“The commandments of the Lord are right,
bringing joy to the heart” (Psalm 19:8, NLT).
We may not normally think of God’s commandments as sources of joy. We tend to think that they are challenging and sometimes difficult and that we may not feel good as we keep them. But if we reflect a little more we realize that it is God’s commandments that bring us life and joy. A few lines earlier in this Psalm we hear that God’s instruction revive the soul (v. 7).
God’s commands don’t just keep us from being destructive they also guide us into peace and maturity. They guide us into communion with God in Christ. This is why Jesus said: “If you love me, obey my commandments” (John 14:15, NLT). He wants us to follow what he taught (the Sermon on the Mount and everything else) because these directives keep us abiding in him. And so he said: “Remain in me, and I will remain in you” (John 15:14, NLT).
How encouraging is this? Keeping his commandments keeps us abiding in him, enjoying his presence in us, and partaking of the nutrients that flow from him, as the Divine Vine, and into us. What greater joy can we find? Therefore, we can study, delight in and pursue all the commandments of Jesus and his Apostles knowing that we are on the road to greater joy in our growing union of love with Christ.
