The Fruit Of The Spirit: The Second Fruit—Joy

by on July 16, 2024

Many people think that the purpose of life is to be happy. If you stop, look around, and think about it, you will notice that the chief pursuit of many people’s lives is happiness or pleasure. People today want to be happy. They want to have satisfaction and gratification. People want to feel good. In this pursuit, people spend absurd amounts of money on health and wellness products and services. In the pursuit of happiness, people experiment with drugs, sex, and various spiritualities. The catechism for this way of thinking is that the chief end man is to be happy and enjoy oneself forever.

But reality strikes. Few people are actually and truly happy. And it seems like the harder they try to be happy, the less happy they actually are. Depression, anxiety, and fear are in reality more prevalent than happiness. The pursuit of happiness is a strange thing. It promises much but delivers little. As we know from Scripture, idols are destructive. If a person’s idol is happiness, he is serving a master that can never be satisfied. Ironically, the idol of happiness always leaves a person in lonely sorrow.

From a Christian perspective, thinking along the lines of happiness, there is such a thing as enjoyment. God gives us many things to enjoy in life (1 Tim 6:17). What is more, the Christian catechism says that the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever (WSC 1; emphasis added). In fact, joy is the second fruit of the Spirit on Paul’s list (Gal 5:22). In Geerhardus Vos’ terms, joy is a “general characteristic of the Christian life.”1

It might surprise some readers, but the Bible even talks about God himself rejoicing. He rejoices over his people like a groom rejoices over his bride (Isa 62:5). When Christ, the Good Shepherd, finds a lost sheep, he rejoices over it (Matt 18:13). The Bible says that some things give the Lord joy. Scripture does not portray him as a stern, grumpy god who has no delight in anything. Made in his image, we too can experience joy.

What Is Joy?

For most people, joy is feeling pleasure or happiness. If you know someone who always seems cheerful, people might say they are happy or joyful. Sometimes, we can use the term “joy” to describe a general feeling or emotion of happiness. In fact, since God is kind, he is good to people, and he provides them with “plenty of food” and fills their “hearts with joy” (Acts 14:17). Even unbelievers can experience some kind of gladness or joy because God is kind.

But when Paul talks about joy as the Spirit’s fruit, it is much more than a general sense of pleasure or happiness. It is much deeper and more meaningful. One Bible dictionary says that joy is a “state of delight and well-being that results from knowing and serving God.”2 Joy is such a prevalent theme in Scripture that all the major Bible dictionaries have an entry on joy. Reading and studying a few of those dictionaries would be a good exercise to get a helpful overview of the biblical meaning and nuances of joy.

For our purposes, we will keep it brief. We must note that this fruit of the Spirit is not just a happy feeling we get when things are going well. This kind of joy is not the sense of pleasure we get after going shopping or watching our favorite team win another game. Instead, joy as the Spirit’s fruit is a spiritual quality or virtue like the fruit of patience and self-control. When the Holy Spirit is working in a person’s heart, the joy he brings is not just a warm fuzzy passing emotion. Joy is an attribute or characteristic of the Christian heart, like kindness and goodness. Joy sometimes does overlap with our feelings of happiness and pleasure, but joy is deeper—it is from the Spirit-renewed heart.

A basic definition of joy in Galatians 5:22 goes like this: joy is a God-centered spiritual virtue that comes from the Holy Spirit’s work in us. That statement could be expanded upon to include the reality that joy is a result of regeneration and a response to the saving work of Christ. But let us think about it more in terms of how Paul discusses it in Galatians 5:22. As we learned before, the fruit of the Spirit means that it is produced in us by the Holy Spirit. Joy in our hearts comes from the Spirit working in our hearts.

It Is Joy from the Lord

Think about it like this: a woman you know does not believe in Christ; she says she is not a Christian and it is clear that she is not. But at some point, after hearing about Jesus’ death for sinners, she comes to faith. The Spirit works in her heart, opens it, and gives her new life in Christ. She used to be dead in sin, but now she is truly alive in Christ. That indeed is a work of the Spirit (John 3:5; Titus 3:5). Following this new life, the waterfall of blessings showers upon this woman. She is joined to Christ, forgiven, justified, adopted, and promised eternal life with the Lord. Even more, the Spirit keeps working in her heart and mind to sanctify her. The Spirit produces his fruit in her life, and she grows in love, patience, kindness, and all of the fruit, including joy. She sings the words of Isaiah: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord . . . my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation” (Isa 61:10). That is why the Heidelberg Catechism says that this new life results in “wholehearted joy in God through Christ” (HC  90).

This joy is not simply a fleeting emotion or feeling. Rather, it is a great Christian virtue and a spiritual quality. This fruit, joy, comes from God the Holy Spirit. That means it does not come from the things of this world. You can get temporary happiness from things in this world. A new car would give me some happiness. Getting a bonus at work puts a smile on our faces. Some people are really happy when they get the latest and greatest iPhone. But those things cannot give us true, deep, real Christian joy. Cash, cars, kitchens, and even kids—they cannot create joy in our hearts. If you are looking for true, deep joy, you will not find it in the things of this world. Trying to find joy in the things of this world is like trying to get a university degree without going to school at all. It is impossible. To paraphrase Augustine, it is true to say that a human heart is joyless until it finds joy from the Lord and in the Lord.

It Is Joy in the Lord

In Philippians 4:4 Paul calls us to “rejoice in the Lord always.” He then repeats it: “I will say it again: rejoice!” In writing that, Paul was likely thinking of the Psalms, specifically Psalm 32:11: “Rejoice in the Lord and be glad!” (cf. Ps 35:9, 40:16, 64:10, etc.). Without getting too far aside, it is worth mentioning that biblically speaking, joy and gladness are very much related. The point I want to make from Paul’s exhortation is that this joy is in the Lord. It is from the Lord, and it is in the Lord. In other words, our Triune God is the source and the object of our joy. Scripture talks about joy in various ways. For example, we rejoice in God’s salvation, in his works, in his goodness, and in his Word (2 Chr 6:41, Ps 104:31; 13:5; 119:162).

What exactly does it mean to rejoice in the Lord? We have maybe heard it a hundred times. From one angle, it is similar to “trust in the Lord” (e.g. Prov 3:5). Put your faith in Christ. Similarly, we should put our joy in the Lord. True rejoicing is God-ward and God-centered. You take joy from God’s love. You rejoice that he cares for you and is kind to you. Your joy comes from being forgiven and loved by God. You derive joy from Christ’s death and resurrection to save and rescue you. Indeed, in God’s presence, there is an abundance of joy (Ps 16:11). I suppose it is circular: we receive joy from God, and our joy is in God. He is our joy. That is also why joy is not simply an emotion but a virtue—a wonderful spiritual quality.

There is a twin truth to this. First, there is such a thing as true joy. To have a joyful heart is not fiction or fantasy. We do not have to go through life sad, gloomy, and depressed. Maybe you know someone like Eeyore on Winnie the Pooh. It is always raining in his world. He says things like, “Don’t worry about me—go on and enjoy yourself. I will stay here and be miserable.” Or he says, “It could be worse. I’m not sure how, but it could be.” Everyone has gloomy days for sure. But in the Christian faith, we know that our God is good and that by his Holy Spirit, in Christ, he gives true and genuine joy. Joy, like love, makes life sweeter and full of color and beauty. As a follower of Christ, you can actually have real joy inside because the Spirit is at work in you. That is a blessing indeed! Imagine life with no joy in your heart. It would be a dull, dreary existence. Thank God that there is such a thing as true joy that we can experience in life.

The other truth is that this joy is a gift from God. He gives us joy by the work of the Spirit in us. When we trust in Christ, there is joy in it! Martin Luther was right when he said, “The Father sent the Son, not to oppress us with heaviness and sorrow, but to cheer up our souls in him.”3 This means we do not have to do a ton of things to get joy in our hearts. We cannot purchase joy. It is not like joy is a merit-based reward for good works. There is joy in trusting and obeying the Lord. But when the Spirit renews our hearts and gives us faith, hope, joy, and all the benefits of Christ, we rightly call joy a gift of grace that comes along with regeneration, faith, and salvation.

What Does this Fruit Look Like?

One characteristic of this joy is that it is solid and well-founded. Joy has a strong, multilayered foundation. Our joy is founded on God. It rests on the finished work of Christ. It is based on the Spirit’s work in us. In other words, joy has a triune foundation, and the foundation is eternal. It will not give away. The reason for us to rejoice will literally never end. Jesus tells us that when we see him, we will rejoice, and no one will take that joy away (John 16:22). In this fallen world, our joys will always be mixed with sorrows. But in the world to come, all sorrow will be gone, and joy will prevail.

Joy is not only solid and eternal; it is also deep. The fruit of the Spirit results from his work in our hearts—deep within us, the core of our being. The psalmist mentioned deep joy in the heart in Psalm 28: “The LORD is my strength and shield . . . he helps me, and my heart is filled with joy” (Ps 28:7; NLT). As I mentioned earlier, joy is not a surface emotion or a fleeting feeling. It is a deep reality in the heart of the Christian.

Because joy is solid and deep, we can, as Paul wrote, rejoice in the Lord always. Christians literally always have reasons to rejoice. God loves you and is your heavenly Father, even on your worst days. Rejoice! Christ’s death and resurrection are facts that are always true. He died for you and now lives for you. Rejoice! His blood washes away your sins even when it does not feel that way. Rejoice! You are not a lost cause because God’s Spirit is working in you. Rejoice! No matter what happens, because you belong to the Lord, he will bring you to glory. Rejoice! The Christian always has reasons to rejoice.

Depression is real. It is a hard topic and a serious thing. Something like one in ten people will deal with severe depression in their lives. Even Christians sometimes get depressed. When depression comes, joy seems like an impossible concept. Depression clouds our vision and weighs down our hearts. But even on the darkest days of the Christian life, God’s love is still steadfast, the tomb is still empty, and the Spirit is still at work. The solid foundation for joy remains. And the foundation is so solid that as sure as the sun rises, so surely will the Lord restore to us the joy of his salvation.

Because this God-given joy is deep and has a firm foundation, we can rejoice through tears and sorrow. On the one hand, life is hard. We do suffer. We will until we die or until the Lord renews creation on the Last Day. On the other hand, God is good. Christ lives. The Spirit really works in God’s people. He will make all things new one day (Rev 21:5). Those are always reasons for rejoicing. Paul even said we can rejoice through our suffering because—by God’s grace—it is productive. It produces endurance, character, and hope (Rom 5:3–6).

Another characteristic of joy is that it grows. This fruit ripens and matures. As you grow in faith and in the knowledge of Christ, your joy grows. The more you learn about his perfect work of salvation, the more it gives you gladness. The more you understand God’s sovereign providence, the more you understand why you can rejoice daily. The more you experience life in the family of God, the church, the more you learn to rejoice with those who rejoice. Indeed, joy is well-founded, deep, and it grows.

Cultivating Joy

The fruit of joy is produced in us by the Spirit. God does give us joy. But Scripture also commands us to rejoice (Phil 4:2). Joy is a duty. It is not a suggestion; it is an imperative. Joy has to do with our sanctification. We are commanded to trust the Lord and obey him—and rejoice in him. To paraphrase something I heard from Jerry Bridges, we have a “dependent responsibility” to be joyful. We depend on the Spirit to enable and help us rejoice. But we also, by grace, do what we can to cultivate joy. This is a complex subject. But since God has commanded it in Scripture, we submit and say the Lord knows best. If he tells us to rejoice, I will not argue or debate it away. I will do my best to listen.

There are ways we can cultivate joy in our lives. You could probably add more, but let me give three biblical ways of growing joy. These three are related. First, we grow in joy by reading and hearing the Word preached. The psalmist rejoiced in God’s Word like a person who found great treasure (Ps 119:162). The Word is a treasure that gives joy. Read it. Memorize it. Hear it preached. Obey it. Joy comes through the Word.

We can also cultivate joy through worship (which includes prayer). The Psalms are full of examples that show God’s people worshiping him together in joy. In fact, Psalm 95 calls God’s people to come to worship with thanksgiving and to make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise (Ps 95:2). Jesus did link prayer and joy: “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:24). The psalmist prayed for joy: “Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad” (Ps 90:14). When we sin, we should repent and pray with David that God would restore to us the joy of our salvation (Ps 51:12). Pray that God would give other believers joy as well (Rom 15:13).

Christian fellowship also helps increase joy. It is not good to be alone. Of the handful of true loners I have met in life, none of them were joyful. When Paul said, “rejoice in the Lord,” he was talking to the church, not one single person. That is also why he said we should “rejoice with those who rejoice” (Rom 12:15). The fruit of the Spirit is not meant to be kept hidden or private. Being around other Christians will, among other things, increase our joy. To paraphrase a popular quote, we can even say that Christian fellowship doubles our joy and divides our grief.

Conclusion

The topic of joy is significant in Scripture. It is a rich and sweet part of the Christian faith—one that warms the heart. We can love and laugh and be joyful as we follow Christ together. Yes, we are pilgrims now; our joys and sorrows are mixed as we live in a fallen world. But one day, sorrows will be gone. Joy will remain. When Christ comes again to bring in the new heavens and earth, it will be the first day of an eternity of joy. On that day, we will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation” (Isa 25:9; NIV).

Notes

  1. Geerhardus Vos, The Collected Dictionary Articles of Geerhardus Vos (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2013), 654.
  2. Robert J. Dean, s.v. “Joy,” ed. Chad Brand et al., Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 956.
  3. Martin Luther, Commentary on Galatians (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 523–524.

© Shane Lems. All Rights Reserved.

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    Post authored by:

  • Shane Lems
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    Shane Lems is a graduate of Westminster Seminary California and has a DMin from RTS Orlando. He has been a church planter and pastor in the URCNA. Since 2013 he’s been serving as pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church (OPC) in Hammond, WI. He is married and has four children. Shane has written numerous articles for Modern Reformation, New Horizons, and other publications. He is also the author of Doctrines of Grace: Student Edition and manages a book blog, The Reformed Reader.

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