“These things I have spoken to you,
that My JOY may be in you,
and that your JOY may be made full.”
—Jesus, in John 15:11
Been pondering John 16:16-22…where
Jesus tells His disciples (just before His arrest) that in a little while they
wouldn’t see Him, and then, in a little while, they would. Understandably, they got confused.
I WILL see you again
Jesus, of course, picked up on it, and further explained. They would be very sad, He said, but their sorrow would be turned to joy. Unhesitatingly, He declared, “I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice.” Jesus knew He was going to be taken away to die, yes, but not against His will. He was pursuing the very purpose for which He had come, and which He knew did not ultimately end in their separation. He was no helpless victim; He was, in fact, even now predicting His victory—with certainty.
Jesus, of course, picked up on it, and further explained. They would be very sad, He said, but their sorrow would be turned to joy. Unhesitatingly, He declared, “I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice.” Jesus knew He was going to be taken away to die, yes, but not against His will. He was pursuing the very purpose for which He had come, and which He knew did not ultimately end in their separation. He was no helpless victim; He was, in fact, even now predicting His victory—with certainty.
And He told them something else I
find especially momentous. “I will
see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and NO ONE TAKES YOUR JOY AWAY FROM
YOU.”
Nothing compares
After witnessing the death of Jesus—and experiencing such heart-breaking separation from Him—seeing their precious Savior and Friend resurrected brought joy that defied description. He predicted that it would be for them as it is for a mother who forgets the anguish of labor in the midst of the overwhelming joy over her child’s birth—and it was.
After witnessing the death of Jesus—and experiencing such heart-breaking separation from Him—seeing their precious Savior and Friend resurrected brought joy that defied description. He predicted that it would be for them as it is for a mother who forgets the anguish of labor in the midst of the overwhelming joy over her child’s birth—and it was.
Truly, after seeing His death,
nothing would ever seem as bad as losing Jesus had seemed to them. Nothing else could ever be as terrible to
them. Nothing could be that dark
ever again. And this, their crushing
grief at His death had been turned to rejoicing when they saw Him alive
again. Now nothing they could ever
face in the future could take the joy of knowing Him alive. Once they had seen the risen Christ,
absolutely nothing could take their joy away! Life for them would never be the same!
Have you seen Him alive?
What about for me? And what about for you? Do you know the risen Savior? If we, through the eyes of faith, have "seen" Jesus alive, then there is nothing we could ever face that His resurrection does not put into perspective. Once we have seen Him alive, there is nothing that should seem to us impossible, nothing unredeemable, nothing so dark that His resurrected life cannot illumine! He has promised to never leave us as orphans, to never desert us or forsake us. Once His Holy Spirit lives in us; we can never experience the agony of separation from Him or from His love.
What about for me? And what about for you? Do you know the risen Savior? If we, through the eyes of faith, have "seen" Jesus alive, then there is nothing we could ever face that His resurrection does not put into perspective. Once we have seen Him alive, there is nothing that should seem to us impossible, nothing unredeemable, nothing so dark that His resurrected life cannot illumine! He has promised to never leave us as orphans, to never desert us or forsake us. Once His Holy Spirit lives in us; we can never experience the agony of separation from Him or from His love.
“For I am convinced
that neither
death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor things present, nor things
to come,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other created thing,
shall
be able to separate us from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.”
Romans 8:38-39
According to the One who
resolutely declared, “I will see you again,” no one can take our joy away!
Is it any wonder that the fruit of the
Spirit has always been joy? (See Galatians
5:22.)
…Joyously giving thanks to the
Father,
who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light, *
Carol
P.S. "There will be days when you think the waves will surely break over your boat…"
*Colossians 1:11-12
who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light, *
Carol
P.S. "There will be days when you think the waves will surely break over your boat…"
--from Captain's Anthem.
No matter what you are facing, friend, you have hope, and you can experience joy because He lives! If you've never listened to Captain's Anthem , now might be a good time…
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