Holiness = Happiness

A common axiom I have been hearing lately among Christians is “holiness not happiness.” From a sermon I heard a couple months ago, to a seminar on dating I attended last Spring, to a Relevant magazine article that went so far as to say “happiness is a perilous thing.” I understand much of what these godly men and women are trying to say. I would guess that many are trying to curtail the advance of the numerous, infectious forms of “prosperity” Gospel through pitting holiness against happiness. And I join them in pushing against that false gospel.

But still, I hear “holiness not happiness,” and I cringe. I think its’ because we have made the two mutually exclusive. You can be holy or you can be happy. But both? No way. Not a chance. I also think about how that must look to non-believers – “follow Jesus as Lord and be holy…will you be happy? Nope – holy.” While we certainly shouldn’t tailor the Gospel or any truth to attract more people to the faith, as a Christian I hear that and question if I’d rather be holy or happy. I believe we have separated what God meant to be united. Holiness leads to happiness. If you are holy, you will be happy. If you won’t live righteously, you will ultimately regret your decision and see that sinful behavior was anything but a source of happiness.

Before I go any further, I should define what I mean by “happy.” If all the word “happy” can entail is shallow, superficial pleasure then I would agree that holiness does not make us happy. Case closed. But the Bible seems to indicate that the word “happy” or “joyful” has a much deeper tone to it. True happiness or joy is something much more – something derived over time from obedience. In fact, I would argue that happiness (or joy) in its’ truest form can only be experienced through holiness.

In the Old Testament, obedience brings the joy of life. Deuteronomy 6:1-2 says “these are the commands, decrees, regulations, that the LORD your God commanded to teach you…if you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life.” God encouraged obedience because his people would enjoy life as a result. Later in Deuteronomy 30:15-16 God again says of His commands, “Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster…if you do this (obey), you will live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you…” Obedience leads to long-term, deep happiness. The Bible from the start indicates that happiness is the result of holiness, not its’ polar opposite. This rings true in Psalm 119, which says repeatedly in its’ 176 verses that “joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the LORD,” (119:1,2,16,24,35,47). From the writer’s perspective, joy is a result of obedience – of holiness. So it begs the question, if holiness and happiness (in its’ truest form) are fundamentally opposed, then why does God proclaim frequently, that obedience is a source of joy and life?

In the New Testament, obedience is also described as a source of joy. Jesus is said to have been painfully obedient on the cross precisely because of the joy that awaited Him on the other side of His sacrifice (Heb. 12:2). Paul wrote that if anything can augment the joy we have in the gift of salvation Jesus has offered us, it can be found in obedient humility to one another and the Lord. The apostle John wrote that obedience was not burdensome, but a source of happiness for those who love and follow Jesus (1 John 5:2-4). So it begs the question, if genuine happiness is opposed to obedience, then why does the Bible tell us the joy is the result of holiness?

Part of this discussion hinges on a cheap meaning of happiness as I stated earlier. When we get the equation wrong and believe happiness precedes holiness, then that is a path to error and sin. We’ve all been there. But the truth I have experienced (and believe is biblical) is that when I pursue happiness over holiness, I end up getting neither. While the thrills may be instant and require little to no effort on my part, the old adage still resonates - sin is like honey on the lips, but gravel in the stomach (Proverbs 5). When we each pursue cheap, evil happiness, we end in a place of profound unhappiness (both in this life and the next if we do not repent) precisely because we are unholy.

My point may sound to generalized and to that I would answer, in the short run, absolutely. From one perspective, we all know people engaged in sin who seem perfectly happy, satisfied, and even joyful in their wicked behavior. I don’t say that judgmentally; we all were that way once and from a strictly temporal view, the unrepentant come out on top. Paul even admitted this truth – if there is no eternity, then Christians are to be the most pitied of all people (1 Cor. 15:17-19). From a strictly earthly perspective, holiness loses to the pursuit of happiness, because there’s no ultimate settling of accounts, no judgment, no restoration for the obedient in the long run. Conversely, we all know people who are deeply committed to, love, and follow Jesus, and they have been through some of the most profoundly troubling, miserable ordeals. Even as I write this I think of a good friend who loves Jesus and her family and strives to lead a holy life. She was diagnosed with cancer two weeks ago. From a short-term perspective, she is to be most pitied above all because what has her obedience brought her? A cancer diagnosis. And if there were no eternity, her pursuit of holiness would end in despair not happiness. If there is no eternal reckoning, no settling of accounts, no judgment, then the happy-wicked prosper and the obediently-holy despair.

But there is an eternity – and that changes everything. Cheap happiness will ultimately lead to despair. Faithful obedience in spite of personal suffering and loss, will lead to indescribable bliss. What’s more, from an earthly and eternal perspective, holiness in this life also brings happiness in this life. Perhaps the premiere example of this truth in our day is sexuality. Pornography and promiscuity lead to cheap, shallow, instant pleasure. But, this pursuit of pleasure ultimately leads to unhappiness through relational carnage, emotional baggage, ruined marriages, sexual transmitted diseases, and more. Conversely, sexual integrity leads to its’ ultimate purpose in bringing deep joy and intimacy in marriage – a happiness that can’t even be rightly compared to the shallow pleasure of a one night stand or an adult website.

With all that in mind, I hope I have articulated my main thought: holiness and happiness are not opposed, they are linked. Granted, if we pursue happiness over holiness, we’ll get neither. But if we pursue holiness, we will be profoundly, ineffably, incomparably happy in divinely given moments in this life and throughout eternity. Will we still suffer and at times be uncomfortable (even miserable) even though we are obedient? Absolutely. But with eternity in view and a grasp of God’s perspective of true happiness, we can endure like our Savior who “for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising its’ shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Obedience may be painful at times in the short-run, but it cannot ever be divorced from the ultimate happiness and joy it brings both in this life and the next.

Thoughts?