Joy is Your Strength

The exiles were well-acquainted with sorrow. Through the struggle of returning to and rebuilding Jerusalem, they had borne the weight of affliction for years.

Their main gear had been fixed on lament. 

So when Ezra and the Levites opened the Book of the Law for a day-long reading, the exiles knew exactly what to do. They wept over the gravity of their sin (Nehemiah 8:9). How could they do anything else before a holy God?

But Nehemiah told them that they were in the wrong gear: 

“Do not mourn or weep … 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 9:9-10)

The exiles were so focused on how far they had fallen that they forgot to celebrate what God had done.

They had forgotten that they were back in the land, back with their people, and back under the protection of the Lord. There was reason to rejoice!

Nehemiah knew that while weeping has its place, the power comes from joy. Tomorrow’s obedience would flow from today’s celebration.

We are prone to believe the opposite. Once I am strong, I will rejoice. But the strength comes from God’s ever-present, overflowing joy—ready and available wherever you are.

You who follow after Jesus’ earnestness: well and good. Our Lord was acquainted with sorrows and deadly serious about the things of eternity. 

But do you also follow after Jesus’ joy? Our Lord was bubbling with joy, and he promised that those who remained in him would experience the same (John 15:11). 

God is not a killjoy. He’s the creator of joy. What kind of Savior would have us remember his death by taking a sip of wine? The same one who would stomp on Satan, who would wipe away every tear, who would kick off the kingdom with an exuberant feast.

Joyless Christianity is an oxymoron. Following the One who was “anointed with gladness beyond his companions” should cover us with a radiance that sticks through the darkest seasons of suffering.

If the Israelites in Nehemiah’s day had reason to celebrate, how much more do you? The angels who sing unceasing songs of celebration long to look into the gospel that you see (1 Peter 1:12). So why don’t you join along—yes, out-celebrate the heavenly host—and rejoice in the risen King?