The Joy of Jesus

Luke 10:21, "Then Jesus was filled with the JOY of the Holy Spirit and said, 'O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding the truth from those who think themselves so wise and clever, and for revealing it to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.'"

I absolutely love the idea of Jesus being filled with the JOY of the Holy Spirit. It does our hearts well to consider that the "Son of Man"/"Son of God" was JOYful and that His JOY is available to us.

Think on these verses:

Luke 2:10 - The announcement of Jesus' birth was good tiding of great JOY

John 15:11 - Jesus told His disciples that His JOY would remain in them and that their JOY would be full

John 16:22 - Jesus taught us that the JOY He gives no one can take from us

John 16:24 - Have you ever considered that answered prayer was allow us to walk in a fullness of JOY? Jesus did

We understand that the fruit of the Spirit is joy but rarely do we hear people talk about Jesus walking around JOYful. How often have you seen Jesus portrayed as JOYful? Too often we see the ultra serious, stoic, and face like a flint portrayal of Jesus. What is lost in those pictures, movies, etc., is the JOY of the Lord that was present in His life. What is also lost is the JOY that can be in our own lives as well.

Jesus was filled with JOY when the seventy other disciples returned to Him with their report. It brought Him great JOY to know that the men He sent out were successful in their ministry of the kingdom. What great JOY it must be to the heart of the Father when we are found faithful in what He has called us to do.

Got JOY?

If you have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of you then you have all the JOY you need. Ask God to flood your heart with JOY. May you experience overwhelming JOY in His presence. Call out the JOY that is actually stored up in you like a fountain of living water. Let the JOY of the Lord flow out of you like rivers of living water. And learn what it means to allow the JOY of the Lord to be your strength.

EnJOY the rest of your day!!!