HAPPY VS JOY
Rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy!
1 Peter 3:8
“I just want to be happy.”
“I just want my child to be happy.”
“Doesn’t God want me to be happy?”
I think it is safe to say that at one time or another most of us have thought similar thoughts or said similar words. Yet, is happiness what we are truly seeking? I suggest that God says we should be seeking joy. You may be asking, “Aren’t happiness and joy the same?” James Montgomery Boise is published saying,
“Joy is the Christian virtue; happiness is the virtue of the world. There is all the difference in the world between them.”
HAPPINESS
I am happy when I meet a friend for coffee. I am happy with a sunny, 75 degree day. I am happy when I have a clean, shiny floor. This type of happiness is based on external circumstances. It is a temporary good “feeling” — a feeling that will change depending on the circumstance. For, I am not happy when the coffee shop is unexpectedly closed. I am not happy with a snowy, subzero day. I am not happy with muddy footprints on the floor. You see, this feeling comes and goes. It is fleeting and gives a false sense of hope. It is based on how I feel about possessions, accomplishments, people, or events.
God created us with feelings. Feeling happy is wonderful and a good gift from God. God blesses us with good things to enjoy for the time it is given. He wants us to know that the feeling of happiness is because we are blessed by His goodness. Happiness is attached to the blessing (James 1:17).
The caution is that we cannot pursue happiness with a goal of being sustained by that happiness. Happiness can be an amazing experience but it doesn’t last. It’s a false sense of joy. It’s a deception of being “filled.” Happiness is surface level based on externals. True-inner joy is not from external things. Rather, true-inner joy is from the Giver of those things!
JOY
Even when the coffee shop is closed, when it’s cold and snowy, or when muddy footprints are on the floor, I am still filled with true-inner joy. These are merely simple and perhaps silly examples, but what about when I’m struggling with a trial of life or suffering from a loss of a loved one? I am still filled with true-inner joy! Joy is present when happiness is absent.
Joy is full of eternal hope. It is the supernatural sustaining of my soul, especially in hardships. It is rooted in who God is as the giver and sustainer of life. The source of my joy is Jesus and it allows for me to have a deep relationship with God.
The Bible says to consider it all joy when encountering trials (James 1:2). Trials are not joyful but I “consider it all joy” because, as a Christ-follower, I will grow to be more like Him. Joy can and does exist even in the trials. Joy is a choice and dependent on my obedience to Christ. Without the sustaining joy of Christ, enduring trials and suffering is nearly impossible!
So, how do I choose joy? Consider 1 Thessalonians 5:16, “Rejoice always!” This is a command that I must choose to obey. Or consider Philippians 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” I have the ability to choose the joy readily available to me. I can experience joy even when I’m not happy with a person, place, or thing.
Joy is growing in my relationship with the Lord. It partners together with contentment in knowing that God is in complete control of all things (Philippians 4:11). Joy is trusting that He will work all things together for good to those who love Him (Romans 8:28). And that is key, my friends! Because I love God with all my heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37), I have true-inner joy in knowing that He is working. Since my greatest desire is to love God most and to live a Christ-centered life (Philippians 1:21), His joy fills me at all times. I am choosing to follow Him, thus I am choosing joy!
Joy is a way of living! Joy lasts eternally! Joy is soul level! Pursue joy by focusing on what God provides in Christ rather than focusing on circumstance (1 Peter 1:3-9).
KNOW CHRIST AS LORD AND SAVIOR
Perhaps at one time you’ve thought or said, “I just want to be happy - I just want my child to be happy - Doesn’t God want me to be happy?” Which virtue have you been pursuing? I encourage you to pursue the Christian virtue of true-inner joy. If you do not know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you can - right now!
The Bible tells us that we are born enemies of God because we are born into sin (Psalm 51:5). It says that all have sinned and come short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23), and that there is not one who is righteous (Romans 3:10). It also says that the wages for sin (the payment) is eternal death (Romans 6:23). But, the good news (The Gospel) is that God has offered all mankind a free gift to be rescued out of the eternal death, where the worm dies not and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9). The free gift is eternal life only given in Christ Jesus. Jesus took the payment through His death on the cross. When Jesus rose from the dead, He defeated the power of sin and death which brings new life to those who believe in Him. Jesus said He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one can be united to God the Father expect through Jesus (John 14:6). There is no other way!
According to 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Christ died for your sins, He was buried, and He was raised on the third day. This is not complicated. It is fully centered on the work of Christ alone. Ephesians 2 says that God is rich in mercy, He has great love for you, and you can be saved by His grace through faith in Christ Jesus. This is God’s gift to you! The question is: what will you do with this free gift that God is offering to you? Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe with your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Friend, find true-inner joy when you profess Jesus as your Lord and Savior.
1 James Montgomery Boice, Philippians: An Expositional Commentary, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2000, 235