The Joy of Jesus is Salvation to All

A Prayer for Cleansing
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, 2.1--0.1 ; 0.12 ; -15.15 after he had gone in to Bath–she'ba.

1 Have mercy upon me, O God,

according to thy loving-kindness:
according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,

and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I acknowledge my transgressions:

and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,

and done this evil in thy sight:
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest,
and be clear when thou judgest. Rom. 3.4
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity;

and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts:

and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean:

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Make me to hear joy and gladness;

that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.
9 Hide thy face from my sins,

and blot out all mine iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God;

and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from thy presence;

and take not thy Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation;

and uphold me with thy free Spirit.
13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways;

and sinners shall be converted unto thee.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,

thou God of my salvation:
and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
15 O Lord, open thou my lips;

and my mouth shall show forth thy praise.
16 For thou desirest not sacrifice;

else would I give it:
thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit:

a broken and a contrite heart, O God,
thou wilt not despise.
18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion:

build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,

with burnt offering and whole burnt offering:
then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.

The Joy of Jesus is to Grow in Love

"As the Father hath loved me, so I have loved you" (John 15:9). There is no change of theme, only another aspect of it. In the two previous verses the Lord had described three of the consequences of abiding in Him in order to fruitfulness; here, and in the three verses that follow, He names three of the varieties of the fruit home; and it is very striking to note that they are identical with the first three and are given in the same order as those enumerated in Galatians 5:22, where the "fruit of the Spirit" is defined. Here in John 15:9, it is love; in John 15:11, it is joy; while in John 15:12 it is peace—the happy issue of brethren loving one another.
"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you." "As the Father loved Him from everlasting, so did He love them; as His Father loved Him with a love of complacency and delight, so did He love them; as the Father loved Him with a special and peculiar affection, with an unchanging, invariable, constant love, which would last forever, in like manner does Christ love His people; and with this He enforces the exhortation which follows" (Dr. John Gill).
"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you; continue ye in my love." (John 15:9). Christ’s love to us is unaffected by our changeableness, but our enjoyment of His love depends upon our continuance in it. By this continuance in His love, or abiding in it, as it should be (the Greek word is the same), is meant our actual assurance of it, our reposing in it. No matter how mysterious His dispensations be, no matter how severe the trials through which He causes us to pass, we must never doubt His immeasurable love for us and to us. The measure of His love for us was told out at the Cross, and as He is the same to-day as yesterday, therefore He loves us just as dearly now, every moment, as when He laid down His life for us. To "abide" in His love, then, is to be occupied with it, to count upon it, to be persuaded that nothing shall ever be able to separate us from it. Dwelling upon our poor, fluctuating love for Him, will make us miserable; but having the heart fixed upon His wondrous love, that love which "passeth knowledge," will fill us with praise and thanksgiving. Very blessed but very searching is this. To "abide" in Christ is to abide in His love. Our growth proceeds from love to love.

The Joy of Jesus is Peace

Stilling the Storm

Matt 8:23; Mark 4:35; Luke 8:22

Luke 8:22-25 (web)
Now it happened on one of those days, that he entered into a boat,
himself and his disciples, and he said to them,
"Let’s go over to the other side of the lake."
So they launched out.
But as they sailed, he fell asleep. A wind storm came down on the lake,
and they were taking on dangerous amounts of water.
They came to him, and awoke him, saying, "Master, master, we are dying!"
He awoke, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water,
and they ceased, and it was calm.
He said to them, "Where is your faith?"
Being afraid they marveled, saying one to another,
"Who is this, then,
that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?"
What does this teach about Jesus?

He is Lord over nature, commanding the wind and sea.

What is an application to the Christian life?

We shouldn't panic when we are following the Lord, regardless of the situation.

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you."Isaiah 26:3
So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" Heb 13:6

The Joy of Jesus is Healing & Hearing

Healing a Deaf Mute

Mark 7:31

Mark 7:31-37 (web)
Again he departed from the borders of Tyre and Sidon,
and came to the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the region of Decapolis.
They brought to him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech.
They begged him to lay his hand on him.
He took him aside from the multitude, privately,
and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat, and touched his tongue.
Looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him, "Ephphatha!" that is, "Be opened!"
Immediately his ears were opened,
and the impediment of his tongue was released, and he spoke clearly.
He commanded them that they should tell no one,
but the more he commanded them, so much the more widely they proclaimed it.
They were astonished beyond measure, saying,
"He has done all things well. He makes even the deaf hear, and the mute speak!"
What does this reveal about Jesus?

He can make the deaf to hear and mute to speak.

Notes & Applications:

The most closed people are naturally reluctant to seek out Jesus themselves. Others may have to bring them to Jesus. But these others need to come to realize that they can only bring them to the living water. To really become open, this closed person has to have personal contact with Jesus, experiencing his love and empathy. Then he will become open to perceive spiritual truth and give praise to God.

Do you understand how the Word of God applies to you? Is it a natural part of your lifestyle to speak spiritual things to others? If not, then get together with Jesus and let him heal you.

The Joy of Jesus is Love

What success they should have in their prayers: "What you ask, that will I do," John 14:13. And again (John 14:14), "I will do it. You may be sure I will: not only it shall be done, I will see it done, or give orders for the doing of it, but I will do it;" for he has not only the interest of an intercessor, but the power of a sovereign prince, who sits at the right hand of God, the hand of action, and has the doing of all in the kingdom of God. By faith in his name we may have what we will for the asking.

4. For what reason their prayers should speed so well: That the Father may be glorified in the Son. That is, (1.) This they ought to aim at, and have their eye upon, in asking. In this all our desires and prayers should meet as in their centre; to this they must all be directed, that God in Christ may be honoured by our services, and in our salvation. Hallowed be thy name is an answered prayer, and is put first, because, if the heart be sincere in this, it does in a manner consecrate all the other petitions. (2.) This Christ will aim at in granting, and for the sake of this will do what they ask, that hereby the glory of the Father in the Son may be manifested. The wisdom, power, and goodness of God were magnified in the Redeemer when by a power derived from him, and exerted in his name and for his service, his apostles and ministers were enabled to do such great things, both in the proofs of their doctrine and in the successes of it.

The Joy of Jesus is Trusting God

Luke 16:11 If therefore you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? (WEB KJV WEY ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

John 1:12 But all who have received Him, to them--that is, to those who trust in His name--He has given the privilege of becoming children of God; (WEY)

John 2:24 But Jesus didn't trust himself to them, because he knew everyone, (WEB WEY ASV DBY YLT NAS RSV NIV)

John 3:18 He who trusts in Him does not come up for judgement. He who does not trust has already received sentence, because he has not his trust resting on the name of God's only Son. (Root in WEY)

John 5:45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. (KJV DBY WBS)

John 14:1 "Let not your hearts be troubled. Trust in God: trust in me also. (WEY NIV)

John 17:20 "Nor is it for them alone that I make request. It is also for those who trust in me through their teaching; (WEY)

The Joy of Jesus is The most Precious Stone

The Rejected Stone Became the Chief Cornerstone



Psalm 118:22-23 The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD'S doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; whoever believes will not act hastily.
Matt 21:42-43 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: `The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'? "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.
- The "stone" is the Messiah, the "builders" are the Jews.
- The Jews forced Pilate’s hand in crucifying Jesus.
- The rejection of the Jewish Messiah by His own countrymen was the Lord’ doing, and it was planned before the foundation of the world.
- In ancient times the cornerstone was the stone at the corner of two walls that united them. It was the visible corner of the foundation of the building and the starting point of all future building above the foundation. It was the most costly stone because of its beauty and strength. It was also the largest, most solid and carefully constructed stone.
- To cast aside the cornerstone would be to resist any future building on that foundation.
- The Cornerstone was the place where the building was joined and also the place where it rested.
- Jesus was not only the Cornerstone but the "chief" (highest) Cornerstone.
- The stone is mentioned in the Book of Daniel as cut out of the mountains without hands and broken in pieces consuming all kingdoms and becomes a mountain that fills the whole earth.
- The new temple will exceed the former temple in its glory (Hag 2:9).
- In 1 Peter 2:4-10 the apostle Peter gives detail concerning Jesus as the stone.
- In Romans 9:32-33 Paul the apostle speaks about Jesus as the stone.
- The hallel Psalms (Ps 113-118) were sung at various festivals.
- These words were sung by the Jews on the feast of tabernacles, when carrying palm branches in their hands and pouring water on the pavement of the Temple symbolizing Messiah and His kingdom.
- This hymn was also sung by the Jewish children when Christ made his public entry into Jerusalem. (Matt 21:9).
- Jesus sung this farewell hymn with His disciples as He left the Passover for Gethsemane.
- The place which the rejected Jesus now bears in the church, and the honor bestowed upon Him as the head of the church, and the triumph of His gospel in the world, all testify that it is the work of God and it is marvelous in our eyes.