The Kingdom of God is JOY. –Romans 14:17
With JOY we draw from the wells of salvation. –Isaiah 12:3
Give those that mourn in the Church the oil of JOY. –Isaiah 61:3
Not that we be Lords over your faith, but are HELPERS of your JOY. –2 Corinthians 1:24 BB
Problem: Love of many waxes cold and people mourn.
Cause: False prophets, teachers, and their false messages.
Solution: Send the true Good News of JOY.
We were made in the image of God (Genesis 1:35), and His divine nature (2 Peter 1:3) is JOY (Psalms 16:11, Acts 2:28). We have JOY in God through Jesus (Romans 5:11, Luke 1:14, 2:10), and by the Holy Ghost (Acts 13:52, 1 Thessalonians 1:6, Galatians 5:22). The Kingdom of God is JOY (Romans 14:17). Jesus said the Kingdom of God was within us (Luke 17:21).
Thus, according to the scriptures, our de facto nature is to be full of JOY. Prophets proclaimed the Messiah would increase JOY.
19 The meek also shall increase their JOY in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 29:19)
Angels said it as well,
10 Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great JOY, which shall be to all people. (Luke 2:10)
Then Jesus confirmed it in the synagogue,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has chosen me to bring GOOD NEWS to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppresse. (Luke 4:18 Good News Translation; Isaiah 61:1)
The five points above concern JOY, just as the angel proclaimed to the shepherds in the field. From this we learn that there are five general dispositions that can be healed by JOY.
- Poor in spirit (low self-esteem)
- Brokenhearted (heartbroken)
- Captive (fear and phobias)
- Blindness (vanity)
- Bruised (oppression, possession)
The mission of Jesus has mostly been known through organized religion, but since Jesus never actually organized a church (He did not inform the other apostles when He called Paul; Galatians 1:1), He brought "good" information intended to empower individuals to govern their own lives and to do good IN the world, not cordon themselves off in a church where leaders ingratiate themselves with members' tithes/donations and keep to themselves while their communities are morally and physically crumbling to the ground.
11 THESE THINGS have I spoken unto you, that my JOY might remain in you, and that your JOY might be FULL (John 15:11).
13 Now I am coming to you, and I speak THESE THINGS in the world SO THAT they may have my JOY completed in them. (John 17:13 CSB)
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28 Thou hast MADE KNOWN to me the WAYS OF LIFE; thou shalt make me FULL of JOY with thy countenance (Acts 2).
4 And THESE THINGS write we unto you, that your JOY may be FULL (1 John 1:4).
Jesus taught it's our birthright to have JOY; therefore, we have the right to ask God to make it so:
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ASK, and ye shall receive, that your JOY may be FULL (John 16:24).
This is the actual framework of life—JOY and FULL—it's how God rewards us in this life and in the life to come.
26 For God GIVETH to a man that is GOOD in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and JOY: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit (Ecclesiastes 2:26).
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: enter thou into the JOY of thy lord (Matthew 25:21).
It should now be clear that the de facto nature of man IS to be in a state of JOY, in this life and the next. JOY is the commodity the Devil doesn't have, and so he wants to rob us of our God-given right to use and to have it!
Rob Your Job
22 So you also have sorrow now. But I will see you again. Your hearts will rejoice, and no one will ROB you of your JOY (John 16 HCSB).
If we view the enemy's attacks from his "hatred of JOY" perspective, the spiritual war will become clearer. It is only called spiritual because the enemy attacks from the spirit realm and is seeking to destroy our spiritual livelihood—which is JOY. His "fiery darts" can be viewed as attacks against JOY!
Regardless of the tactic, the Evil One's end goal will always be to stop our JOY. Once we realize this is the true spiritual battle, we can stand up for ourselves and not let his fiery darts take away our inner strength, which is our JOY.
Remember to be the JOY that you are, or return to the JOY that you were. No one is like you, and regardless of how you look, talk, or act—IF you have JOY, others will see IT, like IT, and will want to be near YOU—the opposite is also true.
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In reality, we are the ones whom the devil fears, for the Kingdom of God and His divine presence is within us:
14 I will give thanks to You, for the greatness of the way I was made brings FEAR. (Psalms 139:14 NLV)
If we allow fear to abide within us, that part of God's Kingdom within us suffers. The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and JOY:
17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and JOY in the Holy Ghost. (Romans 14:17)
10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ:
We win, as was previously stated, by our testimony and faith in God's Word and the power of Jesus Christ. He holds the keys of death and hell, and He has passed them on to believers, i.e., the Church:
18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death (Revelation 1).
18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Matthew 16).
Think positively, be full of power, be full of JOY, and full of the knowledge that you are a child of God, and no weapon formed against you will prosper. Take a stand before the enemy and quote the Word of God. Nobody lives in a vacuum. Think of the power we each have simply by influencing our environment. If we carry the Spirit of Fear, we spread fear. If we carry the Spirit of JOY, we spread JOY.
Trials
We will all experience trials in life. How are we to handle them? According to James 1:2, "with JOY":
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great JOY. (James 1:2 NLV)
Think how different fear and JOY are. JOY is a positive state of being, and fear is the negative. Consider how JOY brings energy, and fear zaps it. When facing troubles, we need all the strength we can get; therefore, JOY, with its strength, should be our first line of offense,
Keep in mind, the Creator is very strong, and He is within us already; we just need to increase it by increasing our JOY. The following verse is a reminder of this dynamic.
10 ...for the JOY of the Lord is your strength. (Nehemiah 8:10)
Daily Living
The JOY-Filled Way offers purposeful living daily by working within the JOY-Filled Framework, which says it's our birthright to have JOY and to live in a state of JOY. What this means is, each day we wake, we are allowed to ask the following question:
How will my JOY be filled today?
This becomes the motivation for daily living. If a person has become bored, all they need do is ask God for their JOY to be made full:
24 Ask, and ye shall receive, that your JOY may be full. (John 16:24)