If there is one place or person you can go to to discover and learn about the importance of Joy in the christian life, John Piper would be that kneejerk resource. I've been listening to a series of sermons by him from Desiring God radio titled "when I don't desire God". In the message I am listening to today Piper referenced a statement by CS Lewis, wherein Lewis emphasised the fact that our pursuit is not for the emotion of Joy. It is a pursuit of joy
in God. Otherwise joy would be an idol. There is no value in joy by itself. The object is not a state of our own mind, but something outside ourself.
However, Piper reemphasised this, and this is the point of this blogpost, that our pursuit is of God does not remove the necessity for our pursuit being
joy in God.
Three reasons why we should pursue not just God, but joy in God:
1. It's God's Idea.Deuteronomy 28:47,48
Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things, therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you.
What a terrifying verse to come to grips with. God is not just earnest about people serving him, he wants people to come to him with joy and gladness - which is found in Him. He commands joy, and holds out wrath for those who are not joyful in Him.
2. God is glorified not merely by how we think about Him, but our experiential relationship with him.Doctrine alone is not glorifying to God - "even the demons believe and tremble", James says. All the right thinking about God is not as good as Satan's thinking, yet he hates God. Doctrine is important, but not without delight.
3. People don't awaken to how desperate their condition is before God until they measure their hearts condition by their delight for God.We tend to function by a "do" benchmark. Steal, lie, gossip, read, look, think. Instead we should be probing hearts about delight and desire. This section was the what inspired me to make this posting, so let me quote Piper from the sermon itself:
What is your default activity when there's no pressure on you? What is your heart reflexively drawn to? Those are the things that damn us! It isn't adultery... I mean, good grief it does not take a lot of will power to stay out of bed with another woman! But, not to have a desire to look at a picture - desire: that's damning.
To know that my heart has to change, my whole structure of motivation has to change, my whole priority of treasuring things in the world has to change: I'm damned! There's nothing I can do - I feel totally devastated by this inditement.
[direct quote]
Brothers and sisters - far be it from us to think that we have arrived in any sense. It is ironic but essential for us to realise that we are debtors to the Grace of God even in this. Without his help we cannot and will not delight in Him as we should. So let us run, flee to heaven and beg in broken contriteness: Lord, help us delight in you alone. May He touch not just our lives, but our
hearts.
