FULL OF JOY!

LUKE 10:17-24

Many things in life bring us great joy.

Getting good marks in an exam.. getting that dream job.. or the man you love proposing marriage.. or proposing to the girl of your dreams.. and hearing her say, Yes.. the birth of a child.. a grandchild..

Such things fill us with joy.. but eventually.. the joy fades.

We face another exam and do not do so well.. the dream job is not all we thought it would be.. children and grandchildren bring us great joy.. and anxiety.. and one day the very best marriages come to an end.. when one partner dies..

Is there a joy that will not fade? Yes. We have read about it today in..

Luke 10:21..

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.”

In these words Luke gives us a glimpse of the very heart of Jesus.

We see Him full of joy. Not just rejoicing but rejoicing greatly, leaping with joy, thrilling with joy.

Why was He so filled with joy?

Let’s take a closer look at these words and see what can learn about Jesus.. and learn from Him.

First of all.. let’s think about these words:

JESUS WAS FULL OF JOY THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Luke writes..

Luke 10:21..

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth..

The Holy Spirit played an important role in the life of Jesus..

He also plays an important role in the lives of believers.. in our lives..

He enriches our lives in many ways.. and fills our hearts with joy!

He filled the believers in Thessalonica with joy..

The Apostle Paul wrote to them..

1 Thessalonians 1:6..

You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.

The believers in Rome had been sidetracked by arguments over minor things.. and Paul told them..

Romans 14:17..

The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit..

And he reminded the believers in Galatia..

Galatians 5:22..

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy..

We can learn much from these believers in Galatia.

Paul wrote to them and asked them what had happened to all their joy [Gal 4:15].

They had been full of joy.. but had lost their joy. Why?

Because they had neglected the Holy Spirit and focused on rules and regulations.. and were trying to live by them in their own strength.

We do that, too, don’t we?

Paul reminded the Galatians that they had received the Holy Spirit when they heard the good news about Jesus and believed in Him.. and told them that the way to renew their joy.. was to realize this.. and.. as he puts it in..

Galatians 5:16..

Live by the Spirit!

How do we do that?

We remind ourselves.. I have given my life to Jesus.. He has given His Spirit to me.. then.. respect Him as God.. for He is God.. welcome Him.. open our hearts to Him.. give Him first place in our hearts.. and rely on Him.. not on ourselves.

Let Him take the driver’s seat!

Now let’s think about this..

· JESUS WAS FULL OF JOY AND PRAISED THE FATHER BECAUSE HE HAD REVEALED CERTAIN THINGS TO THE SEVENTY TWO DISCIPLES.

Jesus had sent the 72 out as messengers.. to prepare the way for Him... They had returned.. full of excitement and joy - even the demons had submitted to them!

Jesus told them not to rejoice in this but in the fact that their names were written in heaven.

Then He was filled with joy Himself.

Luke writes..

Luke 10:21..

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

He was full of joy because God the Father had revealed these things not to people who considered themselves wise and learned but to little children.. to people of humble heart.. people open to receive the truth. These 72 men were like that!

What had He revealed to them? He said,

“I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

What are these things? Let’s look at what He said just before and just after saying these words.

Just before Jesus said these words.. He said.. in Luke 10:18,19..

I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.

And immediately after He said these words.. He said.. in Luke 10:22..

All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

What, then had the Father revealed to these people?

Something like this.

The Deliverer is here.. He has delivered us from evil spirits and from Satan himself.. and the Deliverer.. Jesus.. is the Son of God.

He has such a unique relationship with God the Father.. that all things have been committed to Him by the Father.. and no one knows who the Son is except the Father.. and no one knows who the Father is except the Son.. and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him!

It had been revealed to them that Jesus is in some mysterious way.. God.. and He reveals God the Father to people like them.

And Jesus thought about this.. He was full of joy though the Holy Spirit and praised the Father for it!

And now let’s look at..

· WHAT JESUS SAID TO HIS DISCIPLES IN PRIVATE.

Luke continues..

Luke 10:23,24..

Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

What is it they see?

They see Jesus.. the Unique and only Son of God.. the Messiah.. the co-creator of the universe.. God-become-man!

He is standing there before them.. God incarnate.

They are living in the most momentous time in human history.. in the history of the Universe.. the time to which the Old Testament prophets and kings looked forward and longed to see..

Peter was there.. and understood perfectly the privilege that was theirs. He later wrote to other believers..

1 Peter 1:10-12..

Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

The disciples were privileged… Peter was privileged.. the people to whom Peter wrote were privileged.. and so are we!

2,000 years ago.. Jesus.. the Unique Son of God.. God in human form.. was here.. He became a man.. the God-man..

And our eyes have been opened to see that!

What a privilege! How blessed we are!

We have looked at Jesus to see what we can learn about Him.

Now let’s look at what we learn from Him and from this scripture

about finding lasting joy…

There are three things we can do..

Firstly, welcome the Holy Spirit. Day by day.. and again and again.. pause to realize that the Holy Spirit was given to us when we believed in Jesus.. and now lives in us.

Respect Him as God.. let Him take the driver’s seat.. trust Him.. let Him drive!

Then, think often about Jesus.. Who He is and what He has done.

Our spiritual eyes have been opened to a momentous truth.. Jesus.. the Son of God.. who was in some mysterious way God.. has been here!

He taught us about God the Father.. He revealed God the Father..

He was crucified for us.. rose again.. and ascended to heaven.. and now we are forgiven.. accepted.. we are His people.. our names are written in heaven!

Think about these things!

Then, recall often how privileged we are! How blessed we are.. that our eyes have been opened to see these things!

I love these words of the Apostle Paul.. words that the Holy Spirit has used many times.. to fill me with joy..

2 Corinthians 4:5,6..

We do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Do you share my joy? Then praise God!

Perhaps you are uncertain about the things we have been thinking about.. and you would like to be certain.. you would like this joy.. then read the gospels.. read about Jesus.. and ask Him to open your spiritual eyes.