MARCH 30, 2024
Topic: YOU WILL REJOICE
Text: John 16:20-24
Memory Verse: John 16:22 – “You have sorrow now, but I will see you again and then you will rejoice, and no one can rob you of that joy!
Once you and I truly experience the joy of the Lord, no one can rob us of that joy! That does not mean that we will never experience disappointment, sorrow or grief, but it does mean that deep down underneath it all, is the joy that comes as a gift from God; the fruit of the Spirit. This is the kind of joy that no one can take away!
Underneath the tears and the heartache lies the calm, sweet peace that God gives to those who walk in faith and obedience. That is part of the joy that He promises.
Jesus’ promise to see His disciples again, of course, refers to after the resurrection.
“You will be so firmly persuaded that I have risen, He says to them, and that I am Messiah, that neither the threats not the persecutions of men will ever be able to shake your faith, or produce doubt or unbelief and thus take away your joy”.
Jesus’ prediction as we know was remarkably fulfilled. After He revealed Himself to them following the resurrection, not one of the Apostles ever doubted for a moment that He had risen from the dead. No trial or persecution was able to shake their faith –
so that their joy remained.
You and I have certainties of faith that are unshakeable, and thus they produce joy – joy that will remain forever and ever.
Prayer: Father, I thank you for the unshakeable joy that you alone can give me and has given me in Jesus’ name.