And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
On the occasion of the Feast of the Virgin Lady, and as a continuation of explaining the Hymn of the Virgin which was the subject of our discussion last week, we continue our meditations on this hymn, especially in the saying of the Virgin: “And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. For He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His Name. And His mercy is from generation to generation” (Luke 1:46, 47).
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
The spiritual person lives in continual joy, the cause of which is an unceasing peace in the heart, and faith in God’s care for him. Even if his present does not make him rejoice, he has hope that God will arrange everything for his good.
The spiritual person is possessed by joy. Even if he becomes sad, his sadness turns into joy. He is in constant cheerfulness, his features filled with peace, and in his mind the saying of the Apostle:
“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice.”
The holy Fathers present sadness as one of the wars of the enemy of الخير.
Thus we read in the writings of Mar Oghris, and John Cassian, and all the ascetic books. Sadness is one of the eight thoughts that war against the soul.
Satan casts sadness into the heart of man, to turn him to despair. Then he distances him from God, and makes him feel that God does not care for him.
So you find this person continually gloomy, disturbed, sad, confused, not confident in the help of the Lord. In his despair he may surrender to any situation. But the believing son of God continually sings the saying of the Virgin: “My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
False joy:
When we speak about joy, we mean spiritual joy, because there are types of false joy: sinful worldly joy, or childish joy.
Among examples of childish joy: Jonah who rejoiced over the gourd, or the elder son who desired “a young goat to make merry with his friends.” And Solomon rejoiced in his labor, which he later said was vanity and grasping for the wind. Also the saying of Scripture: “The heart of fools is in the house of mirth.”
Among types of sinful joy is rejoicing in spiritual gifts…
The disciples rejoiced that the demons were subject to them, so the Lord said to them, do not rejoice in this, but rather rejoice that your names are written in the kingdom of heaven. Thus He turned them from a false joy to a spiritual joy.
Among examples of this also is the joy of speaking in tongues and desiring that, and the joy in tears in prayer rather than in the fellowship of the Lord and tasting Him.
Although the Apostle Paul spoke in tongues more than all, he fought this vain desire, and preferred instead to speak five words with understanding. And when Paul’s spiritual gifts increased, lest he be exalted above measure because of the abundance of revelations, the Lord gave him a thorn in the flesh.
Among false joys also is joy in material things and the matters of the perishing world… the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. It is the joy of the senses, joy in the world that passes away and its lust with it…
But the worst kind of false joy is a person’s joy at the fall of his enemy… his joy at the destruction of his enemies and their ruin.
Therefore Scripture says, “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the Lord see it and it displease Him” (Prov. 24:17). And also: “Love does not rejoice in iniquity” (1 Cor. 13).
Spiritual joy:
Like the joy of the disciples when they saw the Lord, and the joy of the Magi when they saw the star, and the joy of those who tasted and saw that the Lord is good.
Among examples of joy in salvation: “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation.” “My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” It is joy in the Lord who leads you in the procession of His triumph.
Salvation from our enemies and from all who resist us, which David sang of in the Psalms:
“I was pushed that I might fall, but the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.” “Come and see the salvation of the Lord.” “The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive… Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. The snare is broken, and we have escaped.”
Rejoice in the salvation of the Lord: from temptations, from sins, salvation for you, for your beloved ones, and for the Church. Rejoice also in the salvation of sinners; here and in heaven there is joy over one sinner who repents. You rejoice and are glad, because this your brother was dead and is alive again, was lost and is found…
It is joy in salvation. “A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you.” “The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.” “They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you. For I am with you, says the Lord, to deliver you.” “I am with you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land.”
Joy in salvation is holy joy. With it the angel announced to the shepherds: “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to you and to all the people. For there is born to you today a Savior.” And joy in salvation is greater happiness.
Those who fell and were saved were happier than those who did not fall. Those who were fought and overcame were happier than those who were not fought.
I feel Your hand, O Lord, as it shuts the mouths of lions, as it makes a way in the sea, and brings forth water from the rock. Therefore this joy brings me into a life of experience, the experience of God’s work in our lives.
And he who rejoices in the salvation of the Lord does not become proud, because salvation was accomplished by the Lord. It was not because of our strength or our righteousness… The Mighty One has done great things for me.
Try to sit with yourself and contemplate the salvation of the Lord in your life and in the lives of people. How many times the Lord snatched you as a brand from the fire without being burned. The salvation of the Lord is a long story… the story of David with Goliath, the story of Mary Magdalene from whom the Lord cast out seven demons, the story of Mary the Copt, and Pelagia, and Moses the Black, and Augustine…
“I was pushed that I might fall, but the Lord helped me.” His hand lifted me up. His voice rang in my ear: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” “You have dwelt long enough at this mountain.”
“You were polluted in your blood, and I passed by you and saw you; and indeed your time was the time of love. So I washed you in water, anointed you with oil, adorned you and made you fit for a kingdom” (Ezek. 17).
You, O Lord, raise the poor from the dust, and lift the needy from the ash heap, to seat him with the princes of Your people. And when this poor one sits with Your saints, he says nothing but, “My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
Perhaps the most beautiful kind of spiritual joy is joy in the Lord and in fellowship with Him.
The deepest joy is joy in the Lord Himself, not in His gifts, nor in His talents. Joy in meeting Him, in His fellowship, in enjoying Him and tasting Him.
He who loves the Lord rejoices in everything that concerns Him: in His word, in His house, in His children, in His service, in His kingdom, in His sanctuaries, in His trials, in His cross…
“I rejoiced at Your word as one who finds great spoil.” “Your words were found, and I ate them, and they were to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart.” “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.’” “How lovely are Your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts; my soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the Lord…”
You may rejoice in a word from the word of God, and find in it a treasure of meditations; you see it as a light to your path, sweet to your throat, and a great cause for your consolation.
A person who rejoices in the Lord: since he knew Him, he knew the way of joy. He rejoices in the word, in prayer, in service, in God’s work in him, in his fellowship with the Holy Spirit, and in the hand of the Lord that shapes his life.
Sin continually brings sadness, and life with the Lord brings joy. The matters of the world may appear joyful, and their end is sorrow. The matters of the Lord may appear sorrowful, and their end is joy: “as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.”
One sin can turn your life into hell, if your conscience awakens, and however you flee from it, it follows you and troubles you. But sorrow for the sake of God turns into joy, and no one can take your joy from you, joy inexpressible and full of glory.
Sin removes your joy, even when you meet the Lord Himself…
When Adam sinned, he did not rejoice at meeting the Lord, but hid from Him. And sinners on the day of the coming of the Lord will say to the mountains, “Cover us,” and to the hills, “Fall on us.” And at His coming all the tribes of the earth will mourn. Therefore it was said about His second coming that it is “fearful and full of glory,” and it was said, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
He who rejoices in the Lord here will rejoice in the Lord there. He who pleases Him now will rejoice at His second coming and will be lifted up with Him on the clouds.
If you rejoice in the Lord, Satan will envy you, and will stir up against you his soldiers and his temptations. Do not be concerned, but count it all joy when you fall into various trials.
The children of God rejoice in trials and in the cross: “Therefore I delight in infirmities.”
Knowing that all things work together for good to those who love the Lord.
Perhaps the greatest joy is the final joy, in meeting the Lord.
An article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III – in El-Keraza Magazine – Seventh Year (Issue Thirty-Five) 27-8-1976
For better translation support, please contact the center.
