Jesus said to his disciples:
"As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father's commandments
and remain in his love.
Jesus wants us to remain in his love. He wants us to have joy. And listen, he wants more than a partial, occasional joy for us. He wants a joy that is complete. It is for this reason that he gives us commandments. They help to make sure that we remain in his love. After all we're free to walk away. The commandments help us to know what constitutes walking away from Jesus, what actions are actually putting other things before him, and choosing them instead of him.
"I have told you this so that
my joy might be in you and
your joy might be complete."
A good test is to ask ourselves how our joy is doing right now. And if the answer is 'not good' we ought not condemn ourselves over it. Jesus wants us to have joy. It is silly to make ourselves suffer because we don't have it the way he wants us to have it. Instead, if our joy isn't quite complete, if it isn't filling our lives (and let's be honest, we can all use more joy) let us turn to Jesus and learn to remain in his love. His love, ensured by his commandments, is meant to give and protect and grow the joy in our lives.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law (see Galatians 5:22-23).
This is the joy of the Risen Christ living in our hearts. We know the Spirit lives in those who are baptized so we do we have a deficiency of his fruit in our lives? Maybe because we fail to ask.
Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full (see John 16:24).
This joy is the sign that will allow the Gentiles to seek the LORD and invoke his name. When they see Christ alive in the hearts of his followers the nations will come, seeking the same grace which marks the lives of the Christian people, and so be saved. We don't go out to the nations with burdens that we ourselves cannot bear. We go out with an offer of a grace that gives joy, not in exchange for work, but simply out of love.
After this I shall return
and rebuild the fallen hut of David;
from its ruins I shall rebuild it
and raise it up again,
so that the rest of humanity may seek out the Lord,
even all the Gentiles on whom my name is invoked.
Let Jesus rebuild us. We are meant to be temples of the Spirit, bearing the fruit of the Spirit, drawing all nations unto the LORD.
Announce his salvation, day after day.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
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