Author: Mike McPartland
I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!
John 15:11 NLT
In this wisdom from Jesus, he is explaining that he wants his followers to have the same deep, Enduring Joy that comes from abiding in Gods Love and Obeying his Commands. Jesus speaks of a “fullness of Joy” that is not dependent on external circumstances, but is an inner, Spiritual Fulfillment found in a close relationship with God and through Obedience. Jesus’s desire is that this Supernatural Joy, which is a result of abiding in Him, would remain in them and be complete.
Jesus’s Joy he experienced himself from his Loving and Obedient relationship with the Father. It is a deep sense of Peace and Fulfillment, regardless of an external hardship. This verse connects this Joy to the previous passage, where Jesus teaches about abiding in him (the Vine) and keeping his commandments. This Union with Christ is the Source of this Spiritual Joy. Being Joyful means a sense of abundant, complete and satisfying Joy, not a particular or temporary one. It is the complete and total experience of God’s Joy filling a persons life.
Jesus wants his Disciples to have this Joy, and it is promised to those who Obey Him. Obedience is presented not as a burden, but as the pathway to a deeper, more complete Joy in their relationship with God. When Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you, that my Joy may be in you and that your Joy may be full. He means that “His followers can experience the same deep enduring an complete Spiritual Joy that he has in his relationship with the Father.
The Joy is not worldly happiness which is dependent on circumstances, but a stable, internal Joy that comes from Christ and his dwelling of the Holly Spirit. This joy flows from an intimate, abiding relationship with Jesus (The Vine) through faith and communion.The things Jesus spoke of refer to his commandments, particularly the command to “Abide in my Love” by keeping his Fathers Commandments. Obedience is not a burdensome duty, but a pathway to experiencing this Joy.
Joy is meant to remain in Believer’s, meaning it is constant and sustains them even in the midst of trials, suffering, and a world of trouble. Full or complete Joy means an overflowing, unshakable, satisfaction that lacks nothing, fulfilling the deepest desires of a person being. Its the ideal perfection of Human Life.
Jesus shared these teachings so that His Disciples could share in the Victorious Joy of the Son of God and bear much fruit, serving as testimony to the world of the transformative power of God’s Gospel.