Joy in?

This time of year there is always a lot of talk about joy… But really what is joy? 

Joy is more than being happy…Joy is the byproduct of obedience! 

If you struggle with joy, you aren’t struggling with happiness you are struggling with obedience.

The Greek word for joy is chara. Joy is the natural reaction to the work of God, whether promised or fulfilled. Joy expresses God's kingdom.

The Greek chara is closely related to charis, which means “grace” or “a gift.” Chara is the normal response to charis—we have joy because of God's grace. Now this is the key - possessing joy is a choice. We choose whether to value God's presence, promises, and work in our lives. When we rejoice in Him, when we yield to the Spirit, He opens our eyes to God's grace around us and fills us with joy (Romans 15:13). Joy is not to be found in a fallen world; it is only fellowship with God that can make our joy complete (1 John 1:4).

The next step in the progression is to allow our joy to become an action as we express it. During the season of Advent we are rejoicing in the Lord for his coming - Philippians 4:4-5 says “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.”

Rejoice is the Greek word it is chairó -- it is the expression of joy. The command to rejoice shares the same Greek root as joy – xar. When you start putting the pieces together you get an incredible message….

The root means literally, to experience God's grace, be conscious for His grace. To express joy, or to rejoice is to be glad for God’s grace.

We are to be glad for God’s grace – we are to let it be known to everyone, because the Lord is near! What a synopsis of Advent!