Finding Joy Through the Transforming Power of Christ

We live in a throw away society. When something breaks we toss it in the trash and head to Wal-Mart for a new one. When things go bad we seek a substitution rather than a solution. There is no better example of this than marriage. Divorce rates have skyrocketed as people have given up on transformation. Instead they take the easy way out and look for another relationship when in truth if only they were committed to making changes in their own lives the marriage could be saved.

Jesus is all about transformation. The very concept of the cross is a shining example. In the day of Jesus no one would wear a cross as jewelry; it represented the cruelest and most vile form of death and punishment. But God chose it to bring salvation and life to those who will have faith in Jesus through His death on a cross. The cross is now a symbol of hope and salvation because through Jesus’ death God transformed the entire way we view death.

The way we handle pain is another example of our desire for substitution instead of transformation. As soon as we get a little pain we head for the medicine cabinet for relief through a pill. While I am not saying that is all bad, the ability to avoid pain has created in us an attitude that prohibits growth through pain and suffering. Listen to the Word of God as spoken by Christ in John 16:21, "Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world.”

Jesus uses the example of childbirth to teach us a lesson. Jesus never says here that the woman’s pain is replaced by joy. Instead the woman’s pain is transformed into joy through the birth of the baby. Through the pain of childbirth comes a wealth of joy but the pain had to be endured first. If the pain, which any women who has faced it without benefit of the methods now used to block it, will tell you, is one of the worst pains one could feel. Yet a woman will continue to have children and face it again because she knows the joy of having a baby is worth taking the pain. This is an example of how we know that if we trust Jesus in our times of pain and suffering He will transform our pain into joy.

But there is a second part to get here as we look at the example of childbirth and that is that we must wait on the Lord. A woman is pregnant for nine months in which she will often be uncomfortable. Then later when the day comes she will labor for a good while until the baby is born. We must be patient in our trials and afflictions. There is a beautiful description of this in Isaiah 40:30-31 which says that “Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

So we must wait on the Lord. But Jesus doesn’t leave us alone to wait. He has put His Spirit in us to live and to be our comforter and our power to go on in the pain. He has also given us the gift of prayer. After the teaching on the pain of childbirth Jesus speaks about prayer saying this in John 16:22-24, “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.  In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.  Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”

If we want our joy to be complete we must go to the Father in faith and in the name of Jesus. But sometimes it will seem as if He is not answering us; it will seem as if the pain continues on. In these days of sorrow and suffering we must open our Bibles and hear God’s Word so that our faith can stand strong. Read the story of Lazarus as found in John 11:1-44.  In this story we find the answer as to why sometimes it seems God has let us down.

In the story Mary and Martha have sent a message to Jesus informing Him that their brother was ill. Through prayer we contact Jesus as well with our needs. Jesus’ first response is to say “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” (John 11:4). Sometimes God allows things to happen, even when we have prayed and asked Him not to, so that He will be glorified.

Jesus waited so long to show up that Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. His body would have been a stinking mess. The situation to Martha and Mary seemed now hopeless. Does this sound familiar? Maybe today your personal situation seems hopeless and you think God has waited too long to answer your prayer. But finish the story and see what happens.

Jesus responds to Martha saying in John 11:23, “Your brother will rise again.” Even though Jesus already knew how the situation would turn out He felt the sorrow and the sadness of His friends and He wept alongside them. John 11:33 tells us just how much Jesus understood their sorrow telling us that “When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.”

The story ends with a demonstration of the power of Jesus as He raises Lazarus from the dead simply by calling His name. It was His intent the whole time to do this but in order to build the faith of Mary, Martha, and the others who would see and hear of this, Jesus acted on His time, not on theirs.

My friends, the secret to joy is to trust in Christ no matter how hopeless the situation is. As Isaiah said it is “they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

To those who have accepted the free offer of salvation through faith in Christ, joy is always there, waiting to be taken hold of. But we must trust in God, we must wait on God, and we must let Him transform us through the power of the Holy Spirit, which scripture tells us also raised Christ from the dead.

 I leave you with a scripture reading. It is a reminder of our need to praise Him always, even when it seems He has not heard us, for He is coming. Until He arrives rest in faith and be filled with joy for nothing is too hard for Him.

Psalm 30:4-5
Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name.  For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.