This message covers
· An understanding of joy within the context of blossoming.
· The world view of Happiness/Joy vs. the Christian view.
· What lessons Jesus is teaching us about joy in the Holy Spirit.
Part 1: Basics
What does it mean to blossom into joy? First let’s understand the word “Blossom”. It has various definitions as follows.
blos·som
(blŏs′əm)
n.
1. A flower or cluster of flowers.
2. The condition or time of flowering: peach trees in blossom.
3. A condition or period of maximum development.
intr.v. blos·somed, blos·som·ing, blos·soms
a. To come into flower; bloom.
b. To develop; flourish: The child blossomed into a beauty.
The Word of God (the bible) is the Seed (see parable of the sower, Matthew 13: 1 – 23) and this is the starting point. Fruit grow from a Seed. You cannot grow or blossom without the Seed!
Jesus also said he is the vine and we are the branches and so we depend on him (John 15: 1-11) as our sunshine, our soil, our fertiliser and our living waters SO within this context - based on the word of the Lord, the stage of blossoming is an exciting stage, it’s when flowers come. These flowers attract the pollinators and shortly thereafter fruit are produced, it is also a time to watch as 99% of flowers never get pollinated and so never result in formation of fruit.
This fruit – the fruit of the Holy Spirit manifests itself in a number of ways and one of them is Joy! The anchor verse on Joy as one of the manifestations of the fruit of the Holy Spirit is described as follows:
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
Galatians 5: 22-25 (NKJV).
For a growing Christian, it is critical to consider that the fruit of the Spirit referenced in Galatians 5 is contrasted with the works of the flesh such as sexual immorality, lack of self-control, sorcery, jealousy, anger, factions and drunkenness which thrive in an environment of the world – under the control of Satan, the prince of this world.
The fruit of the Spirit however grows in a climate blessed with an abundance of the Spirit and the Word [under the leadership of the Blessed, the Ancient of Days].
“Walking in the Spirit” involves you “keep in step” with the Spirit NOT Run ahead or LAG behind. This involves:
· The Word (reading the bible);
· Prayer;
· Worship;
· Praise; and
· Fellowship with God’s people.
It also means “pulling out the weeds” so that the seed of the Word can take root and bear fruit.
Part 2: Our generation: The view on Happiness/Joy.
The world view
In our generation today, many of us hold on to the view that Happiness is the ultimate goal of life and this comes from various “voices” which we have swallowed WHOLESALE, sometimes without even knowing the original source of these beliefs we hold. Examples of these voices are:
· Buddhism. Happiness is a CENTRAL theme of Buddhist teaching. Ultimate happiness is only achieved by overcoming craving (“tanha”) in all forms.
· Hinduism. In Advaita Vedanta, school of Hindu philosophy, the ultimate goal of life is happiness, in the sense that duality between Atman and Brahman is transcended and one realizes oneself to be the Self in all.
· In Psychology Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a pyramid depicting the levels of human needs, psychological, and physical. When a human being ascends the steps of the pyramid, he reaches self-actualization.
· Political ideal. Happiness as a guiding ideal is expressed in the United States Declaration of Independence of 1776, as the universal right to "the pursuit of happiness."
· Measuring Happiness. Since 2012, a World Happiness Report has been published. Happiness is evaluated, as in “How happy are you with your life as a whole?”,
But what is the Christian view on joy? Read the full article here.
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