Philippians 4 4-13
Pentecost 21
Philippians 4:4-13
October 13, 2002
Don’t Worry, Be Happy!!!!
Introduction: In the 1980’s Bobby McFarren had a hit song, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. Remember it? It played on the radio and on the television, over and over again. After a while the only thing I was worried about was hearing that song one more time. Don’t worry, be happy. It was a cute song that took a simplistic look at a subject that devastates many people’s lives. And it offered no real reason why people shouldn’t worry and be happy.
Today we are in the grip of an epidemic of worry. We are living in a world where planes crash into skyscrapers. People are randomly shot in the streets. Children are kidnapped and molested. We live in a world where it is harder and harder to raise children. There is violence everywhere and it seems like no one can get along with each other. No wonder we worry. No wonder the mental health clinics are seeing more and more patients. The Mayo clinic estimates that 80% of its cases are directly related to worry. We know that medical science has closely tied worry to heart trouble (which I have none), high blood pressure, ulcers, migraine headaches and a whole list other physical disorders. All the while the worry list goes on… How will I pay my taxes? Am I going to have enough money for the mortgage? What about food, clothing, the car and insurance, the bills? What about those medical bills and all the unexpected expenses, they always seem to come when there isn’t any extra money. And if these worries are not enough, many people also worry about their appearance, clothing, hair do, and shoes.
I do believe that many of us are worrying ourselves to death! Worry, worry, worry! How many Christians lose their joy and peace because of worry! What is worry? Worry comes from the Anglo-Saxon word that means to strangle? I think we can all agree that worry does strangle people physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Worry tears us apart. What can we do about it? How can we keep the concerns of this life from crowding out the joy that we have in God and our Savior Jesus Christ? Where can we find happiness and joy?
Rejoice - the Lord is Near.
Even 2000 years ago, Paul understood worry to be the #1 thief of joy in our lives
Have you ever been robbed of your joy? I have! John, the disciple of Jesus, called Satan a thief and worry is a powerful tool that he can use to rob people of their joy, peace, and intimacy with their heavenly Father. How do we break free from destructive worry? Paul tells us to Rejoice in the Lord always! Rejoice!!!!!!!
First, what does it mean for a person to rejoice? My dictionary defines it this way – it is to feel great joy, to be glad, take delight in something or someone and lastly, to celebrate. Paul tells us to have great joy and gladness, and to celebration in all things and all circumstances, good and bad. It sounds like Paul’s version of don’t worry be happy. Then Paul gives us the reason why? It is because the Lord is near to us. We Rejoice in the Lord. Not in our circumstances.
Paul’s desire is to encourage Christians, so that their natural response to the inevitable crisis of life turns them to the Father rather than worry. So that no matter what comes our way we rejoice, not in a simple chant like “Don’t worry be happy”, but we rejoice in the Lord. We rejoice in the Lord, not because of our circumstances but because He is with us in our circumstances. We rejoice because He is with us and near us as He promised that He would be.
Christmas is a season of rejoicing. Why? Because we celebrate our Lord’s coming and being with us. We rejoice in the miracle of His incarnation when God became man. His name Immanuel means God with us. Paul prompts the Philippians and all Christians to rejoice in the one who has come to take away the sins of the world. As we remember His first coming we should also remember and rejoice that it won’t be long before the Lord comes again. Jesus is near. And with this nearness comes the end of all those things that cause us to worry. This is a reason to celebrate. While we wait for that glorious day we rejoice in the Lord who is with us now, who comes near to us in His Word. We rejoice in the Lord who comes near to us in His body and blood where we receive forgiveness of sins. We rejoice in the Lord who came in humility, who will come in victory and who is present with us now. These are reasons to rejoice.
Still it is hard for us when we are pressed all around by the troubles of the day. We waver from the joy that we should feel all the time. It is not right but we do it anyway. It is part of the weakness of the flesh according to this life. In it all we can still trust in the Lord’s good ness to us. King David prayed, “I would have despaired if it had not been for the goodness of the Lord.” In spite of his situation, he took joy in the fact that God is good. The prophet Habakkuk prophesied about Israel being invaded by the Babylonians. Habakkuk argued with God about what He was allowing to happen, which to Him seemed unjust. Though He did not understand God’s ways he concluded with a marvelous prayer of faith, “When I heard, my body trembled; My lips quivered at the voice…and I trembled in myself. Though the fig tree may not bud and there are no grapes on the vines; though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food; though there are no sheep in the pen, and no cattle in the stalls -- Yet I will rejoice in the LORD. Even if we don’t feel like rejoicing we are able to thank God knowing that He is with us and will provide for us. I once heard a little girl say to her mother, “I didn’t like supper but thank you anyways. We may not like the circumstances of our lives, but we can thank God that He will provide what we need and especially our salvation. This knowledge leads us to rejoice. Rejoicing in the Lord like this, at the very least, becomes like a life raft for us to hang on to during the challenges we will face.
Rejoice - the Lord Hears
Paul goes on. In verse 6 he writes, “Do not be anxious about anything.” Then He tells us why. “ In everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God.” What comforts us the most is the knowledge that we pray to a God who hears us. And we pray to a God who cares about us, each one of us individually. God has numbered the hairs on your heads. If He cares that much about your hair, He cares about what you need. Our heavenly Father wants us to come to Him about all things. We are to pray about everything. In a favorite hymn we hear these words, “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins to bear! What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer. Oh what peace we often forfeit, oh what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. The Lord has promised to hear our prayers and to supply our every need. This is a reason to rejoice. We rejoice in the Lord who hears us. We rejoice in the Lord who cares for us.
As we rejoice in the Lord who is near to us in every way and who hears us in every prayer we pray, we have the peace of God which surpasses all understanding which guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. In Jesus Christ, by what He has done on the cross and His empty tomb, we can have peace. In this peace we are able to endure all things. With God’s peace, in Christ Jesus, we can learn to be content. Like Paul and the prophet Habakkuk, we can live in poverty and we can live in wealth, we can learn both to be full and to be hungry, to abound and to suffer need. Though troubles assail us from every side we can still rejoice. It is important to note that this is something that we can learn to do. It doesn’t just happen. Sometimes we will be better at it than at other times. In Christ we can rejoice, and have peace, hope and joy.
Conclusion: We are not like the people of the world who have no hope. Our hope is in the Lord and our hope is in Jesus Christ our Savior. We have hope and joy in the Lord who heard our cries for help and came near to us by sending His only Son to die for our sins. We don’t have to worry. We can be happy. We have a reason. What ever happens to us in this life we are able to rejoice in the Lord always because of what He has done, because He is near, and because He hears and cares for us. Don’t worry be happy. Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.