What the Holy Spirt Taught Me This Morning

Pastor Amos Dada PhD; P. Eng

1 Joyful are people of integrity,
who follow the instructions of the Lord.
2 Joyful are those who obey his laws
and search for him with all their hearts.
3 They do not compromise with evil,
and they walk only in his paths.

One of my delightful songs from Neh 8:10 has this lyrics;
The joy of the Lord is my strength
The joy of the Lord is my strength
The joy of the Lord is my strength
The joy of the Lord is my strength
If you know that song you will realize it’s the same words rendered four times with its variations on strength. It occurred to me it must be in the four notes of old choir categories: soprano,alto ,tenor and bass .
What that song is saying is that one of the attributes of joy is that It gives you inner strength. I pray that joy will never elude you again .
What is joy? The emotion of great delight caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure or elation

You may ask “But how can I access God’s joy in my life?”
We have an example from Nehemiah 8. As Nehemiah read the words of the Law, the people wept and mourned because they were not obeying the law But Ezra comforts them, telling them not to weep because the joy of the Lord is their strength.
Their joy was realized because, even though a knowledge of the truth caused sorrow (repentance), it also gave them direction. 2 Corinthians 7:10 says, “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”

Changing their lives and following God’s ways gave them a deeper joy than they could have attained on their own.
It’s the same for us – when we study and know the truth within the pages of the Bible, we receive the joy of the Lord!

When I was studying Psalm 119 this morning, the Holy Spirit said pause after reading the first three verses: He gave me three points that will unfailingly give us joy. Look at what brings joy:

1. Joyful are people of integrity who follow the instructions of the Lord. Resolve to be a person of integrity and before you ask how is that possible – it says follow God’s directions, how do you know God’s direction for your life, career, marriage , business-read The bible. Hide it in your heart always and implement it –
“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee”Psalm 119:11 The story was told about a boy going back to school who asked his dad for his school fees. The dad gave him a bible and said “make sure you read it daily. When you do that remind me to send you your school fees” The old man wrote a check covering his school fees and plenty for pocket money. On arrival in school he kept calling his father about his school fees, the dad kept asking “are you reading the Bible I gave you daily?”Yes, dad! Then you should not have problem about your fees. Integrity is doing the right thing whether someone is watching or not, it is the pedestal to joy.

2 .Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their heart. . Meaning you can really not have joy if you refuse to obey God. Three biblical figures give great examples. Nehemiah said the joy of the Lord is my strength after he rebuilt the fallen wall of Israel. The more you accomplish small or great things for God the greater your joy. Secondly, in Gen 22 Abraham obeyed God willing to sacrifice his son. His joy had no limit because not only did God provide a substitute but he swore as follows: “By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: 17.That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; 18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. Gen 22:16-18.
Compare that with what God said to Saul when he disobeyed God: “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.”1 Sam 15:22-23,28. We live in a generation seeking for joy but flouts and disobeys God with reckless abandon and wonder why joy is eluding them. Christianity is not complex. Having joy will not be a struggle if you learn to obey God. It is in obeying or disobeying God you secure a glorious future or a disastrous one. The former leads to joy as Abraham experienced; the latter leads to sorrow, the portion of Saul. Search for God in His words and obey Him , your joy will not only be palpable but will be everlasting from eternity to eternity with Jesus.

3. They (joyful people) do not compromise with evil,and they walk only in his paths. Powerful. Joy is different from happiness. Happiness is more of emotions based on what you see, possess or do not posses, for example cars, , children, passing exam etc, physical and material things. God is saying you can have all the material things like the godless people who compromise in the world, do evil stuff, steal, live a corrupt life, kidnap, hate people but joy will be elusive. Why do people have money, power, position and yet they are depressed and some commit suicide, because there is no joy! Joy is an intrinsic component of walking in God’s path. Joy has eternal value.
Jesus said this in John 8:31-32, “To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Let me ask you, what gives you joy?

In conclusion, as Christians, we have access to God’s boundless joy, a joy that does not come from our circumstances. It does not depend on our material, social, physical, and financial status but our spiritual status, the sound relationship we have with our creator- the ability to walk in the integrity of his words, obedience to his instructions and deviation from all forms of evil. It is my prayer that from today you will continuously and continually enjoy both happiness and joy for the rest of your life. Amen. Shalom.