How to have joy

Read Philippians 1:15–18 “Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.”

Intro

Joy has gone missing

in our world today.

We see this

in the increase

of mental health issues

anxiety

depression

suicide.

A recent poll

50 percent of teens

agree

with statements

like

‘I can’t do anything right’

‘I don’t enjoy life’

and ‘my life is not useful’.

This is double

compared to a decade ago.

And it’s because

people are empty.

They lack fulfillment.

They lack joy.

So today

I want to show you

how you can have joy.

Because God

does not want

you

to have a meaningless

empty

and joyless life.

1. Know that God uses ____ for good (v.12-17)

1. Know that God uses evil for good (v.12-17)

And we see this

in the life of Paul

in v.12,’‘but I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me’

We learned previously

that Philippians

is all about humility

and joy.

But we also learned

that Paul

was in prison in Rome

when

he wrote this letter.

And that’s

what happened

to Paul!

That’s the thing

that happened to Paul!

As we see in the later verses

Paul talks about his chains

just to make clear.

Now usually

when you find out

that someone

is in jail

that’s bad news.

When you hear about a thief

or murderer

going to jail

you’re happy!

‘We caught the school shooter!’

And you think

‘thank God!’

But if you heard

that your friend

or your sibling

went to jail

you’d be worried.

‘Did he do something bad?’

‘When is he gonna get out?’

There’s been people

who were innocent

that have been imprisoned.

Even people

who were put on death row

and put to death

who were later

found

to be innocent.

What if that happened to you

or your friend

or family?

What happens

when an innocent person

goes to jail?

We worry right?

But here

Paul’s imprisonment

is good!

He writes, ‘have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel’

How?

How could

the imprisonment

of one of 12

God’s most used people

help the gospel?

He’s stuck

in a room all day!

Isn’t the gospel

supposed to be spread

all over the world?

How are you

supposed to go out

and preach the gospel

when you are confined

to a room

and tied

to a chain

like a beast? (prisoner pic)

But somehow

his isolation

helped the gospel.

And not only help

but further the gospel!

The word further

really means advance.

It’s this militaristic image.

A forward march

of an unstoppable army.

Breaking through

unbreakable gates

and storming though. (roman legion pic)

But how?

How exactly

can putting the apostle

in jail

make the gospel

an unstoppable force?

Paul tells us in v.13, ‘so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ’

Paul is saying

that his imprisonment

furthered the gospel

by giving him the opportunity

to share it

with the whole palace guard. (Repeat)

Often

when you have jail guards

holding

a prisoner

they tend to be skeptical.

Imagine

you are a jail guard

and you have a new prisoner

Ryan.

Don’t you think

Ryan

is up to no good?

Why

would you be

on the side of a prisoner?

Especially Ryan?

But Paul said

‘it has become evident’.

In other words

it has been made clear

without

a shadow of a doubt

why

Paul is in prison.

That he is innocent

he’s not a criminal.

But most importantly

he’s in prison

for Jesus.

Paul calls it, ‘my chains are in Christ.’

Paul followed Jesus

no matter what.

He took up the cross

even if it led him

to prison

to chains.

And all the guards

know

about it.

They knew

this man

is here for Jesus.

And you know what

for almost all of them

this would be the first time

they ever heard

about Jesus.

This would be

the first time

they got to speak to a Christian

who could explain

Jesus to them!

And it wasn’t just

the entire guard

but also

everyone around him!

Paul says, ‘and to all the rest’.

All these new people

that Paul

never

spoke to before

got to hear

about Jesus.

That’s God

using evil for good.

The unrighteous imprisonment

of a man of God

turned

into a new opportunity

for more people

to hear the good news.

But the more people

hearing

the gospel

is not the only way

God used evil for good.

v.14, ‘and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains,’

Because

of Paul’s imprisonment

most Christians

became confident.

Why did they become confident?

It’s because

they saw

how God

used evil for good.

They saw

how Paul’s

imprisonment

marched the gospel

forward

to more people.

They realized

that God

can turn anything

into good.

So what happens

when Christians

become confident?

Paul writes, ‘are much more bold to speak the word without fear.’

It made the Christians

in Rome

more bold.

More confident

more fearless.

To share

the gospel!

What is the biggest reason

why people don’t

share the gospel?

Fear.

Fear of humiliation

and rejection.

So how

does God deal

with fear?

He allows

evil:

Paul being put in chains.

Putting someone in jail

should cause fear.

If you heard

a fellow Christian

be put in jail

for their faith

that should make you scared!

‘I don’t want

to be put in jail too!’

‘What if they catch me

and torture me?’

But what seems

like the worse thing

that could happen

to Christianity

God used for good!

When I went to university

I majored in psychology.

I originally

wanted

to become

a psychologist.

But then Jesus

came into my life

and I no longer

wanted to do that.

Close to the end

of my junior year

I wanted to drop out.

I just wanted to work

and make money

because I felt

the degree wasn’t worth it.

My mom

upset

about that

encouraged me

to finish anyway.

So I did

and I graduated.

And I ended up working

in jobs

that don’t require

a psychology degree.

So I regretted

majoring in psychology.

You see

when I tell people

I majored in psychology

they always

act impressed.

They think

I can read

people’s minds.

If I could read minds

from majoring

in psych

then it would be worth it.

But I can’t

read minds!

Sorry!

Years later

following

God’s call

to be a pastor

I knew I had to go to seminary.

And you know what seminary requires?

A bachelor’s degree.

And you know

what is the majority

of schoolwork

in seminary?

Not reading minds!

But reading

and writing books!

And you know

what almost all my schoolwork

in for my psych degree was?

Reading

and writing.

You see

what seemed to be useless to me

actually turned out

to be helpful for me

in seminary!

God used one of my biggest regrets

to move me forward

to become a pastor.

Students

maybe you have regrets.

I hope not.

You bought an Xbox

when you should

have got a PS5

or a PC.

Or you got a high taper fade

when you should have

got a low taper fade.

You got into a relationship

with a boy

or girl

when you shouldn’t have.

Whatever it is

God will use your mistakes

for good.

But what’s not a mistake

is the crucifixion of Jesus.

Acts 2:23–24 (ESV)

this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

People often reference

the Holocaust

as the greatest evil

that has taken place

in history.

But as bad as it was

the crucifixion

of the Son of God

is the worse.

And yet God planned it

before it even happened

so that you

could have

eternal life.

If God

could use the greatest evil in the world

for good

how much more

can He use

your mistakes

and the pain

in your life

for good?

Steve

was a Christian worker

in Mali.

He was driving

through the Sahara

but then

his truck

broke down.

And he started thinking

about his father

Nate Saint

who was a missionary in Ecuador.

When Steve was 5

his father

and other missionaries

were speared to death

by natives.

As he wondered

why

his father died

some locals

found him

and brought him to a church.

And he met

a man named Nouh.

Nouh shared his faith

with Steve

explaining how his family

disowned him

to the point

that his mother

put sorcerer’s poison

in his food

but

to no affect.

Can you imagine

your own mom

poisoning your dinner?

I mean sometimes

mom can put a pretty

nasty plate

on the table

and you feel

like she’s trying

to poison you.

but that’s nothing

compared to actual poison!

So Steve being impressed

by Nouh’s willingness

to sacrifice his family

to follow Jesus

asked

‘where

does your courage

come from?’

And Nouh said,

he read books

about missionaries.

And his favorite

was about five young missionaries

who went to Ecuador

and risked their lives

to share

the gospel.

They even let the natives

spear them to death

even though

they had guns

to protect themselves.

Shocked

Steve

told Nouh

that one of them

was his father.

‘Your father?’

Nouh exclaimed.

And Steve

finally realized

decades later

how God used

what seemed

like a meaningless death

of his father

to help Nouh

hold on

to his faith

against all odds.

Students

God uses evil for good.

Know this.

Remember this.

Because

it will help you

have everlasting joy.

Romans 8:28 (ESV)

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Memorize this verse!

If you know

that God

uses evil for good

then nothing

can stop your joy!

Not even

the bad things in your life

can hurt

your joy!

Because even

the bad

God uses for good!

2. Focus on the kingdom (v.15-18)

Paul’s imprisonment

isn’t the only thing

that was going on.

v.15, ‘Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.’

There are two groups

that Paul is bringing up here

that both

preach Christ.

But one group

is preaching

with bad intentions

and the other good.

v.16, ‘The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel’.

v.17, ‘The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment.’

This is odd.

On one hand

you have a group that is loving and supportive and know the truth that Paul is in prison

for Jesus.

But on the other hand

you have a group

that is preaching Jesus

but wants

to hurt Paul. How can you

preach Christ

with bad intentions?

Isn’t preaching Christ

good?

But Paul says

they do it out of selfish ambition.

They were preaching

in order

to make money.

To gain praise

and acclaim.

But even worse

they did it

to hurt Paul.

While Paul

was in jail

these people

would be preaching,

‘see Paul is in jail

he’s not all that.

What kind of apostle

gets put in jail?

God is not with him.

I’m better than him!’

The people

who were supposed to

be there

for him

at his time of need

not only abandoned him

they attacked him!

They betrayed him!

The greatest pain

you can receive

is not

from your enemies.

It’s from your friends.

You think

your friend supports you

but then

you actually

find out

they’re talking

trash about you

behind you’re back.

That hurts.

Even Christians

can be hurtful.

If you ever been hurt

by a Christian or your friend raise your hand. How can you be joyful

when your friend

betrays you?

Paul tells us how

he does

in v.18, ‘What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.’

In the darkness

Paul finds light

by looking

at the big picture.

Whether

people are preaching Christ

from good

or bad intentions

Christ is being preached.

People are hearing the gospel

getting saved

even

from people

who do it

out of greed.

That’s God

using evil for good again.

God can even

use a non-Christian

to share the gospel

and save souls.

And that

is where Paul

finds joy.

Because

He’s focused on the kingdom.

Rather than letting

the his problems

cloud his vision

he sees the bigger picture

that the name of Jesus

is being proclaimed

everywhere

by everyone

including

his enemies.

According to AAA

deaths

caused by car accidents

are at an all-time

high.

And 50 percent of them

drivers

admitted

to using their cell-phone

while driving.

They say

that driving at 55 mph

while sending

or reading

a text

is like

driving through an entire football field

with your eyes closed.

Stay focused students.

Keep your eyes

on the road.

Luke 9:62 (ESV)

Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

If you look back

while plowing

you make a crooked furrow. (crooked furrow pic)

You make a mess.

But when you lock in

and focus

only looking forward.

You create this. (straight furrow)

So much pain

comes

because

we are so focused

on the pains of the past

mistakes

regret

what someone did to you

in the past. On our problems

troubling us

today

rather

than Jesus.

If you want to have joy,

lock-in

to God’s kingdom.

You’re probably asking.

How

is the kingdom

being advanced today?

Through missions

and service. (missions pic)

There’s a reason

why

for example

when you go to MFUGE

you are filled

with joy

and satisfaction

right?

It’s not

just the fun

and games

but it’s really

the being a part

of missions.

You enjoy

so much joy

satisfaction

and purpose

when you see

God’s kingdom

being brought

to new places.

When you go on mission

when you serve

you literally

see

with your very own eyes

God’s kingdom

moving forward.

So I encourage you

come to MFUGE next year.

Serve

with us

at Fuge@Home

this summer.

And when you’re not on mission

read about missionaries

in the past

and even today.

There are websites

that you can go to

that talk about missionaries

in places like China

or the Middle East.

and it’s encouraging to see.

Gospel