Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.
Luke 10:20 NKJV
The Christian’s citizenship of heaven is his highest blessedness. There’s no other joy that can be compared to that of one’s salvation– the assurance that one’s name is written in heaven.
Meanwhile, every other joy is one way or the other related to our service as Christians – the joy of triumph over evil spirits, the joy of having preached the gospel and wrought wonders—in a word, the joy of gifts, power, and success. We need to be moderate as we express this joy lest it degenerates into pride. The presence of gifts doesn’t necessarily mean success.
Moreover, it is very unsafe to rejoice unduly in the work which we have done, but its genuineness is yet to be proved. It is too early to begin to rejoice until our works have been tried through the fire. 1 Cor 3:13
The emancipation from the kingdom of sin into the glorious liberty of the children of God, however, is the greatest reason for rejoicing. This is the joy that springs from faith while the other joy arises from sight. There are subtle dangers connected with success in Christian service, whereas the fact that our names are written in heaven reminds us of our infinite debt to God. It is safe to rejoice solely in salvation by grace.
