Does our obedience or our joy come first? Pastor John explains that joy-driven obedience is the only obedience worth pursuing. How is my obedience connected to my joy? It’s a question today from Jonathan. “Hi, Pastor John. I’m a seminary student in South Africa. My question is about Christian Hedonism. What a deep and powerful thing enjoying God is. God used this greatly in my conversion! “After a couple of years, however, my joy in God grew very dim. Not only my joy, but also my contentment and prizing of God above all else — a most joyful state — disappeared. This is especially true when I fall into sin. I feel sin blinds me to who God is and thus I don’t enjoy him for who he is because I can’t see him for who he is. Is that true? And how much of our joy in Christ is only achievable and possible in a state of robust obedience?” Episode 1276: https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/what-comes-first-my-obedience-to-jesus-or-my-joy-in-jesus Related Resources: “How Do I Feed My Joy in Jesus Every Morning?” https://youtu.be/Mm1gnecsaC4 “How Do I Show Kindness to My Children and Expect Them to Obey?” https://youtu.be/BjI9sNy2Lf0 “Why Did Jesus Need to ‘Learn Obedience’?” https://youtu.be/3xeqT4la9MA “The Key to Christian Obedience” https://youtu.be/4lnFZNEyCOU Ask Pastor John Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKvMOJ1T8T4&list=PLFF7F6AE365DA3564 Find other recent and popular Ask Pastor John episodes, http://desiringgod.org/ask-pastor-john