Rejoice Always

In our devotional at our office meeting this week, we talked about the scripture from 1 Thessalonians:

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

Joyce's comment about the scripture was this, taken from a writing by John Wesley: "Our Lord has purchased joy, as well as righteousness, for us." (to see the all of his comments about the scripture, go here.)

I have never thought of that before. We so often think of his death as a price which he paid for our sin, and so often we feel the guilt associated with that, that I imagine we rarely consider that his actions were to give us a life of joy.

Joy. Not happiness. Not giddiness. Joy - that wonderful emotion which is the fruit of a close relationship with God.

I can't find the post now, but a while back -- maybe over a year -- a gentlemen left several comments on the blog about worship and joy. His theory was that Christ's death on the cross was a sacrifice which deserved a solemn and serious response from us -- not a joyful one. This phrase, "Our Lord has purchased joy," flies in the face of that theory. If he died so that we could live a joyful life, close to God, then shouldn't our response be a life lived in joy?

Rejoice always.

Image: Leaves on the way back to work from lunch.