Psalm 4:7

Main Thought: We are reminded by David here that the source of real and true joy is our Lord. David points to what the worldly think will bring them satisfaction or joy, and that is the abundance of the things that they accumulate, in this case, grain and wine. But as we know from looking at the world around us and the history of mankind, what possessions or abundance a person has is never enough to bring lasting happiness and satisfaction. I am reminded of the words of Solomon, who possessed greater riches than any king of Israel’s history, but in Ecclesiastes 5:10-11 he writes “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes?” While the world does not understand the source of true satisfaction and joy, David points to the One who gives us joy and is the source of our joy. David credits God for giving him joy and causing him to continue with joy in his soul. In Psalm 16:11, David said that in God’s presence “there is fullness of joy” and in Psalm 43:4 he proclaimed that God is his “exceeding joy” As a child of God, we have been given joy in our souls by God that will last throughout our lives and into all eternity. It does not mean we will never feel sadness or pain, but we know the joy in our souls will never pass away because as God, the source of our joy is eternal, so is that joy. We can have every single earthly comfort taken away from us, but the world cannot take away our joy as a child of God. I am reminded of Paul and Silas, beaten with rods and having many blows inflicted upon them, then thrown into a Philippian jail, in the blackness of night and a prison cell breaking out in singing hymns to God (Acts 16). What was the source of their praises and singing? It was the joy of the Lord that caused their praises; our Lord, the source of eternal joy, was their possession and not the things of this world. This reassures us that we will have joy from praising God in every situation of life and the greater the burden, the more joy our God supplies us with. Do not look enviously upon those with more in this world, as if that gives them lasting joy. No, understand that the joy that God gives exceeds every joy of this world and it is a joy that will never end.