Happiness and Peace

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God, our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who loved you with his very life. Amen.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This is a very famous phrase and you instantly know what I’m talking about: the Declaration of Independence. These famous words from this famous document lay out what the founding fathers of our nation thought were God given rights to the people, rights which the government should not restrict: the right to life, the right to liberty, the right to pursue happiness.

It’s that last one that seems to be a driving force in our nation these days. The right to pursue happiness. You don’t have to look very far to see it, but what do you personally do to pursue happiness? Maybe you take some time for yourself to sit and watch the game, like last week, or maybe you read a book, or play with your kids, hand out with your friends. Perhaps the pursuit of happiness motivates you to work extra, to take those extra hours to save up for a vacation, or an awesome Christmas present, or that new thing you’ve had your eye on.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of happiness: people want to be happy. A great many decisions, from personal choice to public polices, what have you, are based on the idea of “whatever makes you happy.” And this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. God wants us to be happy, to rejoice, to praise, to sing and shout for joy. But God’s reasons for our happiness and our reasons for our happiness are not always the same. Having a misplaced pursuit of happiness can lead to a lot of angst, a lot of unhappiness. And I think that a lot of unhappiness that is experienced in our own lives comes from this discrepancy, this looking for the wrong kind of happiness, and I want to explore this “pursuit of happiness” thing today.

The third Sunday in advent, which is today, (that also means Christmas is next week) the third Sunday in advent celebrates joy. AS always if you want to impress your friends, say it in Latin, Gaudate, Rejoice! Today is a Sunday of Joy, of rejoicing, of happiness! And it’s here to remind us that Advent is, in fact, a time of joy. They do that because after the last couple weeks, you may not think of so, just based on the message from John the Baptist, right? “Repent you brood of vipers” and that kind of thing, who wants to rejoice in that, but Advent is, actually, a time of joy. Penitent joy, muted joy perhaps, but joy none the less, for God is come, Emmanuel is here, in the flesh, in Jesus, once as a baby, and he is coming again on the last day.

To keep this spirit, this mindset of joy alive, in in the midst of John the Baptists yelling at you, we have these short verses from Philippians. These words are very familiar to use and they focus us on what matters about happiness, about rejoicing. The text today was so short, I’m just going to read it again. Philippians 4:4-7 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Gaudate. Rejoice in the Lord Always, again I say rejoice!

There is so much to rejoice over! Let me just list a handful of them. God created us! Definitely rejoice in that one. God provides for our needs! Awesome, we can rejoice in that too. God saw fit to allow the Detroit Lions to win their first game last week! Definitely cause for celebration. Christmas is next week! Rejoice in that too. So much that we can be happy about.

Nonetheless, our text says this, “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” The apostle sees that even though we have a lot that we can rejoice in, we still find ourselves having anxieties. It seems that in the pursuit of happiness, especially around this time of year, we can pursue happiness so far that it actually makes us unhappy, even anxious.

I mean, how many of us gathered have anxieties about the next couple weeks here. Like, we take a look at our list of things to do, and we see that we have like 12 days, maybe to get everything done, and it raises our blood pressure. Things like, gift shopping amidst the challenges of the supply chain, planing and preparing meals, and I’m not even talking about the Christmas day lunch I’m talking just the daily battle to feed your family, year end stuff at work, snow to shovel, the construction downtown that starts 4 days before Christmas, and the list goes on.

Students, there is a bunch on your plates too! The end of the quarter is coming. Tests are on their way, exams. Sports are in full swing and you have to maintain grades, plus the challenge of maintaining friendships as you navigate growing up in all of this. And you work hard to be happy to. You work to keep your teachers happy, your parents happy, your friends happy, and often at the expense of your own happiness. Pursuing happiness starts to ware on you.

And if that were not enough there are even more struggles in the pursuit. Empty chairs this year, as the holidays approach, where that loved one used to sit. Holidays are often a time when we miss the stories of those who now rest from their labors with Christ. And you wonder how can I find happiness when someone is missing?

But our text tells us to rejoice. Maybe, maybe Paul doesn’t know these kinds of struggles when he wrote these words. If he knew how hard it is to pursue happiness, i doubt he would tell me to rejoice. Well, from prison, Paul writes these words. Rejoice in the Lord. Always. Again I will say rejoice.

And we rejoice, especially because of these words at the end of our passage, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” That’s not the end of the sermon, but it is part of the rejoicing.

God has given something in which you can always, always find happiness and joy, and even peace. God has given you himself, Jesus Christ. Jesus wasn’t born to just be a cute baby in a manger scene that adorns our lawns. No. Jesus was born to restore us to God, to restore us to everlasting life in his kingdom. In that we rejoice.

Jesus went to the cross and died in our place. Then he rose again from the dead, never to die again. In that, we rejoice.

Jesus has sent us the holy spirit to give us peace. In that we rejoice.

And I love how Paul describes the peace. It “surpasses all understanding.” The peace that we get from God is greater than we can explain. We don’t understand how it works, it just does.

When you are stuck in lines at the store, or when your package is delayed we have peace because Jesus is still risen from the dead and you will one day live at his side.

When you are trying to balance homework and family, friends and teammates, you can find peace because Jesus is still risen from the dead and you will one day live at his side.

When that chair is empty, you can find peace, because, you guessed it, Jesus is risen from the dead and all who believe him have life everlasting.

The happiness that we pursue as Christians isn’t just a happiness for the holidays. It’s one that endures for ever. We rejoice that no matter what takes place, we have life with God that can’t be taken away from us. We rejoice that even when this world fades, when the parties fade and the gifts fade, and whatever else, God does not fade. God’s promises do not fade. The salvation you have does not fade. It is a lasting joy.

This third Sunday in advent is a time to rejoice. And we, as a church, above all, find happiness in Jesus who is our eternal peace. Rejoice in the Lord, always, again I say rejoice. Amen.

Now may the peace of God which passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.