I Am A Christian

John 15:9-11 I have loved you even as the Father has loved Me. Remain in My love. 10 When you obey My commandments, you remain in My love, just as I obey My Father’s
commandments and remain in His love. 11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with My Joy. Yes, your joy will overflow.

The Christian should be the most joy-filled persons on earth. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, so a Spirit-filled Christian should always be filled with joy.

If anyone exemplified this kind of joy-filled life, it was the apostle, Paul, who spoke of himself and his comrades in ministry like this:

2 Cor 6:3-10 NLT- We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry. 4 In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles, and hardships and calamities of every kind. 5 We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food. 6 We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit working within us, and by our sincere love.
7 We faithfully preach the truth. God’s power working within us. We use the weapons of righteousness in the right hand for attack and the left hand for defense. 8 We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us. We are honest, but they call us imposters.  9 We are ignored, even though we are well known. We live close to death, but we are still alive. We have been beaten, but we have not been killed. 10 Our hearts ache, but we always have JOY. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything.

Paul also wrote these words to the church at Philippi as he was incarcerated in a Roman
prison.

 Phil. 3:1 NLT- Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I
never get telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.

He also wrote to the church at Thessalonica,
1 Thess. 1:6-7 NKJV- You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering (much affliction KJV) with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.  7  And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.

In most of Paul’s writing, he associates “joy” with times of affliction. The word “affliction”
used in this verse is thlipsis. You all should recognize this word for it is the same one used in
John 16:33 NKJV- These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In
the world you will have tribulation (thlipsis) ; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the
world.”

Thlipsis: Greek- It is a very strong word! It conveys the idea of a heavy-pressure, extremely
stressful situation. One scholar says it was first used to describe the specific act of tying a
victim with a rope, laying him on his back, and then placing a huge boulder on him until
his body was crushed.

Paul uses this word to alert us to moments when he or others went through grueling,
crushing situations that would have been unbearable, intolerable, and impossible to survive if it had not been for the help of the Holy Spirit.

Perhaps one of the ways the Holy Spirit helps us in these type situations is to give us
supernatural “JOY”.

It is important to understand that this “divine joy” isn’t on the same level as mere
happiness.

Happiness is based on circumstantial pleasure, merriment, hilarity, exuberance,
excitement, or something that causes one to feel hopeful or be in high spirits.
These kind of fleeting emotions of happiness, although they are pleasurable at the moment,
usually go as quickly as they came. All it takes is one piece of bad news, a sour look from a
fellow employee, a harsh word from your spouse, or an electric bill that is larger than was
and anticipated—and the emotion of happiness can disappear right before our eyes! But
JOY is total unaffected by outward circumstances. In fact, it usually thrives best when times are tough! It is God’s supernatural response to the devil’s attacks!

The Greek word for Joy is Chara: derived from the Greek word Charis: Grace. This is important to note for it tells us that Chara (joy) is produced by the the Charis (Grace) of God.

So, this means that Joy isn’t a human-based happiness that comes and goes. Rather, “true
Joy” is divine in origin. It is a fruit of the Spirit that is manifested particularly in hard
times.

Someone may FEEL happiness, merriment (Christmas Spirit), exuberance (just got new
car, etc. etc.), or have high spirits, like paying off the mortgage, or a young lady getting
engaged. But, all of these are fleeting emotions, the car starts to get old after a week, after
the mortgage is finally paid off you find you lost your tax credit and have to pay more
taxes. Or the engagement is called off and the girl has already bought the dress, and after
Christmas the credit card bills start to come due.

On the other hand—“JOY” is a Spirit-given expression that flourishes best when times are
strenuous, daunting, and tough!

1 Thess. 1:6- the Thessalonians were under great stress due to persecution; yet in the midst
of it all they continued to experience great joy. In fact, the Greek strongly implies that their
super-natural joy was due to the Holy Spirit working inside them. Paul even called it the
“Joy of the Holy Ghost.”

Rick Renner gives an interpretive translation of 1 Thess. 1:6- “You threw your arms
open wide and welcomed the Word into your lives with enthusiasm. And you did it even in the
midst of mind-boggling sufferings—a level of stress and intensity that would be suffocating
and crushing for most people. But while you were going through all these hardships and
hassles, you were simultaneously experiencing the supreme ecstasy and joy of the Holy
Spirit.”

The very best this world has to offer is temporary happiness. But when the seed of
God has placed inside the human spirit, that divine seed produces a “JOY” that isn’t based
on external events or circumstances. In fact, even when times are challenging, the
supernatural ZOE life of God rises up inside of you to defy that worldly, evil, devilish
pressure! The supernatural “JOY” will sustain you even in the most difficult times.
J Oswald Chambers, renowned author “My Utmost for His Highest” said, “Peace is
not the absence of trouble, but the presence of God.”

Peace, like joy, is a fruit that is produced by the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is not based on
outward circumstances.

The word Peace: Eirene- Is equivalent to the Hebrew word, Shalom expressing: Wholeness,
completeness, tranquility in the soul that is unaffected by outward circumstances or pressure
(thlipsis). It strongly suggests the rule of order in place of chaos. When a person is ruled by
peace, they have a calm, inner stability that results in the ability to conduct themselves
peacefully, even in the midst of circumstances that would normally be very nerve-racking,
traumatic, and upsetting.

I remember very clearly, Easter weekend 1993. We were practicing for an Easter cantata
and Becki, and I were in the choir. Our pastor walked into the auditorium and motioned
me down from the choir. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach as I knew something
was very wrong. He took me to his office and there informed me that my sister had taken
her own life. The feeling was almost suffocating for just a moment. But I heard these words
in my spirit from John 16:33 NKJV- These things I have spoken unto you, that In Me you
may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation (Thlipsis: Crushing pressure), but
be of good cheer (keep your joy) for I have overcome the world.” A peace settled over me
that was not of this world. John 14:27 NKJV- “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to
you…” I needed that strength from the Holy Spirit at that moment as the rest of my family
were overwhelmed with grief, but God sustained me with His peace during that very
tumultuous time so I could minister to my family. It was only after the funeral that I was
allowed to be alone with the Father and express my grief.

The New Testament is filled with examples of supernatural peace that the Holy
Spirit produces.

Acts 27- When Paul found himself in a ship that was bound for ship-wreck, as it was caught
up in a horrible Nor’easter, called in the Greek Euroclydon, a storm that blew across the
Mediterranean Sea, causing many shipwrecks and loss of life each year. It was producing
terrible winds and waves. Verse 14 says, “There arose against it (the ship) tempestuous
wind.” That means that the storm was so immense that it conquered and dominated
everything in sight.

But right in the middle of this hopeless situation, Paul stood up and said, Acts 27:22-24
KJV- “And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: For there shall be no loss of any man’s
life among you, but of the ship. For there stood by me this night an angel of God, WHOSE I
AM, and Whom I serve, saying, ‘Fear Not…”

Paul had heard from God! This caused him to have a supernatural peace to rise up on the
inside of him. Therefore, he was able to be a rock in the middle of a very serious situation.
His peace brought strength to everyone on that ship! This kind of peace isn’t “normal”. But
it is the kind of peace that is produced by the grace of God. This is what Paul was referring
to in Phil. 4:4-8- Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!  5  Let everyone see
that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. 6  Don’t worry
about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all
he has done.  7  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can
understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8  And now,
dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable,
and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and
worthy of praise.