In John 17:13, Jesus prayed – “Father I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of My joy within them.”
It is wonderful and precious that our Lord prayed this kind of prayer shortly before He was arrested. He, who was totally innocent, prayed for us even while facing the reality of undergoing terrible torture and death. It was NOT joyful for Him to go through what He did for us, but Hebrew 12:2 states – “…For the joy set before Him, He Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Jesus set His eyes above, and that gave Him immense joy, that soon He would be reunited with Abba Father in heaven. THAT is the kind of delight He wants each one of us to have…an inner peaceful joy which carries us through trials and difficulties.
Neh. 8:10 tells us that SUCH “joy of the Lord is our strength.” This type of joyful strength is not dependent upon circumstances, and it harmonises well with sorrow too, because we are “anointed with the oil of joy” Heb. 1:9 tells us.
Isaiah 53:3 says that Jesus was “a man of sorrows and very familiar with our grief,” so when Jesus prays for us to have a FULL measure of joy, He knows it is obtainable. He prays that we will experience the same kind of pleasure. God’s highest desire for us is to glorify Him, no matter what we face, by doing the work He gives us to do, in HIS power. Jesus is coming soon, and that fact alone gives us immeasurable peace and inexpressible joy.
Psalm 16:11 declares we can find joy in God’s presence. Philippians 4:4 instructs us to rejoice in the Lord, and John 15:11 tells us that Jesus gives His complete joy to us. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Rom. 15:13
Precious Lord Jesus, thank You that You give us the FULLNESS of joy when we lean on You and trust You with every detail of our lives. We rejoice that You keep watch over us day and night, that You are interested in all things pertaining us. Thank You for being our security and our Refuge, our tower of strength, our Light and our salvation. You are our hiding place and our song of joy. Thank You that You say in John 16:22 – “You too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” Thank You for securing that gladness for us! Amen
Myrtle Turunen