We are both fellow human beings who are traveling along life’s pathway-a pathway that began at birth and that will some day end in death. During that brief journey of ours, we are all in pursuit of happiness. Our constitution even states that every citizen of this country has the inalienable right to pursue happiness.
We believe that the Bible, the Word of the living God, shows us the only pathway in which such happiness may be found. This is expressed beautifully in the words of Psalm 146:5: “Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help; whose hope is in the Lord his God.”
Every human being yearns for happiness. Most of us begin each year by wishing each other a happy new year. But reality quickly sets in, and the very happiness we seek so often eludes us.
Why is this so? Happiness is that state of mind which results from our perception of the happenings in our lives. Consequently, our state of being happy or unhappy is frequently contingent upon what does or does not happen. Hence our lives are so often a roller-coaster ride between mountain peaks of happiness and valleys of unhappiness. This is particularly true when our happiness revolves around possessions and pleasure-the two things that so many pursue with abandon.
The happiness spoken of in Psalm 146, however, does not depend on what happens! Rather, it is rooted in the knowledge that the God of Jacob is my Helper, and that this God is my God. When a person knows that God is his God, he can deal with unpleasant and painful circumstances. One can then even be happy when there is every reason to be unhappy.
Dear friend, are you acquainted with this happiness? Do you know the God of Jacob, the God of sinners–the God who is very gracious and pardons iniquity? It is this God of Jacob who so loved a world of fallen sinners that He gave His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that whosoever would believe on Him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
By believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, the God of Jacob can also be your God. Only through this precious Savior can you have a personal relationship with God, for only by believing on Jesus Christ can your sins be forgiven and can you be reconciled with God. And to know that is the real essence of true happiness!
Dear friend, you were created to find your happiness in God. Therefore, as a guilty, needy sinner, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. And then, and only then, shall you be happy. If you are in pursuit of such happiness, I encourage you to explore our web-site, and to worship with us on the Lord’s Day.
Pastor B. Elshout