The Promise of God - Joy

Philippians 4:6-9

Philippians 4:6–9 The Message

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

We as a church have been meditating on this scripture for the past week. Paul as written this letter to the Gentiles of Philippi while imprisoned in Rome on house arrest. He has sent this letter back to them by way of Epaphroditus once he was well enough travel back to Philippi. This letter was not like most of his other imprisonment letters to the other churches he had planted before being taken a prisoner. This letter was like a proud papa moment letter to let the people know how proud he was of them in carrying out God’s work even when he could not be there to do so. That they had remembered what they had been taught and pressed through many issues with their faith and trust in God.

So we find here in Philippians 4 admonishing the people to work out their differences especially Euodia and Syntyche and to let go of the grudges they hold against each other because their is no place in God for the kingdom to grow when differences are not taken care of and heard out. We as women and men of God must forgive each other of even the smallest misunderstandings and if need to bring in a third party to help mend the body of Christ so that the work can continue in Him and not in our own agendas. In doing these things we will find Joy in Christ and the work that we do together for the building of God’s kingdom. We must not think more of ourselves as if we have already arrived at what God has called us to do. He shares that with them in Chapter 3 when he speaks of his own issues and short comings. Paul tells them as he reflects Philippians 3:12-14

Philippians 3:12–14 The Message

I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.

This is the joy that Paul had working for Christ even while in prison. I can see it, he held prayer meetings and sang songs all because he had the joy of Christ in his heart and the love of his fellow men, women and even his enemies before him at all times. He had a message to tell and a joy in him that could not and would not turn him around.

Have you ever been in a situation where you just knew you did not feel like praising God because of something that was bothering you and taking over your every thought of the day, leaving no room for Jesus to even dwell in to bring joy back in to your heart. You did not want to pray, sing, read, talk to the Lord. You only wanted pity or maybe not even that you may of wanted to be sad and angry with the situation at hand. Well, Paul could have done the same thing but he found that when he stayed in tune with Jesus and Jesus petitioned unto the Father of him that he found a joy that no human can and will ever give. When you celebrate God and give him the praise the joy that Jesus gives is the only thing that will keep you pushing for the prize promised in this text which is Joy. God has promised us Joy in the midst of our anxieties, worries, short comings, disappointments.

That brings us to our text today in versus 6-9. God’s promise is to bring Joy when we focus on him and not our problems that come to weigh us down.

Faith and worry can’t ride in the same car together. This is what causes all kinds of confusion and sleepless nights that we go through. Paul gave us a road map that he was taught to follow by Jesus Christ as one of is students while living.

The first is Pray

The second is Petition and Praise (take shape)

The third is Settle down

Romans 8:28 NRSV

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

(go to highlight in scripture to close)