"But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves." NKJV
"Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy." JCB
These are the words of Jesus as He spoke to His Father in prayer for His disciples. This was right before He was betrayed and arrested.
I find the word choices between the two different versions thought provoking.
In the Jesus Centred Bible, it has been translated as an action, that we be filled with the joy of the Lord. It implies that being filled with joy is an ongoing process.
In the New King James Version, having the joy of Jesus fulfilled means it is a done deal. It is complete, achieved and finished.
So, which is it?
Maybe I need to think about what exactly Jesus' joy consists of...
And here is where I stumble because it is hard for a mortal in this world to grasp even a fraction of the peace and joy Jesus had within.
Thank You, Lord for having me read further in the chapter because when Jesus prays to His Father for all believers He says, "I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one." Jn 17:22 JCB
There it is. A joy that outweighs the lies of the enemy. A joy that surpasses all trials, troubles and wrong roads. A joy that is firmly anchored in an unmovable foundation.
All because I made the choice to believe Jesus is mine, forever.
Lord, You know me better than anyone. You know my struggles. I confess that the sound of the crickets chirping their requiem for summer has triggered an avalanche of conflicting emotions. None of them are joy because the sound has filled me with sadness and haunting memories of the dark days on the Black River.
I thought these things were finished because the sound hasn't triggered these reactions or bothered me for a couple of years. Why is this year different...
I have been reminded that Jesus was with me then. He is with me now. And I understand that I can be sorrowful yet still have joy. Sorrow will end. Trials will end. Troubles will end.
Joy never will.
You posed the question as to whether the Lord's joy is an ongoing process, or a done deal. I would answer that it is both! This is one of those issues that I'm starting to recognize as "now, and not yet". It's not either/or, it's both/and. We have the joy of the Lord, but it is something that also grows in us as we mature spiritually. I consider that a double blessing :).
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