09 September 2018
Two-Minute Features | 16 September 2018 | 02 September 2018

Our Following of God's Ways Gives Us Joy (TMF:975)

Friday, September 14, 2018
Peace to Live By: Our Following of God's Ways Gives Us Joy (TMF:975) - Daniel Litton
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       And following God’s ways in our lives gives us joy in our hearts. As we love the Lord, we learn to hate evil, the evil in our world around us. And God preserves our lives, we who are his. We don't have to worry about the people who don't follow God, people who practice lawlessness, because God keeps us safe from them. As a matter of fact, good is given to us from God. God gives us his joy because we have right standing in him through Jesus. So, therefore, we rejoice in the Lord, as we are righteous, and give thanks to God (see Psalms 97:10-12, ESV). One psalmist wrote, "Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart. I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end" (Psalms 119:111, 112 ESV). You see, when we see the right things occurring in our world, when we see justice accomplished, this provides joy for us as Christians. But the people who practice the wrong things which are against God, justice is their dread; it makes them angry (see Proverbs 21:15, ESV). They want to practice their evil ways.

Our Belief Causes Us to Abound in Joy (TMF:974)

Thursday, September 13, 2018
Peace to Live By: Our Belief Causes Us to Abound in Joy (TMF:974) - Daniel Litton
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       Even though we cannot see God with our own eyes in our lives, for we do not see him physically standing next to us, we still believe in him. And this belief, Peter tells us, causes us to abound in joy, to rejoice, with a joy that is indescribable, something that we really cannot put our finger on or even explain to others (see 1 Peter 1:8, 9). Sometimes it is hard to express. We say we just know what we know. We know that we belong to God, that he is present within us, and that we have communion with him. And this joy we have is filled with glory, and ultimately leads to us inheriting our salvation by the faith of our souls, going to Heaven when we die. And so we worship God as a result of our joy (see Luke 24:52, 53). We bless God with the things that we speak to him and about him. And our joy in our lives, which comes from God, gives us strength. For it is written, “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10, ESV). When we spend time in prayer with God, when we fellowship with him, our hearts rejoice, and as Jesus said, “no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22, ESV).

Unbelievers Just Go Through the Motions (TMF:973)

Wednesday, September 12, 2018
Peace to Live By: Unbelievers Just Go Through the Motions (TMF:973) - Daniel Litton
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       The unbeliever just goes through the motions in life without anything truly deep, truly profound in life. He or she lives for him or herself only, just seeking the next pleasure or event that will make him or her happy. Even what the unbeliever does, his work with his hands, benefits the believer. But what the believer has internally, in God, does not benefit the unbeliever. What he say externally may benefit him, but nothing he has internally does. Paul would backup Solomon in what he said, when he said, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17, ESV). We have the greater things of life given to us by God. Even though we cannot see God with our own eyes in our lives, for we do not see him physically standing next to us, we still believe in him. And this belief, Peter tells us, causes us to abound in joy, to rejoice, with a joy that is indescribable, something that we really cannot put our finger on or even explain to others (see 1 Peter 1:8, 9). Sometimes it is hard to express. We say we just know what we know.

Our Fellowship with God Gives Us Joy (TMF:972)

Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Peace to Live By: Our Fellowship with God Gives Us Joy (TMF:972) - Daniel Litton
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       You see, God truly fulfills our lives. Living in fellowship with him is the only way a person can truly experience a satisfying life, for he created us. If we want to experience true joy, it is found in him. And he even gives us things we want, the desires of our hearts (more on this in a little bit). King Solomon took it a step further when he said, “For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind” (Ecclesiastes 2:26, ESV). We, as Christians, again have been given joy from God, and now along with wisdom and knowledge as pertains to things of life and God. Joy is present inside us. It is our underlying trust in God regardless of our external circumstances in life. The unbeliever just goes through the motions in life without anything truly deep, truly profound in life. He or she lives for him or herself only, just seeking the next pleasure or event that will make him or her happy.

God Gives Us Joy as We Believe in Him (TMF:971)

Monday, September 10, 2018
Peace to Live By: God Gives Us Joy as We Believe in Him (TMF:971) - Daniel Litton
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       So, the next Fruit of the Spirit is joy. First and foremost, we should state that God gives us joy in our lives. He fills us with all of our joy as we believe in Him, as we live out our lives in Him, though the power of the Holy Spirit (see Romans 15:13, ESV). King David said to God, “You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound” (Psalms 4:7, ESV). Now, he was comparing himself with unbelievers, in that unbelievers gain joy from the work of their hands, and from drinking. But the Christian’s joy is greater than these earthly, temporal joys. God’s presence becomes our joy in our lives. For again, David said, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalms 16:11, ESV). You see, God truly fulfills our lives. Living in fellowship with him is the only way a person can truly experience a satisfying life, for he created us. If we want to experience true joy, it is found in him.