By: Mike Kelly
Retired Pastor
Ever hear the expression: “The joy of the Lord is my strength”? It’s actually a verse in Scripture taken from the Book of Nehemiah, chapter 8, verse 10. It sounds nice, but what is the joy of the Lord?
In the context of Nehemiah, it was spoken to the Hebrews who had gone back to Jerusalem to help rebuild the city of Jerusalem and the temple of the Lord.
After successfully securing the city walls and gates, the priest Ezra read from the scroll of the Lord and came across the place where God told them that they are his people and he is their God.
They were broken by this declaration because they knew how unfaithful they had been. They began to mourn deeply over their sin. But Nehemiah had a different approach to this situation. One that is rather odd on the surface.
“Nehemiah said, ‘Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength’” (Nehemiah 8:10).
Don’t mourn, celebrate! That doesn’t seem like how I think about realizing that I have sinned against God. But Nehemiah is looking at it from God’s point of view.
They have recognized their sin and repented of it. God can now restore them to the relationship he desires. He can now bless them like he enjoys doing. He can now give them a way to worship him in order to restore their relationship with him.
God hates their sin, and he hates the distance it causes his children to be from him. Their repentance brings great joy to him. And this joy of his allows him to be there for them, to be their strength when they are tempted or attacked or begin to stray.
His joy provides the strength to successfully fight the enemy. So, while he doesn’t celebrate what caused them to be in rebellion, he celebrates the restoration of the relationship and his ability to now show that he is their God and to defend them with his mighty power.
The joy of the Lord is found on the road to restoration. God convicts us of sin, and often our first reaction is guilt and shame. But those feelings never come from God. When the truth finally settled in — when they truly grasped it — the people began to cry.
The scroll of God revealed exactly how far they had wandered, yet Nehemiah immediately redirected their focus toward the Lord’s character. They could find peace in the joy of the Lord, for he is a God of mercy, full of grace and deep compassion.
Joy doesn’t just happen. It’s a product of a plan to restore our souls. An active choice to seek God. Joy is a result of a disciplined, prioritized life guided by the Holy Spirit. How can you find joy in the Lord?
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). The closer you draw to him, the greater is the joy of the Lord in your life.
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Mike Kelly is the founding pastor of Bryan’s Grace Community Church (retired) and Board Chairman of Bryan’s Sanctuary Homeless Shelter and Williams County’s Compassion (free) Medical Clinic.