REJOICE
BREAD
“Do
not grieve, for the joy of the Lord
is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV)
12 Be
joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 (NIV)
4 Rejoice
in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident
to all. The Lord is near. Philippians
4:4-5 (NIV)
11 Light
is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous, and praise
his holy name. Psalms 97:11-12 (NIV)
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and
falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice
and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they
persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:11-12 (NIV)
17 Though
the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the
olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in
the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. 19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet
like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. Habakkuk 3:17-19 (NIV)
1 Finally,
my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things
to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.
Philippians 3:1 (NIV)
5 For
his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may
remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. Psalms 30:5 (NIV)
6 Will
you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Psalms 85:6 (NIV)
1 Therefore,
since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through
whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And
we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Romans 5:1-2 (NIV)
BUTTER
“God delights in His covenant and so we
are sure He will not turn back from it. It is the joy of His holy heart. He
delights to do His people good. To pass over transgression, iniquity, and sin
is the recreation of Jehovah. Did you ever hear God singing? It is
extraordinary that the Divine One would solace Himself with song, yet a prophet
has thus reveal the Lord to us: ‘The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty;
he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he
will joy over thee with singing.’ (Zephaniah 3:17). The covenant is the heart
of God written out in the blood of Jesus.”
Charles Spurgeon
“Other
men see only a hopeless end, but the Christian rejoices in an endless hope.” Gilbert Brenken
“There is not one blade of grass, there is no color in this world
that is not intended to make us rejoice.” John
Calvin
“It is our duty and privilege to rejoice in God, and to
rejoice in him always; at all times, in all conditions. There is enough in God to furnish us with
matter for joy in the worst circumstances on earth.” Matthew Henry
“Contentment is a learned secret that sadly many fail in their endeavors to obtain. It is never found in more, better, bigger, new, marriages, children or whatever that whatever may be. Oh, it may appear briefly with these faux gods we seek to enthrone but vanishes quickly after obtaining. A contentment and peace which prevails is found only in Christ. He wants to fill our wants – just ask Him. He wants to be the desire of our hearts. Because He knows it will make us whole so that we are no longer needy or just plain annoying to be around. God fills completely when we allow Him. He wants to fill us in order to spill us (which, btw, brings much joy to the soul) so that we leave the aroma of Christ in our spheres rather than the smell of death. This is the abundance He came to give us – life to the fullest measure. This is joyful contentment.” BHY
“Every attribute of God should become a fresh ray in the
sunlight of our gladness. That He is
wise should make us glad, knowing as we do our own foolishness. That He is mighty should cause us to rejoice
who tremble at our weakness. That He is
everlasting, should always be a theme of joy when we know that we wither as the
grass. That He is un-changing, should
perpetually yield us a song, since we change every hour. That He is full of grace, that He is
overflowing with it, and that this grace in covenant He has given to us; that
it is ours to cleanse us, ours to keep us, ours to sanctify us, ours to perfect
us, ours to bring us to glory – all this should tend to make us glad in
Him. This gladness in God is as a deep
river; we have only as yet touched its brink, we know a little of its clear
sweet, heavenly streams, but onward the depth is greater, and the current more
impetuous in its joy.” Charles
H. Spurgeon
HEART
SAVOR
- · I am to rejoice in the Lord – always.
- · If my circumstances prevent my joy my focus is not on things above rather on earthly things – temporal things – things that will never make it through the fire – dross.
- · The joy of the Lord is my strength and salvation.
