“Rejoice always”

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV)

Words of wisdom from the apostle Paul. But where is your heart? In this age, the preoccupations of our worldly lives often overshadow our spiritual lives. It is a way the enemy has of drawing our focus away from Christ to the strife and struggles of the world, and it works. How can we avoid it when we have our “finger in the dam, and the dam is crumbling all around us?

The key to this is understanding our place in creation. Let us go back to before creation. Paul writes, “Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,” (Ephesians 1:4-5). You were chosen as a child of God by God before the beginning of time.

Now, let us look at the time of creation. Moses wrote in Genesis, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” In the image of God. However, we were not born righteous; from the womb, we were sinful. Yet, at God’s appointed time, by grace, we are given faith in Christ Jesus as the risen Son of God, and His finished work on the cross.

In our faith in Christ alone, it is His blood shed on the cross that cleanses us of our sin. He bore our sin and imputed or gave His righteousness in its place. As such, we are no longer a part of this world, but are dead to it and made alive in the Spirit of God. We understand our assurances in our salvation. We grasp the price Christ paid on the cross so that we can be reunited with God in a living relationship. We know that everything in creation belongs to God as its creator, and that God gives us exactly what we need to live. The skill for our vocation, our food, home, children, everything we need or God wants us to have, we receive.

We should also know that as Christians, we will have times of trouble and strife in our lives. These are our cross to bear. Jesus told us, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:24-25). Still, Paul tells us in today's verses to rejoice. We know this because Jesus also told us, while preaching the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. Christianity is about suffering and death, which is replaced by everlasting life in the company of Christ. “For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” It is His will because He lives in us. We are never alone for the Spirit of God resides in us, “the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” (Romans 8:26-27)

We have been made heirs to the Kingdom of God. Our purpose here on earth is to glorify God. So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1Corinthians 10:31). Pastor John Piper has said, and I too believe that “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in Him.”1 Our happiness, Joy, confidence, love, peace, and mercy are a beacon of light to those around us. They see this beacon and want the light for themselves as well. This is when God has opened the heart, and someone is chosen to share the gospel with this person, either as a seed or as a conduit for God's saving grace. Will you be the next choice to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ, or are you the one whose heart is now opened to the Gospel message?

If you do not know Christ, seek Him today. You will come to understand the love and peace of salvation by grace, through faith in Christ alone. Amen.

Grace and Peace.

John Piper, https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/god-is-most-glorified-in-us-when-we-are-most-satisfied-in-him, Desiring God, October 13, 2012,