Monthly Archives: March 2018

Glad Tidings of Great Joy

  1. Joy to the World. 

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.  Luke 2:8-14 KJV

 

  1. Joy Through Obedience.

But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. 9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.  Hebrews 1:8-9 KJV

Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.  Philippians 2:6-8 KJV

 

  1. The Joy Set Before Jesus. 

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Hebrews 12:2 KJV

 

  1. The Joy Set Before You.

Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.  1 Peter 1:8 KJV

You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy, at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.  Psalm 16:11 AMPC

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.  Jude 24 KJV

Let us rejoice and shout for joy [exulting and triumphant]! Let us celebrate and ascribe to Him glory and honor, for the marriage of the Lamb [at last] has come, and His bride has prepared herself. Revelation 19:7 AMPC

REJOICE WHEN YOU SUFFER PERSECUTION

“From the Heart” teaching by Drs. Rodney & Adonica Howard-Browne.

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. 14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.  1 Peter 4:12-14 NKJV

If you are a child of God, submitted to the Spirit, and a doer of the Word of God, you WILL be persecuted for it. REJOICE because you are BLESSED! Reacting in anger, against persecution or opposition, is an indicator that you are not submitted to the Father and you are operating in the flesh, not the Spirit. Fighting back accomplishes nothing – you hurt the devil more by getting people saved, healed and delivered!

In 1 Timothy 4:10, Paul encourages Timothy (and us) to continue to press into the Word, into purity and into God’s will for our lives, because when your hope and trust is fixed on the living God – knowing Him as your Savior, Preserver, Maintainer, and Deliverer – then you are willing and strengthened to continue, despite the pressure to give up before the task is completed. In 2 Timothy 2:24-26, Paul says that the servant of the Lord must be patient, forbearing and willing to suffer wrong in order to continue to preach the Gospel, which has the power to open their eyes to the Truth, so that they come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil. Never just see people doing things – see that it is the devil behind the persecution, because he wants to continue to enslave people. See people as God sees them – God loves them; Jesus died for each and every one of them! You are just the messenger, bringing life and hope to the lost and dying. Don’t fail, by giving up, just because you see only with your natural eyes. See the big picture with your spiritual eyes.

1 Peter 4:16 says that if you are ill-treated and suffer as a Christian, that you should give glory that you are counted worthy to suffer in Jesus’ mighty Name! In Acts 5:41-42 the Church rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer persecution for the sake of His Name and, in spite of the threats, they continued to do exactly what they had been doing – walking in the love of God; preaching, proclaiming and demonstrating the Gospel. Persecution should not result in any other reaction from you than to humble yourself even further and give more responsibility for your life to the Father. Just commit, and continue to commit, your soul – your life – into His hands, because He will NEVER fail you (1 Peter 4:19).

Because he preferred to share the oppression [suffer the hardships] and bear the shame of the people of God rather than to have the fleeting enjoyment of a sinful life. 26 He considered the contempt and abuse and shame [borne for] the Christ (the Messiah Who was to come) to be greater wealth than all the treasures of Egypt, for he looked forward and away to the reward (recompense).  Hebrews 11:25-26 AMP

And what shall I say further? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,  33 Who by [the help of] faith subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions, 34 Extinguished the power of raging fire, escaped the devourings of the sword, out of frailty and weakness won strength and became stalwart, even mighty and resistless in battle, routing alien hosts. 35 [Some] women received again their dead by a resurrection. Others were tortured to death with clubs, refusing to accept release [offered on the terms of denying their faith], so that they might be resurrected to a better life. 36 Others had to suffer the trial of mocking and scourging and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned to death; they were lured with tempting offers [to renounce their faith]; they were sawn asunder; they were slaughtered by the sword; [while they were alive] they had to go about wrapped in the skins of sheep and goats, utterly destitute, oppressed, cruelly treated – 38 [Men] of whom the world was not worthy – roaming over the desolate places and the mountains, and [living] in caves and caverns and holes of the earth. 39 And all of these, though they won divine approval by [means of] their faith, did not receive the fulfillment of what was promised, 40 Because God had us in mind and had something better and greater in view for us, so that they [these heroes and heroines of faith] should not come to perfection apart from us [before we could join them].  Hebrews 11:32-40 AMP

Moses and all these great people mentioned above did only this: they despised the shame and the temporary pain of persecutions, suffering and death, for the joy of the rewards of faithfulness that were before them in the presence of their God. The world was indeed not worthy of them! At the end of your life, could your name be added to this list or will you disappear into the obscurity caused by your weakness and fear?

1 Peter 1:5-8 says that you are being guarded – garrisoned – by God’s power through your faith in Him, so you should be exceedingly glad for this reason: that though now for a little while you may be distressed by trials and suffer temptations, the genuineness of your faith is being tested and as you pass the test, your rewards are piled up waiting for you for the day you finally stand before Jesus’ throne. So continue to rejoice with inexpressible, glorious, and triumphant heavenly joy! So do not fear suffering or persecution for the Gospel’s sake; be strong in faith; be loyally faithful, even unto death (Revelation 2:10). You will receive the Crown of Life handed out by none other than our Lord Jesus Christ, Himself!