Elements of Joy Part One - Scripture: Philippians 1:3-5 Philippians 1:3-5 (NIV) 3. I thank my God every time I remember you. 4

Transcription

1 Elements of Joy Part One - Scripture: Philippians 1:3-5 Philippians 1:3-5 (NIV) 3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 1. I like this definition of joy - joy is a confidence built on relationship. Joy is a gift from God to those who believe the gospel of Christ, being produced in them by the Holy Spirit, because they receive and obey the Word of God while experiencing trials and keeping their hope fixed on the glory which is to come. 2. Paul s irrepressible and constant joy, even in the throes of anguished suffering, is the heartbeat of this wonderful letter. a. This Christian joy is not some transient, emotional feeling that lifts you up one moment and drops you the next, depending on circumstances. b. True joy is an unwavering constant in a Spirit-filled life. c. R d. It is produced by the presence of God and His Holy Spirit, even if you re sitting in the prison waiting for possible news about your execution, as Paul was. e. He had joy, the result of his eternal relationship with a living God through Jesus Christ and the ministry of the Holy Spirit within him. f. Because he was so near to God, he was full of joy. Circumstances aren t a factor. It s your nearness to God that determines the level of your joy. g. This joy is an abiding feeling of peace, and calm, and tranquility, and contentment, and delight, and satisfaction that flows out of deep within because of the presence of God. h. Paul was filled with joy in spite of his situation. Your heart is filled with joy in your relationship to God, because you know He s there, He loves you, He s infused you with His joy. 3. Paul s Special Relationship with the Philippian Church. a. Verse 4 he says that every remembrance of them produces joy. The joy that he had in his heart because of his relationship to the living God spilled over when he thought about the Philippians. b. It was a special congregation. There were really no major problems among the Philippians. He says, verse 3: I thank my God in all my remembrance of you. I don t have any memories of you that are negative. c. Always offering prayer with joy, all my prayers are filled with joy, my every prayer for you all. All my memories, all my prayers, all of you bring me joy. He doesn t seem to identify any major problems. d. Verse 8: I long for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus a remarkable group. e. Verse 25: I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith. Everything about the Philippians gave him joy. 4. Philippian Church was not a perfect church a. It doesn t mean they didn t have needs; they had needs. b. In verse 27 he says, Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.

2 c. In chapter 2 he says, Make my joy complete, verse 2, by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, and so forth. They had some needs. d. Chapter 4, he talks about a couple of women who had needs, I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche, verse 2, to live in harmony in the Lord, and somebody help those ladies to get their act together. They had needs. Paul was not blind to their needs, but rejoiced in the level of their spiritual commitment. They loved the Lord. They loved Paul. They cared for Paul with an unusual zeal, more than any other church; they continually sent him gifts of money to meet his need, to support him. e. They were generous in their gifts. Even though they were not particularly wealthy, they gave abundantly to Paul s need on several occasions. In fact, he tells them in this letter, You gave me more than I could possibly use, but that was the way they loved and cared for him. 5. Philippians church was a congregation to make a pastor s heart rejoice. a. Every time he thought about them he rejoiced. b. They were magnanimous, they were generous. c. Everything they did demonstrated their love. d. And as he writes he is a prisoner in Rome. He s in chains. And they heard about that, and because of their love for him, they want to send to him a gift of love, money. The bearer of that gift is one of their congregation named Epaphroditus. e. They send Epaphroditus with instruction, Give Paul this money to meet his needs and stay with him as long as he needs you to minister to him. And so they send one of their choice men to be Paul s personal servant, to bring the gift of love, and to be the living illustration of their love to him. 6. Paul goes out of his way to reassure the Philippian church. a. I have so much joy. Don t worry about me; though I am a prisoner, that does not touch my joy, not at all. He is filled with joy. b. And that s a marvelous lesson to learn. Trials don t touch joy if it s the joy of the Spirit in a Spiritfilled life. Trials, in fact, may become occasions of deeper joy, because they cast the believer totally off his circumstances and onto his God. And it s in that relationship, its depth, that real joy is found. c. William Kelly wrote, Think of him in prison for years, chained between two soldiers, debarred from the work he loved; and others taking advantage of his absence to grieve him, preaching the very gospel out of contention and strife. And yet his heart was so running over with joy that he was filling others up with it, 7. Now let s focus on Phil. 1:3-5 a. The Joy of Paul spills out b. We see the elements of his joy ingredients or characteristics of his joy. c. The joy of recollection d. The joy of intercession e. The joy of participation f. The joy of anticipation g. The joy of affection h. The first three are seen in verses 3-5 i. These are the elements of a Spirit-produced joy the elements of a Spirit-produced joy that relates to others.

3 j. A reminder: No one and absolutely nothing can produce this kind of joy but the Holy Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can produce this joy. 8. Joy of recollection a. Verse 3 - I thank my God every time I remember you b. Paul had jubilant memories inventory of memories focused on the positive ones. c. Just the thought of the Philippians brought joy and gratitude d. His heart was filled with joyous thanks to God for the sweet memories of these believers. e. Did you notice the intimate way Paul refers to God - My God - celebrating the intimacy, the personal relationship, the strong sense of personal, intimate communion he enjoyed with the Almighty Himself. f. Paul uses that phrase repeatedly in his letters - 1 Corinthians 1:4, Colossians 1:3, 1 Thessalonians 1:2, 2 Timothy 1:3, Philemon verse 4. g. The church was not perfect Unity may have been an issue or problem i. Phil. 1:27 You need to have one spirit, one mind, striving together. ii. Phil 2:1-4, You want to be of the same mind, having the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. iii. Phil. 4, those two women who were not in harmony. h. Special memories i. Riverside first conversion of Lydia she was a special gift to Paul and these missionaries church met in her house ii. Healing of the demon possessed iii. Supernatural deliverance from jail with salvation of jailer and his family and their baptism iv. When the Philippians sent money to Paul as mentioned in 2 Corinthians 8 v. Sending Epaphroditus with a gift and coming to serve Paul Philippians 2:25 i. Important key to joy in the Christian life i. To be able to recall the goodness of people ii. To be able to recall the best in people and forget the bad. iii. Look past the glitches in life and capture the sweet memories. iv. Forget and let s go of the hurts, unkindness, ingratitutde, faults of others v. Thomas Hardy said, Some people can find the manure pile in any meadow. vi. I want to be the person who remembers the many kindness, times of gratitude, and the gifts of others. 9. The joy of intercession a. Verse 4: Always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all. b. The delight of praying for others. c. When the Spirit of God is in control of a life, and you re living in obedience to God s Word and under the control of the Spirit, you will delight in praying for others. d. The joy of having the privilege to petition. e. The idea of asking God for something for someone else. And that is the expression of joy. f. True joy is expressed in the fact that I can see God at work in someone else s life, much more preoccupied with them than with me.

4 g. The evidence that it was a Spirit-produced joy is the fact that he was all wrapped up in the delight of praying for other people s needs, when he himself had needs far greater than theirs, in some ways. h. Making requests to God for others is an element of joy. i. Philippians 2:4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 10. Why do people struggle with praying for others? a. We may be self-focused, selfish, self-centered b. We may be disappointed with others focused on their deficiencies or things that need to change c. Example: Phil.4 Paul could have let this this lack of unity rob his joy, instead he kept his joy. d. We may have a lack of concern for others e. Bottom line: i. Jesus Christ is not Lord of our lives we are carnal, self-absorbed ii. We are not Spirit-filled controlled and empowered by the Holy Spirit 11. Joy of participation a. Phil. 1:5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, b. Paul rejoiced over their partnership that s what that word means their communion, fellowship, participation. c. Paul was thankful because of their participation in the gospel. That s their salvation. d. Paul was grateful because they were believers plus - From the first day of your conversion until now. e. In a broad sense Paul is saying that he has joy that they have not only trusted in Christ but they have partnered with him the spread of the Gospel. f. Partnered financially with Paul. Philippians 4:15-16 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. g. Partnered in the development, the growth, the support of the spread of the Gospel. They not only partnered with Paul in evangelizing the city of Philippi, but assisted Paul as the spread the Gospel all the way to Rome. h. When I think of First Baptist Dallas I remember the many people who have trusted in Christ and who have then partnered with us in spreading the Gospel to their friends and family, then our city, state, nation and world. i. A lot of people talk to me about my role in building this new campus and partnering with the Pastor in leading the church but what I must enjoy and rejoice in is the individuals who have trusted in Christ, growing in Christ, and have partnered to spread the Gospel. j. These people have come alongside of, participated with, energized, supported and work to spread the Gospel. 12. William Hendricksen Commentary on Philippians describes this partnership. a. Partnership of grace i. Not natural, platonic, man-made, club ii. Divine partnership brought about because of the grace of God b. Partnership of eternal life

5 c. Partnership of faith faith in God, His Word d. Partnership of prayer come before God on behalf of one another e. Partnership of praise thanksgiving f. Partnership of love - love of God changed us and we are motivated by love g. Partnership of service through preaching, teaching and witnessing 13. A great exercise of joy would be focusing on those you have partnered with a. Gifted Pastor and staff who lead and serve b. Gifted lay leaders who teach your children, students c. Gifted leaders who serve in our Media Ministry d. Gifted leaders who participate in our prayer ministry e. Gifted leaders who counsel families struggling f. Gifted leaders who visit you in the hospital g. Gifted leaders who help couples struggling in their marriages h. Gifted leaders who help people who have lost a love one in death i. Gifted leaders who help people who need jobs j. Gifted leaders who help people dealing with the aftermath of abortion k. Gifted leaders who help people dealing with financial difficulties l. Gifted leaders who help young adults considering abortion to make the choice for life. 14. What was the secret of Paul s joy? a. The sweet memories b. the privilege of delightful prayer on their behalf c. Their constant partnership or participation in the Gospel 15. How do you get the kind of joy Paul is talking about? a. The starting place is a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. The joy of trusting in Christ for salvation and forgiveness of sin and promise of eternal life. b. When you make that faith decision according to Ephesians 1:13-14 Holy Spirit comes to live in you. c. As you grow and mature in Christ the Holy Spirit enables you to experience this kind of joy.