Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Special Services / Advent 2004

12/12/04 Joy

Title:  ‘Looking for Something More?’ pt. 3   ‘Joy’                                                                                                                    Main Text: Isaiah 9:6
 
Joy
 

Introduction:
ILL: Oliver Wendal Holmes Jr, was a member of the US Supreme Court for 30 years. His mind, wit and work ethic earned him the unofficial title of ‘the greatest justice since John Marshall’. At one point in his life, Justice Holmes explained his choice of a career by saying ‘I might have entered the ministry if certain clergymen I knew had not looked and acted so much like undertakers.’ (Moody Bible Institute’s Today in the Word, June 1988)

ILL: Billy Graham once said ‘One of the desperate needs among Christians is exuberance and vitality in their loyalty to Christ. People go to sporting events and shout their heads. They become enthusiastic about everything, but when it comes to spiritual matters they think we are supposed to become somber and quiet, wear black and never have a good time or enjoy a religious event.’ (Decision, Oct. 1968)

Read: Proverbs 17:22a says ‘A cheerful heart is good medicine.’

Why do Christians become so serious, so sanctimonious, so reserved…OK, so dull? Why? When we should be the most joy full people on the planet?

Why is corporate worship of God more of a service, a duty, than a celebration in many churches?

And why it is that for many God’s Word is all about how bad we are and that we are doomed to eternal death in the fiery pit of hell. This is not what the Bible is all about. The Bible is about the work of God to bring us LIFE and the joy that life brings when it is lived thru faith in Jesus Christ. God’s Word is alive with Joy, and excitement but we so often only focus on the solemn, the serious, the reserved.

Do you know that God want you to be joyful? As excited and joyful as you are when you favorite team wins the superbowl, God wants you to experience life, including Sunday morning worship and your relationship with Him, with the same enthusiasm.

Transition: How do we do that? We begin by understanding what  joy is.

Joy Defined
Websters: ‘Joy the emotion evoked by well being, success or good fortune…a state of happiness or bliss.’

New Bible Dictionary: ‘Joy is the mark of both the Christian and the church.’

Bible Knowledge Commentary: ‘Joy is a deep abiding peace which is promised to those who abide in Christ and obey his commands. It does not depend upon circumstances because it rests in God’s sovereign control of all things.’

Someone once defined joy as: ‘To be at peace in the knowledge that, at all times and in all places, God loves you and that you are his dearly loved child thru faith in Jesus Christ. Joy is integral to our relationship with God.’

Someone else defined joy as ‘With joy comes pleasure, gladness and delight. It is merriment. Joy is more than fun. It expresses itself in laughter yet draws from a deep spring that keeps flowing long after the laughter has ended and the tears have come. Joy is not something we do it is something we receive and to which we respond. It is a gift of grace through the Holy Spirit. It is the evidence of God in your life.

Finally: The Greek word in Scripture for joy means to be cheerful, happy, glad.

Let’s put it all together. Joy is both an outward emotion displayed as gladness, happiness and cheerfulness and it is an inward confidence that we are loved by God, no matter what. Joy is a gift of God’s grace, given by God to all those whose relationship with Him has been restored thru faith in Jesus Christ.

Joy Lost
If Joy is a gift of God’s grace to all those who profess Jesus Christ as Savior…then why are so many Christians…joy-less? Why is joy one of the most elusive fruits of the Spirit for the Christian? Before the Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians about the Fruit of the Spirit in Ch. 5 of Galatians, he asked a very interesting question in Ch. Gal 4:15 ‘What has happened to all your joy?’ And the church needs to be asking the same question…People of God, what has happened to all your joy? The answer is…we lost it.

What causes our joy to be lost?

1. Failed expectations: Some are not content with what they have been given by God. 
•    Perhaps your marriage is not all you thought it would be
•    Perhaps your children are not the obedient, God loving young people you hoped for
•    Perhaps you don’t have all you thought you would have by this point in your life

A spirit of discontent can steal your joy. This is perhaps no more true than at Christmas. Look at your bulletin cover. Doesn’t  this say it all? We lose our Joy when we are not content with what God has given to us.

We lose our joy when we have
2. Unresolved Conflict: When conflict with another person occupies our minds and hearts, there is little room for the joy of the Lord. Paul recognized the connection between joy and peace with one another.

Read: Phil. 2:2 ‘then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.’

We lose our joy when we hold a grudge, hang on to anger, or are constantly critical of others.

We lose our joy when we have
3. Hidden Sin: Perhaps more than any other reason, unconfessed sin is responsible for stealing our joy. David knew this perhaps better than anyone.

Read: Ps. 32:1-5 ‘Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”— and you forgave the guilt of my sin.’

We lose our joy when we try to hide our sin from God. But listen to how this Psalm ends.

Read: Ps. 32:11 ‘Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!’

David was not able to rejoice, to be glad, until he confessed his sin to God. Think about it.

4. Unresolved Guilt: We lose our joy when we fail to accept God’s forgiveness. We confess our sin, we seek God’s face, yet we can not believe he really and completely forgives us.

5. Negative circumstances: We lose our joy when we focus on the negative circumstance that come our way. We can’t experience the joy of the Lord because we are not happy with the hand God has dealt us.

6. Blaming Others: We lose our joy when we blame others for our circumstances or for making us unhappy.

Transition: If some of these hit a little too close to home for you I have some good news. Lost joy can be found.

Joy Found
Read: Jn 15:5-11 ‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’

God not only wants you to know and experience Joy, he wants you to be joy-ful, that the joy you experience would be perfect, complete.
Where is this kind of joy found?

1. In Trusting God
Jesus, in Jn 15 is talking about true and complete joy for the Christian. He is saying it is attainable, no matter what you may be experiencing now. How can Jesus say that with any authority?
 
Remember Jesus in the Garden. Remember He was arrested, tried and convicted of crimes  of which he was innocent. They mocked him, beat him beyond recognition and then nailed him to a wooden cross to die a horrible death. Jesus, speaking in Jn 15 knows this is going to happen, yet he speaks to his disciples of Joy. How could he do that?

Read: Heb. 12:2-3 ‘Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.’

Jesus is our example. Joy is not found in our circumstances, Joy is found in God alone. Jesus trusted God and that alone brought him joy.

We find Joy
2. Thru Faith in Jesus
When we believe that Jesus died for our sins and ask him into our lives, we find joy.

Read: 1 Peter 1:8-9 Speaking of Jesus Christ…‘Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.’

Overwhelming Joy should fill our hearts when we remember that thru faith in Jesus, our sins have been forgiven, we have been made right with God, we have been saved from an eternity in hell

We find Joy
3. Thru Obedience to the Word of God
Joy and obedience don’t seem to go together. But God promises joy when we obey his Word.

Read: Jn 15:10-11 ‘If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’

Complete Joy comes from complete obedience.

We find Joy
4. Thru Answered Prayer
When we experience God’s answer to our prayers, and the prayers of others, we find joy.

Read: Jn. 16:24 ‘Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.’

Those who attend our Mid-Week Praise & Prayer time know what this text is saying as we rejoice together in God’s abundance of answered prayers.

We find Joy
5. Thru Fellowship with Other Believers

Read: 2 Jn. 1:12 ‘I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.’

We need to spend time with one another, with our brothers and sisters in Christ if we want to find joy.

We find Joy
 6. Thru a Passion for Evangelism
When you share your faith with others, when you participate in outreach events, you will find joy.

Read: Lk 15:6b-7 ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep. I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.’

Finally, We find Joy
7. Realize that God Knows and Expresses Joy
Have you ever thought about that? God knows joy and expresses it with great enthusiasm.

Read: Zeph. 3:17 ‘The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.’

God delights in you and he breaks out into song whenever he thinks about you.  That’s hard to believe isn’t it? Especially if you think when we come into the presence of God we can only do so with solemnity and silence.  With a clear understanding of that verse, our corporate worship service should forever change to a corporate worship celebration of Joy.

Conclusion
ILL: Pastor and scholar William Barclay said that a ‘gloomy Christian is a contradiction in terms and nothing in all religious history has done Christianity more harm than its connection with black clothes and long faces.’

‘Tis the season to be jolly. Christians should be experiencing and expressing their joy in Christ, especially during the holiday season. It is one of the two times during the year that people expect us to be joyful. (the other being Easter).

If you have lost your joy, perhaps it is time to remember that God loves you..no matter what. Go to him, confess your sin and make it right.

Whatever the reason for you lost joy, you will find it again, complete and abundant joy, in the presence of God.