What do the Scriptures Teach About Joy?

• God Himself is the ultimate Source of joy (more so than the fun things of this world)

  • You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound. (Psalm 4:7)

  • Then will I go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. (Psalm 43:4)

• There is joy that comes from dwelling in the presence of God (in the here and now)

  • Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy in his dwelling place. (1 Chronicles 16:27)

  • You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11)

  • You have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. (Ps 21:6)

• There is joy in reflecting on our redemption, forgiveness of sins, and salvation

  • Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (Ps 51:7-12)

  • Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. 7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.8 And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness… The redeemed will walk there, 10 and the ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. (Isaiah 35)

  • Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:8-9)

• There is joy that comes from knowing God's Word

  • The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. (Psalm 19:8)

  • Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart. (Psalm 119:111)

  • When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight. (Jeremiah 15:16)

• Jesus is the Joy-Bringer (obedience to Him is a pathway to joy)

  • If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. (John 15:10-11)

• There is joy in serving the poor and honoring Sabbath (this is a pathway to joy)

  • 6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter —when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard... 13 If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” The mouth of the Lord has spoken. (Isaiah 58)

• There is joy when those under our parental/pastoral supervision are growing spiritually

  • The father of a righteous man has great joy. (Proverbs 23:24)

  • For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy. (1 Thess. 2:19-20)

  • It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth. (2 John 4)

  • It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. (3 John 3-4)

• There is joy that comes when we reflect on the victories and great deeds of our God

  • LORD, the king rejoices in your strength. How great is his joy in the victories you give! (Psalm 21:1)

  • For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the works of your hands. (Psalm 92:4)

  • Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” 3 The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. (Psalm 126:2-3)

  • Sing to the LORD, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. 6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you. (Isaiah 12:5-6)

• There is joy that comes when our trust and faith in God is growing

  • May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

  • Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me. (Phil. 1:25-26)

• There is joy that is derived from experiencing God’s mercy, rescue, comfort, and love

  • 10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help.” 11 You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy. (Psalm 30:8-11)

  • When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your love, O LORD, supported me. 19 When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. (Psalm 94:18-19)

  • Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the LORD returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes. 9 Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. (Isaiah 52:8-9)

• God is the One who gives us joy (vs. joy being something I can generate)

  • Bring joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. (Psalm 86:4)

  • To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. (Jude 24-25)

• True joy (about what God has done for us) will lead to radical, sacrificial generosity

  • And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2 Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. (2 Corin. 8:1-2)

• There is joy that comes when God’s rule is established (now and in His coming kingdom)

  • May the nations sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations. (Psalm 67:4)

  • Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; 9 let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness. (Psalm 98:8-9)

  • “Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. 19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. (Isaiah 65:17-19)

• There is joy that comes from the good things God gives us

  (But also warnings about pursuing these good things as “ultimate things”)

  • So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun. (Eccl. 8:15)

  • Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment. (Eccl. 11:9)

  • You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. (Psalm 4:7)

• There is great joy looking forward to the Kingdom of Heaven and all its rewards

  • The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. (Matt. 13:44)

  • Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets. (Luke 6:23)

• There is joy because of the fact that God came to Earth in the Person of Jesus

  • And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born; he is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:8-11)

• There is joy because of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead (the sign that Jesus is Lord!)

  • So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy… (Matt. 28:8)

  • While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. 52 Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. (Luke 24:51-52)

• There is joy that comes by way of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit

  • But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (Gal 5:22)

• There is joy that comes when we are in true fellowship with other believers

  • For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy. (1Thess. 2:19-20)

  • Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. (2 Tim. 1:4)

• There is joy for pastors/leaders – when the flock is submitted to their teaching/authority

  • Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you. (Hebrews 13:17)

• There is joy in trials and tribulations (because we know that spiritual growth will result)

  • Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:2-4)

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