¹¹ “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

The intimate circle of those who have forsaken all to follow Christ involves a fellowship of joy. While He spoke to the multitudes in parables, Jesus would follow with an explanation to His disciples. Now He again explains His teaching, this time the reason for teaching these things.

What things? In the space of a few hours Jesus had covered a lot of ground. He spoke of serving and being served (a lesson Peter had to learn specifically by submitting to Jesus washing his feet). But Jesus also spoke of leaving them, and of His suffering and dying. And He spoke of betrayal and denial from among their ranks. How could such sobering thoughts bring joy?

But He said all those things (among others), “so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” Actually, joy was not an uncommon teaching in the Upper Room. Used six times, the word means the experience of gladness or feeling pleased. The only answer is that the joy He was talking about was not circumstantially sourced, but grounded in something above and beyond the here and now. Though as believers, we are anchored in eternity, we so easily take our eyes off Jesus and look at the surrounding storms of life, and like Peter, we begin to sink away. Yet God wants us to be water-walkers, living out the supernatural enabling of the Holy Spirit. There is a joy in seeing the bigger picture and that the present difficulty is very small compared to what is coming.

Paul puts it this way, “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Co 4:17–18). Does that thought not bring joy? There are better things ahead, and that will sustain us. The catalyst to joy, though, is faith (see Phil 1:25). The truth of our position and the promises given to us do not automatically produce joy. The truth must be mixed with faith.

Jesus faced the disciples with the truth about what was about to happen. Their faith was in process and, as often was the case, they would fail the test of faith (e.g. Peter denying the Lord three times, the rest abandoning Him in His crucifixion). But the resurrection would change everything. Then their joy would be great, because the puzzle pieces of faith would finally fit together.

Lord, through faith I believe that even my most difficult times of life are nothing compared to the joy of knowing I will share in Your glory.