The book of the prophet Joel is known as the front-runner to the book of revelation. This is a very significant book which mentions the day of the Lord as a prominent theme. The Day of the Lord implies the second coming of the Lord Jesus. We are encouraged to study it thoroughly and read this book until you get it fully into your mind.
Why be joyful? Why rejoice always?
The Bible tells us to rejoice in all circumstances. Make these declarations aloud. Believe them as you declare them daily. A person filled with joy of the Lord knows: For with God nothing shall be impossible (Luke 1:37). Hence filled with hope and sees possibilities.
Jesus redeemed us from all our sins – past, present and future. Jesus paid the price i.e. penalty for our sins by dying on the cross. So we are free. We are no longer slaves to our old sinful nature. This is a great reason for us to rejoice. We have freedom.
Discipline of a Christian
As Christians we are to pray and read the Bible daily. Ideally we are to have a quiet time with God daily, hear Him daily. We are to praise and worship Him daily at home. We are to have a daily quiet time at home. We are to go to church and worship God as a community. We are to have Holy Communion as often as possible. We need to forgive ourselves and others. We need to be obedient to what the Lord directs us to. We need to be willing to sacrifice as well as share and be charitable. We need to love ourselves and others. And many more.
All these may not be our default nature, but we can choose to discipline ourselves in all these. Most importantly we need to love God above all and be fully confident about His great love towards us. We have this verse from Proverbs 3:5-6 which says this. Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. All these are elements of a disciplined Chritian life. With discipline complemented by faith we can develop a consistent lifestyle which pleases our Lord and saviour.
