Sermon Text Nehemiah 8:9-12
And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep. For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord.
And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength. So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved. And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them. This is the Word of the Lord - Amen
This is Us: Developing a Culture of Celebration
The people in Nehemiah s day
And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
Are you going to fellowship with your problems or the problem solver Pastor Michael Kyker
Joy is the fuel for Celebration
Do we believe God is full of Joy?
God is happiness by his essence: For he is happy not by acquisition or participation of something else, but by his essence. On the other hand, men are happy by participation. Thomas Aquinas
And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
God is so joyous that he finds joy even in us. H.D.M. Spence
Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. GOD, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places. To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. Habakkuk 3:17-19
The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17
By this I know that you delight in me: my enemy will not shout in triumph over me. Psalm 41:11
We serve the God of the Party
2 Samuel 6:12-15 And it was told King David, The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the city of David with rejoicing. And when those who bore the ark of the LORD had gone six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened animal. And David danced before the LORD with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the horn.
Luke 7:34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!
Revelation 19:6-10 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
And the angel said to me, Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me, These are the true words of God. Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
Seriousness is not a fruit of the Spirit, but Joy is The Rend Collective
How do I cultivate celebration in my life?
1.Ask the Lord for a revelation of His Joy within Himself, and His delight in you 2.Repent for being overly serious 3.Repent for not celebrating the blessings of others 4.Slow down to celebrate those Blame Jesus moments in your life and others