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Bible Notes - Tabernacle Commentaries
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John 15:11
Comments
The thought is similar to John 14:27. Again Christ emphasises that what belongs to him is given to us. This is the joy of belonging to Christ. As we serve him we have a sense of intimate spiritual union, as we read Scripture and grasp the deep things of God. How these doctrines complement and throw light on each other. There are some that dazzle the intellect, and some that fill the heart. Nobody in the world could teach us these things. We know the joy of anticipating heaven, the joy of seeing one who has conquered the grave, the joy of extending this blessing to others, believers and unbelievers, the joy of deliverance from what we were frightened of by nature.Joy is cheerfulness, happiness, delight. What gave Christ joy should also give joy to us, for we can have the same kind of joy, not because we do the same work as him, but because we rejoice in what he did. Was his joy a bubbling-over joy, an emotional joy? Clearly it was something more profound, because it sustained him through his suffering. It manifests itself in emotional happiness, but not all of the time. It is joy arising from an appreciation of what he has done for us and will do for us.
Application
It is Christ’s desire that we should be and remain happy believers. Is this a constant and unabating joy? No, ‘full’ does not mean it will be permanently with us. Some say we should always be happy and to fail to be so is a lack of faith, but this joy will not eclipse all pain, sorrow and grief. No, believers experience the sorrows common to all human beings, but underneath all of that is a rejoicing that God has redeemed us and none of these things ultimately harm us because we have a Saviour.
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