God Actually Wants You to Be Happy
Sep 2, 2019 4111
God wants you to be happy!
Everything that Jesus said was important, but what if we could pinpoint his most important teaching? One candidate would have to be what Jesus said about the vine and the branches in John 15:1-7.
Here, Jesus is walking with his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. He knows that in a short while, he will be betrayed and brutally executed the next morning. It’s almost as if Jesus is distilling his teachings and pouring them into his disciples, to prepare them for what will come.
There is so much in this message of Jesus! However, it seems that his followers have often missed what Jesus says right in the heart of this message:
I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.(v.11).
What Jesus is saying is that the whole purpose of his teaching is joy.
God Actually Wants You to Be Happy
Today, followers of Jesus will commonly say that there is a difference between having joy, and being happy. This is because the word “joy” has become a religious word in our English-speaking culture. When is the last time you heard the word joy used outside of a religious context, and by the way, Christmas is a religious context! Think, for example of the Christmas carol that begins with, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come.”
But in the Bible, there’s actually no differences at all between happiness and joy. The Hebrew and Greek words that are translated as “joy” are equally translated as “happiness” in other places in the Bible. There really no difference. You can’t be a joyful person and be unhappy. All the distinctions that people make between the words “joy” and “happiness” are wrong. They’re artificial. You won’t really find that they hold water in any dictionary.
Jesus is the Source of All that is Good in Life
The reason why Christians have driven a wedge between the words “joy” and “happiness” is because somewhere in the Middle Ages, some Christians came to the view that followers of Jesus weren’t allowed to be happy. But there had to be some benefit in being a Christian. They had to choose a word for whatever positive feelings miserable Christians were allowed to experience, so and they chose the word, “joy.”
So, here’s a revelation! God wants you to be happy. Whether you use the word joy or happiness doesn’t make a difference: the whole purpose of the teachings of Jesus is so that you might be happy.
But we’ll use the word, “joy” for now.
Now, how much joy does God want you to have in your life. Jesus says, “that your joy may be full.”
You need to find the source of joy. And the whole teaching of Jesus here is that you have to find the right source. And he tells us:
I am the true vine… and you are the branches.
Jesus is the source of all that is good in life. When you are connected to him, happiness will be yours.
EBENEZER
Sep 9, 2019
God bless you
Teupola Nayaca
Sep 9, 2019
Yes, thank you for the words of encouragement daily. I'm indeed blessed to be part your devotion. I helps me a lot in my walk with Jesus and also help me to share with my friends daily.
Eliezer Gonzalez
Sep 9, 2019
Sure thing!
Eliezer Gonzalez
Sep 9, 2019
These are difficult things. I'm sorry for your pain. The pain may not go away, but you can find comfort and purpose in God.
Eliezer Gonzalez
Sep 9, 2019
Yes he will
Lucy Nongbri
Sep 9, 2019
Thank you Really blessed by the word & the way you explain simple but meaningful. God bless you & through you may others be blessed.
Egbo Ifeanyichukwu
Sep 9, 2019
Thank you for this wonderful message, it really blessed my life and I know it will be a blessing to many other people as well.
Francis makwe
Sep 9, 2019
Your right ma
Baba-Ali Isa
Sep 8, 2019
Thanks for the inspiration Sir, I'm quite blessed today by the message and I hope other too will. God bless you and your family and ur ministry abundantly. Amen...
John Ezebuiro
Sep 8, 2019
Thanks for the explanation. The difference between the words is not important. What matters is having the feelings as prescribed by Jesus Christ.
Anna Mhlongo
Sep 8, 2019
Thanks for this message, wish all Christians can come across it so that we can interpret it correctly. Thanks.
Mary chibi
Sep 8, 2019
I lost my husband a year ago and i cried almost every night it's only God that will see me through.
Jeremiah R Harris
Sep 8, 2019
Yes, I do agree that God wants me to be happy but I have been afflicted with a severe pain for the past four (4) years. How will I live happily with pain
Stojan Ninkovic
Sep 8, 2019
just what I needed to be reminded of! This week an old friend of mine died suddenly at 57, a close co-worker i relied on at work quit suddenly and then early one morning a thief made off with $3000 worth of my company tools and electronics from my van parked in my driveway. Just thinking of that other verse that reads..count it all joy friends when you fall in various trials... Guess i better start counting! ps would appreciate a prayer...thanks.
Odessa Dayaganon
Sep 8, 2019
Thank you for the message. Indeed, God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, wants to spread a hopeful joy among the struggling christians in this world. Happy Sunday!
Evette Mc Gaw
Sep 11, 2019
Thank you for those wonderful words of inspiration it helps me to grow deeper in Christ i want the world to no that only in him we can find joy and peace God bless you always sir