Grandpa And His Religion

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Philippians 4:4

A story is told about a boy who went to his grandpa’s farm for his vacation. During his stay, he began to look for animals. He first saw a group of chickens. He noticed that they were scratching and playing. So he said, “They ain’t got it.” Next, he found horses. They were running and playing. Again he said, “They ain’t got it.” Later, he saw some ducks, swimming and playing. “They ain’t got it,” uttered the boy.

Finally, he saw a donkey. It has a long, frowning face. “He’s got it! He’s got it!” he said. So he shouted for his grandpa, telling him that the donkey got it. “What do you mean he got it?” asked the old man. “He has your religion. He got it,” replied the kid.

The Bible is filled with commands to be joyful. The apostle Paul tells us to “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Philippians 4:4). And the psalmist calls us to “Delight [ourselves]in the Lord, and he will give [us] the desires of [our] heart” (Psalm 37:4). The fruit of the Spirit includes joy (Galatians 5:22). Even Jesus ran after His own joy. He endured the cross, “for the joy that was set before him” (Hebrew 12:2). The foundation of our salvation is His joy!

But even in spite of these overwhelming biblical truths about joy, many Christians don’t experience joy. But as A.W. Tozer said, “The Christians owes it to the world to be supernaturally joyful.” He’s right!

So we must be joyful. Let us ask God for that supernatural joy. He alone is the Giver of true and lasting joy, for in His presence there is fullness of it (Psalm 16:11). Let us hope that we won’t have grandpa’s religion.

I’ve got joy down in my heart
Deep, deep down in my heart
J-O-Y down in my heart
Deep, deep down in my heart

Sunday School Song