The Joy of Being His

All of the Scripture passages we’ve looked at so far directly address joy or rejoicing, and there are plenty more we might choose that do the same thing, but I wanted to include this verse, as it’s long been a comfort and encouragement to me. The thing is, and I pray you’ve come to understand this, the only lasting joy we’ll ever know comes from Jesus—if we walk with Him, joy flows into our lives without measure. But without a living, vibrant, night-and-day longing for Him and relentless pursuit of that most precious of all relationships, we’ll surely be deprived of the joy He wants to bring to us.

God is saying He has redeemed you, He has called you “by name” and you are His. What incredible love this expresses. In relentless pursuit of your redemption, He understood all too well that to redeem you, the price of that redemption had to be paid in full, and that price was the sacrifice of His own life on the cross. That redemption rescued you from an eternity of unspeakable suffering and separation from His presence—I’d say that’s worth a massive shout of joy all by itself!

He called you by name. He knows your name and everything else there is to know about you. In fact, He is intimately acquainted with every minute detail. All those things you know about yourself that you don’t want anyone else to know, He knows completely, and He loves you anyway. There’s not a single thing in your life that will ever take Him by surprise, and His plan for you is being worked out every day, and there is not one thing in this entire universe that has the power to separate you from His love!

And He says you are His. From the beginning of time, He has done everything He has done to ensure He could make a place for you by His side as His own “peculiar treasure,” His prized companion, the “apple of His eye,” for He is the lover of your soul. Just like our children feel uninhibited in enjoying our homes and all that we provide for them, because they know that their place in the family gives them special access and special privileges, God has given you access to Himself, and to everything His love-driven plan for you involves. That’s how it is when you belong, when you’re His. Sounds like joy to me!