But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. – John 17:13
Can you readily identify counterfeit currency? If you were given change after a purchase that included three ten-dollar bills, one of them not government-issued, could you tell the difference? In 2023, the Secret Service seized $21.8 million in counterfeit currency, leading to over 200 arrests. Yet it is estimated that between $70-200 million in counterfeit money is in circulation in the United States at any given time. To the untrained eye, the differences may be imperceptible, often even when placed side by side with the genuine article.
Jesus has called on those who follow Him to be distinguishable from the world. One characteristic of believers is to be filled with doctrinally-based joy, joy that exalts Jesus Christ, and joy that flows out of their lives like living water (John 7:38).
Joy is a gift of the Holy Spirit.
Theologian John Piper calls it the “astounding, incredible, empowering, priceless gift of the Holy Spirit who resides in us, just as Jesus promised.” Teacher and author Jon Bloom says, “When we experience the joy of the Holy Spirit, we taste the joy that is at the core of ultimate reality.”
You were created for joy, Piper writes. “The awakening of God-glorifying joy is like the unexplored mountain ranges you can barely see from the magnificent cliffs where you worship. You have seen much—if only a fraction.”
It is the joy that glorifies Jesus and the Father that separates those who know Christ from the counterfeits.
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