MOTIVATE

There’s a true story of a brain cancer patient who was enduring significant trials with grim prospects in/out of hospital. Sadly, too many of us have seen this episode before. On one occasion, the cancer patient was receiving treatment in the hospital. The nurses who had been providing care for this man had noticed something unique and different about this cancer patient. For days their interactions were the same and they made an impression that they all couldn’t stop talking about him. Upon the patient’s discharge papers, the head nurse wrote, “Patient X is going home with aggressive glioblastoma to receive hospice care. The patient’s draws support from his faith and is inappropriately joyful.”[1]

The nurses could not understand how joy was the response of someone going through difficult troubles and deathly trial. The only way this is possible is if a person understands the presence and power of the Holy Spirit… So, we continue our series in the fruit of the Spirit, with today’s theme of joy.

EXAMINE           Joy           Galatians 5:22

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

When discussing joy, it is helpful to understand the difference between happiness and joy.

• Happiness comes from a root word that means chance or luck. So, happiness depends upon circumstances.
• Joy is a heart-shaping mindset of happiness and hope regardless of circumstance. It trains our feelings to live according to the object of our faith, and source of contentment. 

Unfortunately, joy is not a switch that can be flipped on. All wish it were that easy. If we’re hiking in the woods and stumble upon a bear, in that moment we’re going to feel fear. But we will also lean upon whatever training, understanding, and experiences we have with past fears to respond in a way to aid survival.

Joy is a mindset of happiness and hope regardless of circumstance.

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And in the world today, the only way we survive is what Paul describes as “sorrowful yet always rejoicing” (2Cor 6:10).

Let’s look at a couple biblical examples, and then we’ll make practical application for us today.

Job. Really, Job? How was Job joyful?

• Righteous man who feared God and turned away from evil (1:1)
• Had a wife, 7 sons, 3 daughters.
• Had 7K sheep, 3K camels, 1K oxen, 500 donkeys, and many servants.

But Satan thought Job honored God bc of the material wealth. God permitted Job to be tested… and each of these were taken away.

• Servants were murdered by raiders.
• Property burned in a dreadful fire.
• Children died in a windstorm that collapsed the house.

At this point, people are tempted to play cards with Job bc they know he’ll lose, but no one wants to be in his same zip code bc the fear what might happen next; it’s one tragedy after another.

Yet, Job says, “The LORD gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” (1:21)

Yet, sure enough, another misfortune occurs with Job’s health afflicted with a skin disease that was agonizingly painful and psychologically exasperating with endless itching. He scraped his body pottery shards and sat in dirt, weeping and praying.

And if that wasn’t enough, Job’s wife counseled him to “Curse God and die.” (2:9) She basically suggested suicide for her husband. But in all these Job did not sin with his lips and trusted God (2:10).

The book of Job spends 34-chapters recounting Job’s misery and unsupportive friends who fail to empathize with all of Job’s problems.

At this point, you’re attempting to remind your pastor that this was a sermon about “JOY.” But that’s the issue: along Job’s tragic journey, he teaches us the source of joy is not circumstances but God.

Job 8:9, 13-15, 19-21 “For we are but of yesterday and know nothing, for our days on earth are a shadow… Such are the paths of all who forget God; the hope of all the godless shall perish. The  confidence [of the godless] is severed, and their trust is a spider’s web. They lean against their house, but it does not stand, it does not endure… Behold, the joy of the wicked is rootless. [BUT] Behold, God will not reject a faithful one – God will fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with shouting.”

Job 13:15 “Though God slay me, I will hope in Him; yet I will argue my ways to His face.”

Job 19:7-25 ⁷ Behold, I cry out, ‘Violence!’ but I am not answered; I call for help, but there is
no justice. ⁸ He has walled up my way, so that I cannot pass, and he has set darkness upon my paths. ⁹ He has stripped from me my glory and taken the crown from my head. ¹⁰ He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone, and my hope has he pulled up like a tree. ¹¹ He has kindled his wrath against me and counts me as his adversary. ¹² His troops come on together; they have cast up their siege ramp against me and encamp around my tent. ¹³ “He has put my brothers far from me, and those who knew me are wholly estranged from me. ¹⁴ My relatives have failed me, my close friends have forgotten me. ¹⁵ The guests in my house and my maidservants count me as a stranger; I have become a foreigner in their eyes. ¹⁶ I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer; I must plead with him with my mouth for mercy. ¹⁷ My breath is strange to my wife, and I am a stench to the children of my own mother. ¹⁸ Even young children despise me; when I rise they talk against me. ¹⁹ All my intimate friends abhor me, and those whom I loved have turned against me. ²⁰ My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. ²¹ Have mercy on me, have mercy on me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has touched me! ²² Why do you, like God, pursue me? Why are you not satisfied with my flesh? ²³ “Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! ²⁴ Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! ²⁵ For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.

Job 27:2-6 ² “The Almighty, has made my soul bitter, ³ [YET] as long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, ⁴ my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit. ⁵ … till I die I will not put away my integrity from me. ⁶ I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go”

Job’s friend Elihu counsels:

Job 33:23-26 ²³ If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him, ²⁴ and he is merciful to him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom; ²⁵ let his flesh become fresh with youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor’; ²⁶ then man prays to God, and he accepts him; he sees his face with a shout of joy, and he restores to man his righteousness.

After God speaks, Job is humbled at God’s sovereignty for all creation and all time. And God gives grace to Job – restoring in multiple his fortune and family. The book ends: And Job died, an old man, and full of days/tomorrows (42:17).

Job experienced many dark nights of the soul, but the book ends with endless tomorrows and eternal joy. And what was true for Job is true for you:

Romans 8:18 “the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us”

From an eternal perspective and heaven’s outlook, all suffering has an expiration date, and even a lifetime of problems and pain will at most appear as a missed exit detour on the road to paradise. A life full of brokenness need not suffocate with hopelessness. Jesus’ promise to unite with us in heaven is our oxygen of hope.

Psalm 30:5 “God’s anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.”

For the Xian, all suffering has an expiration date. Even a lifetime of problems & pain will at most appear as a missed exit detour on the road to paradise. A life full of brokenness need not suffocate w/ hopelessness. Jesus’ promise to unite w/ us in heaven is our oxygen of hope.

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• Joy is a byproduct of living according to God’s purpose.

Hebrews 12:2 “Jesus… for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Philippians 2:2-18 ² complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³ Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴ Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵ Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶ who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. ⁹ Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  ¹² Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³ for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. ¹⁴  Do all things without grumbling or disputing, ¹⁵ that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, ¹⁶  holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. ¹⁷ Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. ¹⁸ Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

While the second passage was a bit longer, we can discern the relationship between the two. Paul rejoiced with believers who were working out their salvation and walking with Jesus. Obedience to God with other believers creates joy. Our heart will be restless, and our life will be disordered until we put God first. Jesus modeled this for us – with joy set before Him – by enduring the cross. Jesus humbled Himself to serve and die. And God exalted Jesus to the glory of God and sitting on Heaven’s throne.

Joy is not mass-produced. It comes to us through ordinary means of following Jesus and obeying God’s commands.

“I have no greater joy than to hear that believers are walking in the truth” (3Jn1:4)

Joy is not mass-produced. It comes to us through ordinary means of following Jesus and obeying God’s commands.

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How do we cultivate the fruit of joy?

Ground yourself in the gospel.

• We cannot staple rose petals to a tree branch and call it a rosebush. Likewise, we cannot fixate on the fruit of the Spirit themselves, striving for perfect character, or otherwise we’ll look like that dead rosebush with staples all over.
• If we want good fruit, then we need deep roots. A person cannot grow fruit by focusing on the end product. Fruit occurs by preparing the soil, planting the right seeds, and nurturing the environment that will naturally yield good and healthy fruit. We must abide in Jesus to bear fruit (Jn 15:5).
• Romans 5:11 “We rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have received reconciliation”

Gratitude in all circumstances.

• Evil, violence, injustice, hate, division. All of these are rampant on a global scale. And personally, we experience days of disappointment and despair.
• Yet, we do not fight evil with rage or retribution. Instead, we defy our enemies with love and gratitude. The ability to have an attitude of gratitude in all circumstances can only come from one who understands an eternal perspective in Christ.
• As Christians, we are forgiven of all our depravity. So, we look at evil not with fury but prayer.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:15-19 “See that no one repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to everyone. Rejoice always, pray w/o ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit.”
• 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 minds in Christ Jesus.”
• Overall, the recipe for joy is gratitude mixed with prayer to God.

Grow friendships.

• Apart from personal faith and spiritual disciplines, having Christian friends are the #1 way to grow your faith.
• They are a great treasure of our life bc people are the only items we can take beyond the grave to heaven.
• Proverbs 27:9 “Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the sweetness of a friend springs from heartfelt advice.” In the ancient world, the host would provide refreshening oils and incense to express hospitality. Likewise, sweet friends bring us joy when they speak wisdom into our life.   
• Ultimately, when friends – and especially faith friends – dwell in unity, it is like precious oil poured on the head, running down your face and clothes; like blessing from above (cf Ps 133).
• Philippians 1:3-5 “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you a all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel…”

• Move from attender to member, who is supportive family.
  What holds you back?

Grieve with hope and labor for heaven.

• Here is what I know: life is fragile.  
• To cultivate joy, we must understand how to lament and grieve a world that is ravaged by sin, selfishness, and evil.
• Lament is the “honest cry of a hurting heart wrestling with the paradox of pain and the promise of God’s goodness.”[2]
• “Hope deferred makes a heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12)
• We understand that biblical joy is not a trite “Turn that frown upside down,” but is a profound understanding that faith in Jesus makes us overcomers in light of eternity
• So, we set our mind on things above, our affections on things eternal, our hope on things unshakeable. We take our groans and grief to the Lord, who walks with us through the valley and resurrects dry and dead bones.
• We are not slaves to fear but servants of faith. In Christ, we are more than conquerors. We stand firm, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can step outside of our comfort zone to labor for our highest joy of making Heaven crowded and be zealous for good works.
• Pray: Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope.”

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[1] Story adapted from Alistair Begg sermon on the Fruit Of The Spirit: Joy (2016).

[2] Mark Vroegop, Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, p.26.