Galatians 5:22,23
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
The second fruit of the Spirit is joy. I'm curious if there is any significance to the order. I know that love is primary, as I Corinthians 13 says it is. Does that mean joy is next in importance. I wouldn't have guessed that. I would have thought patience. Interesting thought.
What is joy? It's deeper and greater than happiness. I'm heard it said that "happiness is based on happenings, while joy comes from Jesus". Meaning that happiness is circumstantial. A flat tire could remove happiness, but not joy. It runs deep within us, like a river. It's a satisfying contentment.
Joy comes from the Lord, it's not a positive mental attitude. Romans 10:17 says, "So faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word of God." Just like faith is a supernatural gift from God, so is joy. It's our choice to embrace it and ignore circumstances that might diminish it. But it comes from God. The closer we are to Him, the greater our joy. The more distant we are the less our joy.
Joy is like flavor in food. It brings much contentment regardless of what we are doing. It reminds me of Proverbs 15:15b, "The cheerful in heart has a continual feast." Just as a meal brings much satisfaction, so this gift from gives a continuos savoring of life.
It's the result of being in close proximity to Him. The closer we are, the more joy, the further, then less joy. Those that see God as a great killjoy wouldn't have guessed this. They see Him as one Who wants to limit our freedoms. While that is half true, they don't see His reasons. He wants us to avoid those things that enslave us. "Jesus answered them, 'Truly, truly I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin'", (John 8:34).
Nehemiah 8:10 says, "...the joy of the Lord is our strength." What an interesting verse. I would have guessed that joy is like icing on the cake. It's nice, but not necessary. This verse says it provides strength. When younger, I would have guessed that leisure or lack of work is a great reward. I've since learned the importance of work. It builds confidence and keeps us out of trouble. We should have joy while at work. God's plan was for us to do it the majority of the time.It’s like the opposite of the saying, “Fatigue makes cowards of us all.” We all experience fatigue. It does greatly limit our resolve. However we can have joy even though we are fatigued. Even though we feel burnt out there is enough energy in the battery for the lights to blink.
Lord, thank You for joy. Thank You that it all comes from and revolves around You. Help us to stay ever close.