What excites you about the week? For me personally, this past week was harder to stay cheerful and joyful compared to other weeks. The parsonage furnace wasn’t working – no hot water, no heat. I had to call for service, a technician came to fix it, and the furnace stopped working again. It happened three times within a week. I found myself fretful and grumpy. But then, I thought about our brothers and sisters affected by natural disasters in the West Coast and the South. It was hard to imagine how they would get through this. The Bible says, “Rejoice always” (1 Th 5:16). But is it really possible? As I was questioning, Henri Nouwen’s book Here and Now really helped me to restore my joy. In his book Henri Nouwen talks about “Christian joy” in this way:[1]
Joy is not the same as happiness. We can be unhappy about many things, but joy can still be there because it comes from the knowledge of God’s love for us. We are inclined to think that when we are sad we cannot be glad, but in the life of a God-centered person, sorrow and joy can exist together.
David, who has gone through a lot in his life, basically said the same thing in Psalm 16:
“In your presence there is fullness of joy;
in your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (v. 11).
So this morning I would like to invite you to ponder over this following statement: “Joy comes from the knowledge of God.” In other words, the more we know God, the more joyful we become.
God as Savior (vv. 1-3)
In Psalm 126 the psalmist sings a song of joy based on his knowledge of God. We may give a title to this song: “Where Does Joy Come from?” The psalmist answers this question in three ways. His first answer is this: Joy comes when we know God as a wonderful Savior. The psalmist sings:
“When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy” (vv. 1-2).
Many biblical scholars agree that the background of the psalm is the return of the exiles to Jerusalem. The exile lasted 70 years. Many Israelites suffered and died there in Babylon. But after 70 years, when the time had come, the Lord fulfilled his word spoken by Jerimiah and stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he made a public declaration granting the Israelites the right to return to Judah and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem (cf. Ezra 1:1). The Israelites experienced God as Savior at first hand. They rejoiced. They sang and sang and sang all the way to Jerusalem.
Joy comes when we taste and see God is Savior. For me personally I always remember a time when God restored my life. I was walking through the valley of the shadow of death in my military sickbed, suffering from dengue fever and crying out to God. God heard my cry and restored my health. But that night God also healed my wounded soul. My sin, my guilt, my doubt were all washed away; assurance, peace, joy flooded my soul. Early next morning I literally went out leaping like a calf from the stall with shouts of joy.
When I think about the Lord
How He saved, how He raised me
How He filled me with the Holy Ghost
How He healed me to the uttermost
When I think about the Lord
How he picked me up
Turned me around
How He set my feet
On solid ground
It makes me want to shout
Hallelujah! thank you, Jesus!
Lord, you're worthy
Of all the glory, and all the honor
And all the praise!
God as Father (v. 4)
Secondly, joy comes when we know God as a loving Father. Oftentimes we think if we come to faith in Christ, everything will go just fine. We think if we do the right thing, God will take care of the rest. But the reality is harsh. When the exiles finally arrived at their homes in Jerusalem, singing and rejoicing, they had to face the harsh reality. The Jerusalem wall remained broken down and its gates and homes were destroyed by fire. Basically, they had to start from scratch.
Perhaps many of us in this room may have powerful conversion experiences. We did experience God as our Savior. But not only that, we ought to know God as our loving Father, who listens and speaks to us, and who stays in love with us day by day. The psalmist prays to God the Father, “Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the watercourses in the Negeb” (v. 4).
It is well known that John Wesley had a powerful conversion experience at Aldersgate, saying, “I felt my heart strangely warmed.” Surely he knew God as Savior. But the day after Aldersgate on May 25, 1738 Wesley writes, “It was not long before the enemy suggested, “This cannot be faith, for where is the joy?” I was then taught that as to the transports of joy, God sometimes giveth and sometimes withholdth them.” He felt tempted by “the enemy” and lacked joy. The next day, May 26, he writes, “My soul continued in peace, and yet in heaviness because of manifold temptations” and May 27, more of the same – “Believing one reason of my want of joy was want of time for prayer, I resolved to do no business till I went to church in the morning, pouring out my heart before God.” On May 29, he writes, “I am often tempted to doubt whether I had faith at all.” But thankfully, John Wesley didn’t get down in the dumps. He didn’t stay at Aldersgate. He went out into the streets where real people face real doubts and real temptations. With them Wesley poured out his heart before God, and he experienced God as Father who heard and answered his cry.
The psalmist is disappointed with a harsh reality, but still he cries out to God in hope, “Restore our lives, O Lord, like streams of the Negeb.” Negeb was a dry wadi in the south of Hebron. But during the winter months when the rains came, all of sudden this very dry place became streams of water. It was like a spontaneous transformation. So, the streams of the Negeb represents God’s transforming power and blessing. God promised his people, “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isa 43:19 ESV). Jesus said, “Ask… Seek… Knock… If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matt 7:11 NRSV). Do you feel dry and a lack of joy? Ask God your Father, and you will receive it.
God as Judge (vv. 5-6)
Lastly, joy comes when we know God as a righteous Judge. As we look around our broken world today, there’re so many things that discourage us and overwhelm us. We often think if the pandemic would go away, everything will be fine. We say if the November election is over, we will be rest. But the psalmist gives us the best and surest reason why we can rejoice here and now no matter what. It is because the Day of Harvest will surely come when God the Judge will make all things right.
Secondly, joy comes when we know God as a loving Father. Oftentimes we think if we come to faith in Christ, everything will go just fine. We think if we do the right thing, God will take care of the rest. But the reality is harsh. When the exiles finally arrived at their homes in Jerusalem, singing and rejoicing, they had to face the harsh reality. The Jerusalem wall remained broken down and its gates and homes were destroyed by fire. Basically, they had to start from scratch.
Perhaps many of us in this room may have powerful conversion experiences. We did experience God as our Savior. But not only that, we ought to know God as our loving Father, who listens and speaks to us, and who stays in love with us day by day. The psalmist prays to God the Father, “Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the watercourses in the Negeb” (v. 4).
It is well known that John Wesley had a powerful conversion experience at Aldersgate, saying, “I felt my heart strangely warmed.” Surely he knew God as Savior. But the day after Aldersgate on May 25, 1738 Wesley writes, “It was not long before the enemy suggested, “This cannot be faith, for where is the joy?” I was then taught that as to the transports of joy, God sometimes giveth and sometimes withholdth them.” He felt tempted by “the enemy” and lacked joy. The next day, May 26, he writes, “My soul continued in peace, and yet in heaviness because of manifold temptations” and May 27, more of the same – “Believing one reason of my want of joy was want of time for prayer, I resolved to do no business till I went to church in the morning, pouring out my heart before God.” On May 29, he writes, “I am often tempted to doubt whether I had faith at all.” But thankfully, John Wesley didn’t get down in the dumps. He didn’t stay at Aldersgate. He went out into the streets where real people face real doubts and real temptations. With them Wesley poured out his heart before God, and he experienced God as Father who heard and answered his cry.
The psalmist is disappointed with a harsh reality, but still he cries out to God in hope, “Restore our lives, O Lord, like streams of the Negeb.” Negeb was a dry wadi in the south of Hebron. But during the winter months when the rains came, all of sudden this very dry place became streams of water. It was like a spontaneous transformation. So, the streams of the Negeb represents God’s transforming power and blessing. God promised his people, “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isa 43:19 ESV). Jesus said, “Ask… Seek… Knock… If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matt 7:11 NRSV). Do you feel dry and a lack of joy? Ask God your Father, and you will receive it.
God as Judge (vv. 5-6)
Lastly, joy comes when we know God as a righteous Judge. As we look around our broken world today, there’re so many things that discourage us and overwhelm us. We often think if the pandemic would go away, everything will be fine. We say if the November election is over, we will be rest. But the psalmist gives us the best and surest reason why we can rejoice here and now no matter what. It is because the Day of Harvest will surely come when God the Judge will make all things right.
“May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy.Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing,shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves” (vv. 5-6).
Today we may be in great sorrow, but still we can rejoice because we know our Lord Jesus Christ is coming soon. On that day, he will wipe every tear form our eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more (Rev 21:4).
In the early church when believers gathered or parted, they didn’t say “hello” or “goodbye.” But instead, they said to each other “Maranatha!” meaning “Our Lord comes.” Our spiritual ancestors had a sense of urgency and deep awareness of Jesus’ imminent return. And because of the maranatha mindset, they were able to rejoice always. While on a South Pole expedition, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton left a few men on Elephant Island, promising that he would return. Later, when he tried to go back, huge icebergs blocked the way. But suddenly, as if by a miracle, an avenue opened in the ice and Shackleton was able to get through. His men, ready and waiting, quickly scrambled aboard. No sooner had the ship cleared the island than the ice crashed together behind them. Contemplating their narrow escape, the explorer said to his men, “It was fortunate you were all packed and ready to go!” They replied, “We never gave up hope. Whenever the sea was clear of ice, we rolled up our sleeping bags and reminded each other, ‘The boss may come today.’”[2] May we too be all packed and ready to go!
Our joy doesn’t come from economic prosperity, or physical health, or political stability. They are all important, but they are all temporary, all passing by. Our joy comes when we personally taste and see God’s saving power. Our joy comes when we have a father-daughter relationship, a father-son relationship with God, and when we stay in love with him. Our joy does come when we know the Lord is surely coming soon. Sisters and brothers in Christ, let us choose joy and keep choosing it every day, because the Lord is near (cf. Phil 4:4-5). Amen.
--------------
[1] Henri J. M. Nouwen, Here and Now: Living in the Spirit (p. 28). The Crossroad Publishing Company. Kindle Edition.
[2] “Maranatha,” NET Bible, http://classic.net.bible.org/illustration.php?id=6669
No comments:
Post a Comment