July 26
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your forbearing spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.” (Philippians 4:4-5)
Continuing from yesterday, we are discussing why rejoicing is needed, and we said that rejoicing always is needed because to not do so leads to sin. We mentioned yesterday coveting, lust, and greed which can come from being discontent. But there is also the problem of being led to anger, hurtful words, and even out of control violent behaviors when we don’t give thanks and rejoice. Or we can focus so much on the things we don’t like about a person that we cut off relationship with them or gossip about them and run them down to others.
Our behaviors of negativity can be passive or active, verbal or physical, but they are not borne out of love, and they have devastating effects on those around us. A critical, ungrateful spirit is extremely oppressive to others. We all know people like this, don’t we? But the bigger question is to what extent am I like this myself, and can I see this in myself? When I am negative I don’t see myself as bad and hurtful; after all, I am trying to help people become better and make their lives better, am I not? Who wouldn’t want to see their problems and get them fixed? I’m the good guy by pointing these things out, right? In the vast number of cases, I would say, NO! The negativity and critical spirit I express towards others is not helpful to them, nor is the way I often express my “feedback.” It does more damage than good when it is expressed in anger, when there is too many things I complain about, when I am critical of the person rather than just addressing behaviors, when it is given at an inopportune time, when it is unwanted, or when I myself do the same things as I am criticizing in others. These things just make my “feedback” and criticisms just oppressive hypocrisy, in my opinion.
When we don’t rejoice and give thanks for our circumstances and people in our lives, even our trials, we will inevitably be led down the path of temptation: temptation to covet, to lust, to get angry with others and God, to be discontent, to do and say things that destroy rather than build, and to wander away from the will of God, just to name a few temptations. The avoidance of these and other sins are the reasons why rejoicing and giving thanks always are necessary.
The second aspect of this rejoicing principle that I’d like to explore is why it is effective, why it works so well. Obviously, if it helps us avoid the sins just mentioned, it is exceedingly effective. But there is more to it than this. I think that rejoicing and giving thanks is so effective in helping us combat temptations because they help us focus on and acknowledgement of the truth. When we are negative and focusing on what is lacking, we tend to see a skewed side of things, even an unrealistically negative side of things, and falsehoods begin to take root in our minds. We don’t see things correctly when we are negative. Rejoicing and giving thanks bring us back to the truth and allow us to focus on what is true. Very rarely are there individuals and situations in which there is nothing good whatever. Rejoicing and giving thanks for individuals prevents us from viewing them and treating them as the enemy, because they are not, and they set the stage for appreciation and love. Rejoicing and giving thanks to others and showing them appreciation is more effective in bringing about change than hundreds of criticisms and corrections, I am learning a bit late in life. Rejoicing and giving thanks are humbling, because they remind us that we are not God and our judgments can be flawed, and that there is much good that does not come from ourselves or our ability to fix or change our situations, but simply by God’s grace.
Rejoicing and giving thanks are effective because they promote truth, they facilitate love, and they result in humility. But they are also effective because they are right and just. Being negative and ungrateful is an offense to God, an insult to His constant provision and care. Negativity toward others and ungratefulness may even provoke God to anger and incur judgment against us. It is only right and just for us to give God the praise and thanksgiving that is due Him, to love Him as He deserves to be loved, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Rejoicing always and giving thanks for many reasons are critical in our relationship with God and others and in our struggle against sin in our lives.