Joy and the Spirit
Notes
Transcript
turn to Acts 13:13. and I am actually going to start at the end...
Let me start at the end here...
52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
How many of us want to live a life filled with joy and the Holy Spirit?
how many of you long for joy? how many of you would say you have it?
and where are you getting it?
one of my favorite theologians—Sam Storms defines joy...
“As a deep and durable delight...”
it’s deep…more than surface level
it’s durable…it lasts…steady
it’s delight...
this deep and durable delight the disciples had is remarkable…back up a little bit
50 But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.
51 So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium.
52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
so they were just kicked out of the region where they were spreading the Gospel.
they had just experienced persecution...
They shake the dust off their feet—which we see in Matthew, Mark, and Luke—as a sign of committing them to God’s judgment…yet they have joy!?
I would have had a deep and durable pity party!
I don’t think i would have joy...
I would be...
—disappointed...
—disillusioned
—discouraged..
---depressed...
—downcast and downtrodden
the terrible D’s
what gave them joy?
let’s back up now—that we know the end…how did Paul and Barnabas, 2 missionaries sent by the church in Antioch…have joy
the disciples were filled with joy?
13 From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem.
14 From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down.
(show 1st missionary journey)
How were they filled with joy—we see the first clue in the next 10 verses...
Acts 13:15–25 (NIV)
15 After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”
16 Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me!
17 The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country;
18 for about forty years he endured their conduct in the wilderness;
19 and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance.
20 All this took about 450 years. (the time from Exodus - Joshua)
“After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet.
21 Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years.
22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’
23 “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.
24 Before the coming of Jesus, John (the Baptist) preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel.
25 As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’
how to have joy? a deep and durable delight?
Be stubbornly God-centered…(vs. 15-25)
in your life…your views…your perspective and interpretation of events in your life...
notice how Paul talks to his fellow Jews about their shared history.
vs. 17 - he, God made the people prosper…he led them out of the country…
vs. 18 he endured their conduct in the wilderness
vs. 19 he overthrew seven nations...
vs. 22—after removing Saul, he made David their king
vs. 23—God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus as He promised...
Paul is stubbornly God-centered in his people’s history…even in the ups and downs of their history—the focus is God. What God has done..and btw—the history told here is not just the Israelite history—if you are a Christian—it’s our history—b/c this was paving the way for Jesus Christ.
Paul is God-centered in thinking about their past.
and it’s worth asking—as you think about your past—do you see God at work? in the good times?
what about even the suffering times? Is it possible that somehow God can even work in and through those—weaving darkness and light into a masterpiece? I am not saying it’s easy—and some of us have been through tremendous pain and suffering and trauma that I wouldn’t wish on anyone.
and yet—I think from a biblical perspective—no matter what we have gone through—if we are to have that joy—we have to be stubbornly God-centered.
Paul is not just God-centered in his past but on his timetable—but even his timetable…look at vs. 20
20 All this took about 450 years. “After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet.
450 years—400 years they were slaves in Egypt—God finally rescued them. 40 years they wandered in the desert...
we often want to God to move and answer—and we want it yesterday…but God’s timetable is different…he let them be slaves for almost 400 years...
and yet if we have a God-centered view—then we trust that He is up to something good—something we can’t see.
maybe even something we won’t see in our lifetime…maybe it will come in the next generation or our 3rd and 4th generation of descendants...
do we trust to keep following God…that kind of God-centeredness—that kind of perspective produces a deep and durable delight. “I don’t have to have all the answers and results right now...”
the next clue for having a deep and durable delight continues (and btw—keep noticing the God-centeredness too)
Acts 13:26–38 (NIV)
26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles (converts to Judaism without circumcision), it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent.
27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the (OT) prophets that are read every Sabbath.
28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed.
29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb.
30 But God raised him from the dead,
31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.
32 “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors
33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: “ ‘You are my son; today I have become your father.’ (Psalm 2)
34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said, “ ‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’ (Is. 53)
35 So it is also stated elsewhere: “ ‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’ (Psalm 16)
36 “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed.
37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.
38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.
the 2nd way to have a deep and durable delight—is not just being God-centered...
but #2: we must have a laser like focus on Jesus. stubbornly God-centered, laser like focus on Jesus Christ.
Really, the first 2 points are extremely close—very related…but what I mean by this is that we must see all of God’s plans as being fulfilled and finding their fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
all of history was moving towards Jesus Christ.
all of the OT was moving towards Jesus Christ.
27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
the Bible is a unified story that leads to Jesus..
all of Israel’s history—was moving towards him. God had promised Abraham that through his descendants all would be blessed—the ultimate descendant of Abraham—is Jesus. those who put their faith in Jesus are blessed.
if you are ever struggle to understand the OT—you have to keep in mind that it’s all moving towards the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
when God promised that David would always have a descendant on the throne—He was talking about Jesus Christ.
this was all part of the Trinity’s plan to save us for Himself…because without Christ, we are sinners. We are selfish—we are separated from a holy God. we have no hope. the Bible uses words like dead, lost, hopeless.
But God sent Jesus Christ to live the life we failed to live
and die the death we deserve on the cross, to be buried...
and rise from the grave—proving it’s defeated. and he even quoted OT scripture to prove the resurrection..
and now in verse 38--
38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.
39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.
40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:
41 “ ‘Look, you scoffers, wonder and perish, for I am going to do something in your days that you would never believe, even if someone told you.’”
this takes me to my 3rd point for a deep and durable light—not only are we stubbornly focused on God and have a laser like focus on Jesus...
How to have joy: Remember Gospel is greater than law. (vs. 39)
look at verse 39 again..Gospel = good news...
Acts 13:39 (NIV)
39 Through him (Jesus) everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.
that word justification is a big word…it means to be declared righteous or right in God’s sight.
it’s a legal word...
God the judge looks at us—and in our sin—we are declared guilty, condemned…b/c we have all turned our backs on God.
if we are honest—we feel this need to justify ourselves in life—to prove to God, or someone out there that we are significant, that we are worthwhile…that we matter..all of us feel this desperate need in life for self-justification…to prove ourselves…to free ourselves from shame, guilt—we carry it out around theologically because of sin—since Adam and Eve sinned, and we sin.
for instance—in the movie Rocky—1976—boxer Rocky played by Sylvester Stallone. grew up in inner city Philadelphia—as he talking with Adrian—about his upcoming boxing match—he talks about why he is willing to face Apollo Creed heavyweight champion: “Cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody's ever gone the distance with Creed, and if I can go that distance, you see, and that bell rings and I'm still standin', I'm gonna know for the first time in my life, see, that I weren't just another bum from the neighborhood.” he’s trying to justify or prove his existence--- “I matter...”
In the movie Chariots of Fire, which chronicles the rise of two Scottish sprinters at the 1924 Olympics. Eric Liddell was a fully committed man of God and (in the movie) uttered the famous line, “I run to glorify God, and when I run, I feel his pleasure.” now he found his justification in the Gospel...
For the movie’s counter-hero, Harold Abrahams, running wasn’t about pleasing God; it was about proving that he mattered. Running gave him, he said, “10 lonely seconds to justify my whole existence.”
what do you look to to justify your existence? your work? your career? if I just am successful enough…your money? will those justify you? the approval of others--- “If people just like me...” romance… “If I just find mr. or miss right who will complete me.” pleasure—sex. will that work?
my sermon—if I just keep people awake enough..if i preach a good sermon…my identity can become that if I am not careful…i have 30 minutes to justify my existence...
Paul challenged the Jews religiously—who were looking to the Law of Moses—the OT law—that if they just followed that enough—God would accept them.
but that’s not true.
39 Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.
through Jesus Christ—He alone sets us free from sin…our sin is what separates us—this is why we feel this need for self-justification...
but working hard enough won’t free us
trying to follow all the rules won’t free us (we can’t!)
looking out to hard work, achievement---approval of others—those are up and down
the only thing that is settled is this God-centeredness—that He through Jesus Christ His Son—accomplished our salvation our justification....so that the moment you trust in Jesus to justify you or save you from your sins...
God the judge declares you justified—not guilty—righteous in His sight
famously—theologians say it like this:
—it’s as if you have never sinned...
—and as if you have done everything Jesus did...
that’s justification...
that’s joy—it’s deep and durable—it’s not up and down—it’s settled.
following the law it up and down—b/c we can’t—but Jesus’ accomplishment on the cross is not.
do you focus on this Gospel—this good news?
let’s keep reading.
Acts 13:42–48 (NIV)
42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath.
43 When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. (more Gospel—the grace of God)
44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.
45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him.
46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.
47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “ ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’” (Isaiah 49)
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.
49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.
we see a principle we saw last week—when we share Christ—we see results and resistance…all the time. some will respond positively to Christ; some will not.
look at verse 48 again...
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.
all who were appointed for eternal life..
who did the appointing?
God, right?
does that make you uncomfortable…why?
they still had to believe…they were called to believe...
and yet—the writer of Acts—Luke—doesn’t blink in combining this idea that God is behind salvation—he appoints people for salvation (strong word!) and yet we are still responsible and called to believe.
can those ideas really come together?
part of this...
God-centeredness...
this Jesus-centeredness...
this Gospel-centeredness...
is here.
it’s this idea of being faithful to the calling they had—Paul and Barnabas faithfully declared God’s Word...
some responded...
some did not respond—even persecuted...
but they left the results to God.
if you and I try to control...
life...
results in ministry...
other people...
it will not be a deep and durable delight...
but if we are faithful to do what God has done—planting the Word, watering it, …and leaving the results to God…that’s joy!
What are some ways you can be God-centered and Jesus-centered and Gospel-centered......
identify your heart’s self-justification.
where do you look to for joy…why?
don’t just identify it—get to the root. why do I look for money or career? or people’s approval? or success? why? or religion-following rules....why?
identify it—confess it and the reasons why...
not sure—ask a good friend or family member — what makes me overly sad or overly happy...
Be intentional to be in the Word…that may sound obvious…but I challenge you to really soak it in.
for instance, what if you sat down and read all of Acts 1-13. everything we have covered so far…I challenge you to do this.
or listen to it…while you are in the car on your commute…soak in the Word.
one of the things we will release this week—is Anna Dee our communications intern in the office with Michelle McIntosh—and her brother Isaac Dee—are working on recording Anna reading some Scriptures on joy—listen to that.
be absorbed daily…be intentional…if you need help figuring out what to read or what resource to follow…contact us...
Check out this resource---we only have a few copies…a Gospel primer—it’s a resource I recommend every once in a while—a practical took for helping the Gospel get deep within your bones...
Be consistent in spending time with Jesus....
it’s a little bit like working out…if you start working out, it’s uncomfortable---feels foreign. makes you sore. it’s easy to give up
but if you say everyday, I am going to develop a habit to work out—work out everyday a little bit for 30 days—and that’s when the magic happens.
spend time with the Lord everyday for 30 days—I guarantee that will change things for you. some days—you will get more out of it than others—that’s normal. don’t give up--
it will produce the humility that John had
25 As John was completing his work, he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’
it will make you like King David
22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’
what if…we were a people, heading into summer—who were intentional?
school starts back up August 7. we have about 10 to 11 weeks...
76 days until school starts…and i calculated that a few days ago—73 days....ugh!
how can we be intentional to keep our eyes on Jesus...
joy—a deep and durable delight...
we are going to begin that joy process by focusing on Jesus....
in a time of communion...
when Jesus gave his disciples and us communion he had said:
15 And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.
16 For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
(that verse probably is a reference to when He comes again---and we eat at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb)
so communion looks back at what Jesus did and forwards...
eagerly---joy!
Jesus said...
11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,
2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
doesn’t mean he wasn’t sad—sorry and joy can coexist!
but he endured it for the joy set before him—that he was to accomplish in line with His Father’s plan.
19 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.