You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

                                                                                                                   Psalm 16:11

For the Christian, only one thing matters, to be with God. A born again believer in Jesus has moved from spiritual death to life. Because of this transformation, the priority of life shifts from self to God Himself. For the believer, nothing in this life can compare to knowing and being with the Lord, in this life and the next. Yet when I look around, I often see the opposite reality. There seems to be a real lack of fervency in knowing our Creator and enjoying fellowship with Him. To be honest, at times, I see that reality in my own spirit as well. There are so many distractions in this life, diversions that take us off course, turning our attention and affections away from the One that really matters. But for the one who makes fellowship with God a priority, there are tremendous rewards. An abundant life, intense joy, and spiritual pleasures are just some of these benefits. That is what the Psalmist is reflecting on in today’s passage.

(1) You will make known to me the path of life. God is the Creator of life. He literally breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of Adam and he became a living being (Genesis 2:7). And this is exactly why Jesus came into the world, to bring us life, spiritual, abundant life. Apart from Christ, we are spiritually dead. Oh, we may be walking around and breathing air, we may even feel invincible (on a good day), but when difficulties come, we are reminded of our weakness and dependency on God. To be outside of Christ is to be outside of the will of God. He desires for you to have life and to have it more abundantly, but that can only be accomplished when we give up and surrender ourselves to Him (Romans 10:13). Consider the following:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

                                                                                                                 John 10:10 

Studying scripture is important because it allows us to get at the heart of what is really being communicated to us. This abundant life that Jesus came to give us is a life that is over and above. It is a superior, extraordinary, and uncommon life. But Jesus says that we have a spiritual enemy who desires nothing more than to steal our joy, hope, and assurance. This enemy desires to kill and destroy any spiritual life that may be in us. The only effective defense against these spiritual threats is to spend time with God. The very presence of God dispels any fear or concern that we may have as a result of spiritual attacks. Which leads us to the Psalmist second declaration.

(2) In Your presence is fullness of joy. The Christian’s joy is not to be conditional. It doesn’t depend on a promotion or material gain or everything going our way. As believers, our joy comes from our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Consider the following:

…and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.

                                                                                                                   1 Peter 1:8-9

This joy should cause us great rejoicing and is described by Peter as inexpressible. It can’t really be described in words. While the root of this joy is in a relationship with God, its end is the salvation of our souls. The knowledge and assurance of one’s eternal destination is not just comforting, but empowering. Assurance produced by joy creates, in the believer, an unstoppable spiritual power that promotes growth in the church and provides for effective proclamation of the gospel to the world. Perhaps this is why the enemy spends so much time trying to dismantle our assurance, while sowing seeds of discord throughout the church. Again, the best defense against spiritual turmoil is to spend time in God’s presence. Which leads us to the last declaration.

(3) In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. As believers we are told to expect persecution (John 15:18-19). But this persecution comes from the world, not Christ Himself. How many people have been led to believe that the demands Jesus places on His followers are heavy and burdensome? Consider the following:

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

                                                                                                           Matthew 11:28-30 

Let’s listen to Jesus describe what it means to be His follower. His yoke can be defined as the expectations that come with the Christian life as opposed to what the world demands of us. This yoke is described as easy, which literally means kind and can be translated as pleasurable. The Psalmist recognizes the pleasure that comes from knowing God and enjoying fellowship with Him. This is where religion can get in the way, causing us to make the Christian life much harder than it need be. Knowing Jesus means having abundant life, inexpressible joy, and enjoying life the way He originally created it to be. Spend sometime today asking God to show you “the paths of life”, “fullness of joy”, and the “pleasures” that are in His right hand!

This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

                                                                                                             John 17:3