Do You Deserve to be Happy?

Does anyone deserve to be happy? Some people believe certain individuals deserve happiness, based on their merit or how much unhappiness they have experienced. I recently watched a young-romance movie, and I saw some of the movie's fans post about how they believed the movie's main heroine deserved to be happy. One of these fans wrote, "This girl was so strong I really admire her, she deserves the whole world." Another fan wrote, "She deserves to live the rest of her life happy." Putting aside the fictional element behind these comments, this does raise a question: Does anyone deserve to be happy? What do people deserve?

There are many opinions on this question, but opinions don't matter when faced with the truth. The truth about whether people deserve to be happy (as well as the truth on similar questions) can be found in the Bible. This book is the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16), and all the words God speaks are always true (Psalm 119:160). It may sound illogical for me to seemingly write "the Bible is true, because the Bible says it is," but I'm saying the Bible is true because it proves itself to be true (the word for something that proves itself is "axiomatic"). Several individuals have demonstrated that the Bible is self-affirming, and you can see some of their videos here, there and here. Based on this premise that the Bible is true (for all of time), then what does the Bible say about what people deserve?

When we talk about people getting what they deserve, we are talking about people being treated fairly (receiving what they earned). Do you get mad when you see people not get what they seemingly deserve? God is the same. He is crushed when He sees people not being treated fairly (Proverbs 11:1), and He desires to right that wrong. Paul, one of God's friends and followers, once wrote that when someone unfairly harmed him God would not let that unfairness stand, (2 Timothy 4:14). God does not let go those who harm others or unfairly cause distress. He has promised He will repay every wrong anyone does (Romans 12:19), and God is not slow in keeping His promises (2 Peter 3:9).

You know, God's promise to repay wrong includes you and I. We have all wronged others (Romans 3:23), and God will repay for what has been done without prejudice (Colossians 3:25). Paul wrote about those who do what is wrong in his letter to the Romans in chapter 2 from verses 1 to 3:

You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?

God does not like it when people are hurt or wronged, but He
loves it when His friends and followers "carry each
other's burdens" (Galatians 6:2) and show love to
their neighbor (Mark 12:31).

Tragically,  the Bible does not mince words, when it says what anyone deserves for the wrong they have done. In the true words of the Bible it is clearly written that all of us lived "gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath," (Ephesians 2:3). All people on earth deserve for God to be angry with them. You and I and everyone who lived had a heart that wanted to do bad things and make God angry (Matthew 15:19), and there is no good reason to want to anger God. God is the most loving person to ever exist (1 John 4:16). The God who created every human (and everything) is a loving and kind creator, but all of us have decided to not listen to Him, disrespect Him and refuse to love Him (Isaiah 53:6). All our ignorance, disrespect and even hatred of the God of love deserves only one thing; His righteous anger. Why should those with whom God is angry deserve any happiness?

"If God’s so powerful and so good, how come bad stuff happens?" I’m not going to answer the question until you ask it correctly... Ask me this: "How on earth can a holy and righteous God know what I did and thought and said yesterday and not kill me in my sleep last night?"...Until you ask the question that way, you believe that there are some individuals who, in and of themselves, deserve something other than the wrath of Almighty God.

- Voddie Baucham

If God is rightly mad at us, then we certainly don't deserve to be happy. Considering this, though, if God is the one who created all life and sustains it (Colossians 1:17), and He controls how our lives turn out (Proverbs 21:1-2), then how come God allows anyone to be happy? It is because God is merciful and gracious, giving to His creation what it does not deserve. No one with whom God is angry should deserve anything good from Him, yet God "causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous," (Matthew 5:45). He allows everyone to experience His common-grace (defined as the universal and undeserved goodness of God toward those who disrespect and wrong Him). No one deserves to be happy, but God, full of mercy, grace and love, lets His creation experience happiness.

Some people think if they find "the one" then they will be
happy, but the only "one" who can truly make anyone
happy is their first love, (1 John 4:19), the God who
put in their heart His desire to be with them
for eternity (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

There is a reason why God allows anyone to experience happiness, and that is because He wants to lead people to a way that will let them be free from His anger (Romans 2:4). God is not quick to repay us for the wrong we have done (Psalm 103:8), and He gives us the time-length of our whole lives to avoid and never face His incoming righteous anger (Hebrews 9:27). The simple thing anyone alive can do, in order to not receive the anger they deserve, is to turn away from the unjust and unkind desires of their heart (this "turning away" is known as "repenting"). If anyone admits they are deserving of God's anger and repents, then God will keep them away from His anger (Isaiah 45:22, 1 John 1:9). When someone does this, then God takes away their heart that does what angers Him and gives them a beautiful new heart that can love Him and love others (Ezekiel 36:26). No one deserves this, but God gives this opportunity freely. God loves everyone in the world, and He has made a way for them to be free from what they by nature deserve and too instead experience eternal happiness (John 3:16).

You are, You are the answer

The hope and the end to the searching

You are, You are the portrait of grace

You're the One steady thing

In a world that aches

In a world that breaks

- Britt Nicole

Sources

• The Bible (New International Version)
• Young-Romance Movie's Ending: Comments Section
• Ligonier Ministries: Common Grace
• Voddie Baucham: The Supremacy of Christ and Truth in a Postmodern World
• Britt Nicole: World that Breaks

1 Chronicles 2:1-2 (Names of The People of Israel)

1 Chronicles 2:1-2

These were the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

If you are an avid Bible reader, chances are you have encountered something in your Bible that you just did not want to read. You saw it coming up on the page, and you wrestled with skimming over it or skipping it entirely. You may even have been reading out loud with gusto, until you suddenly tensed up knowing soon your tongue would have to perform unfathomable feats of verbal gymnastics. You said to yourself, "I'm going to read the whole chapter," but you hadn't counted on this; something so...boring. I am of course talking about those monotonous sections of Scripture, the bane of most Bible Studies: A long list of hard to pronounce names.

It can be bothersome having one's Bible reading come to a seemig halt, because you now have to read a list of dozens (even hundreds) of old Hebrew and Greek names. Most of the names in these lists don't have grand stories associated with them. The majority of people in these lists seem to be unextraordinary. (Anyone know who Ziph was or his father Jehallelel?) It can be incredibly boring having to read through lists like these in the Bible, and that can make it seem like it would be better for us to just skip or skim over these sections. This, however, would not be best for us, as the existence of these lists informs us about the nature of God and His Word.

First off, it is not a problem if what one reads in the Bible is boring, because we, as believers, should not read the Bible to be entertained. I doubt the scribes of Chronicles considered the first nine chapters of their book riveting, or Moses thought the early chapters of Numbers were enthralling. God, however, did not choose people to write a captivating and well reviewed novel. He chose the prophets and all kinds of people to write down His words, whatever they may be. In fact, what God spoke through the Bible is the best thing anyone could ever read, because God's "way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless," (Psalm 18:30). There's no good reason to skip-over any section of a perfect book; a book that is "useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness," (2 Timothy 3:16). If you set out to read a whole chapter of Scripture, and in the midst of your reading choose to ignore or glance over parts of it, then you have chosen to not listen to all of God's perfect words that He penned for your benefit. If indeed God's chosen followers listen to His voice (John 10:27), then why would they want to avoid anything He has spoken for them?

Yes, some things written in the Bible can be considered boring, but
a believer should study as much of Scripture as possible, so they can
"present [themselves] to God as one approved," (2 Timothy 2:15).

In addition to this, it is an honor to have one's name mentioned in the Bible. This is so much so that God "blotting out" someone's name can be considered a curse (Psalm 109:13), but God remembering someone's name can be a beautiful gift (Luke 23:42). Do you feel good when you see your name attached with something beneficial or noble? (Such as when every member of a local sports team is mentioned in a newspaper, or when someone posts on social media thanking everyone who spent time with them over the weeked) How do you imagine one of the people living in a nearly destroyed Israel must have felt, when they read their name or a loved ones name in the holy words of God, and only because they had returned to their nearly destroyed city? (Ezra 2) Were the descendants of Levi glad to know their hard work in the Lord's house as God's chosen first-born was honored, by having their names recorded for all time? (Numbers 3:11-13) Anyone who does something worthy of recognition, whether it is serving as a king (1 Kings 11:41) or simply delivering a letter (Romans 16:1), loves when due recognition is given. God honors His follower's work for His name-sake, by remembering their name.

Indeed, God knows the names of all His followers from generation to generation. He is known as "the God who sees,” and everyone who belongs to Him can say, "I have now seen the One who sees me," (Genesis 16:13). This was true for the people of Israel, as it is for God's church today. Paul wrote that all who follow the commands of the Lord will receive peace and mercy from God as "the Israel of God," (Galatians 6:16). All who have put their faith in Christ have been "grafted into" the lineage of Israel (Romans 11:24). Know this, the names of all the people of the Israel of God are written down in a sacred book, a book God Himself keeps. This book is known as the Book of Life, and in it is a list of names of all those whom God has declared holy, righteous and redeemed (Psalm 69:28, 1 Corinthians 1:30). Every name in this book will be acknowledged by Jesus Christ before His Father and all of His angels (Revelation 3:5). How beautiful it will be, for those whose name is spoken in the reading of the longest list of difficult to pronounce names ever written (and every name will be pronounced perfectly).

The God who knows your name longs to write it down, so you may
be in His presence forever, for "He is patient with you, not wanting
anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance," (2 Peter 3:9).

Sources

• The Bible (New International Version)
• OpenBibleInfo: The Book of Life