Jn.17:13,22 – And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves….And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
This is something that many believers misunderstand but is at the heart of victorious Christian living. If you haven’t figured it out yet we all tend to gravitate toward things we enjoy. It’s the way we are wired. How many of us have started an exercise program or a special diet only to see it pass by the wayside after several days. It’s just part of life, pleasure is a powerful motivator. That’s where Christians often get weird, they say they are pursuing God’s glory by denying their own happiness when according to scripture our happiness and God’s glory are closely connected. We are created by God to enjoy Him and it is enjoying Him that we find our greatest pleasure and satisfaction and because of that God is glorified. This is the beauty of our Christian life, enjoying God replaces the pursuit of the foolish pleasures of this world. Here is how Jonathan Edwards helps us connect the dots:
“When God, from time to time, speaks of showing mercy, and exercising goodness, and promoting his people’s happiness for his name’s sake, we cannot understand it as of a merely subordinate end. How absurd would it be to say that he promotes their happiness for his name’s sake, in subordination to their good, and that his name may be exalted only for their sakes, as a means of promoting their happiness! Especially when such expressions as these are used, “For mine own sake, even for mine own sake will I do it; for how should my name be polluted?” and “Not for your sakes do I this, but for my holy name’s sake.”
So this is how we are intended to reach our world, the lost are trapped in the pursuit of pleasure whatever that may look like in their life. They might find pleasure in healthy things like athletics, family life, or even in their career. These healthy pursuits can never satisfy completely, only the Lord can do that. Others seek their satisfaction in more sinister ways; drunkenness, immoral behavior, or even experimenting with drugs. For us, we have found our pleasure in the most unexpected place, we have found total joy in knowing Christ. Our joy becomes like a light to the lost calling them to Him. This is how we are satisfied and God is glorified.
