REJOICE ALWAYS

REJOICE ALWAYS – 1 Thessalonians 5:16

The divine Command is unequivocal: “REJOICE ALWAYS” (1The.5:16, nkjv). Other translations say: Rejoice evermore; Always be joyful; Be always joyful; Have joy at all times; Rejoice at all times; Be happy (in the faith) and rejoice and be glad-hearted continually (always). The main focus of this fifth chapter of the epistle is to hand over salient instructions to the church on how to behave toward God. The portion of verses 16 to 18 contains “principles for the inner life,” each dealing with the believer’s life in relationship to God. Like a General instructing his troops, Paul uttered three crisp injunctions: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (vv.16-18). What is the Will of God? Notice the three verses are contained in a single sentence. So, the will of God is not only to give thanks as one may suppose; it is to REJOICE, Pray, and Give thanks!

The three precepts in these three verses may be termed the standing orders of the Christian Church. They are mutually supportive. Praying without ceasing releases grace to rejoice always and give thanks unceasingly. However odd or adverse the circumstances in which we as Christian may find ourselves, the instructions here prescribed are always binding upon us. We are to rejoice always, to pray without ceasing, and in everything to give thanks. We may be passing through peaceful or troubled times; we may be encompassed with friends or besieged by foes; we may be encircled by helpers or overwhelmed by trials; we may access the path we have chosen for ourselves with ease, or find our endeavour hindered at every step; but we must always have the music of the gospel ringing in our hearts in its own proper key.

“Rejoice always” There are situations in which it is natural for one to rejoice, irrespective of whether one is a Christian or not. There are events that cause joy to fill the heart to overflowing dimensions. Joy is spontaneous when we receive God’s richest and best possessions. But that natural joy can hardly be kept up. It would not be good for us if it could; for it really means that we are for the time absorbed in ourselves, and having found our own satisfaction decline to look beyond. We rejoice in health. We rejoice in elevation. We rejoice on founding a new home. We rejoice for conception and safe delivery. We rejoice for the gift of children. These would give almost every person at least a season of undiluted gladness.

The Gospel is good news, “glad tidings of great joy” (Lk.2:10). The Word of God, wherever it goes, is a joyful sound that injects gladness into the heart. As believers, we rejoice in the Joy of Salvation. We rejoice for the grace of sanctification. We rejoice for the Gift of the Blessed Holy Spirit. We rejoice for higher callings in service. We rejoice in the victory of faith. We rejoice in the anchor of hope. We rejoice under the banner of love. All of these are positive, but it was quite another situation that Apostle Paul was dealing with concerning the Thessalonians. He knew that the recipients of his letter had suffered extremely for their faith in Christ; he knew that some of them were facing life-threatening challenges. Yet, Paul issued the divine instruction: “Rejoice always”?

I see this instruction as double-barrelled: first I am instructed to rejoice ALWAYS, at all times, without ceasing; and then, to rejoice in ALL WAYS! By the grace of the Lord and in His Strength, you and I can fully obey the divine Command to Rejoice. The CHOICE to REJOICE is with us every day. To delay or refuse to rejoice is itself a choice. To refuse to choose is itself a choice. It’s an unconscious consent to be overcome rather than to be the Overcomer. When the prophet Habakkuk faced the possible loss of crops and livestock, he turned to the Lord and declared, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation” (Hab.3:18).