The Joy of Joy

Philippians 4:4–7 NIV

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Introduction: Today marks the start of a new series on contentment. We will look at Paul’s letter to the Philippians—specifically, the last chapter of that letter.

- Paul was someone who, like C. S. Lewis, was surprised by joy (Acts 9). The book of Philippians is often referred to as a letter of joy. In Philippians the word “joy” shows up five times, and “rejoice” is used nine times. And all of this was written by a man who was a prisoner (Philippians 1:13).

- When we talk about Contentment, another word is peace...

11 - We are on a search for peace.

Joy, and the ability to rejoice regardless of the circumstances, is an attribute of someone who is content.

Will Smith on David Letterman’s, “My Next Guest Requires No Introduction.”

from the cover of his book, “Will.”

Will Smith thought, with good reason, that he had won at life: not only was his own success unparalleled, his whole family was at the pinnacle of the entertainment world. Only they didn't see it that way: they felt more like star performers in his circus, a seven-days-a-week job they hadn't signed up for. It turned out Will Smith's education wasn't nearly over.

This memoir is the product of a profound journey of self-knowledge, a reckoning with all that your will can get you and all that it can leave behind. Will is the story of how one person mastered his own emotions, written in a way that can help everyone else do the same.

Interview with David he says,

"I started seeing all of my money flying away, and my house is flying away, and my career is going away, and I'm trying to grab for my money, and my career and my whole life is getting destroyed. This is my fear, and I'm in there, but I'm wanting to vomit," he recalled. "I hear a voice saying, 'This is what the f--- it is, this is what the f--- life is.' And I'm going, 'Oh, s---, and I hear Willow screaming, 'Daddy, help me, daddy, how come you won't help me?' And I'm like, 'I don't see you, baby.'" Smith continued, "I stopped caring about my house, I stopped caring about my career, and I get to the point where I settled down, and the voice is still at 100 percent; I still hear Willow screaming, my money is still flying away, but I'm... totally calm, even though there's hell going on in my mind." Through the experience, the actor said, "I realized that anything that happens in my life, I can handle it. I can handle any person I lose, I can handle anything that goes wrong in my life, I can handle anything in my marriage, I can handle anything that this life has to offer. That's part of the psychological training that happens in ayahuasca."

A couple of thoughts -

1. Don’t do ayahuasca,

2. My discernment was this is demonic because of the lie, “This is Life.”

When God created life he said, “It is good, very good.”

3. Demons can prophecy as well.

Despite those things, I think we also would sense a lack of peace over this experience - losing everything we have - This is a Job like vision.

But, I think there is another lie that I think is being told to Will Smith. That lie is, “I can handle anything.” - If this was an eternity, no you can’t.

What God says is through Paul is, “I can do (handle) all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

Joy and Contentment is an attribute of a believer in Christ. A global study by Pew Research found that believers are happier than nonbelievers. For example, in America, 36 percent of actively religious people describe themselves as “very happy.” This is in contrast to nonbelievers or inactive believers, of whom only 25 percent responded that way (Joey Marshall, “Are Religious People Happier, Healthier? Our New Global Study Explores This Question,” Pew Research, January 31, 2019

Is this true of you—and if not, why not?

Being content in life doesn’t mean you are always happy,

happiness is based on the circumstances - what I have, what I don’t have.

Things - deterioroate - they come and go. Riches can come and go

What you do can’t make you content - because we are not perfect.

Your reputation can’t make you content - especially in this day, people can like you, but once you have an inkling of this political thought, or that thought about COVID, etc. now you are evil.

In chapter 4, Paul writes, “Rejoice in the Lord” (v. 4). Our joy should found in God, not in our possessions, our title, our economic status, or anything else. God is eternal. Our possessions are not eternal. Jobs come and go. Accomplishments may bring us pleasure or make us happy, but if we put too much reliance in them, then in the end we’ll find ourselves looking for something else to satisfy. Only when we rejoice in the Lord can we experience a level of joy that, as C. S. Lewis said, makes one forget meals and become delightedly sleepless.

There is a direct link between our ability to rejoice in God and experience contentment, regardless of our circumstances.

12 - Joy in the Lord Brings peace.

Rejoice in the Lord Always - Emphatic.

and Let your gentleness be made known to all

Because (Ground) The Lord is Near.

And Be anxious for nothing.

But i(Alt) In everything pray and supplicate with thanksgiving to God.

And (Result) the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ.

Surprise is a word that is universally understood, but the experience can be very different. There are good surprises and bad surprises. For example, “Surprise: I’m pregnant!” can be a good surprise. “Surprise: happy birthday!” is a nice surprise. C. S. Lewis entitled his spiritual memoir Surprised by Joy. He found himself surprised both by his faith in God and by the joy that he found in God. In a recently discovered letter, he describes the joy found in God in this way: “Real joy … jumps under ones ribs and tickles down one’s back and makes one forget meals and keeps one (delightedly) sleepless o’ nights” (Alison Flood, “Unseen C. S. Lewis Letter Defines His Notion of Joy,” The Guardian, December 9, 2014, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/09/unseen-cs-lewis-letter-defines-joy-surprised-by-joy). The Christian faith is one of joy in the Lord.

When we learn how to rejoice in God regularly, it prepares us to be content during the worst times. A seminary professor had a serious and unexpected medical condition which put him in the hospital for a long time. Not long after being admitted to the hospital, the hospital chaplain came to visit him. The chaplain asked how he was doing, and he replied, “I’m fine.” The chaplain asked, “Really?” “Yes,” he replied, “I’m totally fine.” “Well,” the chaplain asked, “is there anything I can do for you?” “Yes, will you praise God with me?” The chaplain stared at the professor dumbfounded and then said, “But you’re in the hospital and…,” gesturing to all the systems hooked up to him. The professor replied, “I have the peace of Christ guarding my heart like a powerful army, and for that, I want to praise God.” This is what it looks like to rejoice in God always, and how it can bring us contentment—even in a hospital room.

13 - Let’s Grow in Joy.

Paul doesn’t just say “rejoice in the Lord”—the full sentence is, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (v. 4). Always. This is not a once-and-done thing. Rejoicing in the Lord is a discipline. It must be a habit. The best place to cultivate it is regular worship in church. And as the discipline of continuous rejoicing in God develops, it is good to challenge yourself to carry it over into the moments in life when rejoicing feels like a challenge.

One thing that I have read that non-believers are put off by churches is a sense of fake happiness. “It is not possible to be joyous like this all the time.” It is sickening.

Three reasons for this....

There are Christians who are faking it. They are putting on the show, because they want the reputation of their fellow believers, - But again this motivation is not the way to true contentment. - Reputation.

There are Christians who honestly and authentically are filled with the Joy in the Lord. That fruit of the Spirit is showing through them. For a non-believer it is a peace that surpasses their understanding and it will attract some who see the authenticity and see the contentment that they have been longing for. For others, they are not ready for that yet, it is too strange for them or unbelievable for them at this time.

Are people who are rejoicing as a commitment to the Lord. They are growing, and the more they rejoice, the deeper they grow and see that the Lord is Good, and the more the delight in him, the more they experience the peace in Him.

Conclusion: Where are you?