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[Announcer] (0:00 - 0:16) Think about the Bible like you never have before. You're listening to Christian Questions. Access more audio, videos, and Bible study resources at ChristianQuestions.com.

Our topic is: "What Does it Mean to Rejoice Always?" Here's Rick and Jonathan.

[Rick] (0:18 - 0:26) Welcome, everyone. I'm Rick. I'm joined by Jonathan, my co-host for over twenty-five years.

Jonathan, what's our theme scripture for this episode?

[Jonathan] (0:26 - 0:30) 1 Thessalonians 5:16: "Rejoice always."

[Rick] (0:31 - 1:17) That's a short one. A Christian's life is supposed to be an energized and fulfilled life. It's supposed to be this way because we've been called to follow in Jesus' footsteps. This means our lives are to be centered around following God's word and will, regardless of what circumstances may lay before us.

So, when things are going smoothly and difficulties seem to be at a minimum, we can rejoice and thank God for His providence. By the same reasoning, when things are unstable, disastrous and traumatic, we can rejoice and thank God for His providence. Wait, what?

How do we do THAT? How do we find and embrace true rejoicing in our lives when our external circumstances and our internal emotional state are breaking down?

[Jonathan] (1:17 - 1:30) This episode is the third in our Christian Conduct Series where we are carefully examining God's instructions to us given by the Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-24.

[Rick] (1:30 - 1:49) Let's look at the broad context here. In the few verses before this admonition to "rejoice always," the Apostle Paul instructed us in two specific aspects of our Christian life. The first aspect is all about showing appreciation for those who shepherd us, and that was found in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13:

[Jonathan] (1:49 - 2:05) "But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another."

[Rick] (2:06 - 2:23) Now that phrase "live in peace with one another" is a solid foundation for the second aspect, which is learning to mutually and consistently contribute to the health of our fellowship at large, and that's found in 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15:

[Jonathan] (2:23 - 2:40) "We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people."

[Rick] (2:41 - 3:05) These two aspects of our lives are all about our relationship with our brotherhood, first with those who lead, and then with ALL who follow. Paul seems to be saying, okay, now that you've seen what you're supposed to look like and how you're supposed to act towards all, next I will encourage you as to how to grow from the inside out.

[Jonathan] (3:05 - 3:44) You're right, Rick. Paul next introduced six powerful internal growth lessons. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, quench not the spirit, despise not prophesyings; prove all things, abstain from all appearance of evil.

One of our beloved fellow elders, Carl, pointed out how in 1 Thessalonians 5, the Apostle Paul effectively used the staccato technique--short, impactful phrases that stand out. Paul made this series of admonitions short and to the point, making them memorable.

[Rick] (3:44 - 4:05) It's important to recognize that he says very few words, but he has very powerful meaning in each little group of these few words. Today what we're going to do is examine just the first one on this list, just the first of those six impactful lessons. Once again, Jonathan, let's read the theme scripture. It's two words.

[Jonathan] (4:06 - 4:16) 1 Thessalonians 5:16: "Rejoice always." Now, this type of rejoicing is "to be calmly happy; thrive." The word "always" means "at all times."

[Rick] (4:17 - 4:48) Be calmly happy and thrive at all times. That's what we've got as the basis for "rejoice always." Remember, these other five admonitions follow this "be calmly happy and thrive at all times."

Because these six lessons of our internal growth in Christ--we see them as interconnected; you can't have one without the others, that's really what we're saying here--

we're going to look at the "rejoice always" as the absolute bottom line foundation to build upon.

[Jonathan] (4:49 - 4:59) Let's begin with the obvious question regarding "rejoice always." What about trials, loss, or grieving? How do we rejoice in these?

[Rick] (5:00 - 5:49) That is the core of the question. How do we rejoice? If it's "rejoice always," that means when stuff is going bad.

That means when life is turned upside down. That means when there's trauma around. How do we do that?

How are we supposed to? It almost sounds unreasonable. Like, come on, what do you mean?

Let's look at how this all fits together, because Jonathan, there are some profoundly beautiful lessons in developing this perspective. We're going to suggest, again, that this rejoicing fits the definitions of, like you said, calmly happy and thriving. Here's why:

First, we want to look at Jesus. How did he show us what the Apostle is teaching us? We're going to look at Jesus' actions and responses as he underwent pain and suffering.

Let's look at Hebrews 12:2-3:

[Jonathan] (5:49 - 6:26) "Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who has endured such hostility by sinners against himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." "Joy" is the noun form of the word "rejoice" that we recently defined.

It means "having a calm delight or gladness." "Joy set before him," he "endured the cross."

[Rick] (6:26 - 6:48) You've got this "joy set before him." He had this calm and internal gladness. As he was undergoing this unspeakable shame, this unspeakable pain and injustice and dishonor, he thrived on his Father's will and in so doing, showed us the way to thrive when things are really, really not going what we consider to be our way.

[Jonathan] (6:48 - 7:20) Jesus experienced joy by helping his heavenly Father create all things. Paying the ransom price on the cross for Adam meant he would eventually see his human creation at resurrection, along with everyone who had ever lived. The joy set before him was the promise of God's future kingdom and helping mankind come into harmony with God.

Jesus' joy was a state of being as he honored his Father's plan. Rick, the joy we're talking about is not about feelings and emotions.

[Rick] (7:20 - 9:00) That's really, really important. Jesus wasn't feeling great when all of these difficulties were happening, but he had this joy that was set before him, and that was a baseline for him to rely upon because it was the accomplishment of the Father's will.

That's a fundamental truth that we need to really begin to try to understand and grab hold of. Let's go a little further. That example from Jesus is an example from Jesus.

You can't get higher or better than that. But now let's look at the apostles, because they also teach us how to do it because they did it-- "rejoice always."

Let's look in Acts 5. Now Acts 5 is very, very soon after Pentecost. The apostles got into a lot of trouble very, very soon after with the Jewish leaders for preaching.

They (the Jewish leaders) didn't want to hear the name of Jesus. They didn't want to hear the gospel. They didn't want to hear it at all,

so they (the apostles) were thrown in prison. It doesn't delineate which apostles. You assume that maybe most of them were thrown in prison.

They escaped from prison because an angel comes and lets them out. What do they do? They get let out of prison--

now they were told, you're in prison because you're saying those words about that guy--they get out of prison and they went back to preaching. Now the Jewish leaders are plotting to kill them. It's like, okay, that's it.

Let's wipe them out. One of the Jewish leaders named Gamaliel was a respected Pharisee-- as a matter of fact, he was the Pharisee who taught Saul of Tarsus--

he advised that the apostles not be killed. He said, no, that's not a good idea. He gave reasons.

Now let's take a look at what happened. This is where the rejoicing comes into play. Acts 5:40-42:

[Jonathan] (9:01 - 9:28) "They took his (Gamaliel’s) advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. So they (the apostles) went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for his name." Now let me pause here. They were just beaten, and yet they are rejoicing?

[Rick] (9:29 - 9:53) It says "rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer..." It wasn't a, I'm feeling great. It's, I have this focus and this clarity and this gratitude that I got to be part of this.

You can see the rejoicing. Isn't this big? This is a focus.

It's a strength. It's an inner strength. Let's continue and see what happens.

[Jonathan] (9:53 - 10:06) Acts 5:42: "And every day in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ." Nothing could stop their focus on following Jesus' footsteps.

What a wonderful example.

[Rick] (10:07 - 11:15) Yeah, it is. It is. It really is a wonderful example because they were just beaten, okay?

They had been put in prison originally and they're let out. They go and preach.

Now they're beaten up and firmly instructed, don't do it again. What does it say? They went every day, house to house and in the temple. They didn't hide because they were rejoicing in doing the Father's will.

These apostles were thriving in the call to follow Jesus, no matter how much they were threatened and no matter how much they hurt. Jonathan, this is not about feeling euphoric. It's about being centered and calm in all circumstances.

That's the lesson that they're teaching us here. We saw it from Jesus; we see it from the apostles.

Now let's go back to Jesus for a moment because we keep talking about rejoicing, not being emotional, about being this calm centeredness. Jesus in his teachings added the more emotional response that's built upon our calm rejoicing and showed us how and when. I think this is important because it's an addition.

It's not the rejoicing, but it's added to it. Let's go back to Matthew 5:11-12:

[Jonathan] (11:15 - 11:40) "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

Now here's the excitement and emotion. As you said, Rick, the word for "glad" literally means "to jump for joy" or "exult."

[Rick] (11:41 - 12:31) YES! That's what it means. It's that adrenaline-filled rush.

That's, this is just awesome! It's that sense of glory and wonder and energy. It's very different than the rejoicing.

But notice where it fits. Jesus says "rejoice and be glad." The "be glad" is directly related to what he says next.

It's related to our future reward. "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great." Rejoicing, thriving, is to be an all-the-time thing for us right now,

the rejoicing. However, the exultation, the "YES!" is added at appropriate times. It's not always there.

It doesn't say "rejoice and be glad always." It says "rejoice always." "Be glad" comes into play at certain times in certain circumstances.

[Jonathan] (12:32 - 12:48) If we are found faithful, what is the future reward? Glory, honor and immortality. As spiritual sons of God, we will help to bless all the families of the earth and work side by side with Jesus.

Now, that's exciting and motivating!

[Rick] (12:49 - 13:32) YES! That's the point of the exultation. However, the rejoicing is that calm centeredness inside of our being that just thrives on doing the will of God. Now let's look at us.

We looked at Jesus and his example. We looked at the apostles and an example from them. Now let's look at ourselves.

It's fitting that the Apostle Peter is the one who shows us what our present thriving, our present rejoicing is supposed to look like, because he observed it in Jesus himself and he was amongst the very first to experience it himself. We remember the Acts 5 experience, rejoicing under such difficult circumstances. Here's what he tells us in 1 Peter 4:12-14:

[Jonathan] (13:33 - 13:47) "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing..."

[Rick] (13:48 - 14:13) "To the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing..." What did they do after they were beaten? They rejoiced.

He's not telling us because this sounds like a good thing to tell them. He's telling us because this is what works in a spiritually-oriented life and in spiritually-oriented heart. That's what you want to do.

Even in the face of trials, have that sense of rejoicing. But now there's more. Let's continue with 1 Peter 4:13-14:

[Jonathan] (14:13 - 14:35) "...So that also at the revelation of his glory you may rejoice with exultation (that's that jump-for-joy word). If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests on you."

Peter is reminding us of the mindset to keep on keeping on.

[Rick] (14:35 - 15:32) That's such an important thing. He's saying that the exultation is not necessarily present in the difficulty, but the exultation is to come. The "rejoice always" is that calm centeredness of being, that thriving on doing the will of God whatever the circumstances, so we can move forward and we can move up. Keep on rejoicing.

Keep thriving as you stay centered on your ultimate goal in life, so when it's achieved, you can rejoice with great joy. YES!

It's just the excitement and that's appropriate. But Jonathan, it's not going to be there every day of our lives. There's a lot,

there's too much, in terms of ups and downs and uncertainties, but the rejoicing can always stay in place. Let's pause here and let's do a little bit of "Redirecting Our Responses to Rejoicing" because sometimes we think about rejoicing and we think about it emotionally. We need to reset that.

[Jonathan] (15:33 - 16:09) Jesus showed us how to have a calm, happy, and thriving state of heart and mind in all things. The apostles introduced us to this thriving state of being while under serious life-threatening stress. We now are privileged by the grace and spirit of God to also experience this calm, happy, and thriving state of being, even under great testing.

Two words come to mind: peace and trust. We need peace and trust that God will overrule in our lives so we can keep rejoicing, come what may.

[Rick] (16:09 - 18:23) That "come what may," actually, that touches me because it reminds me of a very, very difficult time in our lives as a family. I just want to take a moment and share part of that. We have said several times on our podcast about our youngest daughter, when she was fifteen,

she was assaulted and it was a very, very, very traumatic, very difficult time for several years. There was a lot of rebuilding and all of those things that had to go on. My task was to be her dad, to be that firmness that helps her to hold on to something so that she can move forward, as well as to do everything else in life.

Jonathan, rejoicing is not something you think about at times like that, but here's what happened with me. Here's how God overruled with me personally. We were doing radio at that time, okay, through our radio broadcast.

That kept going--no matter what was happening outside, that had to be done. Having to focus on that every single week was what kept me sane, what kept me straight, what kept me able to focus on the next day because I was pressed to be in the Scriptures, and being in the Scriptures reminded me, God has got this. God has got this.

He's the God of eternity. He can certainly walk you and your family through this period of trial, So for a couple of years of very uncertain life circumstances, the rejoicing for me came through the challenge of showing up every week, and by God's grace, it gave me strength so I could give her strength. When I look back, I can realize now, okay, that's what thriving in doing God's will looks like, even if it's not comfortable.

That's a "rejoice always" scenario. Our "rejoice always" state of being needs selfless love driven by truth to feed its growth, and here we go. We go back to the "love chapter," 1 Corinthians 13, and guess what's going to show up as we go through that?

Let's go to 1 Corinthians 13:4-7:

[Jonathan] (18:23 - 18:57) "Love is patient (forbearing), love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly;

it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness..." In other words, there's no calm happiness in unrighteousness.

Let's continue with 1 Corinthians 13:6-7: "... but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."

[Rick] (18:58 - 19:56) Love "rejoices with the truth." It has that calm, firm clarity, that state of being that keeps you moving forward. That's what selfless love is. We can see that our "rejoicing always" is fed by our development of this selfless love, of this love that's not looking for anything in return but is benevolent, is always just looking to give.

It's a powerful combination. Be stable, be strong, be calmly happy because it's not about emotion. It's about having your heart and mind focused on doing the will of God each and every day with the sense that it is God who carries you.

Let's continue. As we continue developing this internal state of being, this "rejoice always" state of being, the Apostle Paul shows us ways to expand it to others. Jonathan, it's already good but this makes it really, really cool.

Philippians 2:14-18:

[Jonathan] (19:56 - 20:20) "Do all things without grumbling or disputing; so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain."

[Rick] (20:21 - 20:45) Pause there just for a second. Paul is talking about their faithfulness, and he's basically saying--he's showing us in many, many ways his life, his well-being depended on the faithfulness of his brethren, because he invested so much into them. Knowing of their faithfulness fed him in a profound way. We're going to see that unfold now as we continue with Philippians 2:17-18:

[Jonathan] (20:46 - 21:16) "But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all. You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me." The words "share" and "joy with" mean we "sympathize in gladness;" we "take part in another's joy."

This personal connection is so important.

[Rick] (21:17 - 22:47) The Apostle is saying, "even if I am being poured out as a drink offering." Now think about that. When you're pouring a drink offering out, there's nothing left. Paul is basically saying, even though my life is being poured out to its end, I rejoice and share my joy with you. I not only have that calm, happiness and thriving within myself, but I am sending it to you.

I want you to have that as well. I want you to have that calm thriving and send it to me. There's this, our "rejoice always" state of being is not meant for merely keeping ourselves calm. It's not meant to merely keep ourselves happy and thriving.

It's greater purpose, its greater purpose is to be shared with others as a way to remind, to encourage, and to uplift. We need to let each other know of our rejoicing. That's what the Apostle is saying. Share it! Share in the rejoicing because that gives others a stronger basis to thrive upon, and that's what we want to do.

As we share our "rejoice always" state of being with others, like the Apostle Paul just said, we're also reminded to "go beyond" our lives, our normal life circumstances, as we are to be daily sacrificed as Jesus was. Now these verses sound a little harsh that we're going to read, but we're going to look at them in the context of rejoicing. 1 Corinthians 7:29-30:

[Jonathan] (22:47 - 22:56) "But this I say, brethren, the time has been shortened, so that from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none..."

[Rick] (22:56 - 23:27) Hang on, let's pause. He's NOT saying ignore your wife, all right? Folks, hear us clearly. That's not the message that the Apostle is giving.

What he is saying is, you have that commitment, that godly covenant between you. That is a good basis. Now go beyond it.

Go beyond it. Reach beyond your relationship to be able to give more to others. It's good that you have it, but that's not the ending.

That's the beginning for more stretching. Let's continue with 1 Corinthians 7:30:

[Jonathan] (23:28 - 23:32) "And those who weep as though they did not weep..."

[Rick] (23:32 - 24:18) Okay, pause again. What is he saying? Stop crying?

Stop crying--pull yourself together? No, no. What he's saying is you've got trials and you've got difficulties,

and it's okay, that's part of your state of being. But learn to reach beyond that sadness to be able to give more to others. Jonathan, I have and you have, we have both been able to see those who've gone through really hard trials, through great loss and are weeping.

It's a beautiful thing to watch them reach out to others and touch them with grace and encouragement. That's what it means. You're not stuck just with your weeping.

That's a baseline. You can thrive in that because God is with you, and when you reach out to touch others, you actually bless and you build them up.

Let's finish 1 Corinthians 7:30:

[Jonathan] (24:19 - 24:23) "... and those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice."

[Rick] (24:23 - 25:19) Paul's not saying, okay, stop rejoicing, I was just kidding. What he's saying is that rejoicing is a state of being, but it has to be expanded on.

Reach beyond your thriving to be able to give more to others. When we talk about "rejoice always," it's not this simple little thing about, okay, this is how I feel. This is how I am

and these are the privileges that I have because I have this rejoicing within me. All of this, all of this points to the ultimate faithfulness that will be celebrated in heaven and on earth. The next scripture we're going to read is from Revelation.

It's in Revelation 19:7-8. Now this is taking place in heaven. This is a voice in heaven.

We're talking about "rejoicing always" in our experiences. There's rejoicing in heaven as well. Listen to this:

[Jonathan] (25:20 - 25:37) "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready. It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."

[Rick] (25:38 - 26:26) This heavenly experience is saying, "rejoice and be glad." The "be glad" is the "YES!" It's the exultation because the hard work of development has been done and the bride of Christ has made herself ready. It talks about clothed" in fine linen" and the fine linen being "the righteous acts of the saints."

Those righteous acts of those faithful ones have everything to do with "rejoice always," with living in that daily thriving. That's one of the reasons it's so important, because it contributes to the heavenly rejoicing and the heavenly exultation at the recognition of ultimate faithfulness. "Rejoice always."

You see how powerful this is. Finally, "Redirecting Our Responses to Rejoicing." What do we have here?

[Jonathan] (26:27 - 26:53) To "rejoice always" is to live with a thriving, calm, and a happy state of mind. This state of mind is nourished by focusing on the scriptural examples of Jesus and the brotherhood handling their trials, sufferings, and testing. Let us step up and embrace our experiences with intentional rejoicing, so we can become conduits, passing the love of God through Jesus to others.

[Rick] (26:53 - 27:53) Pass the love of God that comes through Jesus--that comes into us and out from us--and pass it on to others because we thrive in the concept of just being God's children, doing God's will, following His guidance, following His providence, following His spirit. Let's understand how important it is to put all of this in order and to recognize, to "rejoice always," is to be in Christ every day in every way. Even if we're weeping, and even if we're sad, and even if we're confused, we can still rejoice because we are held in the palm of the hand of God through Jesus.

"Rejoice always." Think about it. We love hearing from our listeners.

We welcome your feedback and questions on this episode and other episodes at ChristianQuestions.com. Coming up in our next episode: "What Does It Mean to Pray Without Ceasing?"

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