Heaven the Consummation of Joy
Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.
~ Matt 25:21
Soldier of Christ, well done!
Praise be thy new employ;
And while eternal ages run,
Rest in thy Saviour’s joy.
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.
~ Luke 2:29-30
When we have number’d all our years,
And stand, at length, on Jordan’s brink;
Though the flesh fail with mortal fears,
Oh! let not then the spirit sink:
But strong in faith, and hope, and love,
Plunge through the stream to rise above.
Divine Acceptance a Source of Joy
Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy work.
~ Eccl 9:7
Whilst I see thy love to me,
Every object teems with joy;
Here, oh may I walk with thee,
Then into thy presence die!
Let me but thyself possess,
Total sum, of happiness;
Real bliss I then shall prove ~
Heaven below, and heaven above.
Tribulation a Source of Joy
We glory in tribulation: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope.
~ Rom 5:3-4
Then let us wait the’ appointed day,
Nor call this world our home;
To pilgrims in a foreign land,
Afflictions needs must come.
Who rule the world, o’errules their end,
They destined are for good;
And bear the saints to realms of rest,
Though mighty as a flood.
Communion with God a Source of Joy
There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Thou has put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.
~ Ps 4:6-7
Lord, what is life? if spent with thee,
In humble praise and prayer,
How long or short my life may be
I feel no anxious care:
Though life depart, my joys shall last,
When life and all its joys are past.
Pardon a Source of Joy
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.
~ Ps 32:1-2
The Saviour smiles! o’er my bless’d soul
New tides of hope tumultuous roll;
Earth has a joy unknown in heaven,
The new-born peace of sin forgiven;
Tears of such pure and deep delight,
Ye angels! never dimm’d your sight.
Joy in Christ
We are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
~ Phil 3:3
The opening heavens around me shine
With beams of sacred bliss,
While Jesus shows his heart is mine,
And whispers, I am his.
The Great Motive to All Duty
Ye are not your own; for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
~ 1 Cor 6:19-20
Oh! grant us, Lord, to feel and own
The power of love divine;
The blood which doth for sin atone,
The grace which makes us thine.
