Introduction
As we near the end of our week on joy, today we look at another aspect of the joy available to us in God, specifically how our joy could be so great that the Bible would call it inexpressible.
May our hearts be opened to a greater measure of joy than we’ve yet experienced, and the wisdom and faith to hold on to that joy as our portion in God.
Scripture
“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” 1 PETER 1:8-9
Worship
You Are My Joy | United Pursuit feat. Will Reagan
Devotional
1 Peter 1:8-9 fills my heart with a longing to rejoice in ways that move the heart of my heavenly Father. That scripture says, “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”What does it look like to rejoice with joy that is “inexpressible and filled with glory?” What would it be like to have our hearts so filled with praise that our lips can’t articulate the overwhelming goodness of God?
In the famous hymn, The Love of God, Frederick M. Lehman wrote, “The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell; it goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell.” We are designed to be continually awed by the wondrous works of our heavenly Father. So great is his love for us that all the ink and paper in the world couldn’t adequately describe the depths of his mercies toward his children. So infinite is his nature that the fastest vessel could never reach the ends of his heart. And so powerful is his affection that we as his children will never be able to stop singing his praise.
Do you feel awed by God today? Is your heart wrapped up in the unfathomable goodness of his grace? Being filled with inexpressible joy is the natural response to seeing how truly good God is in comparison to how truly broken we are. Joy is meant to be the overflow of true, tangible relationship with a God who would lay down his own life solely because he desperately longed for restored relationship with us.
As children of the Most High God, we must take time to allow him to awe us. We must take time to wonder at his amazing works. We are created with an insatiable longing for fascination. We love to ponder on that which we will never fully comprehend. God created the universe as an example of how unfathomable and fascinating he is. Proverbs 25:2 says, “It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.” He is a God full of wonderful mystery we were designed to search out. It is our inexpressible joy to spend time with the Creator of galaxies that the human eye will never see and minute details too small to ever behold.
Matthew 13:44 says, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” God is worth your life. The fullness of relationship with him is far greater than any possession man could ever attain. The great mystery in all of creation is a mere reflection of the infinite, loving nature of our heavenly Father. Take time today to devote yourself to rejoicing with inexpressible joy at the revelation of how great God is. Allow him to guide you into new and refreshing depths of his love. May you discover today the treasure of restored relationship with your mysterious and fascinating heavenly Father.
Prayer
1. Meditate on the infinite and wonderful nature of God. Think about his creation and how all of it was created by his word. Reflect on the powerful and loving sacrifice of Jesus. Allow Scripture and the divine nature of God to fill you with fascination and inexpressible joy.
“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.” Romans 1:20
“But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5
“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” Psalm 90:2
2. Ask God to guide you into new depths of his heart today.Ask him to show you something about himself you didn’t know. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you how to search out the incredible mysteries of God.
3. Spend time resting in the presence of your Creator. The Creator of the entire universe is with you right now. The God who formed every mountain, star, and grain of sand loves you and longs to be with you. Allow the incredible goodness of God to overwhelm the tired and dry places of your heart.
Go
Psalm 63:1 says, “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” May we be a people who earnestly seek God for the refreshment of our souls. May we discover the still waters of his presence that have the power to replenish that which the world has dried out. May we run to God when we have need, knowing that he is willing and able to supply everything we need and more. And may a fresh revelation of God’s love fill you with inexpressible joy that resounds in everything you do today.
Extended Reading: Psalm 90 or watch The Bible Project’s video on Psalms.