Rejoice in the Lord
Notes
Transcript
Introduction - the case of John Hooper.
Introduction - the case of John Hooper.
England was a tumultuous place in the 16th century. King Henry VIII embraced protestant theology and established the Church of England during his reign as monarch not because he believed the English reformers, but because of a falling out with the Church in Rome over his many infidelities. King Henry VIII divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, because she was unable to bear him a son and the only child that lived to adulthood was Mary Tudor, later to become Queen Mary I, or bloody Mary.
The relationship that started England’s march toward protestant theology was King Henry’s affair and then marriage to Anne Boleyn. Anne was also unable to give King Henry a son, the only child of their marriage was Elizabeth, later to become Queen Elizabeth I. Anne was accused of adultery and treason and promptly beheaded.
Henry VIII next wife was Jane Seymour and Jane Seymour would give birth to Henry’s only male heir Edward VI and she died during child birth. Edward the VI would succeed Henry VIII and would do much to advance Protestantism in England during his short six year rein. However, when Mary I, also known as Mary Queen of Scott’s and Bloody Mary, took over she would be directly responsible for the deaths of over 2000 men and woman committed to the truth of God’s word. At this point in English history, there was a fight going on in England, a tussle over worldviews and which would worldview would predominate.
One man who was caught up in the sudden and violent persecution of protestant ministers in England was John Hooper. On his conversion to protestant theology after reading Ulrich Zwinlgly and Heinrich Bullinger, Hooper fled England for Switzerland during the rein of Henry VIII and the publication of the anti-protestant ‘6 articles of religion’, published in 1539. Hooper learned much under the tutelage of Heinrich Bullinger and soon returned to pick up the reformation effort in England under King Edward VI in 1547. Hooper would preach once a day to thousands of people all over England and confronted many adversaries and heretical teaching along way. One papal leader with whom Hooper crossed literary swords and on two occassions confronted each other face to face was Stephen Gardiner. Hooper would eventually be appointed as the Bishop of both Gloucestershire and Worcestershire and remained in those roles until the ascension to the throne of Queen Mary I in 1553. Hooper would eventually be convicted of treason and burnt as a heretic at the stake on the 13th of February 1555 with his old adversary, Stephen Gardiner looking on. The night before his death, Hooper wrote these words on the wall of his Jail cell using a lump of coal.
“Content thyself with patience, With Christ to bear the cross of pain, who can or will recompense a thousand-fold with joys to again.
Let nothing cause thy heart to fail; launch out they boat, hoist up thy sail, put from the shore; and be thou sure thou shalt attain unto the port that shall remain for evermore.
Fear not death, pass not for bands, Only in God put they whole trust; For he will require thy blood at their hands; and thou dost know that once die thou must; only for that thy life if thou give, Death is no death, but a means for to live.
Do not despair; of no worldly tyrant see thou dread; thy compass, which is God’s word, shall thee lead, and the wind is fair”.
From a man facing certain death and death at the stake, Hooper sure sounded certain, he sounded strong, he sounded joyful.
The power struggle between worldviews and the clambering over truth has existed ever since the fall. This fight sent Able to his death at the hands of his brother, Jesus to the cross at hands of the Jewish religious leaders, Paul to his death also at the hands of the Roman’s, John Hooper to his death at the hands of Queen Mary. The fight for truth rages on today as God’s word stands in stark contrast to the woke ideology pedaled by politicians and woke activists all over the world. How do we face the inevitable opposition that will come our way in the face of such an opposing worldview as this woke movement? Whilst I plan to address the transgender and the woke movements more specifically and intentionally next week, I want to show you from Philippians 3:1 that at the heart of your commitment to and strength in the Lord, is you finding your joy in Him and in him alone. Let us consider our text this morning. Philippians 3: 1 - 4
Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you.
Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more:
Opening remarks
Paul starts the verse with the word ‘finally’. Considering that we are only at the halfway point of the book, it is a strange word to use at this point. Some argue that Paul was bringing his letter to a close when something suddenly prompted him to issue a warning to the Philippian Church, which he begins in verse 2. What it was that prompted Paul to launch into the warning that follows is unknown, but it is enough to cause him to park his conclusion here and only pick it up again in verse 8 of Chapter 4.
Paul then moves on and calls the Philippian believers ‘his brothers’. It is the third time that he has used this phrase in the book, but why does Paul use it and what does it mean?
The phrase is a familial expression most often used in reference to a male sibling with the same mother and/or father. I have a brother, his name is Kyle and he lives in Sydney, Australia. He is my brother, because he is a male and we share the same parents.
It is strange that Paul uses a familial expression to refer to the Philippian believers who weren’t of the same race, kindred, or clan and lived on a different continent to the one on which he was born. Paul’s reference to the Philippian believers as his brothers denotes a truth mentioned for the first time in Proverbs 18:24
A man of many companions may come to ruin,
but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
The reason why this phrase is significant in Paul’s letter to the Philippian church is because it represents a fundamental shift in who is included and who is excluded in God’s kingdom. It is no longer the circumcised Jews only, but it is all those who worship God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at Philippians 3:3 “For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh—”. Paul uses the word ‘we’ in verse 3 to show that the Philippian believers, though gentiles, have not only been included in God’s church, but they are now brothers in Christ with Paul. Before Christ, the church had not been separated on ideological grounds, but on racial grounds. This wasn’t because God had rejected the other nations (we know that God saved many thousands of people in Ninevah and had promised that through Abraham all the nations of the earth would be blessed), no it was the Jews who were so nationalistic and patriotic that they refused to share the God’s truth with those around them. After Christ this was no longer. In Acts 8, Peter and John saw that God’s Spirit was being poured out on the Samaritan’s and that God had granted repentance and faith to them as he had to the Jews, this broke down the walls that had separated Jew and Gentile for so long. It now mattered little whether or not you were a Jew or Gentile, circumcised or not, what mattered is what you believed about Jesus Christ. Paul encapsulates this so well in Galatians 3:27 - 29:
For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
As for the use of familial language when referring to one another, well it was Jesus himself who first establish this pattern in Matthew 12:46 - 50:
While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
Christians have for many centuries referred to one another with familial language upon the recognition that Christian men and women have the same spiritual father.
A dear friend from the Brakenhurst Baptist Church in Johannesburg made a point of using this kind of language when ever he referred to another Christian. When I saw him at Church on Sunday or at bible study during the week he would always come up to me, put his hand on my shoulder and sincerely ask, “How are you my brother?”. At first, as a slightly introverted person, this made me feel uncomfortable for a number of reasons. Firstly, because he used the familial term brother. Secondly, when he asked the question, ‘how are you?” he meant it, and, therefore, expected something more than, “I am fine” in reply. The third reason and perhaps the most important reason why it made me uncomfortable using the term ‘brother’ or ‘sister’ is inclusive and affectionate by definition. When it is used among Christian people we are saying ‘I see you, I recognise your faith, and I care for you’. Now when someone that I respect and admire uses that with me, it makes me feel unworthy and self-conscious, as if Satan is then and there reminding me of my sin and in my mind I am saying, “if you only knew the sins that I have committed, or the things that I have done, you wouldn’t be calling me brother”. And yet, therein is an opportunity for the gospel right. What unites the church is not innate human goodness or our ability to keep the law. It is simply a recognition of our common sinfulness and common trust in the work of Christ to save us. Isn’t that wonderful. Brothers and sisters, our unity is not based on our goodness - it is based on the merits of Jesus and that it is a reason to rejoice. I suggest that we use these familial terms among us. It is a wonderful way of recognising the faith of another in the Church and away of affirming each other. Brother Gerrie, Sister Adrie, Brother Nhanhla, Sister Sli.
The main thrust of verse 1, is not what or how we should be referring to one another. Paul merely uses the familial term before he exhorts his brothers in Philippi to do something. He exhorts them to ‘rejoice in the Lord’.
Rejoice in the Lord.
Rejoice in the Lord.
The main idea communicated in verse 1 is the exhortation to “rejoice in the Lord”. The use of the word rejoice here by Paul is the seventh time in a little over two chapters that he has used it. Indeed joy is a major theme that runs through Paul’s letter to the Philippians.
Paul's Joy in the Phil (1:4).
Paul's joy in the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ (1:18)
Paul's joy in deliverence (1:19) - death or continued labour.
Paul's desire to continue labouring for the progress and joy of the Philippian believers in the faith (1:25).
Paul rejoices at being poured at as a sacrificial offering upon their faith, and he asks that the Philippians rejoice in him (2:18 & 19).
Rejoice in the Lord (3:1)
My joy and crown (4:1)
Rejoice in the Lord always, again i will say rejoice (4:4)
Paul rejoices at the concern shown by the Philippian Church (4:10).
Though this is the seventh time Paul mentions the word joy or rejoice, it is the first time that Paul calls on the Philippian believers to ‘rejoice in the Lord’. So important is this short phrase, that we are going to spend the rest of our time together thinking about it and the its implications. Now, It is not the last time that Paul exhorts the Philippians to do this, he does it again in Philippians 4:4. Before looking at the meaning of the phrase, I think it is important for us to understand what the noun ‘joy’ and what the related verb ‘rejoice’ mean.
Joy has two forms. The first is the Greek word ‘chara’, which is the noun for ‘joy’, and is found four times in the book of Philippians. Chara or joy literally means ‘the experience of gladness’. The second is the Greek word ‘Chairo’, which is the verb rejoice, and is found eight times in the letter to the Philippians, and means ‘to be in a state of gladness’.
Now I have given you the Greek words for joy and their definitions, but I don’t think either give us a proper understanding of joy.
Keeping those definitions in mind, I would define biblical joy as the following:
It is a gladness of heart that comes from a confidence and trust in the Lord, produced by the Spirit of God, that transcends circumstance and comes from knowing God (through his word and our experience) and the assurance that God knows and loves you.
Now to understand joy, it is helpful to build a framework or a series of connected ideas that when pieced together helps us understand the concept of joy. In your minds, I want you to think of scaffolding - the series of interconnected pipes used to build a tower that reaches to the ceiling or roof of a building. The base of the scaffold/framework is the most important, it is the foundational idea.
1) Joy comes from a right relationship with God.
Consider the natural condition of man in the world.
Consider Ephesians 2:1 -3
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.
And:
remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
and Romans 8:7 - 8
For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
There is no joy in the natural condition of man. The depravity of man and the sinfulness of the human heart is destructive and self-absorbed. There is no peace there, only death.
I want to just pause here and point out the difference between happiness and joy. You can experience happiness in the naturally depraved condition of man. In fact, one could argue that the pleasures of sin leads to momentary happiness. But it does not lead to joy, it is the antithesis or the opposite of joy. The natural state of man then needs to change. The natural man needs to be reborn, or remade.
Enter the discussion between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3. Jesus says (John 3:3) “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”” Nicodemus is immediately confused and moves to scoff at the idea of a grown man entering again into the womb. But Jesus, to drive home the point, dismisses Nicodemus’ ignorance and says (John 3:14 - 15) “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” What will you do with the Son of God Nicodemus? The same question is asked of you and I. If you want joy in this world the question that must be answered is what have you done with the Lord Jesus Christ? You cannot make peace with God on your own, for (Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”” What have you done with Jesus?
There can be no peace with God and joy in your heart if God is your enemy. You must trust Christ as your own, he must shield you from the wrath of almighty God. This and only this is, brothers and sisters, the foundation of Joy.
Happiness is momentary and fleeting, it passes like the noon-day sun and as quickly as it comes it can be replaced by another emotion like anger, or irritation, or sadness. Joy, brothers and sisters, is enduring and the foundation of true, real and lasting joy is in your relationship with your maker. What have you done with Jesus?
2) Joy is produced in us by the Spirit of God
Joy is one of the evidences that we have been saved by God. Why? Because it is produced in us by the work of the Spirit of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.
If a lack of joy is our experience then we must question whether or not we have been saved, or whether or not there is sin in our lives that is impeding our relationship with the Lord and therefore our experience of joy.
I have certainly had to ask this in the past. Over the last three years, two important figures in my life have died and my experience during the long illnesses and eventual death of both of these men stand in stark contrast. When Martin fell sick in 2020 (almost three years to the day) my experience was anxiety and despair, there was an obvious absence of joy during that time. Martin illness and death had highlighted my fear of God because of certain besetting sins that I had left unconfessed and unrepented of. It was only after three months of unravelling this mess in my life, together with my gracious wife, that I was again able to experience the joy of the Lord.
The second was the illness and death of my Father-in-law. This larger than life man who we so loved and admired lay suddenly ill and there was little hope of recovery. But despite his protracted illness and eventual death, my experience and our experience as a family was that of joy in the Lord. Sonnie’s Dad knew and loved the Lord, as did we, and there was therefore little reason for despair. I am not saying that Christians do not at times battle with despair. But the gloomy darkness of despair and depression should not be our constant experience. Surely, as we remember God’s promises and hold on to the truth of his word, joy should fill our hearts and encourage you to love and treasure the Lord Jesus Christ and the life that he has given you. What about you and your circumstances? What are trials and difficulties are you facing? How are you managing them.
2 Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!”
Brothers and sisters, this is one of those tests. Is the Spirit of God producing joy in you? The more you know that Lord and the longer that you walk with him, are you enjoying Him more? Is He the delight of your life and deepest affection of your soul? Do you treasure Him as a groom does his new bride? As an overflow of your love for Christ, do you love and enjoy His Church? If your heart is dull to the Lord and indifferent to His church you must wonder if you are a Christian. Plead with the Lord to change your desire and to produce this joy in you, that you may delight in Him and serve his people with gladness.
3) Joy is built on Truth
One of the key tenets of post-modernism is the idea that truth is relative to the individual. In other words, I determine what is true and what is right for me, and you determine what is true and right for you. And so something like gender, something so fundamental to the human experience and at the center of a biological understanding of reproduction and the natural order of the world, can now be deemed relative (this is something that will speak about next week in more detail). You can choose your gender based on how you feel because, according to post-modernists, your emotional state and experience determine reality. Therefore you can have male genitalia and yet be a woman because being a woman is not based on any sound biological or religious truth, it is a state of feeling. Despite the fact that this places all women everywhere in grave danger as previously safe and protected spaces are violated by narcissitic men, it is an irrational argument and despicable to its core. Peddlers of post-modern doctrine argue that the locus of importance in determining truth is internal and therefore prone to change as rapidly as my two month old daughters nappy. The effect of it is chaotic and destructive and it is appalling in the extreme.
Brothers and sisters, biblical joy is not based on our internal state of feeling. It is based on an enduring truth that transcends time and circumstance. The locus of importance is not internal, it is external and it is based on a truth that has stood the test of time. There are many wonderful examples of men and woman who have endured great suffering for their love of God. I want to return to the words of John Hooper that he wrote on the wall of his prison cell:
Do not despair; of no worldly tyrant see thou dread; thy compass, which is God’s word, shall thee lead, and the wind is fair”.
Hooper’s joy was not in himself or in how he was feeling. His joy was in God’s word and no tyrant could take or shake this unshakable truth from him.
Another example of endurance in the face of physical torment and death is Jesus. Now, you may think that Jesus is a poor example because he was divine. Yet, I would say that He is the best example because despite his divinity he endured at the hands of sinful men the most unjust punishment and persecution in the history of the world and yet he willingly endured it. Why?
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
What was the joy that was set before him? It was a promise, it was truth. Look back at Philippians 2:9 - 11 “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Jesus endured the cross and despised the shame because of promise that was laid out before him and truth that He could hold onto and he was, therefore, able to experience joy despite his hellish circumstances and you can too.
So what about you? Is your joy built on truth?
If your joy is built on a right relationship with God.
If your joy is produced by the Spirit of God.
If your Joy is built on truth.
4) Rejoice in the Lord
I mentioned right at the beginning that joy is both a noun and a verb and I have thus far only looked at the concept of joy as a noun. But Paul’s exhortation here to ‘rejoice in the Lord’ is to use joy as a verb. It requires us to do something. In this book, Paul uses the phrase ‘rejoice in the Lord’ twice. If you look down at Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.” So what does Paul mean when he instructs the Philippian believers to ‘rejoice in the Lord’. Three things:
The first clue is in the sentence that follows. He says, “To write the same things to you is no trouble for me and is safe for you”. Now, in my humble opinion, Paul is speaking of the reminder that he gives to the Philippian believers to ‘rejoice in the Lord’. This is the fifth time in this letter that Paul had mentioned the verb rejoice. I don’t think that this is insignificant. A heart that rejoices in the Lord is one that is responding appropriately to kindness and mercy of God. A heart that responds appropriately to the gospel is one that responds by rejoicing. It reponds in worship, it responds in gratitude, it responds with joy.
Just like Paul reminds these Philippian believers to ‘rejoice in the Lord’, so we should be reminding one another to ‘rejoice in the Lord’. Paul alludes to this at the end of verse 1, “To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you”. We do this by remembering and sharing and reminding each other and ourselves of the gospel Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” So let us remind each other of and encourage each other in the gospel.
Remember that the gospel of Jesus Christ ought to be a delight to you. There can be nothing greater than knowing that God is for you because your sins are forgiven in Christ. And if God is for you, then who can be against you? Nehemiah knew this and encouraged the discouraged throngs of Israelites by saying (Nehemiah 8:10c) And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.””)
Application:
Is the joy of the Lord your strength? You will face temptations to despair. Whether in your own illness or the illness of someone you love, or because of a lack of work, or because like John Hooper you are persecuted for your love of Christ. We are led by a corrupt government that mingles with and supports war criminals. Food and fuel prices, driven by out of control inflation, are through the roof with no end in sight to rising interest rates. Woke ideology is found everywhere from advertising campaigns to movies and even children’s books and if you so much dare to raise and objection to it you are likely to be cancelled from social media or lose your job and as a result of these you may be tempted to despair. Temptations to despair will come.
What are you doing now to prepare yourself for future trials and temptations? What are you doing now to prepare yourself for your own death? Do you hear the call of the Angel in Revelation 14:12 “Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.” How is it that you will persevere? How is it that you will endure? How is it that you will remember the promises of God like that given in Revelation 14:13 “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.” You should be reminding yourself of God’s truths daily. Daily preaching the gospel to yourself. We should also be reminding each other of gospel, this is why we gather on Sundays and during the week. We gather to remind each other of the gospel and of our need for endurance and perseverance.
To close then, hear these words from William Romaine, another great preacher in England, this time for the 18th century, “It is now nearly sixty years since God opened my mouth to publish the everlasting sufficiency and eternal glory of the salvation in Christ Jesus; and it has now pleased him to shut my mouth, that my heart might feel and experience what my mouth has so often spoken”. I have the peace of God in my conscience, and the love of God in my heart, and that you know is sound experience. I knew before that the doctrines I preached were truths, but now I experience them to be blessings”. Oh to live in the Lord so well, and to die with such confidence. Brothers and sisters, “rejoice in the Lord”.