There’s Joy in them there Christians
The constitution of the United States was framed and adopted in 1787. In it is the right of every man for the pursuit of happiness. The quest to obtain happiness has led men in many different directions without achieving that goal. Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes, chapter two, tells of his quest to find the secret of “I searched in my heart how to gratify my flesh with wine, while guiding my heart with wisdom, and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do under heaven all the days of their lives. ” (Eccl. 2:3). Solomon had had it all, fame and fortune and speaks to this in Ecclesiastes 2:10 “Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart rejoiced in all my labor”.
Anything my eyes desire, every pleasure! You would think that would make a man happy, and joyful? But if we continue reading we will see that this is just not so. Let’s look at verse 11, ” Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done and on the labor in which I had toiled; And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun” At the end of the book, Solomon tells us the secret to a true and lasting happiness. Ecclesiastes 12:13: ” Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.”
We must learn from Solomon who realized, that the God who created man knows best what will and will not make man happy…
Many well-known men through-out time have tried various things in life only to find happiness was not there.
- Voltaire was an infidel of the most pronounced type. He wrote: “I wish I had never been born.”
- Jay Gould, railroad developer, whose success at business made him one of the richest men of his era, with all his money said when he was dying: “I suppose I am the most miserable man on earth.”
- Lord Byron lived a life of pleasure, if anyone did. He wrote; “The worm, the canker, and the grief are mine alone.”
- Alexander the Great conquered the known world in his day, having done so, he said in tears: “There are no more worlds to conquer.”
- Lord Beaconsfield enjoyed more than his share of position and fame. He wrote: “youth is a mistake; manhood, a struggle; and old age a regret.”
The answer to happiness is not found in unbelief, nor money, nor pleasure, nor military glory, or in position and fame. Where, then, is Joy to be Found? The answer is simple; in Christ alone. Jesus said to his Apostles; “Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.” (John 16:22). Paul knew what he was talking about when he wrote, “Rejoice . . . in the Lord” (Phil. 3:1). • Things will fail a person; the Lord will never fail a those who love Him. Example from Acts 16: Paul and Silas in prisoned, “the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.” (v.24), not knowing if in the morning they will be beaten, or even be tortured and die. What were they doing? Were they crying, calling for mercy? No, “…Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God…” (v.25).
The Psalms are a great source to understand the source of our joy, “You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psa. 16:11). “You have put gladness in my heart, more than in the season that their grain and wine increased.” (Psa. 4:7).
If your joy is in anything other than the LORD, it is most certainly temporary.