Understanding God's promise of eternal glory is completely inseparable from having joy. There are so many tangents I could go onto from the few verses I am going to share, but today I'll stick with this... if we truly trust God for eternal salvation and our current sustenance, we have no other option than to be utterly joyful. True? It needs to be. The bible says there is nothing of greater value than our eternal salvation.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading kept in Heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:3-9
This is a weighty set of verses. There are so many concepts in here that are IMPORTANT and need more studying on my part and on all believers' parts. Really though, what I want to point out is the concept that our joy is evidence of our salvation. Not in a "If you're happy, people will want what you want." Or the "God fixes things in believers lives and makes us joyful" sense either. But in relation to the 1st commandment God gave the people of Israel: "You shall have no other God's before me." Exodus 20:3.
That may seem strange at first - idolatry and the issue of joy? But trust me, it is pivotal. You see, if you are putting something as higher priority than God, your joy will not be complete. If you desire ANYTHING else more than knowing God, this joy in eternity is not going to cut it. After reading this over and over I continue to be struck by the disastrous state of my own heart. Why is it we so easily find something else to fill God's place in our hearts? Peter tells us that when we genuinely believe in Him and His eternal glory, that we will obtain this glorious joy, which is the outcome of our faith, a kind of faith that brings salvation. Complete and genuine joy is evidence of our faith, and THIS kind of faith is where salvation lies. Is there another kind of faith? Nope, not one that God desires.
And that is what leads me to really ponder how well I know God, how much I really trust Him. If my joy is gone, if I cannot say "I will be with Christ someday and that is better than anything else!" despite ANY circumstance I find myself in, do I really believe God? Do I earnestly trust what He says? Because believing God is more than just "knowing" with my head who He is. James 1:19 says "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that - and shudder!" Can we honestly say we think there is salvation in just saying "I know who God is and I believe Jesus was His son."? There must be a change of heart and a willingness to set aside all else to pursue Him.
The more I read this passage the more I realize how entangled I am in this world. I love the good things that God has blessed me with more than I love Him. I want better earthly objects more than I want to know Him. I want ease and comfort more than I want to learn His ways or help His people. This is the saddest epidemic in Christianity, that we strive to show others the truth and do not genuinely believe it ourselves. If you believe that God is the ruler of all and that Jesus was His son, who came and lived a perfect life, willingly placing Himself on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, I beg you please... do not let another day go by without seeking Him and submitting your heart and life to Him. Even if you don't want to have joy or to change your ways or give up your rights, God can change the coldest of hearts and the hardest heads to bring a joy that is fulfilled in His promise of a glorious eternity. He never fails, in ANYTHING! You will find joy in knowing that He will give you more than you can imagine in your life with Him and it will far outweigh anything we can obtain here before we die.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading kept in Heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:3-9
This is a weighty set of verses. There are so many concepts in here that are IMPORTANT and need more studying on my part and on all believers' parts. Really though, what I want to point out is the concept that our joy is evidence of our salvation. Not in a "If you're happy, people will want what you want." Or the "God fixes things in believers lives and makes us joyful" sense either. But in relation to the 1st commandment God gave the people of Israel: "You shall have no other God's before me." Exodus 20:3.
That may seem strange at first - idolatry and the issue of joy? But trust me, it is pivotal. You see, if you are putting something as higher priority than God, your joy will not be complete. If you desire ANYTHING else more than knowing God, this joy in eternity is not going to cut it. After reading this over and over I continue to be struck by the disastrous state of my own heart. Why is it we so easily find something else to fill God's place in our hearts? Peter tells us that when we genuinely believe in Him and His eternal glory, that we will obtain this glorious joy, which is the outcome of our faith, a kind of faith that brings salvation. Complete and genuine joy is evidence of our faith, and THIS kind of faith is where salvation lies. Is there another kind of faith? Nope, not one that God desires.
And that is what leads me to really ponder how well I know God, how much I really trust Him. If my joy is gone, if I cannot say "I will be with Christ someday and that is better than anything else!" despite ANY circumstance I find myself in, do I really believe God? Do I earnestly trust what He says? Because believing God is more than just "knowing" with my head who He is. James 1:19 says "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that - and shudder!" Can we honestly say we think there is salvation in just saying "I know who God is and I believe Jesus was His son."? There must be a change of heart and a willingness to set aside all else to pursue Him.
The more I read this passage the more I realize how entangled I am in this world. I love the good things that God has blessed me with more than I love Him. I want better earthly objects more than I want to know Him. I want ease and comfort more than I want to learn His ways or help His people. This is the saddest epidemic in Christianity, that we strive to show others the truth and do not genuinely believe it ourselves. If you believe that God is the ruler of all and that Jesus was His son, who came and lived a perfect life, willingly placing Himself on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, I beg you please... do not let another day go by without seeking Him and submitting your heart and life to Him. Even if you don't want to have joy or to change your ways or give up your rights, God can change the coldest of hearts and the hardest heads to bring a joy that is fulfilled in His promise of a glorious eternity. He never fails, in ANYTHING! You will find joy in knowing that He will give you more than you can imagine in your life with Him and it will far outweigh anything we can obtain here before we die.
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