The joy of the Lord becomes our joy.

He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy (Zephaniah 1:17).

We speak about the joy of our salvation. What about the joy that the Lord feels when he sees people, confessing their faith in Jesus, God’s Son? What about the joy that the Lord feels when he sees us, continuing to follow Jesus, our Saviour and Lord? Too much emphasis on our joy and not enough emphasis on God’s joy can make our faith become too much focused on ourselves and not enough focused on the Lord. Let us rejoice and be glad, but let us never forget this; our joy is nothing more than this, sharing in the joy of the Lord, sharing in the joy that reaches out to us from the loving heart of God. He rejoices in us because he loves us. This is very wonderful. Let us not make too much of our joy. Let us rejoice in this: God rejoices in us. How amazing is this! When our joy grows weak, let us remember this: God’s love for us is, always, strong. This is what will keep us rejoicing in the Lord: God sees more than our sin, he sees us in our Saviour. He looks at us, and he sees Jesus. This is what brings joy to the heart of God. This is what brings joy into our hearts and lives. When we read the words, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10), may we never forget this: it’s the joy of the Lord before it becomes our joy.

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