August 16, 2013

Nehemiah 8:10 — Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

The people were all gathered in the square. All morning they had been listening to readings from the Book of the Law. Some of them were filled with a sense of sin, and guilt, and grief. They were overcome, and they wept … they mourned. But “No”, their leaders said. “Don’t weep. This is a time of rejoicing. They joy of The Lord is your strength.”

I suppose I’ve read that verse at least twenty times over the years, and not really thought much about it, but this time the clause “the joy of the Lord is your strength” grabbed my attention. What was it saying to me? Isn’t it a little odd? Didn’t Jesus himself tell us “Blessed are they that mourn”?
Indeed Jesus did say “Blessed are they that mourn” — blessing those whose view of sin matches God’s. So in one respect at lease, the mourning of the Israelites was appropriate. Something bigger was at issue however. The day was a day of restoration and priests, Levites and people had committed to returning to holiness, which was a certain cause for joy.We just have to understand what the joy of The Lord is.

Truly holy and righteous people are rare. Have you ever met one? I’d bet (if I were a betting man) that you have never met a miserable holy righteous person. It’s impossible … the righteous and holy are capable of following Paul’s instruction. They do rejoice in The Lord always. That joy, the joy of The Lord comes from a right relationship with God — it is both a sign of, and a part of, great spiritual strength.

So what does that mean for us? Well what Nehemiah, the priests and the Levites were saying was more than a description — it was an instruction. “Move on” they were saying, “it’s right to mourn for past sins, but now we are returning to holiness — and holiness and joy are natural partners”. It was good advice. The Israelites had a big job in front of them, and it’s hard to attack big jobs when you’re miserable. All of us have challenges to deal with, and some of them are big. We all have a part to play in the biggest challenge of all — the Great Commission. We can’t operate out of misery, we need to be holy, and joyful!