This study needs to begin with an honest admission. We as Christians need to admit that we have a real problem with the concept of joy in serving and worshipping God. First, we place a heavy emphasis on procedures. The New Testament writings place little emphasis on "hows." When we classified a "religious matter" as important, in the last few decades our movement declares that "hows" are as important as "whats."
Second, we stress modern logical perspectives above ancient emotional responses. We are so distrustful of religious emotion that we conclude emotion has either a muted place or no place in godly praise. When Christians assemble for a "God experience" rather than a "fellowship" experience, we are likely to enter a "quiet zone" that represses expressions of joy.
Third, we distance our acceptable "how" as far from emotion as possible. A common means for accomplishing this is classifying all emotional responses as entertainment. Emotion is the language of entertainment; logic is language of devotion to God. In a religious context, entertainment is the symbol of evil and logic is the symbol of good.
Fourth, unemotional response to God subtly redefines basic godly expressions. For example, love is fundamental to relationship with God and each other. But many declare godly love is unemotional. All other healthy forms of love are expressed in the language of emotion--repentance, forgiveness, gratitude, appreciation, affection. Yet, we conclude love produced by God is unemotional. Thus, love produced by God is fundamentally different from love we experience in every other context of life.
As an example, consider your relationship with your # 1 best friend. Suppose your best friend deeply offended you. He/she comes to you to express repentance. If his/her repentance has no emotion, will you accept it? Or, will you look for emotion to verify that his/her repentance is genuine? He/she comes to expresses gratitude in appreciation for a specific kindness. If his/her gratitude is void of emotion, will you accept his/her appreciation as genuine? Or, will you look for emotion to verify his/her gratitude is genuine? If he/she professes affection for you, but there is no emotion in his/her declaration, will you feel loved? Or, will you look for emotion to verify the affection exists and is real?
Expressing joy is critical to some special moments in life. Yet, if we are not extremely careful, we remove expressions of joy in the most essential relationship in existence: relationship with God. In every context of life, joy is essential. That includes relationship with God. Joy does not characterize every event in life--there are times of grief just as certainly as there are times of joy. The point is simple: joy should have a voice. It must be allowed to express itself when it exists--even in relationship with God!
First, consider joy's role in the life and teachings of Jesus. An angel declared to the elderly priest, Zacharias, that his elderly wife would conceive [for the first time] and have John, who announced Jesus. The angel told him, "You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth" (Luke 1:14). Later, Mary, pregnant with Jesus, visited Elizabeth, pregnant with John. Unborn John leaped within Elizabeth, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:41). Elizabeth's reaction: she cried out with a loud voice as she blessed Mary and declared her unborn baby leaped for joy (Luke 1:42-44).
Jesus' teachings stressed joy as an appropriate emotion/reaction. In the parable of the hidden treasure, the man who discovered it invested all he had to buy the field (Matthew 13:44). His motivating emotion? Joy! Jesus stressed heaven's joy over the repentance of one sinner (Luke 15:7,10). The father of the prodigal son reacted with joy expressed in celebration when the wayward son returned home (Luke 15:32). The value of the son and the father's love could not have responded with less! He told disciples they could expect insults, persecutions, and false accusations because they followed him. They were to react to such treatment by rejoicing with gladness (Matthew 5:11, 12). The night prior to his death, Jesus' told his disciples they would weep and lament, but their grief would become joy (John 16:20-22).
The reaction of those who responded to Jesus as the Christ after his resurrection is astounding. The first converts, primarily Jewish, went daily to the temple with single minded devotion to Jesus as the Christ [worship?], ate together daily with gladness [fellowship?], praised God [worship?], and were respected by those in Jerusalem [good influence?] (Acts 2:46, 47). The lame man healed at the temple walked, leaped, and praised God in the temple area [emotional or unemotional?] (Acts 3:8). When the Jerusalem Sanhedrin flogged the apostles, they rejoiced (Acts 5:41). When the good news was first shared in the city of Samaria, it brought much rejoicing to the city (Acts 8:8). The Ethiopian eunuch rejoiced after his baptism into Christ (Acts 8:39). When the Jewish Christian Barnabas saw God's grace at work among people who were not Jews, he became their encourager who rejoiced (Acts 11:23). When people who were not Jews in Antioch of Pidia learned they would be the primary recipients of the message of the good news, they began rejoicing and glorifying God's word (Acts 13:48). The disciples at Antioch of Pisidia were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:52). When Paul shared with Christians God's work among people who were not Jews, the result was "great joy to all the brethren" (Acts 15:3). When Christians who were not Jews received a letter from Jewish Christians that they were not required to follow Jewish rites, they rejoiced and were encouraged (Acts 15:31). After conversion, the Philippian jailer rejoiced greatly (Acts 16:34).
Joy as a natural expression of Christian hope is stressed in Romans 12:12, 15:13, and 1 Thessalonians 1:6. Encouragement to rejoice is found in Philippians 3:1, 4:4, and 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), an important reason for Jesus enduring crucifixion (Hebrews 12:2), an emotion bigger than trials (James 1:2), and a motivation for generosity. (2 Corinthians 8:2). Christians under enormous stress from physical abuse inflicted because of faith in Jesus were encouraged to "greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible" (1 Peter 1:8).
Without doubt joy and rejoicing were a natural part of coming to and living in Christ!
Attention! This joy expressed appreciation for forgiveness, for justification, for deliverance from fearing death, for the hope of resurrection, and for knowing they were at peace with God. It was not based on ungodly indulgence or material blessings! Instead there was profound gratitude for God's extraordinary gifts in Jesus Christ. Those gifts filled them with a sense of joy and a desire to praise God. It was a joy to be among those "called out" from hopelessness!
Thought questions:
Why are so many Christians spiritually fearful of expressing joy today? Should the "called out" be a people of joy today? Why?
Link to Teacher's Guide
Lesson 7