Joy Over Anxiety

Introduction

Where we’ve been:

Joy Over Loneliness

Joy Over Circumstances

There is no true and lasting joy apart from Christ.

Joy Over Death

Paul prized Christ above everything which means Christ will be praised in Paul’s life through everything.

Joy Through Humility

Find yourself in Jesus first. Have the mind of Christ

Joy Over Temptation

Joy Over Comparison

Joy Over Complacency

Danger of false gods and false gospels

Joy Over Anxiety

Philippians 4:4–9 (ESV)

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Paul begins by giving a command to rejoice.

Joy =

“Rejoice in the Lord” — Paul gave a similar command in 3:1 when talking about holding the faith against false gods and false gospels.

Today, Paul will give the command in reference to peace.

Paul’s main idea is to rejoice.

Structure:

We will follow along with five present imperative verbs — this will show how Paul expects us to rejoice through gaining the peace of God.

We will discover that Paul is not giving us a quick pill for anxiety, he is giving us an exercise routine.

When things look bad, do not worry -- nothing that matters has changed. The thing that needs to change for you to have peace is YOU.

Joy in the midst of difficult circumstances is NOT natural (it's supernatural). (4-5)

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

Rejoice ALWAYS

Rejoice IN THE LORD (not in the circumstances)

Paul says it again just in case we missed it or don’t believe it.

Between Paul’s first statement and second I’m sure there are many questions:

Rejoice ALWAYS?!

What about my marriage? I have five reasons NOT to me joyful — he did, she didn’t

What about work? Paul, if you only knew the ungodly bonehead I work for. . .

What about this situation I’ve never faced before and the anxiety that comes with it?

Remember that when Paul is dictating these words, they are echoing off of prison walls.

James 1:2–4 (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. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone.

Because joy is not a natural response, people will see and notice

You can't have joy in the midst of your circumstances if you are filled with anxiety about your circumstances.

Just as Joy is not a natural response to difficult circumstances, true peace is not natural; it's supernatural -- love, joy, peace

Counterfeits of peace:

ignorance

apathy

masking

This is why Paul talks next about peace.

He begins by shifting our focus.

The Lord is at hand;

Likely a phrase reminding us that Jesus’ return gets closer every day. In light of the fact that one day everything will change, some of those things that cause us anxiety will lose their weight.

The promise of the coming Christ puts everything in perspective.

When you pray about everything you'll be anxious for nothing. (6-7)

6 do not be anxious about anything,

Don’t do it!

Lit. — NOTHING be anxious for

Two commands:

Stop worrying

Paul’s remedy for anxiety is to not be anxious!

ILLUST - when kids say “It hurts when I touch my arm.” I say, “Don’t touch your arm.”

but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Start Praying

The “but” between the commands shows that the means by which we stop worrying is by prayer.

Prayer is the means by which we release our anxieties to the sovereign power and will of God.

Anxiety (our fear for lack of control) is remedied through prayer which is an action of trust in God.

It is taking the circumstance from the one (me) who cannot do anything about it to the One (God) who is competent and able to deal with it. . . And LEAVING IT THERE.

What do you tend to put in the place of prayer? What do you believe will be the end of your anxiety?

Do not be anxious about anything. . . when your problems are solved

“let your requests be made known to God” - Not because he needed to know them but because you needed to remind yourself that he knows them.

Matthew 6:7–8 (ESV) — 7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

There is a qualification as to HOW we are to pray.

Not with urgency, whining, begging, pleading

“With thanksgiving”

Thanking God for what?

For his goodness in the past (reminding us of who he is)

For his good answer to whatever will come.

One commentator points out that

“In thanksgiving, anxiety is resolved by the deliberate acceptance of the worrying circumstance as something which an all-wise, all-loving and all-sovereign God has appointed. Prayer takes up the anxiety-provoking question ‘How?’—How shall I cope?—and answers by pointing away to him, to his resources and promises. Thanksgiving addresses itself to the worrying question ‘Why?’—Why has this happened to me?—and answers by pointing to the great Doer of all who never acts purposelessly and whose purposes never fail.”

J. A. Motyer, The Message of Philippians, The Bible Speaks Today (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1984), 211.

The answer is you thank God before you make the request because you’re saying, “Lord, whatever you do in response to this request is good. I thank you for it. If I’m asking for something which is at the wrong time and you don’t give it to me, I thank you for that. If you give something the opposite of what I ask, even though it’s going to be very, very difficult, I’m not going to be happy about it, I’m not going to try to force joy … that would be very wrong … but I know you’re a God who knows what he’s doing, and I thank you for your ordering of my life.”

— Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

Two promises:

Supernatural peace

Sustaining peace

7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

surpasses all understanding — shows it to be of God.

doesn’t make sense.

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

guard has the idea of a garrison of soldiers

guards our hearts and our minds (the battleground of anxiety)

The peace of God comes on the heels of your prayer. OR The peace of God comes on the heels of the believer's prayer.

Think more about what matters and less about what is the matter. (8)

8 Finally, brothers,

Your perspective informs your expectations

Why does Paul include a list of things to think about in a command not to worry? because anxiety is the absence of logical thinking.

ILLUST - Spurgeon -- Anxiety like a fogged telescope

whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

More than any one particular quality, Paul is using a literary device to tell us to think on the right things. Remove anxiety from your mind and replace it with the truth.

Truth yourself.

Fearful

1 John 4:18 (ESV) — 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.

“Things will never change”

Isaiah 40:31 (ESV) — 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

“I’m not sure which decision is right, which way to go”

Proverbs 3:5–6 (ESV) — 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

“What if I die?”

Psalm 31:15 (ESV) — 15 My times are in your hand;

Anxiety grows when our focus is small.

ILLUST - telescope or microscope - one looks to the distant. The other focuses on minutia but both are focused narrowly

The bigger your view of God, the smaller your fears and anxieties become.

Isaiah 26:3–4 (ESV) — 3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. 4 Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

Living a life for God invites the peace of God. (9)

9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

The peace of God is not a momentary benefit of Christian privilege.

ILLUST - God is not a Keurig - We pick our flavor when we desire and He gives us just enough to fill our cup, and there he sits until we need him again

The peace of God is not a momentary benefit of Christian privilege, it's the fruit of the Christian life and practice.

There is a direct correlation of your submission to Christ in your life and your anxiety.

The more you think you are in control of your life the more potential you have for anxiety.

The more you recognize the authority of Jesus to run your life the easier it is to find his peace.

The greatest truth of all:

and the God of peace will be with you.

The peace of God doesn't come with the absence of cares; it comes with the presence of the One who cares.

Jesus describes God’s care:

Matthew 6:25–34 (ESV) — 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

It is only when the bird is caged that thought needs to be given to its food and water. When the bird is free, it is cared for by God. The same is true for you -- Through a relationship with Jesus, you are free from the bars of this sinful world, you don't need to worry about how the world will provide for you -- God knows your needs before you even feel them.

Do you think God doesn't care?

ILLUST - Mark 4 :35-41 - Don't you Care?

Mark 4:38 (ESV) — 38 “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”

The answer is YES! Why? Because Jesus is in the boat in the storm — Jesus has experienced the storm and suffering in order to give them his peace and save them

The Presence of Jesus brought the peace of God

Peace with God precedes the peace of God. I cannot expect the love of my wife without a relationship WITH my wife.

Jesus came not only to give the peace of God but also peace WITH God.

Ephesians 2:13–14 (ESV) — 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility

Ex. Jesus' command not to worry included that we should consider shift focus. shift from a focus of your problems to God's goodness.

“For most of us, it isn’t heresy or rank apostasy that will derail our profession of faith. It’s all the worries of life.”

(Kevin DeYoung, Crazy Busy)

Conclusion