SERMON – Fruit of the Spirit. Week 2: The fruit of joy
Today I’d like to share the extraordinary story with you—that of a young lady, Frances. Frances was born in New York in 1820 and became an American mission worker, teacher and poet, but is probably best known as a composer of music, having written more than 8000 hymns and gospel songs, the first at just 8 years of age! Millions of copies of her hymns were printed and by the end of the 19th century, Frances had become a household name, known as the “Queen of Gospel Song Writers” and the “Mother of modern congregational singing in America”. Some of Frances’ hymns are included in our own Lutheran Hymnal and we will sing one of them, To God be the glory, great things he has done (#793 in the Supplement) as our closing hymn today.
Great things he has taught us, great things he has done,
and great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son,
but purer and higher and greater will be
our joy and our wonder, when Jesus we see.
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice!
The words of this hymn are what strike me as most remarkable about Frances Jane van Alstyne’s story. Because at just 6 weeks of age Frances suffered from an eye infection. The doctor who treated her put a hot medicated paste on her red, inflamed eyelids. This cleared the infection, but it also caused scars to form on Frances’ eyes, resulting in irreversible blindness. If being blinded at 6 weeks of age wasn’t enough, Frances’ father became seriously ill just months later and died. Yet Frances wrote the words: Let the people rejoice!
How?!!?
I think it’s important to see a distinction between the emotional experience of happiness that the world strives for, and joy as a fruit of the Holy Spirit. True, happiness is also a gift from God, and it’s great to feel happy—let’s be clear about that. Happiness is good, but when it is prized as the absolute goal of life, happiness becomes something God never intended it to be. Society bombards us with messages that our happiness is the most important thing in life. The modern person is encouraged to ‘do whatever makes you happy’ to overcome their problems, worries, disappointments, failures, loss, pain or suffering. Happiness doesn’t reverse or overcome our problems. Happiness is temporary and fleeting, and the more that one strives to be happy, the more one has to strive for bigger and better experiences to get the next hit of happiness.
If you look at the Galatians 5 text in today’s bulletin, you can see that the things that make people happy are not necessarily good. Paul says: “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh.” Paul lists some of those things: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; selfish ambition, drunkenness, and orgies. Those things could make people really happy…for a moment… then just create more pain, shame, and brokenness for others, and oneself.
The goal of this world is happiness, but as the time with the children reminded us, God’s goal for us is joy. This was ultimately fulfilled in Christ, who came to earth to bring joy to the whole world—to all those living in the shadow of darkness and death, and who were not morally superior or as religiously elite. It was to lowly shepherds who the Angel of the Lord appeared to with Good News: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ, the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11). Jesus brought divine joy to beggars, the sick, the unclean, those with no future and no hope, those oppressed by the kingdom of darkness, those ostracised by society, through his ministry to them. He taught his disciples that even persecution was a cause for rejoicing, because of the spiritual reality it revealed:
Blessed are you when people hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil,
because of the Son of Man.
“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven.
For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.” (Mark 6.22-23)
The notion that true Christian joy is found in the midst of sorrow and affliction is a key theme in Paul’s letters too. Paul and Timothy wrote to the church at Corinth: “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” (2 Corinthians 1:8-9)—yet they could also speak about continuing to work with them for their joy. Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians from prison, yet he rejoiced over the opportunity this situation presented to preach Christ to others: “But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way…Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice” (Philippians 1:18). In Chapter 4 Paul joyfully proclaimed: “Rejoice in the Lord always, I say it again—rejoice.”
Paul could speak of joy in the midst of suffering because he knew the source of joy was beyond mere human happiness, but joy from the Lord that therefore transcends human trials and sufferings. Paul’s model for living was Jesus Christ, who focused on his Father’s plan for his life even when it meant giving his life up; humbling himself for the benefit of others. Paul understood that as a follower of Christ, life’s struggles can be endured with a heart of joy because we are no longer citizens of this world, but our citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). This is what Jesus himself taught his disciples: even though they shared in his authority over evil and the demons submitted to them in his name, they were to “Rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20).
When happiness is present, it’s larger than life. It feels good, and nothing feels better or seems more worthy of attention. But happiness is also fickle. It can be present for weeks then flee in an instant. We live in a broken, fallen, sinful world as a part of God’s creation in bondage to decay. We encounter things like being mistreated by people who are supposed to love us, let down by others we trust. We see the evil others do. We might be fearful over our futures and the future of our family. We might know pain, or isolation. We are subject to major sicknesses. The people we love die. Happiness isn’t present in darkness and difficulty. But Christian joy includes gladness, contentment, and pleasure in God and his promises. It’s possible to experience such joy despite trial, grief and uncertainty, and for joy to even prevail.
This is what Frances Jane van Alstyne saw, even though she couldn’t see. Her Grandmother, Eunice, and a landlady to the family, Mrs Hawley, carefully explained the bible to Frances and helped her memorise it, learning five chapters a week. Frances came to know and trust in God’s word and to see Jesus as the Son of God, the source, foundation, direction and beginning and end of life as her Saviour. That’s why Frances could write hymns calling the church to rejoice. She spoke of her blindness as a blessing, saying that if she were able to see all the wonderful things in the world around her, they would distract her from her faith in Christ…and said that her state of physical blindness meant that “when I get to heaven, the first face that shall ever gladden my sight will be that of my Saviour”[1]. In him, Frances had joy, and called other believers to rejoice with her.
Frances couldn’t conjure up that kind of joy or establish it for herself. True joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit’s work in us. In the New Testament, the word for ‘rejoice’, ‘taking pleasure in’, or ‘to be glad’ (Chara) shares the same root as the word for ‘grace’ (‘Charis). Joy is a gift of God’s grace as his Holy Spirit goes to work to produce the fruit of Jesus’ joy within us.
That is why we can know and have true joy even in the midst of our trials and sufferings, like God’s people of old, and like the Apostle Paul—because true joy is not dependent on our circumstances, but on the Holy Spirit, and Jesus the Christ, to whom the Holy Spirit points us to.
Its no coincidence that Frances Jane van Alstyne was so joyful, soaking up so much of the scriptures, even memorising five chapters a week. Meeting with Jesus and receiving the Holy Spirit through the word, God was growing in her the fruit of joy. The Prophet Jeremiah said: “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, Lord God Almighty.” (Jeremiah 15:16).
As today’s people who bear the name of the Lord God Almighty, may we too see God’s word as our joy and feast on it daily. For there we meet with Jesus and receive through him the Holy Spirit, who grows the fruit of Jesus’ joy within us. Therefore, even in the midst of our trials and hardships we might know what true joy is, and what we can truly rejoice in: God’s selfless love, eternal presence and favour with us in Christ, no matter what we are facing in life. Because nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, who was crucified to ransom you from all your sins, died and was buried. In his parable in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus was the mustard seed planted in the ground, so that his death and resurrection would bring forth the tree of faith, the church, so large it has many branches, twigs and leaves, of which you are a part. One day together with all the other saints of all times and places you will see the glory of God and live a life of perfect joy in the life to come.
For as Jesus himself says, I tell you…there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. The tense of the word ‘repent’ is present and active. Every time you repent; every time you confess your sins; every time you seek forgiveness, life and salvation from Jesus through his holy body and blood at his table, God in heaven rejoices over you! Every time, there is rejoicing in heaven in the presence of the angels of God. God takes delight in you, until the day Jesus returns on the clouds to take us and all his faithful people home. Then the words of Isaiah will be fulfilled for you: “Those the LORD has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away” (Isaiah 35:10). Amen.
[1] The Sunday-School World. 1900. Volume 40:8 cited in ‘Fanny Crosby’ (Author unknown) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanny_Crosby#cite_note-33 last accessed June 14, 2024 8:31pm
