Great Sickness

          December was not a very good month for me.  I spent the bulk of it very sick.  One of the effects of my sickness, made those around me happy as I managed to lose my voice for a while.  As I was sick and laying in my bed, I did figure out a major difference between men and women, concerning how they react when they are sick. 

          A woman can have a 110-degree temperature, her joints ache, her muscles ache, and her whole body can ache.  Her head can be pounding and she can be nauseous, yet what will she do?  She will still get up at dawn to sure the children have their baths and she will get them to school.  She will prepare meals for the family and she will do all that is needed to make sure the house runs smoothly.
          A man can get a sniffle and he is on the couch bundled under two blankets pointing the remote towards the TV, and in a meek voice say, “Cartoons, I want cartoons.”  He will make sure everyone knows that he is sick and that he is very close to death.  The wife will casually ask him to take out the garbage and his response will be, “I am very sick, I will take care of it when I am much better.”  Six months later, he finally gets the garbage out to the trash.
          There is a sickness that has permeated humanity, and the way a person reacts to it is very similar to men and women in sickness.  This sickness is sin.
          No one is immune to this sickness as it is written, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Romans 3:23 NASB).  The way people approach this sickness is different.
          Some are completely guilt ridden if they commit any act of sin.  A person can see their neighbor’s new car and think, “That is a nice car, and I wish I could have something that nice.”  They would immediately realize that they coveted their neighbors car and for the next six months feel as if they have committed a most egregious and unforgivable sin.  They will grieve about it, not receiving any consolation.  They will feel worthless and unable to do any work for the Lord that they were called to do.  Eventually, they will start to feel better and will be able to continue without the feeling of guilt.
          However, others will live their life for the devil and become completely numb to the effects of sin in their lives.  They will brag about their “accomplishments” from the previous night.  Some are aware of the sin but ignore it, while others are oblivious to the sin they are committing.  The results are still the same: Ignoring the effects of sin.
          Whether you are aware of the sickness in your life or not, Jesus came to heal all from the sickness known as sin, “The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,” (John 1:29 NASB).  Jesus came to heal us from the great sickness of sin and to make us well.

Expressing Inexpressible Joy

Christians are a miserable lot. Talk to a non-Christian and they may repeat what Robert G Ingersoll a noted orator and atheist stated in his defense for atheism, “The church teaches us that we can make God happy by being miserable ourselves.” Even Christians notice the joylessness of other Christians, as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. stated, “I might have entered the ministry if certain clergymen I knew had not looked and acted like undertakers.”
Joy should be a central part of a Christian’s character. Many times we (English speaking people) tend to think joy and happy (happiness) are synonymous. The Bible shows a clear distinction between happiness and joy. Joy is the stronger more spiritually dynamic of the two. For Christians, though we have never physically seen Jesus, we put our love and trust in him. This trust and love should lead to an inexpressible joy, “You love Him even though you have never seen Him. Though you do not see Him now, you trust Him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.” (1 Peter 1:8 NLT)
There are many reasons that Christians should show inexpressible joy. First, your sins are forgiven. Hebrews 8:12 states, “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.” (NLT) It is a wonderful thing to know that your sins are all forgiven, to know that there is not one single, slightest cloud between you and God. To know that no matter how many or how vile your sins are, that they are forgiven. Knowing that God has removed your sin and placed them into the sea of forgetfulness. To know that they are no longer remembered. To know that God has delivered you from all acts of unrighteousness. What a glorious thing that is, to know that your sins are forgiven.
The second reason that a Christian should show inexpressible joy is that you are free from the burden of sin. Sin is a burden. It is crushing to the spirit. Nary a person can show inexpressible joy when their spirit is crushed. When God forgives you of your sin, not only is that sin forgotten, you no longer need to carry that burden. The burden of sin has been removed for the Christian.
The third reason that a Christian should show inexpressible joy is that you are free from fear and worry. Fear and worry tend to accompany one another. Where there is fear, there is worry. Fear of the unknown. Worry of the future. Fear of death. Worry from what will happen in death. For a Christian, these are all answered. There is no fear in those who have Christ.
The fourth reason and the best reason Christians should show inexpressible joy is that you have eternal life. Is that not a great reason to rejoice? Knowing that you have received the gift of life through Jesus Christ. “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NLT) Christians have been given the gift of eternal life. While this world decays and death comes for everyone, Christians rejoice in the knowledge that they have been given the gift of eternal life. There is no better reason to show inexpressible joy than the gift of eternal life.

Christians do not need to sing, “Don’t Worry Be Happy,” to show they have joy in their life. Nor do they need to put on a happy face. To show inexpressible joy, all a person needs is Christ in their life and it should come naturally.