5 Minute Read + Scripture readings
Today’s Bible Reading:
Today’s Bible Verse(s):
“How joyful is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! How joyful is a person whom the Lord does not charge with iniquity and in whose spirit is no deceit!”
Psalm 32:1-2 (CSB)
Reflections on Today’s Bible Verse(s):
This past Sunday, I mentioned that “joy” and “happiness” are essentially the same thing. Only in the past 100 or so years has a false dichotomy been created with the two. We are told that “happiness is based on circumstances” and “joy is something in our heart that isn’t based on circumstances.”
The only problem with this is that this is foreign to Scripture. Nothing in Scripture even remotely points to this difference.
If you want to explore this topic in-depth, I would encourage you to get the lengthy book, “Happiness,” by Randy Alcorn. He addresses this and so many other topics of happiness at length and cites Scripture and Christian writers prolifically.
In this book, he notes that God desires for us to be happy because He is happy. But, while there are many secondary sources of happiness that we can enjoy, a Jesus-follower’s ultimate and primary source of happiness is a meaningful relationship with our Heavenly Father.
Well, in the verses that I have chosen for today, we see that the Psalmist is telling us how we can get our happiness back by coming back into a right relationship with our Heavenly Father. We are told that when we sin, we can either grovel in guilt or we can confess that sin to the Lord, get forgiven, and experience happiness (joy) again.
Psalm 32:1-2 (CSB): “How joyful is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! How joyful is a person whom the Lord does not charge with iniquity and in whose spirit is no deceit!”
Friend, is there a sin, or sins, in your life that you have failed to make right with God? Are you tolerating disobedience in your thoughts, words, or actions? Have you failed to be broken over your sin(s) and fallen at the foot of the cross with an attitude of repentance, resolving never to do it again?
If this is true, then you are robbing yourself of happiness that God desires for you to experience. Why not run to the cross very soon and make things right with God. You’ll be glad you did.
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Lord Jesus, thank You for making forgiveness possible. It is only because of Your life, death on the cross, and resurrection that I have any hope of being forgiven of my disobedience to Your Word. So, I will set aside some time today to make things right with You. Please bring to my mind any unconfessed sin that I may have forgotten about. I want to be thoroughly cleaned so that I can get my joy, my happiness back. Amen.
Matt’s Musings 