A reminder for joyless days

I find it fascinating that, at every major stage of Jesus’ time on earth recorded in his Gospel, Luke mentions people responding with joy:

• When Mary becomes pregnant with God’s Son, the unborn prophet John the Baptist jumps for joy (1 v 44), while Mary herself rejoices (v 47).
• Christ’s birth is announced by angels as “good news that will cause great joy” (2 v 10).
• When Jesus’ first followers go out on mission to share the gospel, they return with joy (10 v 17).
• On Palm Sunday, as the King enters his capital city, the crowd with him joyfully praise God (19 v 37).
• And joy was a feature of the disciples’ reaction to meeting the crucified, risen Jesus (24 v 40-41).

Joy is what happens when you meet with Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Joy is what happens when you grasp who he is, why he came, and where he is now. It’s almost like a test of whether or not you really understand what’s going on in the story. These are not events that are meant to stay confined to our heads; they are meant to percolate down into our hearts and change the way we think, feel, and love.

So ask yourself: Do I know great joy?

If not, I’m sympathetic. Life is hard. Even the smoothest ride on this earth is marked by suffering, heartache and loss. Many people in today’s western world live at standards of health and prosperity that would have been unimaginable for 99.9% of the people who have ever lived on earth, but we still aren’t free from depression and loneliness and weakness. The happiest lives all end in the grave. There are a lot of reasons not to be happy on a day-to-day basis. If we tie our deep-down sense of well-being to our circumstances, joy will be elusive.

Christian joy is different. It is built on knowing Christ, not remolding our circumstances.

Christian joy is different. It is built on knowing Christ, not remolding our circumstances. The fact that Jesus has ascended and is in heaven at this moment gives us a hope that transcends our daily troubles; because if Jesus is in heaven, then we will one day surely be with him there. The frustrations and sorrows of daily life are not the final word. They punctuate our story now, but they are not the story itself. And one day, they will be behind us.

Perhaps if we lack joy, it is because our thoughts are too focused on the here and now, and not focused enough on heaven. Sometimes people are criticized for being “heavenly minded.” But actually it’s good to be heavenly minded. We should think about heaven every day, because Jesus is there right now. We should feel free to look forward to heaven, because it is our eternal home. Our forefathers (and foremothers) in the faith knew this—they wrote hymns to encourage believers to long for heaven. But it seems as if our generation of believers sometimes feel that if they think about heaven too much, then they are escapists who cannot cope with the fact that life is hard.

The fact is, most of us don’t long for heaven enough. And that means our lives here on earth don’t reflect that citizenship above. We don’t live as though our lives are hidden with Christ on high. We don’t live as if we’re heading there to live with the ascended Jesus. Instead, we live as if the financial difficulties, the relationship struggles, and the family concerns in our lives are the final reality. It’s no wonder that we struggle to feel joy.

We need to lift our gaze.
We need to look up—up to where Jesus sits on his throne, for us.
We need to look forward—forward to where Jesus will one day welcome us into his presence to share his glory.
We need to reflect on his incarnation, and know that he came for us.
We need to wonder at his birth, and see that he humbled himself for us.
We need to look at his mission, and understand that he came to reach us.
We need to gaze at his kingship, and know that he rules for us.
We need to know that he rose to life, scarred but not defeated by his death, for us.

Today, look up to your Friend in heaven; look forward to seeing your Friend in heaven. That’s how you worship with great joy.

Read more about how Christ’s resurrection and ascension changes our life today in The Resurrection in Your Life by Mike McKinley. And join the conversation and comment below. You can also like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to our YouTube Channel.