"Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." (1 Peter 1:7-8)
Because of Christ, we "rejoice with joy unspeakable," and the deeper we know Him, the more our joy. The fourth verse of our study hymn, "Deeper and Deeper," speaks of this joy.
Into the joy of Jesus, deeper and deeper I go,
Rising with soul enraptured far from the world below;
Joy in the place of sorrow, peace in the midst of pain,
Jesus will give, Jesus will give,
He will uphold and sustain.
Joy is, of course, part of "the fruit of the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22) of Christ, who had prayed to His Father, "now I come to thee . . . that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves" (John 17:13). Most specifically, "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:1-2). In joy we rise over the lure of sin and the world. "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered" (Romans 4:7).
The joy of the Lord is not predicated on external circumstances. "As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing all things" (2 Corinthians 6:10). And "I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation" (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The last line is well supported in the writings of David, where the Lord provides this joy. "Though |a good man| fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand" (Psalm 37:24). "Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved" (Psalm 55:22). May God grant us an even deeper joy in Jesus. JDM
