Scripture Text: John 15

"These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and
that your joy might be full" (verse 11).

Chapters 14-16 of John's Gospel, contain the last message, which our Lord
gave to the disciples before He was crucified. That is why; every word of these three
chapters is full of deep meaning. You are inspired as you go through these three
chapters again and again. The messages in these chapters can be summed up in
three small fragments. In John 14:27 our Lord spoke of His peace, in John 15:11 He
spoke about His joy, and in 16:33, He spoke of His victory .The Christian life is
summed up in these three words: Peace, Joy and Victory. In our previous issues we
saw something about true peace, which we have in the Lord Jesus. It is a wonderful
experience to have God's peace. If you have not received that peace, we trust that
the Lord would give you that peace by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He said, "My
peace I give unto you". He spoke the same words when He appeared to His disciples
on the day of resurrection: "Peace be unto you". We find the very same words
repeated in the beginning of every epistle of Paul. Then again, we see in 2 Peter 1:
2, "Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of
Jesus our Lord". By faith in God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, we
have obtained peace.

Now in John 15:11 we find the second experience of salvation. "These things
have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might
be full". Again we find that John says in 1 John 1: 4, " And these things write we
unto you, that your joy may be full". That is the whole purpose of the Bible-our joy
may be full. It is very painful to have our sins uncovered. It is very humiliating when
we see our hidden condition, but God does so to make our joy full. Whatever God
may do to us, either punish us or chastise us, He does it with the same purpose. He
wants to make our joy full. Only then, He is satisfied. We find that the very same
message was brought to the earth, by the heavenly host at the birth of the Lord
Jesus Christ. At that time some shepherds were watching over their flocks in the
fields of Bethlehem. An angel came to the shepherds and said, "Fear not: for,
behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people" (Luke
2:10). This good tidings of great joy is for all people with no exception. People of all
classes and countries can have that joy. Whatever might have been your handicap or
failure or condition or sin, this good tidings of great joy is for you. Whosoever you
may be, if you have the real experience of receiving the Lord Jesus Christ, then you
will have this great joy. Otherwise there is something wrong with your salvation.
Outwardly you may look very happy, but inwardly you are full of misery .You are not
satisfied. We give you this message of good tidings that you too can have that
wonderful joy.

Then we see in John 16:24, "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name:
ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full". These words were spoken by
our Lord to those disciples who were with Him for three years. It is quite evident that
their joy was not full. Our Lord knew there was something lacking in their lives. They
had forsaken all, they were good people, hard working, and God-fearing. Above all,
they knew the Word of God. They knew the prophecies about the coming of the Lord
Jesus Christ. They knew how to make sacrifice for God. They also saw many miracles
during three years, lived with the Lord Jesus Christ day and night, and heard all His
sermons. And yet, our Lord was saying, "I know that your joy is not yet full". If that
was said about them, then what about us? So let us make sure, what kind of joy we
have. In many cases, we find their joy is not full or real.

In 1 Peter 1: 8, Peter calls that joy "unspeakable and full of glory". That joy
cannot be explained. You may be a very good speaker and a preacher. But this joy
unspeakable cannot be explained. We need a heavenly vision to see that joy which is
"full of glory". It lifts us from the earth to heaven itself.

Then, that joy does not depend upon eating and drinking. "For the kingdom of
God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost"
(Rom.14: 17). Most of our joy depends upon eating and drinking. That is how we
find many wives making mistakes. They think, they will be loved by their husbands
for good food and drinks. In the beginning of their married lives, they spend many
hours thinking and planning what to cook for their husbands. They know what they
like and yet they are not satisfied. You find that they are disappointed. This joy,
which the Lord gives, is of a different nature. The joy that comes by eating and
drinking is of a different nature. You may try one day with a good intention, but that
joy will not last long. Some people are not particular about eating and drinking, but
they are after property and possessions. They go on saving money with the intention
of purchasing land, building and property; others amass wealth or cattle or sheep or
diamonds or: jewels. None of these things can give you true joy, even though you
may possess whatever you long for.

If you go to Denmark, you will not find any poor man there; everyone is
prosperous. No one is unemployed. Every one has a good job. They have a
wonderful sanatorium, but no patients. Yet, in Denmark with all their knowledge,
skillfulness and prosperity, they have a larger number of suicides than anywhere else
in the world. Every day, you find young people and old committing suicide. That
happens everywhere, because they depend upon their possessions for their
happiness, so they are disappointed. But in Habakkuk 3:17, 18 the prophet says, "
Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labor
of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from
the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will
joy in the God of my salvation". Even though we lose everything, which we possess,
yet we can rejoice in the Lord. That is true joy. There is a joy, which does not
depend upon land or buildings or prosperity, or any kind of wealth or possessions.
Have you found that joy? It is to give us such a joy; the Lord Jesus Christ came into
the world. So lovingly He is offering that joy to all people in any part of the world.

See Phil.4: 4! 'Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice". "Rejoice ever
more" (1Thess.5: 16). Whether you have good health or bad health, whether you
have many friends or enemies, whether you are in your own home or away from
home, that joy will not leave you. There are many people who become homesick.
They shed tears when they think of their homes. They lose their appetite, sleep and
everything. They are very miserable. They go on sighing day and night. They think
that their joy depends only upon their home. This joy is not like that. In home or
away from home, in the midst of enemies or friends, job or no job, children or no
children, this joy is there.

Repentance means turning our backs towards the devil and our faces towards
God. Such a work takes place only by the Holy Spirit, and not by ourselves. Now,
supposing a sinner in Hyderabad repents today; then straightway, the Lord Jesus
Christ will give a command to the angels saying, "Come along My angels, hurry up,
and bring your wonderful golden harps". There is no organ in heaven. Only golden
harps! The Lord Jesus Christ commands, "Come along My angels, do not delay, come
and rejoice with Me". And, they question, "Lord, what has happened? Why is there
rejoicing today?" The Lord says, "That man in Hyderabad has repented. That short
man has repented, or that tall man has repented. Come and rejoice". The Lord says
to the angels, "He is very precious. I have purchased him with My blood. He is my
precious jewel. Rejoice". That joy began there. Heaven is first filled with joy, and
from there, that joy is poured into that person who repents. And that is why no man
can take away that joy. It begins in heaven and from there it goes on flowing. "And
ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice,
and your joy no man taketh from you"(John 16:22). Your neighbors cannot take it
away. Your friends cannot take it away. No power can take it away. Even your
enemies cannot take away that joy from you. No mother- in -law can take it away,
howsoever cruel she may be, and she cannot take that joy away from you. Many
people lose their joy because of their mothers- in -law. That is not real joy. This joy
no man can take away from you. It begins in heaven. But you have to repent
sincerely. Have you repented? When and how did you repent? What happened when
you repented? Was it whole -hearted repentance? Are you still hankering after sinful
things? That is why your joy is not full. Your repentance is not true. You want to
keep your face both towards God and devil. Some people are like that. They can be
good everywhere. When they come for worship, they are very good. When they go
into the world, they are still happy. Wherever they go, they are happy. They are
blind and deaf spiritually. They are the agents of Satan. Oh, please make sure that
you have repented truly and sincerely.

Secondly, "And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the
devils are subject unto us through thy name" (Luke 10: 17). These disciples were
sent by the Lord Jesus Christ. They were 70 in number. They went two by two, and
returned rejoicing; because they saw many miracles. They said to the Lord, "See,
what mighty things have happened in Your Name". But the Lord said in verse 20,
"Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather
rejoice, because your names are written in heaven". That is true joy. That assurance
that my Lord has written my name in heaven, gives true joy. And that gives
assurance that my sins are forgiven, they are covered, never to be remembered.

They are removed as far as the east is from the west. When you go to he9ven, you
will be welcomed by your own name. Whomsoever you meet, you will be called by
your name. But upon the earth we say, "I have seen you somewhere, but I cannot
remember where". Others may say, "YOU have forgotten me so soon. Only last year
you came to my home and had tea with me, and I gave you so many nice things",
and the person will say, "Yes, yes, now I remember". That is how we forget. But in
heaven, whosoever you are, and whichever place you come from, you will be greeted
by your own name with great honor. It is only after you repent that your name is
written in heaven. The Lord will say, "O My angels, such and such a person in Guntur
has repented; do not look at his false teeth, to Me he is very precious". So your
name will not be forgotten. All will know your name in heaven. That gives joy. Even
though upon the earth very few know me, yet in heaven all will know me, because I
am purchased by His precious blood, and I am a peculiar treasure of the mighty and
living God.

That is why you have to make sure that your sins are forgiven. No man can
forgive your sins. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can. And He will not forgive you unless
you ask Him. He says, "Ask and you shall receive", Ask for heavenly things. Now tell
me when did you ask the Lord to forgive you? What happened to you? Did He say,
"My son, My daughter, thy sins are forgiven thee"? Joy comes into you with the very
same words.

I know the place and the hour when these words came to my ears, "My son,
thy sins are forgiven thee". In the year 1929, on the 16th of December, at 11: 30
a.m. on the top floor of Y.M.C.A. building in Winnipeg, Canada, those words came to
me. My sins were so black and horrible and also shameful, but they were all
forgiven. I believed those words and a great joy filled my soul. Even though I never
knew what the Bible was at that time, I never knew who was Matthew, Mark, Luke or
John, I knew one thing, that my sins were gone, gone for ever. The Lord Jesus Christ
Himself told me this. Has He forgiven your sins? If so, when? And what happened?
Did you find your soul full of thanksgiving? Did you feel your whole being full of
gratitude? Did you see a real change in your life? When someone pays your debt of
Rs.50/-, you cannot help saying, "Thank you very much. On my behalf you paid
Rs.50/-". God has forgiven you more than 50 millions upon millions of sins and He
took upon Himself that debt. Did you thank Him sufficiently and adequately?
Otherwise, that joy will not come to you.

Thirdly, "Thou wilt shew me the path of life; in thy presence is fullness of joy;
at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore" (Psa.16: 11). Real joy comes
with the consciousness that my Lord is with me. You find these words coming again
and again to you. "Behold, I am with you. Fear not, I am with you. I will uphold you,
I will go with you. I will keep you and cover you". That consciousness of His presence
gives great joy. Not your knowledge, but consciousness, that He is the living Savior,
and He says, "Behold, I am alive for evermore"(Rev.1: 18). Are you conscious of His
presence? Has He come into you?

Fourthly, please see 1 Thess.2: 19,20: "For what is our hope, or joy, or crown
of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?
For ye are our glory and joy". Paul is saying this to all those who were saved by
God's grace. When others are saved through you, you find that joy coming into you.
When your neighbors and friends find the same joy through you, your joy will
increase. Every time I find someone receiving that joy, my joy increases.

Once when I was in Yugoslavia, I was going in a train to Belgrade. I saw a
very tall man sitting in front of me. I began to pray, "Lord, give me the privilege of
speaking to that man about his soul". Then I spoke to him and straightway he was
born again. What joy came to my heart! It is a peculiar joy. Kindly tell me, has
anyone in your family or neighborhood found that joy through you? Real joy must be
shared. Long for everyone to get that joy.

Further, we read in Psa.40: 8, "I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy
law is within my heart". It is by delighting to do God's will that we find that joy. It
may take you many days to find God's will. But when you find it, you will have a
peculiar joy in knowing and doing God's will. Is your joy of that nature? Do you have
joy unspeakable and full of glory? Is your joy full? Do you have a heavenly song on
your lips all the time? Even though I cannot sing a single note audibly, I can sing in
my soul the whole day. I find someone singing all the time. It is a heavenly song. Oh
make sure, you have found that joy. We offer that joy to you. Whosoever you are,
right now, this moment, that joy can be yours. The Lord Jesus Christ loves all of us
equally. He only can give us that joy. That joy does not depend upon teachers,
preachers or other people, but on the Lord Himself. If you humble yourself and call
upon Him, straightway He will forgive you. Say, "I am sorry for my sins; kindly
forgive me". He says, "Yes, My daughter, My son, your sins are forgiven. Go and sin
no more. I have paid full price for your sins. Now let Me be your life and your
strength". Such an experience will give you that joy. Please ask for it and receive it.