Lessons in Joy: A Comprehensive Bible Study of the Word Joy

By Jana Greer

What keeps you from living joyfully every day? Perhaps youve been plagued by too many troubles, or your faith in the Lords plan for your life has faltered. If joy doesnt describe your life, then its time to rediscover it.

Lessons in Joy presents a comprehensive, uplifting Bible study of the word joy and its true meanings. In this nine-week course, Jana Greer explores the different expressions of joy and demonstrates how to apply them to your life. She examines Old and New Testament uses of joy and similar terms and then reveals the various aspects of this fruit of the Spirit.

Each of the nine weeks covers a different theme incorporating various Hebrew and Greek words for joy. Weeks one and two discuss the joy in salvation. Weeks three, four, and five explore aspects of joy through the themes of fogiveness, life, and faith. Weeks six and seven develop the idea of joy in relationships, which culminates in the themes of fullness of joy and Gods joy in weeks eight and nine. Most importantly, every week will provide an opportunity to study and take joy in different attributes of God.

As you study the various aspects of joy and look at who God has revealed Himself to be, you will begin to display abiding joy. What are you waiting for? Its time to experience the awesome power of true joy!

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Feb 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781490887036

Jana Greer

Jana Greer has been involved as a participant or facilitator in numerous Bible studies for several decades. She; her husband, Greg; and their three sons spent several years near St. Petersburg, Russia, as missionaries. She and Greg now reside in Cedar Park, Texas.

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Copyright © 2016 Jana Greer.

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ISBN: 978-1-4908-8702-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-8703-6 (e)

WestBow Press rev. date: 02/26/2016

Contents

Introduction

Week 1—Joy in Salvation Part I

Week 2—Joy in Salvation Part 2

Week 3—Joy in Forgiveness

Week 4—Joy in Life

Week 5—Joy in Faith

Week 6—Joy in Relationship Part 1

Week 7—Joy in Relationship Part 2

Week 8—Fullness of Joy

Week 9—God’s Joy

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, The King James Version.

Scripture quotations identified NIV are from the New International Version.

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society.

Scripture quotations identified NASB are from the New American Standard Bible

Copyright© The Lockman Foundation, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission.

The publisher gratefully acknowledges permission to reproduce the following copyrighted material:

Warren Baker and Eugene Carpenter, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament. Copyright © 2003, by AMG Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

Adam Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary. Copyright 1831, Abingdon Press. Reprinted by permission of the United Methodist Publishing House.

R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer and Bruce K, Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Copyright © 1980, by Moody Publishers. Reprinted by Permission.

Gerhard Kittel, Gerhard Friedrich and Geoffrey Bromiley, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Copyright © 1985, by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. Reprinted by permission.

C.S.Lewis, THE PROBLEM OF PAIN by C.S. Lewis copyright © C.S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. 1940. Extract reprinted by permission.

George MacDonald; Rolland Hein, editor, Creation in Christ: Unspoken Sermons. Copyright © 1976, 2004, by Regent College Publishing. Reprinted by permission.

James Orr, John L. Nuelson, Edgar Y. Mullins, Morris O. Evans, Melvin Grove Kyle, The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia. Copyright 1960, by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. Reprinted by permission.

Stephen Renn, The Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, by Stephenn Renn Copyright © 2005, by Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, Massachussetts. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Frances J. Roberts. Material taken from Come Away, My Beloved, © 1973 by Frances J. Roberts. Used by special permission of Barbour Publishing, Inc., Urichsville, Ohio, U.S.A.

James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Copyright © 1990, by Thomas Nelson Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

Aiden Wilson Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy; The Attributes of God: Their Meaning in the Christian Life. Copyright © 1961 by Aiden Wilson Tozer. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers.

Merrill F. Unger and William White, Nelson’s Expository Dictionary of the Old Testament. Copyright ©1980, by Thomas Nelson Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

Merrill F. Unger, The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary. Copyright 1980, by Moody Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

W.E. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, William White, Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Copyright © 1984, 1996 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Reprinted by permission.

Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Copyright © 1992 by AMG International, Inc. Reprinted by permission.

Introduction

Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ!

This book was written as a favor for two of my very close friends with whom I study the Bible. It was not an ambition or intention of mine to publish it, however they insisted that there were others who might appreciate its contents. I gladly offer you the fruit of what God has given.

Jesus said, Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old (Matthew 13:52 NIV). When I began researching this word, joy, and preparing to write, I prayed that God would help me to understand better what joy is. It was a very simple prayer much like this: God I want to understand joy; not just have knowledge about joy. I don’t want a list of facts, I want to comprehend what You have said on the subject, and I want to apply what I learn. Help me! Take me to deeper places of joy.

In God’s graciousness, He began answering that prayer within moments of my launch. Here’s what happened: I had been enmeshed in looking at various references to joy when I was interrupted by people at the door and later by one of my adult sons. I was having what I thought was a normal conversation with him when he told me I was lecturing him. I was so shocked and horrified I burst into tears. Had I always lectured? I did not want to be that kind of person! I wanted to be a mother who listened and responded as well as spoke truth in a non-lecturing kind of way. He was agitated by my tears and assured me I did not always lecture… I cried more! While no one likes being told about her flaws, I was grateful that he had been honest with me. I asked him to please forgive me and to let me know if in the future I slipped up. We had a peaceful parting, but I was perplexed and asked God, What was that? And here is the answer:

One of the texts I had been reading was chapter eight of the book of Nehemiah. The people were gathered to hear the law for the first time in a long time. There were teachers placed among the people to help them understand what the teachings they were hearing meant. When the people understood the meaning, they began crying because they realized they had broken their covenant with God. Nehemiah and the Levites told the people not to mourn but to celebrate that they understood. They were told, The joy of the LORD is your strength (Nehemiah 8:10). God brought this text immediately to mind when I asked Him about that incident with my son. I just began laughing and rejoiced that the lessons He had in store for me had begun so speedily! Like the Israelites, I mourned when I realized I had offended my son. Like them, I understood something that had previously been hidden from my eyes. Also like them, I had cause to celebrate that I understood what I had previously been ignorant about. My prayer hours earlier echoed in my mind, I want to understand! I am so grateful that He uses familiar passages to teach us new lessons. Furthermore, I understood that joy in Him and His lessons would strengthen me. I knew (and know) that He would be the true author of this study, and I want you to know that He guided and ordered every bit.

Are you like me and want to find out more about joy? I invite you to embark with me on this nine-week study. If you have participated in Bible studies, then the following suggestions will be repetition for you; nevertheless, I would like to encourage you to daily spend time in prayer and study. It is great if you can set aside a certain time and place to be quiet and pray, read, meditate, and write what God has shown you. The version of the Bible that I primarily use is the King James Version. I also occasionally use the New American Standard Bible (NASB), and New International Version (NIV). There are only a few circumstances when I found differences between versions. When you come across a discrepancy in what your version says compared to the question or notes, just remember that I am using the King James Version. Usually I will provide the word or definition as we go so you will not need to use the King James unless you want to. Don’t agonize over it; use the version you like best and savor the variety!

This is a word study, so there will be lots of page flipping! It should take you about thirty to forty-five minutes each day, and each chapter is broken into five-day segments. Each week has different titles that relate to the various aspects of joy presented in Scripture. We will typically take two days to look at the Old Testament, two days at the New Testament, and on the fifth day, we will study one or two attributes of God in order to become more intimately acquainted with the One who is the source of all joy and direction of all joy. Each week, we will also use one or two Psalms as foundations for the practical application of what we have learned about joy. We will offer prayer, praise, and worship in context of what we are learning.

I do not want to disappoint you, but I am not long on commentary. If there is a question you do not understand or aren’t satisfied with, I ask for your pardon and request that you would pray for the wonderful Counselor to supply His commentary, which is much better. I would also like to encourage you to go beyond what the confines of ink on a piece of paper suggest and step out on your own to make this study uniquely yours. If the Holy Spirit prompts you on a certain day through a certain passage to look into something more thoroughly, please be obedient to that prompting and be sure to write it down. Remember, this study is just an aid to generate and promote a deeper relationship with the One who wants you to know Him as you are fully known.

May God richly bless you as you walk beside Him. May He reveal to you unfathomable glimpses of the depths of His joy and the joy that is yours to share. May you drink deeply and sit long at His table and learn to live continually enjoying the presence of the Lord. May you know joy.

In His name,

Jana

WEEK 1

JOY IN SALVATION

PART I

Joy in Salvation, Part 1, Day 1

What motivated you to pick up this book? Were you intrigued by the title? Do you need to experience joy in your life? What is it about this word that captivates us? Joy has many definitions and elicits various thoughts, feelings, and responses from person to person. What is joy—really?

How do you define joy?

In your definition of joy,

you probably use a number of words to describe a feeling, a state of mind, or a state of being. Today and this week, we will look at the most frequently used word for joy in the Old Testament. It more than likely encompasses some of how you just described joy.

The very first instance of this particular word occurs in Exodus.

Read Exodus 4:14.

When Aaron saw Moses, God said he would be 40113.png in his heart.

The Hebrew word is simchah (pronounced: sim-khaw). The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance records it as: "blithesomeness or glee:—exceeding gladness, joyfulness, mirth, pleasure, rejoice."¹

The word that is closely related to it is samach: "A primitive root; probably to brighten up, . . . blithe or gleesome: cheer up, be (make) glad, (have, make) joy(ful), be (make) merry, (cause to, make to) rejoice."²

For convenience’s sake, we will lump these references together because they are so closely related.

Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words gives added clarity to our first word:

Samah usually refers to a spontaneous emotion or extreme happiness which is expressed in some visible and/or external manner. It does not normally represent an abiding state of well being or feeling… The emotion usually finds a visible expression… This emotion is usually described as the product of some external situation, circumstance, or experience.³

What does Vine’s say are the three elements that are suggested by the word samah?

1. Samah refers to a 40539.png emotion.

2. Samah is expressed in some

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.

3. Samah doesn’t represent an 40849.png state of well being or feeling.

Let’s look at a few instances in which we find people in spontaneous jubilance, and their feeling is so strong that they express it in an external act and/or situation in which external and short-lived stimulus have prompted a feeling of joy.

In each of the following passages, describe the moment of spontaneous joy. What action took place? Note that it was momentary.

1 Samuel 11:4-11:

1 Samuel 18:6-7:

1 Kings 5:1-7:

Have you ever gotten good news that caused you to go from sadness or fear to extreme joy? Have you ever been so happy you sang and danced? Have you been so pleased with someone or what he has said/done that you rejoiced greatly? Write about it.

Just keeping in mind the limited definition of joy that we have looked at so far, we recognize that something causes joy. There is a subject that the people are focused on and responding to.

What are some things that bring/cause you to have joy or rejoice? What makes you glad?

As we end day 1, let’s read Psalm 92 and answer the following questions.

Why should we sing praises to God (v. 1)?

How often are we to praise Him for His love and faithfulness (v. 2)?

In what way are we encouraged to praise Him (v. 3)?

What is the object of our joy (v. 4)?

What exactly has God worked for you that you are joyful about right now? Please take some time to list some of these and give Him thanks right now.

Verse 8 makes what joyful declaration?

Rejoice as you meditate on verses 12-15.

It is good for us to praise Him because it is for our good that we recount to one another and to ourselves His loving-kindness and faithfulness. God knows what He has done and doesn’t need for us to tell Him because He is on some ego trip or because He doesn’t remember. It is we who forget so quickly all He does for us every day. We need to recall what He has done; He has done so much! Isn’t it amazing, just as the psalmist states in verse 4, when we begin to recollect what God has done for us that we experience the very thing we are studying—joy!

Rejoice with me that we have made a beginning to not just know joy but to also understand God’s perspective and His Word concerning joy!

Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart; so doth the sweetness of