Be Filled with Joy and with the Holy Spirit

Baptist Daily Devotional
Aug 1
2 min read

Rev. Enoch Thompson | August 1 2025 | Acts 13:49-52

KEY VERSE: “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” Acts 13:52 (NIV)

MESSAGE:

In the midst of opposition to the preaching of Jesus Christ as the only Saviour and the opposition and persecution that it generated, we are told that the disciples, those who had believed and were committed to being citizens of the Kingdom of God, “were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

Christian faith commitment does not remove challenges from within and from without, but gives believers the power to experience life at a higher, healthier and fuller level. Joy, as we read of in this passage, is not only a spiritual virtue that the disciples experienced. It was equally an emotional high, a positive psychological feeling of well-being and happiness. Joy is a factor in the life of a person that will ward off the forces of depression, anxiety and frustration. Our walk with God more than prepares us for Heaven; it brings Heaven into our earthly life!

Filled with the Holy Spirit, the disciples experienced a renewed, heightened sense of the blessed Holy Spirit. They had a fresh understanding of the presence of God as the blessed Holy Spirit with them. Their spiritual appreciation of God was raised to a new level. They were overwhelmed with divine love, peace and joy. They were motivated to live the righteous life and to preach the Good News that Jesus came to die and arose from the dead for the salvation of humans from the judgment due us.

Paul captures the thought presented here as follows: “¹⁷ For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, ¹⁸ because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.” Rom 14:17-18 (NIV).

FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE:

Desire the physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual benefits of being a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look forward to these blessings in the midst of the surrounding challenges.

PRAYER:

Oh Lord, what an excitement to walk with you in the path of faith. I desire to experience the uplifting benefits of this walk and to help others find this blessing. Help me, Lord, for your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING.

SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

The 365 DAILY BIBLE READING Day 213: 1 Kings 15–18 — Asa’s Reforms & Elijah Confronts Ahab

DAILY word study: JOY The word “joy” in Acts 13:52 is from the Greek χαρά (chara), meaning a deep, inner gladness not dependent on external situations. It reflects a rejoicing that comes from the Holy Spirit’s presence and work.

This joy is not the same as surface happiness. It is spiritual strength, emotional wellness, and mental peace all rolled into one. In the middle of rejection and threats, the disciples were filled with chara. This was God’s gift to them—not a reaction to comfort, but the result of communion.

Reflect on This:

Are you waiting for things to get easier before you feel joy? What if God wants to fill you with joy now—right where you are?