Joy

Luke 2:8–14 (ESV)

8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.

10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.

11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Let’s Define Joy

Hard to nail down what joy is

Emotion

noun: joy

a feeling of great pleasure and happiness.

LIVERPOOL GAME AND LATE GOAL

State of Mind, more than a temporary emotion

JOY (שִׂמְחָה, simchah; χαρά, chara) more a state of being than an emotion; a result of choice.

The Bible says Joy is a characteristic for all Christians

Psalm 68:3 (ESV)

3 But the righteous shall be glad; they shall exult before God; they shall be jubilant with joy!

Nehemiah 8:10 (ESV)

10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Isaiah 12:3 (ESV)

3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Joy is a Normal trait, attribute, a predictable quality

Filled with joy, overflowing with joy, abundance of joy, much joy, all joy...

one reason is Joy is a fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV)

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Would those closest to you describe you as a joyful person?

Where does Christian Joy Come From?

Christ’s arrival

Matthew 2:10 ESV

10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

Why did these men rejoice with great joy?

From Genesis 3 the messiah was promised

Hundreds of Prophesies about Christ

Isaiah 7:14 ESV

14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Philippians 2:8 (ESV)

8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Joy in the First Advent because Christ Came

Image of the invisible God, Truly God, Truly Man

Colossians 1:19–22 (ESV)

19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,

22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,

Joy because Jesus Christ died and Rose from the dead securing salvation for all who believe

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.

Jesus Promises us Joy

John 15:11 (ESV)

11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Why does Joy seem to come and go?

Joy is a choice

we will dive more into this in a moment

every moment of our lives, we make choices.

Chose to obey God, or chose to obey ME

Walk in the Spirit, or gratify the desires of the Flesh

True Joy or Fleeting pleasure

TRUTH: Real, Lasting, True, Actual Joy comes from the Lord.

While we can find a kind of joy in People, relationships, work, possessions, experiences…they cannot produce lasting joy

True Joy in those things comes from the Lord.

Children, blessing from the Lord

Marriage, a picture of Christ and his bride the church

A house to sleep in that you show Christ Like hospitality to your neighbors

Joy from serving, or missions trips, or seeing the Grand Canyon sparks something.

If not anchored in the Lord, for his glory, that joy cannot be sustained or satisfy your heart

Verses we read about Paul and Johns joy, though it is found in people, that joy was only possible because of the transformational work of Jesus Christ in the lives of those very people.

Joy from individuals

2 Timothy 1:4 (ESV)

4 As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.

Joy from growth in the church

1 Thessalonians 2:19–20 (ESV)

19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you?

20 For you are our glory and joy.

3 John 4 (ESV)

4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

“joy may be complete” joy from my “children walking in truth”

Philippians 2:2 (ESV)

2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Joy From Life in Christ

Colossians 1:10–11 ESV

10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;

What happens when we seek joy apart from the Lord?

Man cannot live without joy; therefore when he is deprived of true spiritual joys it is necessary that he become addicted to carnal pleasures.

Thomas Aquinas

Back to our question, why does Joy seem to come and go?

I sometimes wonder whether all pleasures are not substitutes for joy.

C. S. Lewis

In our sin, we make trades:

“Trade hard right for the easy wrong”

Joy of Marriage for lust and pornography and adultery

Communion with God for Social media

Waiting on the Lord for another dopamine hit

Thanksgiving for Materialism

you get the thing and you move on to acquiring the next thing on the list

Joy of living for God’s kingdom with the Hustle of creating my own

count it all joy when you face trials is traded for the numbing effects of drugs and alcohol

Trade Prayer for Complaining

We trade real joy for cheap substitutes

Real, Lasting, True, Actual Joy comes from the Lord.

John 15:11 ESV

11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Abide, obey, doing the good works as obedient servants, as Christ abides in us and us in Him

Jesus doesn’t say, life will be goodish, joy will be full!

The gospel is good news for me, but what joy did Jesus get out of it?

Hebrews 12:2 ESV

2 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 that joy set before him?

Jude 24 ESV

24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy,

Christian you are the Joy of Christ.

Church we are the joy of Christ.

Presenting us before the father blameless, holy, righteous, is the joy that was set before him.

How do we move from Knowledge of Joy to Experiencing Joy?

Man is fond of counting his troubles but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Joy is a noun REJOICE is the verb

Philippians 4:4 ESV

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice

Rejoicing is not natural, it takes effort and discipline

groaning and grumbling is very natural, it just happens

over 220 times the Bible mentions rejoicing

Choose to rejoice or choose Groaning

Hebrews 13:17 ESV

17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Philippians 2:14 ESV

14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing,

Rejoice in Trials

James 1:2–3 ESV

2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

Groaning cannot bring joy, only a moment of numbing relief

CLOSING

1 Peter 1:3–9 ESV

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.

Rejoice in the Lord, always. Again I say it, rejoice.

It’s as simple as a prayer of thanksgiving

Joy is predictable for the Christian, is that true for you?

Rejoice. That is how you stoke the fire of joy in your life.

Church there is grace, mercy, favor, so rejoice is what is true today

Big, small, life altering, or good.