Rejoicing with others

By: Alistair Begg – November 2, 2026.

Key points

• Special elections to be held Tuesday in Mississippi House Districts 70 and 77.
• Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. – Romans 12: 15.
• 11 Texas want to keep momentum going against a Mississippi State team missing Taylor.
• This is a good thing, for to "bear one another's burdens" is to "fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6: 2).
• Alistair Begg has been in pastoral ministry since 1975.

Shared joy is a great expression of sympathy. We typically employ the word sympathy to describe a shared grief-but it applies to joy too.

We understand sympathy when we employ it in a sentence, but the word itself can be challenging to define. So consider its opposite: apathy. If apathy is akin to saying, "I couldn't care less, " sympathy is akin to saying, "I couldn't care more." Sympathy is an identification with the experience of another person.

Plenty of of us find it natural to "weep with those who weep." It is instinctive for us to enter into the disappointment and pain of those we love and to cry at the sight or thought of their sadness. This is a good thing, for to "bear one another's burdens" is to "fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6: 2). To enter into the joy and success of others, nevertheless, is often the greater challenge as it requires us to work against the grain of the fallenness of our human nature. It is prone to resentment and bitterness. Instead of someone's success serving as an occasion for us to bless God and thank Him, it so easily becomes an occasion for envy.

Most of us know how to avoid expressing envy. But there is a massive difference between not expressing envy and not feeling envy. We can modify our behavior enough to keep from showing it, but it requires spiritual transformation to obtain us to the point of not feeling it. This transformation begins with a right understanding of our identity as members of Christ's body. Paul notes that "we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another" (Romans 12: 5). To be in Christ means we are members of Him and of one another.

To put this another way: if we are in Christ, we are all on the same team. When we grasp this, it will be as natural for us to enter into another's joy as it is for a soccer player to rejoice at their teammate's game-winning goal in just the same way as if they had scored it themselves. As God's individuals, we win and lose-we enjoy and we grieve- together.

God's word calls you to "let love be genuine" (Romans 12: 9)-and genuine, Christlike love conforms your feelings so that jealousy gives way to joy and apathy to true sympathy. Is there anyone who you are standing aloof from in some way, either in their joy or their sadness? Have you considered whom you could encourage today? There is almost certainly someone who needs you to reach out and let them know that you are with them, praying for them and there for them as they walk a deep valley. Likewise, there will be someone whose joy you can share, and you can simply let them know that you praise God for His favor on their life. Be someone of whom it can increasingly be remarked, "They couldn't care more." Ask the God of all compassion and comfort to work in you by His Spirit to mold you into that person today.

Regarding the Author(s).

Alistair Begg has been in pastoral ministry since 1975. After graduation from The London School of Theology, he served eight years in Scotland at both Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh and Hamilton Baptist Church. In 1983, he became the senior pastor at Parkside Church near Cleveland, Ohio. He has written a number of books and is heard daily and weekly on the radio program, Truth For Life. His Daily Devotionals are presented here via a syndication agreement. Faith Alistair Begg October 29, 2026.

Scripture calls us to put others first. We are to learn to play second fiddle without complaining or perversely seeking to be commended for doing so. More From This Author. Faith Alistair Begg October 28, 2026. Faith Alistair Begg October 27, 2026. Faith Alistair Begg October 26, 2026. Faith Matt Friedeman November 1, 2026. Beware what you love; you become your object of affection. Faith Alistair Begg October 23, 2026. Together is where we belong.

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It was hard work. That is exactly why it is a miracle.

For now, rejoicing with others remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.