“Rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil 4:4). Rejoicing in the Lord is good for us and brings glory to God. Jonathan Edwards: “The happiness of the creature consists in rejoicing in God, by which also God is magnified and exalted.”
A Christian can be joyful even in times of sorrow. Paul described himself as "sorrowful yet always rejoicing" (2 Cor 6:10). John Piper: “I think Paul was always crying and always happy. How could he not be crying? He was so beat up. His back must have looked like a hunk of jelly most of the time because he had these five-times-thirty-nine lashes beat over his back and then healed in all kinds of gnarly ways. So this man lived with a thorn in his flesh, probably in his back, in his eyes, in his mind. And he had enemies all around him. And he said, "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice!"
Charles Spurgeon: “Why should Christians be such a happy people? 1) It is good for our God; it gives him honor among men when we are glad. 2) It is good for us; it makes us strong. 'The joy of the Lord is your strength' (Neh 8:10). 3) It is good for the ungodly; when they see Christians glad, they long to be believers themselves. 4) It is good for our fellow Christians; it comforts them and tends to cheer them.”
A Christian can be joyful even in times of sorrow. Paul described himself as "sorrowful yet always rejoicing" (2 Cor 6:10). John Piper: “I think Paul was always crying and always happy. How could he not be crying? He was so beat up. His back must have looked like a hunk of jelly most of the time because he had these five-times-thirty-nine lashes beat over his back and then healed in all kinds of gnarly ways. So this man lived with a thorn in his flesh, probably in his back, in his eyes, in his mind. And he had enemies all around him. And he said, "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice!"
Charles Spurgeon: “Why should Christians be such a happy people? 1) It is good for our God; it gives him honor among men when we are glad. 2) It is good for us; it makes us strong. 'The joy of the Lord is your strength' (Neh 8:10). 3) It is good for the ungodly; when they see Christians glad, they long to be believers themselves. 4) It is good for our fellow Christians; it comforts them and tends to cheer them.”
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