Dancing in Joy

Modern Problem

On Monday, 20th March, the 2023 World Happiness report was released. (For those who don’t know about it) it’s basically a ranking of the happiest countries in the world.

Singapore ranking

Some of you might know that Singapore placed 25th on that list out of 150 countries. And we actually improved from 27th place in the previous report! We are the 25th happiest nation in the world!

Picture of Today report

Except, many Singaporeans don’t think so. Some went so far as to call the report a ‘joke’. Here are a couple of examples:

“I wonder who they actually polled to get that absolutely outrageous conclusion”

“(It is) more accurate to say that Singapore is the least miserable country in Asia.”

Some of us here might agree with the report, that we are happy here in Singapore. It’s clean, it’s safe, our public transport runs on time, and we have many opportunities in front of us. And some of us might agree with these comments—we face very real challenges living here, we feel like we’re fighting for our lives just to get through the week, we’re overworked in a company we don’t like, we’re sleep-deprived to please people we don’t like, how can we possibly be happy?

Mourning slide

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been exploring how we live in a broken world; how we respond to brokenness by mourning in a Godly way.

And then we’ve started focusing on how something happened two thousand years ago that turned our mourning into dancing: the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead that changed everything.

Or at least, it was supposed to change everything.

When we look at the world, we still see brokenness all around us. There is still so much, sin, suffering and death to be mourned. And we wonder, has the resurrection really changed everything? Has it changed anything at all?

If I were to ask you right now what you are rejoicing about, we might think of some things that we’re grateful for, but it’s quite hard to think of something that makes us jump up and down for joy. In our culture, we don’t usually show strong emotions, especially in public. But when the Psalmist says in Psalm 30:11 that God had turned our mourning into dancing, he’s talking about an extreme change from total despair to jumping for joy!

It’s a change you can see and feel. You know, those people who cannot stop smiling. Those people that when they walk into the room, they’re greeting people, shaking hands, high-fiving, fist-bumping, and the laughter and energy in the room shoots all the way up. That’s what the Psalmist is describing—a state of joy that is so intense that it spills over to others.

For those of us who have been Christians for some time, we feel like we need to be that kind of person. We hear sermons and Bible classes saying that we should be joyful people because of what Jesus has done for us. But then we feel bad, because we don’t always feel joyful, and so we feel bad because we’re not following what the Bible says. We know in our heads that the resurrection of Jesus is very important, but we don’t feel it transforming our lives.

Ancient Problem

As it turns out, that’s not a new problem. Let’s turn to 1 Peter and we’re going to find a Christian community that was in a situation like ours. A community that knew Jesus was raised from the dead, yet continued to live amid suffering and persecution.

And let’s remember, they suffered. We know of Christians who were tortured and executed just for being Christian. Families were torn apart. And those who weren’t killed were mocked and insulted in public. Just imagine if you went into your school or workplace and people scoffed at you, saying “Oh look, there’s that Christian.” Just imagine getting baptised, confessing your faith in Jesus the Son of God, and suddenly everybody hates you. Quite the opposite of the expectation today, that if I follow Jesus, God should bless me and give me a good life.

And into this mess, this injustice, this suffering, the apostle Peter proclaims the word of the Lord.

1 Peter 1:1–9 ESV

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Let us pray.

Great are You, O Lord, and most worthy of praise. We praise You, most merciful Lord Jesus, for You died and now live again, and because of You we live again by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We pray with our brothers and sisters from ages past, who suffered and struggled under the Roman empire, waiting for a new kingdom that had not come.

Reveal to us the glorious mystery of the resurrection, which we proclaim week after week and perhaps even take for granted. Cast out our blindness that we may see the truth of the risen Jesus. Cast out our deafness that we may hear the Gospel as truly good news. Kindle again our lukewarm hearts that have grown cold and tired of waiting for Your promises.

We wait for You, Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Ancient Solution

In this text, Peter gives us three reasons to rejoice, and they are are all tied to the fact that Jesus is alive.

First, because Jesus is alive, we have a Reward that suffering cannot take away. That’s what verses 3-5 are all about. “According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.” Lots of big words there; what does it all mean?

For Peter and his audience, the word ‘inheritance’ is a loaded word. Peter was born and raised a Jew. He is immersed in the Hebrew Bible, and when a Jew talks about inheritance, they are talking about the original inheritance of the Jewish nation: the Promised Land. It’s the land that Yahweh promises to give to Abraham and his descendants forever, a land flowing with milk and honey, a land so fertile that it takes two men to carry one cluster of grapes.

Can you imagine a grape the size of your fist?

And this inheritance, is not just about the physical area, but also the lifestyle they get to live. It’s a life of peace and security - they will no longer wander, but they will have a permanent home. It’s a life of independence and freedom - they will not be slaves to any other nation or earthly king. No one will mistreat and destroy them, but they will be ruled by Yahweh Himself who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

All these ideas from the Hebrew Bible get activated when Peter mentions ‘inheritance’.

But even this God-given inheritance is always at risk of being lost. Through Israel’s history, foreign nations attack them and destroy their land. Sometimes the land fails to produce food for them and there is a famine. It’s a good inheritance, but it is always at risk of being lost.

And what Peter is saying is, because Jesus is alive, we have a better inheritance than the Promised Land, better than anything this world can offer. No army of any nation or earthly power can take it away from you. Wind or rain, earthquake or tsunami, nothing can diminish the good and abundant life that the risen Jesus gives to those who believe.

What does this inheritance look like if it’s not of this world?

It is the inheritance of an abundant life. We live in a society that defines abundance by the kind of house you live in, what kind of car you drive or don’t drive, what school you graduated from, what phone you use, whether your salary has four, five or six digits. And no matter how much you get, it’s never enough.

But because Jesus is alive, we know that we’ve been made for life in another world. A world where we’re not defined by our schools or salaries. A world where we and our parents and our children lack nothing because in Jesus we have everything. Can you imagine that—a life without worry, a life without lack?

Because Jesus is alive, we rejoice over our Reward that suffering cannot take away.

That’s the first reason.

Second, because Jesus is alive, our suffering becomes our Refinement. It’s not just that we have a Reward after suffering, but something happens even during our suffering. This is what verse 6-7 are all about: “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

I want to be careful here.

Obviously, we do not dance with joy when we hear that a loved one has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. We don’t tell them cheerfully, “It’s okay! God gave you cancer for a reason!” We do not rejoice when we experience or hear about abuse, mental illness, sexual infidelity, corruption of the rich and powerful. Few things are more painful to a suffering person than to hear “God gave you an abusive spouse for a reason” or “God wants to teach you something through your depression.”

Peter is not saying that suffering is good. Peter is saying that God is working to make good come out of it. And the good is what Paul famously says in Rom 5:3-4 “...we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope”.

15-year-old John

When I was a teenager going through the process of growing up, I remember an intense period of loneliness—I thought nobody liked me because I was weird and arrogant and socially inept. I thought everyone was talking about me behind my back, and that I would never in my life experience any truly honest friendship. You know, typical teenager things, and looking back I laugh a little at it. But I remember that for teenager me, it was like my whole world had shattered.

And I remember praying alone late into a dark night, complaining to God until I ran out of words, then complaining to God with my emotions. Complaining about all my friends for not being the people I wanted them to be, complaining about me and the filthy little human I was.

‌And then I felt the presence of God. Though I could not see anything around me, something changed in my heart. It was as though my heart was a dry and thirsty land, and a little river had begun to flow into my heart, slowly, quietly, bringing me peace and comfort that I had not known before. God was there. I could not see Him. But God met me in what felt like the lowest point of my teenage years.

This is one of the moments when I realised God was calling me into full-time ministry, to share joy and love and friendship that God had shown to me.

Today, I am immensely grateful and joyful where I am. It is a joy to serve this congregation and to be a part of God’s mission in this way. To minister to Youth, to lead worship and grow in discipleship with all of you.

And if anything I’ve done so far has blessed this church, this might not have been possible if I had not had that painful experience. I’ve grown as a result of that experience. I like this version of myself now much better than that one. And I hope you do too.

This is my story, and there are many others where people go through suffering far worse than those of a teenage boy. And I’m sure you have stories of your own.

None of this is possible if Jesus had not risen from the grave. If Jesus were still in the tomb, there would be no future after suffering. The story of Jesus would just be another story of an innocent man who suffered wrongly and pointlessly. If Jesus were not raised, then suffering really is meaningless.

But because Jesus is alive, there is a future after suffering. The scourge, the whip, the cross did not have the final say on Jesus, and if we are united with Him, suffering does not have the final say on us! The world can do its worst; what we suffer is not the end of the world but a pathway to a new world.

Because Jesus is alive, I rejoice because my suffering has become my refinement. I do not love suffering for its own sake; I love what I become after it.

So may our prayer not be that God will spare us from suffering, because then we remain as we are in our spiritual immaturity. May our prayer instead be that God will use our suffering for our Refinement.

...

We rejoice because of our Reward that suffering cannot take away. We rejoice because our suffering has become our Refinement. And while they are wonderful, there is no greater reason to rejoice than this: that we are in a perfect Relationship with the risen Jesus.

1 Peter 1:8–9 ESV

8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Notice the intensity here. Peter talked about rejoicing despite our trials because of our future hope. And that’s great. But here, Peter says that the joy of believing and loving Jesus is so great that it is inexpressible! There are no words for this! There is no poem or song in any language or every language under heaven that can describe this joy! And by the way, the words for ‘love’ and ‘rejoice’ are in the present tense. This is an ongoing, daily experience in the present for those who believe in Jesus!

Do you rejoice knowing that you have this relationship with Jesus? Do you jump for joy knowing that the risen Lord wants to be with you? Does it bring a smile to your face knowing that the God of the universe loves…you?

Modern Solution

Having said all this, what does this mean for us?

I don’t want us to hear this as, “Oh look at how faithful the early church was; we just need to copy their example and rejoice more.” You and I know it’s not that simple. Our brains don’t have a button to go from mourning to dancing and feel joyful immediately. And the example of the early church is not to make us feel bad when we struggle to be like them.

What I pray you hear today is that it is possible to rejoice amid our suffering. Because Jesus is alive, we have a reward that no suffering can take away from us. Because Jesus is alive, our suffering is not meaningless, but we are refined to become more like Him. And because Jesus is alive, we enjoy a relationship with Him that we were always meant for. And those things are true whether you feel like it or not.

And here’s how we move from knowing it to feeling it.

Kyle preached a few weeks ago that the way we move past suffering is through fellowship.

In this 1 Peter passage we looked at today, every time he says “you”, the “you” is plural. All this—this is a message spoken to a community. A family. A church.

God does not call us to be strong, independent people who say “I’m strong enough, I don’t need anyone’s help”. That’s not how we were designed. God calls us to be a community that shares suffering, that cries together, that confesses to one another, “Hey, I’m having a hard time with my faith; Hey, I cannot let go of my anger, please pray for me.”

And as we practice true community, we remind each other of these truths. We share with one another the hope of our future reward. We remind each other again and again that because Jesus is alive, your suffering and my suffering will only refine us into more faithful men and women of God.