His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. (Matthew 25:23, KJV)
Because of Jesus you can enter into the joy of the Lord. No longer shut outside and rejected, you are accepted into the Beloved. You can be healed, delivered and restored by the Power of Jesus Name.
Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them - walking, leaping, and praising God. (Acts 3:1-8, NKJV)
What joy. What rejoicing. - That is the wonderful thing about the blessings of God; there is such rejoicing in Jesus Christ. He has anointed us with the oil of gladness. This man that Peter and John encountered on the way into the temple, could only sit outside by the gate. He would spend his lifetime shut out. He could never see the beauty or hear the worship. Why? He was an outcast. According to the law, those who were disabled, those considered unclean, could not enter in. They were not considered worthy enough to enter. The man sat outside begging for money: his only thought was money to live, to buy food. Just to squeeze out an existence, nothing more. When Peter says, ‘Look at me’, you can imagine the disappointment when it is followed by the statement, ‘I have no money’.
But Peter wanted to give him something greater, something worth more than silver, more valuable than gold. Peter says, ‘I have the most wonderful, most precious thing in the world. And what I have I give you.’ Reaching out his hand, Peter lifted the man up. And as he stood, he became strong - suddenly his legs were completely healed. The miracle was, not only was he healed, but he could enter into the temple.
Can you understand his joy, his excitement? Shut outside for 40 years, but that day he could enter into the joy of the Lord. He couldn’t contain himself. The Bible says he was leaping and dancing, praising the Lord. He was the living example of King David’s exhortation in Psalm 100:4, ‘Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.’
This man had never walked in his life. I have three daughters; many reading and listening to this message have children. You know how you encourage your children in their first steps; they become stable as their muscles build strength, and so they learn to walk. This man had never learnt to walk. He had never put one foot in front of the other before. All he knew was, it is a miracle! ‘My life has changed; I am no longer disabled. I have a new life.’ He was so full of joy as he leaped and ran into the Temple.
I want you to enter into the joy of the Lord
God has done so much for us. When did you last give thanks for waking up in the morning, having food to eat, water to drink; having the health to work; do you give thanks for the wonders of modern life: electricity, clean running water? If we would open our hearts to the miracles around us, we would overflow with gratitude to the Lord. Rivers of living water would flow out of our innermost being as we give praise to God.
He’s adopted us into His family; accepted us into the Beloved; redeemed us through His blood; all for the praise and glory of His grace.
Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. (Ephesians 1: 5-7, NKJV)
‘Joy’ used by kind permission of www.vinesong.com