In our Lenten sermon series this year, we are looking at Paul's letter to the Galatians, specifically at his list of the fruits of the Holy Spirit in chapter 5. And we are going to dig deep into that list, determining what each of the fruits are based on the original Greek language Paul used to describe them. For each fruit, we will then talk about what the world offers to replace it, and finally, how the Spirit bears that fruit through us. We start tonight, NOT with love, but with the second fruit on the list, the fruit of “joy”....
You've seen the contrast already. I'm confident you know someone, maybe a relative, who lights up as soon as they have the opportunity to tell you exactly how badly their life is going. They are only as happy as they are miserable. And I'm confident you also know someone, whom no matter what tragedy has happened to them this week, they refuse to dwell on it, and they radiate positivity to the people around them. That difference...is joy....
When Paul wrote this letter to the churches in the region of modern-day Turkey known then as Galatia, it was pretty early in the process of the spread of Christianity. Galatians is the first of Paul's letters we have a copy of, written around 50 A.D., and most of the letter warns the Galatians not to get sucked in by people who were proclaiming you had to be Jewish first, before you could become Christian. But Paul also tucks this instruction about the fruits of the Spirit, in at the end. For people who had known of the Holy Spirit for a decade or less, it was important to teach them what to expect, and one of the things they could expect from the Spirit was joy. Paul used the Greek word, “xara,” the same word Luke placed in the angel's mouth announcing the birth of Messiah, and the same word John recorded Jesus saying the disciples would experience upon his resurrection. And if you are looking for a close English synonym to this Greek sense of the word “joy”, your best bets would be “gladness” or “cheerfulness.”
Who on earth would have a problem with cheerfulness? Well, apparently James, the brother of Jesus does, at least in his letter. He advises to let your joy be turned into dejection. But that was written in the context of humbly recognizing our sinfulness, releasing an arrogant and worldly joy in thinking you've gotten away with something. However, there are powerful groups in our society today who use their influence to push us towards the opposite of joy - enmities, strife, jealousy, and anger. Because joyful people make unreliable and unenthusiastic protesters, and these groups would like to see our society torn down and rebuilt for their benefit. And if you're not into protesting, the best the world can offer to replace joy, is a self-manufactured cheerfulness – a stiff, upper lip held in place by sheer willpower and cynicism. Or the fleeting and incomplete joy of a temporary run of good fortune.
But Jesus is clear – his desire for his disciples is a complete joy, a joy that cannot be taken away, even by social media. And therefore, the basis of that joy has to be greater than fickle, unreliable, mortal human beings. The basis of that joy has to be greater than the magnitude of the pain that this life can dish out, like the joy of the new mother who can somehow forget the pain of childbirth. The basis of that joy IS the resurrection of Jesus, the ultimate sign of God's love, and God's trustworthiness. If the joy of disciples is not complete, they are to ask God, and receive.
And the role of the Holy Spirit, then, is to remind us constantly of God's love and trustworthiness, and to convince us to ask. The Spirit reminds us that, like Jesus and the scars on his wrists, when the resurrection comes, we will remember the pain of this life, but only as a fact and not as a feeling. And that helps us deal with the birthing pain right now. The Spirit reminds us that no matter how petty and bitchy, or how evil and cruel the people around us may be – justice is coming with the resurrection, and that helps us let go of grievances. And, the Spirit reminds us that no matter what sinful acts we have done in the past – God wants us with him in the resurrection, and when we draw near to him, he will draw near to us.
If you've done the math, you know that we have 8 fruits of the Spirit left to cover, and 4 more sermons to go. Next week, we WILL look at the fruit of love...and the fruit of kindness.
Gracious God, we thank you for the good news of great joy that your Son Jesus was born, died on the cross, and rose from the dead. Help us to live in this great joy, through the work of your Holy Spirit, in Jesus' name. Amen.