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"But the fruit of the Spirit is…joy…" (Gal. 5:22).

Of all the fruits of the Spirit of God, joy is the most important for an overcomer. At some time each of us experiences the sorrows, the pains, the agonies, the frustrations, and the condemnations that come while serving the Lord Jesus Christ.

If we desire to conquer all these things, however, we must develop the fruit of joy, because the power to overcome is joy's main attribute.
Because thou served not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things; Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the Lord shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.
(Deut. 28:47-48)
These scriptures reveal the consequences of serving God without joy. According to verse 48, the absence of joy in believers' lives results in their serving the enemy, wanting all things, and having a yoke of iron placed upon their necks.

On the other hand, for those who serve the Lord with joy and gladness of heart, then the opposite will be true. They will overcome the enemy and experience fulfillment in all things and be free of the yoke of bondage.

Thus, there are three functions of the spirit of joy:
1) To produce victory
2) To provide fulfillment
3) To protect against oppression

When the fruit of joy is developed in the life of a believer, we will overcome the enemy. According to 2 Peter 2:19, whatever overcomes a person becomes his master: "While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage."

Whatever overcomes an individual becomes his master. People serve whatever they are in bondage to. Believers are no exception to this rule.

Since whatever overcomes a person places him in bondage, and since whatever he is bound to he serves, then we can see why there are so many believers who are unconsciously bound to the enemy and are unwittingly serving him.

In the same respect, however, if a believer is bound to the Lord Jesus, then he is serving God.

During times of trial, we believers can assess the degree to which we are in bondage to the enemy by measuring the extent to which our trials overcome us. This may be determined by examining our individual response to personal trials, but let each of us examine himself only.

And remember, if we want to overcome, we must first develop the fruit of joy.

Source: A Call For Character by Greg Zoschak
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers

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