Joy

What did Paul mean when he talked endlessly about Joy (I'm going to caps it)? What did the Psalms mean about Joy? What did author of Hebrews mean in chapter 12? There can be a joy in eating cheesecake: I eat it, I delight in it, I take pleasure in it, but is this the same joy as the Joy we obtain from the Holy Spirit/Cross/Jesus Christ/God that will last for all eternity? What is “true” Joy? Can we fact check things with scripture? Otherwise there is no standard and anyone’s definition is fair game.

For me I believe Psalm 16:11 is one of the key verses in understanding Joy (my favorite verse about Joy). For me, it helps me to imagine Joy as an essence, a metaphysical thing so to speak, you obtain the very second you know God, and it continues to grow and be produced from your heart that moment on. It is there when you take part in anything regarding the Lord, such as being in the Lord’s presence, walking in faith, and seeing the fruit that is produced in His kingdom. The act/verb usage of rejoicing is affirming this fact. You can feel Joy, because since it is a thing it is radiating happiness and enjoyment (heheh) like a hot coal (or the thermal stone from Don’t Starve…play with me), and can be stifled by sin but never lost as long as you have the Holy Spirit (depending on your theology it can never be lost), since the Holy Spirit is the conduit for the source of Joy which is the Cross (hence why it is a fruit of the Spirit). That is why there are times you think you cannot feel or see Joy, though it may be there.

There are many details and nuances to Joy as it is described in Scripture and by theologians, so it is hard to wrap it all together. It part of the contentment in God. It is part of the desire/longing to be with God and see/hear God. Like all these big Biblical words we commonly use, like Worship, Praise, Love, Hope, Truth, Peace, Salvation, Faith, they are all related and intricately tied together. There is Joy when we persevere under our Faith (James 1). We find Joy in the Peace we obtain when we truly Hope in the Day of the Lord (Romans 5, 12, 15). I believe that is what it means when Jesus says our Joy is made complete when the Bride and the Bridegroom are united. Because it is then when we will be in the full presence of God, with all the saints together praising and worshipping our Lord with one single voice.

At the end of the day, we want to know what God’s definition of all these big terms are, the “true” definition. Only a collective grasp of the all of them simultaneously can we truly being to understand any one of them. And this grasp/understanding is a work of God, a continuous work that is far from complete in any of us, especially me. I truly believe that these answers are found only in the Word of God, and only by the power of the Holy Spirit can simple text on a page become alive and breathed into us and revealed to us as described in 1 Corinthians 2. Now time to define all the other terminologies, oh and a better understanding of who the Holy Spirit is in my life. Oh joy.

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life;

    you will fill me with joy in your presence,

    with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

John 3:29

The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.

John 15:11

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

Philippians 2:1-2

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.

Hebrews 12:1-2

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Romans 5:2

Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Romans 12:12

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

James 1:1-2

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance

More Notes/Points:

There are multiple Greek words for different types of joy. One for happiness (ashar), one for circumstantial joy commonly used in the OT and early NT (chara) to describe an emotion, one for eternal joy (chara) used in the NT describing having Christ. I think it is important to pay attention to this, just as one would pay attention to which greek word for "love" is used in context. Joy is separate from both happiness and pleasure (hedon) in scripture.

I like to think of joy as an essence, a metaphysical object. The Bible always characterizes joy as a fruit of the spirit, like how a tree bears fruit, the HS bears joy in our lives. Even in scripture the verb usage is commonly "produced", not "felt." From this fruit called joy we do feel and experience happiness and gladness. Joy produces happiness. As John Piper puts it, "hope bears the fruit of joy," giving both hope and joy objectivity.

I can accept the other definition that joy is a extreme or special version of happiness, one that is deeper, more "rooted," spiritual instead of being just emotional/physiological/hormonal/psychological  (though it can have/induce aspects in these areas). We have to remember that joy is mentioned 28 times in the NT in correlation with suffering, persecution, and sorrow, and is even magnified during these seasons. The point is that joy remains even when happiness and gladness disappear. Do you think Christ was happy when He was shedding tears of blood on Gethsemane? Or when He was nailed on the Cross? Do you think Paul was happy when he was whipped or starved or had the thorn?  Christians aren't masochists, we are joyful.

It is very clear in scripture that Joy is something that starts to exist and only exists when one receives the HS.  Biblical joy is not something that non-believers have and/or can experience. Again, very clear in the context of scripture and biblical theology. Just like common grace, there is probably some form of common joy, but it is not on the same level of joy one has because they know Christ.

Yes one can point to the singular event of Christ on the Cross as the source of our joy, you cannot forget that the consequences of that event covers all time, before and after, and that the joy set before Christ was with God and was a part of God since before the beginning. I don't think its fair to call joy circumstantial, but something that flows from an eternal and constant source as referred in the Psalms, just as I don't think its fair to call the Gospel circumstantial. God's presence and glory that brings joy into our lives has never wavered or changed. Same with Christ's kingship and glory.