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Oct 20, 2022 18:30pm

Joy is Coming

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A friend of mine was in desperate need of knee replacement surgery. The doctor had explained the process and the work that would be done, and the tough days of therapy that she would have to push through. But he also told about the relief that would finally come.

As I talked with her one day before the surgery, I asked if she was scared of the road ahead. She said, “you know, I don’t really think about that. My focus is on the end result, a day when I can walk without this pain.”

She wasn’t focused on the pain ahead, but the joy that was coming.

“And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry.” (Matthew 17:22-23)

While talking with His disciples, Jesus once again predicts His death and the betrayal that leads to it. And that’s what the disciples focus on. It says they were exceeding sorry, or extremely sorrowful. They couldn’t imagine their friend, their trusted teacher, their Messiah, being killed. Jesus knew what was to come. He knew what sort of death awaited Him.

He wouldn’t just lay His head down one night and not wake up. He wouldn’t have a heart attack and pass quickly, and He wouldn’t be killed quickly. The cost of sin was far too great. His death would be a crucifixion, one of extreme pain and torture.

But Jesus didn’t focus on that. He said, “and the third day He shall be raised again.”

Jesus knew that the resurrection would come. He knew what it would be like to be reunited with the Father in Heaven. He wasn’t focused on the pain ahead, but the joy that was coming.

Whatever you are going through, there is light at the end of the tunnel. The sun shines brighter after a tough storm. Don’t focus on the pain in the here and now, keep your focus on Jesus and the joy that’s to come!

“…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)