Title: Joy from God
Contents
God-given joy (2 Chronicles 30:1-12)
The children of Israel gathered in Jerusalem rejoiced greatly and kept the Feast of Unleaved Bread for seven days, and the Levites and priests praised the Lord daily and sang loud musical instruments to praise the Lord (2 Chronicles 31:21).
For fishermen, an empty net is heavier than a net full of fish. The actual weight is a heavy net with a lot of fish, but when a lot of fish are caught, the heart is happy and rejoicing, and it is refreshing. An empty net is light, but it loses its strength because the fisherman is disappointed and discouraged. A person loses strength when there is no fruit for hard work and effort. However, people do not always work hard and reap the rewards. At that time, if you continue to do what you are doing without being disappointed, you will be able to achieve things that you did not get by working hard before. When there is no fruit, we must learn to be zealous without becoming discouraged.
King Hezekiah wished that all the 12 tribes of Israel, from which Israel had been divided for a long time, would gather to celebrate the Passover. In the time of Hezekiah, the northern kingdom had already fallen and was under Assyria's control, but as Assyria's strength weakened, it did not effectively rule. At this time, Hezekiah sent hundreds of sentinels to northern Israel to invite the whole nation to the Passover celebration. However, the results were too small compared to the devotion of Hezekiah. Most people ridiculed Hezekiah's invitation. And not even a dozen, but a few, responded to the invitation and came to Jerusalem.
However, Hezekiah was not discouraged or discouraged by this incident. The Passover could be enjoyed with great joy. The people kept the Passover celebration by adding an extra week. The reason Hezekiah rejoiced instead of being disappointed in his disappointment was that God's purpose was fulfilled through his labors.
You will not be disappointed if you do not see visible results after making a pure effort for the Lord. Through that failure, God obtains everything he has to gain. Through the Passover, the Israelites all drew closer to God one step at a time. Although the Northern Israelites did not come to Jerusalem, they all had an opportunity to think for a moment about the God they had lost when they were invited to the Passover by Hezekiah. A few people attended, but through them the entire nation of Israel came one step closer to God.
It is a blessing to be able to take even one step closer to God through failure and setbacks in the world. Because drawing close to God is the shortcut to solving all problems. Let us come to God through disappointment.