There is a relationship between wisdom and Joy. We see this truth in Ecclesiastes 8:1b:
“A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.”
The reason why the wise possess joy is that they work to bring joy to the people around them and not to themselves alone (2nd Corinthians 2:3). Who then are the wise? Proverbs 10:8a answers this question:
“The wise in heart will receive commandments;”
It takes wisdom and humility of heart for a man to abide by the commandments of God. Alas, these two are in short supply in today’s world. No wonder joy is fast becoming a scarce commodity. For a lot of people in the world today, God’s commandments are no longer an issue to be considered. Liberal theologians are busy convincing the gullible that the commandments of God are obsolete, moribund and out of fashion. They argue that the only way to sustain the Christian faith is to abandon the commandments of God as reinforced by Jesus Christ in the gospels. The message of the Bible is being over-contextualized to the point that we have many varieties of beliefs and practices in the Body of Christ today. It’s presented as if when God was giving His commandments, He did not have the whole world in mind. We must admit the truth that when Jesus Christ was teaching His disciples, He was preparing them to evangelise the world. He could therefore not have sent them out to different parts of the world to teach a spiritual curriculum that is different from what He had already taught them as recorded in the gospels. This is the testimony of one of His disciples about their message to the whole world in 1st John 1:3:
“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.”

A hymn writer’s advice would suffice as the crux of the message for today’s devotional: “Trust and obey; for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus; but to trust, and obey.” Only the fear of God, which produces adherence to His commandments, can give you joy unspeakable and make you full of His glory. Be wise today.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.