significant. Beautiful. Poetic. And many other wonderful realities He has we cannot comprehend because He is Deity.
Similarly, He gives us reasons to have joy. We are never alone. We are completely accepted and loved. We were, are, and will be forgiven. We have power. We are filled with the fruit of righteousness. We live lives of incredible substance as we follow His leading to run God’s race. We have been, are, and will be healed. We see life holistically. We are cared for. We are sustained. We can win daily in the Kingdom. We have incredible brothers and sisters. We participate in eternal work.
We have many, many reasons for joy from the Holy Spirit!
Finally, the joy of the Holy Spirit is ours by grace. Jesus paid the price for your Holy Spirit re-birth. You have been made new by grace. You were not saved by grace to live by works! You were saved by grace to live grace. Saved by the Spirit to live and walk in the Spirit.
Joy is not something you muster or strain to experience. Joy flows as you relax back into intimacy with the Holy Spirit! It is His joy for you, in you, and then through you.
I love joy. And I love being around joy-filled people. I love for people to remind me about joy. And I am really, deeply energized by the reality that in light of weighty, global, geo-political realities that the Holy Spirit of God is concerned with our personal joy!
THIS is life when we run God’s race…in the Overflow!
