Sad, but always joyful: the essence of Christian hedonism

Defending Christian hedonism on an exegetical level is one thing; helping people experience its essence is quite another. The latter is more difficult. That is what I want to try to do here.

But first, what is it?

Christian hedonism is a way of life based on the belief that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. From the root of this belief grow many fascinating branches and fruits. Among them is the striking conclusion that all true virtue and all true worship necessarily includes the pursuit of happiness in God.

The reason for this is that all true virtue and worship must include the intention to glorify God. After all, we were created for His glory (Isa. 43:7), and the apostle Paul states: «Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God» (1 Cor. 10:31). Therefore, any good deed or act of worship without the purpose of glorifying God is sin.

But God is not glorified where we find Him less pleasing than other things. In such cases His glory is diminished. Realizing this, we cannot be indifferent to whether we find pleasure in God in our actions. If we seek to glorify God, in all our actions we must find Him more pleasing than anything else.

When Jesus said, «It is more blessed to give than to receive» (Acts 20:35), He did not mean that we should ignore this fact when we give. In fact, Paul emphasizes in the same text that we should «remember» this when we give. The desire to receive blessings through serving others is selfish only when the blessing we seek is not God himself, and when we do not seek to bring others with us into the joy of our service.

Understanding your favorite phrase

But all this does not quite capture the essence—the feeling, the spirit, the mood, the tone—of Christian hedonism. The biblical phrase we most often use to convey this tone is from 2 Corinthians 6:10: «as sorrowful yet always rejoicing.».

However, I rarely comment on it exegetically or give examples. So I want to do both briefly.

In 2 Cor. 6:3–10, Paul illustrates how he does not hinder anyone from his way of life (verse 3), but, on the contrary, presents himself as a true minister in every possible aspect—in thirty different life situations.

Among these thirty is «as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.» This expression appears among several similar pairs: «in glory and dishonor, in shame and praise; as deceivers, yet we speak the truth; as unknown, yet well known; as dying, yet we live; as punished, yet not destroyed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything» (2 Cor. 6:8–10).

What is true for Paul

I was once asked why I think «sorrowful» is something true for Paul, while other pairs on this list contain something false that is later corrected. For example: «who sow error, but we are truthful.» Perhaps Paul means that he is considered «sorrowful,» but in reality he is not, but on the contrary, always rejoicing.

The reason I don't think Paul means this is because he moves from pairs where the false statement is corrected by the true one (like "who sow error, but we are truthful") to pairs where both are true (like "as poor, but we enrich many").

In Paul’s view, «unknown,» «dying,» «punished,» «sorrowful,» «poor,» and «having nothing» are all true characteristics that describe him. So at the beginning of verse 9 he moves from false statements that are corrected by true ones to a list of pairs that are both true and paradoxical: unknown/known, dying/alive, punished/not killed, sorrowful/joyful, poor/rich.

So, yes, Paul does consider himself truly «sorrowful.» And this is not surprising, given his words in Rom. 9:2: «I have great sorrow and unceasing pain in my heart!» «Great» sorrow and «unceasing» pain. Amazing!

If this was true for the great apostle of joy, how much more so for us. Of course, our lives will also be marked by constant sorrow (and joy). If this is not the case, perhaps we do not love the lost as Paul did.

A serious kind of joy

So the essence of Christian hedonism is not a frivolous joy or happiness that is superficial, humorous, petty, insubstantial, or comic. This means that the way some people conduct their worship is foreign to Christian hedonism. The joy of Christian hedonism is not comedy. The Christian hedonist may be filled with laughter, but this has nothing to do with a constant lightness that leaves little room for serious joy.

C. S. Lewis said, «Joy is the serious business of heaven» («Letters to Malcolm,» 1964, p. 299). Amen. And he also said, «We must play. But our joy must be of the kind (and this is, in fact, the most joyful kind) that exists between people who initially take each other seriously—without levity, without arrogance, without self-confidence» («Christian Reflections,» 1967, p. 10).

There is a tender heart that rejoices with those who rejoice and weeps with those who weep. Sometimes one is more pronounced, sometimes the other, but each permeates the other. You can feel the special taste of this joy and sorrow.

Here is one final example of what it looks like—and feels like. It comes from Jonathan Edwards’s «Religious Feelings.» This is the Christian hedonist at his best: «If he has more holy courage, he has less self-confidence… and more modesty. If he is more certain of his deliverance from hell, he is more conscious of his worthiness of that hell. He is less apt to waver in faith, but more apt to be moved by stern warnings, by the frown of God, and by the misfortunes of other men. He has the hardest comfort, but the tenderest heart: richer than others, but the poorest in spirit; the highest and strongest saint, but the least and most tender child among them» (Works, vol. 2, Yale, p. 364).