“Christian Resolutions, Part 15:” by Romans
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Tonight, we will be continuing our examination of the Fruit of Spirit as both the Foundation and manifestation of, what I have been calling, “Christian Resolutions.” We have, in the last several Discussions, looked at Love, the first Fruit of the Spirit. Tonight, we will move forward in the Apostle Paul's list of The Fruit of the Spirit, and we will be discussing “Joy.”
As a refresher, and because we do not routinely hear or read this list of Fruit, and I doubt that the average Christian can name all nine fruit from memory ~ and I will admit that I am speaking for myself, here. I didn't even know that there were nine Fruit named until I just counted them. With that in mind, I think it would be good to go where Paul listed the Fruit, and review the entire list, again, before we proceed. I'm going to read this list slowly, to give all of us a chance to let each named Fruit burn into our consciousness.
The list appears in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
As I have done in previous Discussions, we'll consult the dictionary for a definition that reflects the common understanding and usage of the word, “Joy.” Meriam-Webster's Online Dictionary has this to say about joy: 1a: the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune, or, by the prospect of possessing what one desires, gaiety and delight; 1b: the expression or exhibition of such emotion; and 2: a state of happiness or felicity; bliss
Did you notice something very interesting in the above definition? Who is the recipient and beneficiary of joy in the above definition? Very little of it in this secular dictionary is directed outwardly – it is virtually all inward. But Joy is a Fruit of the Spirit. None of the other Fruit listed is inwardly directed, or beneficial intentionally to self. Ideally, Joy, as a Fruit of the Spirit is no different.
In Nature, plants and trees bear fruit for the benefit and nourishment of man, and/or the animals and birds that have access to them, not of the plants that bear them. The same is true with these Fruit of the Spirit. Where Joy, and all of the other Fruit of the Spirit is concerned, as in nature, we should also consider Jesus' words in Matthew 12:33: “... for the tree is known by its fruit.”
Of this John Gill writes, “Fruit will discover what a tree is, and accordingly judgment may be made. No man will say a tree is good, and its fruit corrupt; or say, that a tree is corrupt, and its fruit good: these are glaring contradictions, and can never be reconciled. The case Christ here puts, is a very easy and familiar one, and is obvious to common sense: the application of it may be made, either to the foregoing instance of Christ's casting out devils, which the Jews ascribed to the help of Satan;
and then the sense is, either say I am a good man, and do good works, or that I am an evil man, and do evil works: to say that I do good works, as the casting out of devils must be allowed to be, and yet am an evil man, and do this under satanical influence, is as great an inconsistency, as to say that a corrupt tree brings forth good fruit; either therefore condemn these miracles as evil actions, done by confederacy with Satan; or if you will allow them to be good ones, as you do, ascribe them to the Spirit of God; for these things may as easily be determined, as the cause by its effect, or as a tree is known by its fruit:
or else this may be applied unto the Pharisees, who, though wicked men, pretended to do good works; and though they set up for men of religion and holiness, yet did evil things, as their words and actions testified; particularly the blasphemy just now uttered by them, charging the miracles of Christ as done by the assistance of the devil, which discovered the malignity and rottenness of their hearts: and the meaning of Christ is, that they would either both say, and do, that which is right and good; or relinquish their pretensions to the character of good and religious men:”
Another thing we should consider regarding fruit in Nature, as it reflects on the Fruit of the Spirit, is that every piece of fruit bears seeds for the next generation of that tree or plant. Notice in Genesis 1:29 “And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.”
When we bear the Fruit of the Spirit, we reflect and direct to those we meet and interact with, the very qualities of godliness that Jesus expressed in His interactions with those He encountered. Jesus said that we, His followers, are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. He says to us, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
The seeds which accompany the Fruit of the Spirit, are the positive impacts on those we meet that draw them and win them to Christ. We read,“In the same way, you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over” (1 Peter 3:1 NLT).
Specifically, godly joy is something that can be experienced individually, and as a group. In both cases, its unmistakable presence in our lives serves as a witness in its expression to all that God is in our lives. With that in mind, in the days of King David we have this account: We read in 1 Kings 8:66 “On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.” Their joy was something they received from the outpouring of God's Goodness to David their king, and to the nation as a whole.
In America, our currency reads, “In God We Trust.” Our Pledge of Allegiance declares that we are, “... one Nation under God...” Perhaps it is me, but, for years I have wondered ~ long before the onset of the current pandemic, and the lock down we are experiencing ~ where is the joy in this country? A vast majority, (upwards of 85% ) of American citizens say they are Christians...
As the most prosperous and well-fed nation in history, with the freest citizens in history, and with the highest standard of living, where is the national joy that you would think should accompany the Blessings we have? I think this Psalm nicely addresses that lack of joy, and what America's mental state should be: Psalms 51:12 “Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.”
Individual and collective bearing Fruit is something that has, as I said, an outward focus. The Fruit of the Spirit is not primarily for the bearer of that Fruit. Joy, as a Fruit of the Spirit, flows from and through the believer. While it has a positive effect on the believer, its focus is on the hearer. Notice what God said in regard to Israel, His chosen people, right after they left Egypt:
Deuteronomy 28:63 “... the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you...” The LORD expresses the same feeling, much later in Israel's history: Jeremiah 32:41 “Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.”
In like manner, in the New Testament, we find these words: Matthew 25:21 “His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things:” And then He says this: “enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” Do you see that, God experiences joy at the faithfulness of one of His servants, and invites that servant to share in that joy... to “enter into it.”
Of this, Matthew Henry writes, “Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Note, (1.) The state of the blessed is a state of joy, not only because all tears shall then be wiped away, but all the springs of comfort shall be opened to them, and the fountains of joy broken up. Where there are the vision and fruition of God, a perfection of holiness, and the society of the blessed, there cannot but be a fulness of joy.
This joy is the joy of their Lord; the joy which he himself has purchased and provided for them; the joy of the redeemed, bought with the sorrow of the Redeemer. It is the joy which he himself is in the possession of, and which he had his eye upon when he endured the cross, and despised the shame. It is the joy of which he himself is the fountain and centre. It is the joy of our Lord, for it is joy in the Lord, who is our exceeding joy. Abraham was not willing that the steward of his house, though faithful, should be his heir (as we read in Genesis 15:3); but Christ admits his faithful stewards into his own joy, to be joint-heirs with him.
(3.) Glorified saints shall enter into this joy, shall have a full and complete possession of it, as the heir when he comes of age enters upon his estate, or as they that were ready, went in to the marriage feast. Here the joy of our Lord enters into the saints, in the earnest of the Spirit; shortly they shall enter into it, shall be in it to eternity, as in their element.”
Consider: “enter into the joy of thy lord.” Joy is a Fruit of the Holy Spirit, Who is God along with the Father and the Son. Certainly it is the same joy that Jesus spoke of in the following statement in John 15:11: “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” Think of this: Jesus is desirous that His joy might remain in us. Its direction is from Him to us. It is, as I said, outward.
Of this, The Sermon Bible comments: “I. It is written "Rejoice in the Lord." And what is joy in the Lord? Is it merely the joy of the child, a flash of meteoric light, without permanence, without a fixed source within, or an abiding effect without? No, indeed. Joy in the Lord has for its ground, knowledge of the Lord. In order to rejoice in the Lord, you must know the Lord not as you know a mere fact, but as you know a dear friend, a loving father, One who is the source of your life, the fountain of your good, the hope of your soul, the desire of your heart.
Men are always tempted to rejoice, not in Him, but in themselves and the world; in their strength, their comforts, their advantages. But He shakes our security in these things, that we may live nearer to Him; that we may learn when and where only is the joy that remains; not written in the sand and washed out by every tide, but graven on the everlasting rock; and that by personal experience we may each one rejoice in Him alone—in Him whatever betide—in Him for ever and ever.
II. And these things He does with us, that our joy may be full. If He had left us to ourselves, we should be filling the cup with strange ingredients, which we mistake for joy. We should rise in our national exclusiveness, our earthly pride, our carnal security, and thus when the cup of joy seemed to be full, and we lifted it to our lips to drink, it would be part joy and part bitterness;
but now He casts out the bitterness, and though in His own way and not in ours, He is filling the cup with true unmixed joy—joy which will abide with us and refresh us and stand every trial—joy which will be joy on the bed of sickness and in the prospect of death—yea, and when death is past, in His heavenly kingdom.
H. Alford, Quebec Chapel Sermons, vol. ii., p. 280.
The fellowship of Christ’s joy the source of true blessedness: I. What was the blessedness of Christ? As the first step in this inquiry we must ascertain how far His blessedness is to be understood by man. We begin, therefore, by laying down the truth: (1) That the blessedness of the Infinite God is essentially incomprehensible. We can only conceive blessedness as increasing; therefore we must think of Him as more blessed as the ages roll on, and because those two thoughts can never be reconciled, the blessedness of God is for ever incomprehensible. But in God revealed in Christ the mystery is yet deeper. Whether Jesus, during the years of His humanity, did enter into the unchanging bliss of the Father we cannot tell.
(2) Regarding Christ purely from the human side of His being, we observe that His blessedness as the God-man must be in some measure comprehensible. We see how His joy rose through all His sorrow. He tells us it came by keeping His Father’s commandments and abiding in His love. We have the two elements combined to form it—the giving up of Himself to work the will of God, and the consciousness that the Infinite Love was resting on Him through it all.
(3) But can that joy be communicated? To enter into Christ’s joy we must become Christ-like. Ours must be that utter surrender of self in doing and bearing God’s will, and then will the sense of infinite love dawn upon us, and we shall know something of the lofty gladness which filled the Saviour’s heart while he was moving to the garden and the Cross.
II. The fellowship of Christ’s blessedness is the only source of perfect joy. Perfect joy has two conditions which all men practically recognise. In its source it must be self-surrender to the highest love, and in its action it must be independent of outward changes. The longing to attain a state of life superior to the accidents of time and change shows this.
The wisest men have spoken of following the right in the face of all consequences, as the source of the highest and purest joy of man. The fellowship of Christ’s joy gives this. It is a joy undisturbed by sorrows; it may seem to be weakened, but it is in reality strengthened by suffering. And even death itself, which damps out the joy of all other men, consummates the blessedness of those who, through fellowship of life, are partakers of the joy of Christ. E. L. Hull, Sermons, 3rd series, p. 46.
References: Joh_15:11.—H. Alford, Quebec Chapel Sermons, vol. ii., p. 280; Homilist, 4th series, vol. i., p. 321; R. Thomas, Christian World Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 357; A. Mackennal, Ibid., vol. viii., p. 235; J. T. Stannard, Ibid., vol. xiv., p. 168; Homiletic Quarterly, vol. iii., p. 131; vol. xi., p. 270; W. G. Blaikie, Glimpses of the Inner Life of our Lord, p. 202. Joh_15:12.—Preacher’s Lantern, vol. iv., p. 687. Joh_15:12, Joh_15:13.—G. E. L. Cotton, Sermons and Addresses in Marlborough College, p. 502. Joh_15:12-16.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. ii., p. 278. Joh_15:12-17.—Christian World Pulpit, vol. x., p. 269.”
Joy defies logic. Someone buys a new car, graduates from school, gets married, or gets a raise, or moves into a new house and they are happy. Joy and happiness, by worldly standards are generated when good things happen to us, and maybe to only us. But notice how Jesus says happiness and joy are generated for the believer:
We read of followers of Christ being blessed, or being happy beginning in Matthew 5:3: “Blessed {or, happy} are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed {or, happy} are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed {or, happy} are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed {or, happy} are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed {or, happy} are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed {or, happy} are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed {or, happy} are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:3-9).
In the above examples, we can easily see why and how joy is experienced in inheriting the kingdom, in being comforted, in inheriting the earth, in being filled, in obtaining mercy, in seeing God, in being called the children of God. But in the next two verses, Jesus also called His followers blessed and happy when experiencing things that we would never associate with being blessed and happy. He names things that our natural reaction would lead us to believe that any joy that may have previously existed would, if anything, be crushed:
We read in Matthew 5:10-13: Blessed {or, happy} are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed {or, happy} are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.” And then He says, “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”
Matthew Henry writes, “Blessed are they which are persecuted - To persecute means literally to pursue; follow after, as one does a flying enemy. Here it means to vex, or oppress one, on account of his religion. They persecute others who injure their names, reputation, property, or who endanger or take their life, on account of their religious opinions.
For righteousness’ sake - Because they are righteous, or are the friends of God. We are not to seek persecution. We are not to provoke it by strange sentiments or conduct; by violating the laws of civil society, or by modes of speech that are unnecessarily offensive to others. But if, in the honest effort to be Christians, and to live the life of Christians, others persecute and revile us, we are to consider this as a blessing. It is an evidence that we are the children of God, and that he will defend us. “All that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution,” ( as Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 3:12)...
Blessed are ye when men shall revile you - Reproach you; call you by evil and contemptuous names; ridicule you because you are Christians. Thus, they said of Jesus that he was a Samaritan and had a devil; that he was mad; and thus they reviled and mocked him on the cross. But, being reviled, he reviled not again (as we read in 1 Peter 2:23); and thus being reviled, we should bless, which states: “... being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:”
and thus, though the contempt of the world is not in itself desirable, yet it is blessed to tread in the footsteps of Jesus, to imitate his example, and even to suffer for his sake.”
At this point in the Commentary, there is a cross-reference to Philippians 1:29, which says: “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;”
Of this Albert Barnes writes, “For unto you - Unto you as Christians. This favor is granted unto you in your present circumstances. / It is given - God concedes to you this privilege or advantage. / In the behalf of Christ - In the cause of Christ, or with a view to honor Christ. Or, these things are brought on you in consequence of your being Christians. / Not only to believe on him - It is represented here as a privilege to be permitted to believe on Christ.
It is so: (1) It is an honor to a man to believe one who ought to be believed, to trust one who ought to be trusted, to love one who ought to be loved. (2) It is a privilege to believe on Christ, because it is by such faith that our sins are forgiven; that we become reconciled to God, and have the hope of heaven. (3) It is a privilege, because it saves the mind from the tortures and the deadly influence of unbelief - the agitation, and restlessness, and darkness, and gloom of a skeptic.
(4) It is a privilege, because we have then a friend to whom we may go in trial, and on whom we may roll all our burdens. If there is anything for which a Christian ought to give unfeigned thanks, it is that he has been permitted to believe on the Redeemer. Let a sincere Christian compare his peace, and joy, and hope of heaven, and support in trials, with the restlessness, uneasiness, and dread of death, in the mind of an unbeliever; and he will see abundant occasion for gratitude.
But also to suffer for his sake - Here it is represented as a privilege to suffer in the cause of the Redeemer - a declaration which may sound strange to the world. Yet this sentiment frequently occurs in the New Testament. Thus, it is said of the apostles Act_5:41, that “they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name;” Col_1:24. “Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you;” 1Pe_4:13. “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings;” compare Jas_1:2; Mar_10:30; see the notes at Act_5:41. It is a privilege thus to suffer in the cause of Christ:
(1) Because we then resemble the Lord Jesus, and are united with him in trials;
(2) Because we have evidence that we are his, if trials come upon us in his cause;
(3) Because we are engaged in a good cause, and the privilege of maintaining such a cause is worth much of suffering; and,
(4) Because it will be connected with a brighter crown and more exalted honor in heaven.”
Returning to the Matthew Henry's original comments: “All manner of evil against you falsely - An emphasis should be laid on the word falsely in this passage. It is not blessed to have evil spoken of us if we deserve it; but if we deserve it not, then we should not consider it as a calamity. We should take it patiently, and show how much the Christian, under the consciousness of innocence, can bear (see 1 Peter 3:13-18).
For my sake - Because you are attached to me; because you are Christians. We are not to seek such things. We are not to do things to offend others; to treat them harshly or unkindly, and. to court revilings. We are not to say or do things, though they may be on the subject of religion, designed to disgust or offend. But if, in the faithful endeavor to be Christians, we are reviled, as our Master was, then we are to take it with patience, and to remember that thousands before us have been treated in like manner. When thus reviled or persecuted, we are to be meek, patient, humble; not angry; not reviling again;
but endeavoring to do good to our persecutors and slanderers, (as we read in 2 Timothy 2:24-25). In this way many have been convinced of the power and excellence of that religion which they were persecuting and reviling. They have seen that nothing else but Christianity could impart such patience and meekness to the persecuted; and have, by this means, been constrained to submit themselves to the gospel of Jesus. Long
since it became a proverb, “that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad - Regard it as a great privilege thus to be persecuted and to suffer - a thing not to be mourned over, but as among the chief blessings of life. For great is your reward in heaven - That is, your reward will be great in the future world. To those who suffer most, God imparts the highest rewards. Hence, the crown of martyrdom has been thought to be the brightest that any of the redeemed shall wear; and hence many of the early Christians sought to become martyrs, and threw themselves in the way of their persecutors, that they might be put to death.
They literally rejoiced, and leaped for joy, at the prospect of death for the sake of Jesus. Though God does not require us to seek persecution, yet all this shows that there is something in religion to sustain the soul which the world does not possess. Nothing but the consciousness of innocence, and the presence of God, could bear up the sufferers in the midst of these trials; and the flame, therefore, kindled to consume the martyr, has also been a bright light, showing the truth and power of the gospel of Jesus.”
Paul, in spite of the things he suffered, or... more accurately... I should say because of the things he suffered, certainly was a living example of that inexplicable Godly joy: He wrote in 2 Corinthians 7:4 “Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.” Under what other circumstance, besides having a relationship with your Creator and Saviour, can there be a such a sentence as, “I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation”?
Albert Barnes explains how Paul could have experienced, not just joy, but was “exceeding joyful” in tribulation with these words: “Who comforteth us - Paul here doubtless refers primarily to himself and his fellow apostles as having been filled with comfort in their trials; to the support which the promises of God gave; to the influences of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter; and to the hopes of eternal life through the gospel of the Redeemer.
That we may be able to comfort ... - Paul does not say that this was the only design which God had in comforting them that they might be able to impart comfort to others; but he does say that this is an important and main purpose. It is an object which he seeks, that his people in their afflictions should be supported and comforted; and for this purpose he fills the hearts of his ministers with consolation; gives them personal experience of the sustaining power of grace in their trials; and enables them to speak of what they have felt in regard to the consolations of the gospel of the Lord Jesus.
By the comfort ... - By the same topics of consolation; by the same sources of joy which have sustained us. They would have experience; and by that experience they would be able to minister consolation to those who were in any manner afflicted. It is only by personal experience that we are able to impart consolation to others. Paul refers here undoubtedly to the consolations which are produced by the evidence of the pardon of sin, and of acceptance with God, and the hope of eternal life. These consolations abounded in him and his fellow apostles richly; and sustained by them he was able also to impart like consolation to others who were in similar circumstances of trial.”
John Gill adds, “I am filled with comfort, says he; not only with divine and spiritual consolations from God, but with the news Titus brought of the state of this church, of the good effect the apostle's reproof and advice had both upon them, and the offender among them, and of their tender and affectionate regard to him: this filled him brimful of comfort, yea, adds he,
I am exceeding joyful; I abound, I over abound in joy; such is the joy that possesses my soul, at the tidings brought me, that it superabounds all the sorrow and anguish of spirit, out of which I wrote unto you, occasioned by the unhappy affair among you: yea, it makes me inexpressibly joyful in all our tribulation; which is not small we meet with, wherever we go, in preaching the Gospel of Christ.”
There is much more for us to review and examine where Joy, the Second named Fruit of the Spirit is concerned. And we will, God Willing, do that next week. I hope as many of you who are with me tonight, or hearing me on Youtube, or reading these notes in the 4G Forum, can join me as we continue in this Series.
This concludes this Evening's Discussion, “Christian Resolutions 2020, Part 15.”
This Discussion was originally presented “live” on April 15th, 2020.
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