Joy is integral to faith in Jesus
When I understood the message of Jesus, the overwhelming response was joy. I was converted in my late thirties, having been an atheist. There were many “surprises” in this process that I would not have predicted before. One of the surprises was that the absolutely dominant feeling was one of deep and all-encompassing joy.
Everybody’s experience of faith is personal to them, so if the following words do not resonate with you, that’s OK. Someone else’s testimony can be a source of joy but if it is very different to your own experiences it can also be confronting. The following words (and the words in all my posts) are only given for the glory of God and everything I received is from Him. If your own journey is different, it is no less valid, with God loving you and guiding you in a different way.
When I read the bible as a non-believer, it was not the same as reading it when I believed. It is possible to have passages “leap out” at you and also to “go into” the various scenes which are depicted in the scriptures. It is possible to be overcome with joy reading certain passages. One such passage which I was directed to is John chapter 8 verse 1–12:
Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.
And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,
They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.
Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?
This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.
And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
I received these words in a profound way. The Holy Spirit was at work and I was overcome with the experience of understanding Jesus’ grace. What grace — even to the religious Elders who tried to set him up so they could accuse him of speaking against religious laws. We do not know what Jesus was tracing out on the ground, but the grace is evident as he allowed the Elders to quietly slip away after being exposed. After reading this, we are all like the accused person: standing face-to-face with God — forgiven, loved.
Grace
I did not truly understand grace before. I knew the word had something to do with a gift which is given and not deserved by the recipient. Once I understood the grace of Jesus, I understood the true meaning of grace. I also understood that this amazing grace of God is such a profound thing that it could not have been invented by humans without God: when you understand the meaning of the Christian message and what Jesus did, it can only have come from God.
It was by grace that he converted me, grace that he blessed me with so many things (even when I was an atheist rejecting him), grace that he lived among us doing daily work (as we humans do) so that we might understand the depth of his love, grace that he suffered and died for us, allowing himself to be tortured and abused by people who had no power over him and which he could have stopped at any point. Here is a God who is so good in his supreme love that he did not look down on us from above as only a benign creator and judge, but actually descended to our level, to be like us, so that we had a God who no one could say was distant, harsh, or who did not understand what being human is like. It speaks to His supremacy, and to his love for us, that he would do this for his children.
This sacrifice by God reconciled us with him. It was the only way to reconcile us with God, as He wanted us to have free will which means we are free to sin if we want to. We could have been created as automatons who could not sin, but we would then have been puppets and maybe not made quite so much in his image as we actually are — having free will and allowed to choose whether to do good or bad acts as we wish. How much greater is God to create us so we are free to sin and then sacrifice Himself to forgive us? So to reconcile us with God in this way, He was incarnated in human form and suffered for us. It is quite hard for non-believers to grasp the full significance of this and it may be that you need faith to really start to understand it fully. Once I understood this message, once I understood this amazing grace, there was no way it could have been conceived by anything except God.
I do not pretend to have all the answers. I am very new in my faith. There may be a lot more to it beyond my own comprehension or what I can write down. Even so, just this glimpse of the truth of God’s grace gave rise to unparalleled joy. The appropriate response to this gift is not to self-flagellate and ruminate on our sin. The appropriate response is to say thank you, give praise, do your best to live accordingly having been given this gift, and try to tell as many people as you can so that they might be brought to Jesus and experience the joy of this good news. There is no better thing you can do for a person than bringing them closer to Jesus.
Joy
When people ask how my conversion experience started, I use certain phrases to describe it, for example: “I stopped saying no to Jesus and he did the rest” or “I was only required to do the bare minimum and not say no; he didn’t even require me to say an active yes”. The reality is that it’s not possible to describe it in words. You can perhaps give people glimpses, or a partial understanding of one element.
So for this week’s post, I hope to have conveyed the simple fact that the overwhelming experience is one of joy.
There is a believer at my church who sings and for whom music has been a strong vehicle to bring him closer to God. I was sharing with him my own spiritual experiences with certain songs about Jesus. He told me that at a certain point in his own journey he had realised that what he was doing in listening to these songs was worshipping.
One of the many songs which has brought me closer to God is Amazing Grace by John Newton. “How precious did that grace appear, the hour I first believed”. There are many ways to worship; many ways to access Jesus’ message and move closer to Him. What follows is joy.
Let’s end with John 15:9-17:
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
These things I command you, that ye love one another.
…
Welsh Christian Revival
28th January 2024
