A Word in Season: Joy and Sorrow (Romans 12:15)

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One of the sweet distinctives of our compassionate and gracious High Priest is the sympathy that he has with us as we go through this life.

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And that kind of sympathy ought not simply to come from Christ toward us, but from us toward others who are in Christ Jesus.

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It's for that reason that in Romans chapter 12 and verse 15 the Apostle exhorts those

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Christians to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Now part of the foundation for this is indeed that union that we have with Christ and therefore communion with him and with one another.

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Paul insists in various places that the believers are one body together.

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We are members one of another. And so there is a fellow feeling and there's an entering into one another's experience.

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There's a mutual concern, regard and sympathy for every member of the body of Christ.

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That comes to particular expression in each local congregation where we share together in the realities of life in a fallen world.

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And we then need to learn to enter into the experience of our brothers and sisters as if it were our own.

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Not for us the arm's length standoffishness of so many in the world.

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Not for us the turned in self -centeredness that is so characteristic of our age.

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Not for us the callous disregard of other people because we've got enough troubles of our own.

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Not for us the envy when we see others receiving something or obtaining something, some particular blessing or goodness in this world.

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Not for us that bitter resentment when we see somebody else prospering. No, the

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Lord loves to see his servants prosper and the Lord's heart goes out toward those who are in need.

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And if we are anything like God as we see his heart in Christ Jesus then we will rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep.

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Now there's a measure of self -discipline there and self -control. I may be at some point inclined to rejoicing but if my brother or sister is weeping then

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I must enter into their experience. I must step down into the gloom or the sorrow that they have and if it is a just and a holy sorrow then

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I must enter in. Or I might myself be inclined to sorrow at some particular point.

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I might have a situation that for me demands weeping and yet when I see my brother or sister rejoicing because of some good thing, some just and holy cause for happiness,

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I need to enter in to that with them. Now to be sure I would hope that they also would be able to enter into my sorrows or joys as well and it may be that as in the days of Ezra there'd be a blended rejoicing and weeping as we express to one another the things that are in our hearts.

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And that's perhaps what's important then for us, to open up our souls towards one another, to let others into our joys and our sorrows.

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Not simply to open everything to everyone, not a sort of pathological transparency but rather that frankness and that friendliness that true fellowship develops whereby we can make these things known to one another, confident that the sympathy that is grounded in our shared union with Christ and therefore our communion both with Him and with one another will give rise to this willingness and this ability, helped by the

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Holy Spirit, truly to enter in to the sorrows and joys of others and to express that in company with them.

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Now are we ready to do that? Are we ready both to make known and then to enter into the experience of our brothers and sisters?

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It can be a hard thing to do. It takes effort on both parts. It does require a measure of righteous transparency and integrity.

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It's not something to be taken advantage of by either party but there is then this sweet reality of shared life together.

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So let us not hold back our joys and our sorrows from one another nor hold back from entering in to the joy or sorrow of our brothers and sisters but with that fellow feeling that we see first of all in Christ, let us enter in to one another's lives that there may be comfort and blessing together.