Ps 5:11 Let them ever sing and shout for joy. (AMP)

We’ve been looking at Rom 14:17 The Kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. We saw that righteousness triggers peace and peace triggers joy. Today we will look at joy in our lives.

Righteousness, peace and joy are the birthright of every Christian. Therefore, the natural state of our being on a daily basis should reflect righteousness, peace and joy. Our righteousness comes from Christ (2 Cor 5:21). As we stand in this righteousness, it triggers peace, and when we are at peace, it triggers joy.

Joy is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22). It means to be cheerful, be glad, a calm delight. Joy expresses itself when we have an awareness of who we are in Christ. We have a calm delight, a sense of security, victory and trust in the Lord. This calm delight turns to shouts of joy when we praise the Lord. We rejoice (joy) in Him for all He has done for us and continues to do.

Joy has been given us to counterract the negative feelings of fear, worry and stress. Neh 8:10 Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  (NKJV). On this day, the people of Israel were experiencing worry, hurt and remorse because they had an awareness of their sin. Nehemiah said to them, “Don’t be sorry, rejoice in the Lord and it will lift your spirits and make you strong”. Immediately the people’s countenance changed and they began to rejoice and experience the joy of the Lord.

For us Christians, when we have a revelation that all our sins are forgiven, that our God loves us with an unconditional love, that we are always accepted in His presence, that there is no more guilt and condemnation but only peace – this sense of FREEDOM will always cause us to rejoice in the Lord and will release the strength of God into our lives on a daily basis.

This strength becomes a shield of protection against the stress of modern living.

We must remember that God has given us everything we need to live in the midst of such pressure. If we are not doing so, we should stop and ask the Holy Spirit what we need to change in order to experience righteousness, peace and joy as a daily experience of Christ.

Meditation Point: Am I able to rejoice (joy) in God in the midst of pressure, stress and difficulty (Jam 2:2-4).

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