Preached at Cornerstone Church in Cascade, IA on May 24, 2015

Open your Bibles to Philippians 4:8-9. Today we continue our journey through the book of Philippians. Over the last several weeks we have slowed down somewhat due to Paul closing his letter with a series of short commands to the Church in Philippi. Today we continue examining Paul’s commands and we will focus our attention on focusing our attention. Let us read our text, pray that God would cause us to pay attention, and then let us think together.

• Philippians 4:8-9 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
  
  

Created to Think

To begin I want us to focus our attention on the end of verse eight. Paul tells the Church in Philippi to “think about these things.” The Greek word for think is logizomai. From the root of this word we get the word logic. Logizomai means to think, dwell, reckon, to take into account, reason, conclude. Paul is asking the Church to use their minds.

Most likely, very few of you have thought about thinking and how it relates to God. So let us begin there. First, we should recognize that humanity is like no other created thing.

• Genesis 1:26 – “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.”
  
  

We are unique, for we are created like God. What does this mean? It means a variety of things, but one thing it means is that we have a mind like God’s, and by this I do not mean a brain. For all animals have a brain, and God is Spirit. We however have a mind, the ability to reason, think, dwell, deduce, conclude, etc. This a characteristic that God has given to humanity, not to animals. We have legs and feet and hair and ears and noses like thousands of creatures that cover this planet, but it is only humanity that has the ability to reason. Why?

The answer to this question is one we have covered many times before. We exist to glorify God. (Isaiah 43:7). Therefore, God gave us a mind so that we can glorify God. In one way, this is what separates us from the beasts. Animals glorify God in their way, and we glorify God in our way. So at the basis of who we are, we are created to think.

Darkened Mind

With this in mind, let me ask a question, what was the name of the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden? The name was “The tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:16). Likewise, Satan when tempting Eve in Genesis 3:5 said, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” And finally, God when casting Adam and Eve out of the Garden in Genesis 3:22 said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.” The tree that led to the fall of humanity had something to do our minds.

So what happened to Adam and Eve upon eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?

• Romans 1:21 – “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”
  
  

When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, they exchange God’s glory for their glory, and when this exchange took place, sin entered into them and they became “futile in their thinking” and “they became fools.” When sin entered the World it entered into humanities mind. The world was broken and their minds were broken. Here are two other descriptions of the condition of the mind after the fall.

• 2 Corinthians 4:4 – “In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.“
  
  
• Ephesians 4:18 – “They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.” 
  
  

Because of sin, we do not think rightly. Our minds are futile and darkened and we are ignorant, blind fools. This is the condition of man because of the fall. Humanity as a whole does not get it, and the evidence of this reality surrounds us. I marvel at the ignorance of people. Day after day making the same errors that has created a mess out of their life. The wisest man, apart from Christ, King Solomon said it best.

• Proverbs 26:11 – “Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.”
  
  

This is the life of the lost. Do they still bear the image of God, yes to an extent, but it is significantly marred, and this is what Jesus came to restore, the image of God, which involves our minds.

Mind of Christ

I am guessing that many of you don’t think about your conversion in these terms, but you should, for this is how scripture speaks of what happens when you place your faith in Christ. Listen to these text:

• Romans 8:6 – “For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”
  
  

For us to have eternal life, which we generally just equate to believing in Jesus, we must have our minds set on the Spirit of God. This conversion from unbeliever to believer involves the setting our of minds. Listen to what Jesus says about eternal life.

• John 17:3 – “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”
  
  

Eternal life depends upon knowing God and knowing Jesus. Conversion is not about sensuality, it is about thinking clearly. It is not about feelings, it is about knowledge.

• 2 Corinthians 4:6 – “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
  
  
• 2 Peter 1:3 – “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,”
  
  

And this is exactly how the Philippian Church began with the conversion of Lydia. Do you recall how it was explained in Acts 16:14, “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul”. Another way it could be said is that God set her mind on the Spirit or gave her knowledge of her need for a Suffering Savior.

To be a follower of Jesus Christ is to think rightly about existence; to think rightly about who we are; to think rightly about who God is; to think rightly about Christ; to think rightly about our purpose; to think rightly about our mission.

Renewal of Your Mind

This mind of Christ that we have been graciously given at our conversion, however, is not a perfect mind. It still has flaws. Because we still live in the flesh, and still battle with sin, we at times, think wrongly. This is why Paul says to the Church in Rome,

• Romans 12:2 – “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
  
  

Our sanctification involves our minds being renewed. It is as if there must be a reprogramming of how we think, and therefore how we live. The lives we lived before we were given a mind of Christ were lived out as enemies of Christ. We lacked clear thinking and we could not discern what was good and acceptable and perfect. Some of that wrong thinking still clings to us. Which brings us full circle to our text for today.

• Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
  
  

So why did I spend so much time laying this foundation? Because we currently live in a world where the Church has unfortunately conformed to the World’s desires. We have embraced, not the knowledge of God, but sensuality. Instead of knowing God, we want to experience God. Instead of reading our Bible, we will attend a concert. Sunday morning has wrongly become about creating environments, instead of proclaiming truth. The result is that we have an American Church full of immature Christians, week in their faith, and incompetent to do the work God has called them to do.

Church is not to be primarily about rituals and entertainment, as much as it is about pursuit of the knowledge of God and the renewal of our minds. All Christians are called to think, young and old, rich and poor, A students and D students, male and female, professors and ditch diggers.

Think about What?

So what are we to think about? Things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, worthy of praise. Let us quickly unpack each one of these.

Where would we find things that are true? John 17:17 Jesus prays to God, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” Absolute truth will not be found in the World, it is found in the Word. And it is the Word that points to the greatest truth, the holder of truth, the standard of truth, Jesus Christ, who said of himself in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth and the life.” So where do we see truth? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are honorable? Revelation 4:11 says, ““Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” There is only one being that deserves honor, and it is God. To dwell upon what is honorable is to dwell upon God himself, and where do we find the attributes of this honorable God? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are just? Romans 3:23-26 – “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” The greatest display of justice is the death of Christ. For at that moment we see God holding both sides of the bargain. He demands payment that is due his name, and then he pays the debt with the blood of His son. He is truly just and the justifier. So where do we find justice? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are pure? 1 John 3:3, “And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” There is no purer thing than God. He is unapproachable light and in him no darkness dwells. Jesus Christ is the exact imprint of God and in him there was no sin, no blemish. He is the only person who has ever walked this planet as pure as Jesus. He is the perfect picture of purity. So where do we find things that are pure? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are lovely? One place we find the word lovely, somewhat frequently, is in the book of the Song of Solomon. Which is a an intimate love poem between a husband and wife with each partying gushing over one another. Saying things like this in Song of Solomon 4:3, “Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is lovely. Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate behind your veil.” This fawning, however, points to the greatest love story in the Universe, Christ and his Church. There is nothing more lovely than our Bridegroom laying down his life for the sake of us his bride, so were do we find what is lovely? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are commendable? This word in the greek means to have a good report. To have done something gracious. With this in mind, 1 Peter 2:19 says, “For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.” The NIV uses commendable instead of gracious. If this is an example of something that is commendable, there is no higher commendability than the perfect Son of God sufferring on the cross and absorbing the wrath of his father, despite not committing one sin. Why would he do such a thing? Because his Father asked him. So where do we find what is commendable? The Bible.

Where do we find things are excellent? 2 Peter 1:3, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us toc his own glory and excellence. As Paul said earlier in Philippians, the worth of Jesus far surpasses anything we could ever imagine. Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God. And the Jesus is the Word who became flesh, and it is Scriptures that testify about Him, so where do we see things that are excellent? The Bible.

Where do we find things that are worthy of praise? In Revelation 5:11 we are given a glimpse into heaven and what do we see, “Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” It is only God who is worthy to be praised. This God has chosen to reveal himself in his inspired Word. So where do we find things worthy of praise? The Bible.

Conclusion

So in conclusion, God created you to think, not about anything, but about Him. His desire is that you would set your minds upon his glory. If you do this, you will experience a satisfaction that your soul craves. I will leave you with a Bible serve that hangs on my office at work. Psalm 1:1

• Psalm 1:1-2 - “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2but his delight is in the lawb of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.“
  
  

We have been fed a lie. We have been told that the answer to our problems is to dwell upon our problems. If you go to a psychologist or a therapist they will tell you the answer to your depression is to dwell upon the things that make you depressed. This is not the solution. The solution is to plant your life by the stream of of God's living Word and let it do its working in your life. You must stopping looking down at the quicksand and look up to things that are above. Only then will you be pulled out of the muck and mire of this life.

Preached at Cornerstone Church in Cascade, IA on May 17, 2015.

Open your Bibles to Philippians 4:4-7. This is the second Sunday that we are in this text due to its immense relevance and truth to our lives. As always, there is a lot of ground to cover, so lets get right to it and read our text, pray, and allow God to speak to us in our need.

• Philippians 4:4-7 - Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;6do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
  
  

The Battle for Joy

Last week we talked exclusively about joy. Verse 4 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.” We saw that we are designed for joy. Our hearts and souls crave joy. Every decision you make in life is filtered through the question, will this make me happy?

Unfortunately, humanity, because of sin, pursues joy in the wrong place. We look for joy in things of this world, instead of the One who created the world. God designed us to find joy only in Him. As we said last week, the chief end of man is to glorify god and enjoy him forever. This confession is supported by passages like Psalm 16:11.

• Psalm 16:11 - “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
  
  

We also talked about that the command to rejoice in the Lord is not without a struggle. We discussed how we must fight for joy. This world and our flesh are constantly warring against the Spirit of God, undermining the fruit of the Spirit, which includes joy. One way, if not one of the main ways, that our joy is stolen from us is by our anxiety, and that is what we will unpack today.

Good and Bad Concern

The Greek word for anxious is merimnaó. This word can be used positively or negatively. Early in this letter Paul used it in a positive way when he was speaking about Timothy in Philippians 2:20, “For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned (merimnaó) for your welfare.” Obviously when Paul uses the word merimnao, he is speaking of good qualities of Timothy.

However, in out text for today, Paul is talking about the negative form of merimnaó . Which means to be worried, distracted, “to go to pieces.”

I believe this distinction is important for us to understand. We need to recognize that there is a God glorifying concern. It is a concern that drives us to love people. It is a concern that Timothy and Paul had for the people of Philippi. It is the same concern I have for each of you, and my wife, and my children; specifically my concern “for your progress and joy in the faith.” The reason I think this is important is because I believe too many people take “Don’t worry about it” too far; the “let go and let God” philosophy of discipleship can lead to apathy and isolation within the body of Christ. So as we talk about anxiety, understand we are not talking about the Godly concern, compassion, and love that we are called to have for other people.

Do Not Be Anxious

What Paul is talking about in our text is the bad anxiety. In fact let’s start the same place that we started last week with the recognition that this is a command, “Do not be anxious.” This means that being anxious is against the will of God. It is a sin to be anxious.

So once again, like last week, let’s ask the question, do you think of anxiety this way? When you are worried about money, relationships, health, your job, tornadoes, persecution, etc. do you recognize that God is not pleased by your anxiety? Do you recognize that Jesus died to pay for you sins, one being your anxiety? Let’s look at some other passages that supports this command not to be anxious.

• Matthew 6:25 – “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.”
  
  
• Matthew 10:19 – “When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say.”
  
  
• Luke 12:4 – “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body“
  
  
• John 14:27 – “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
  
  
• Isaiah 41:10 – “fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God;”
  
  
• Deuteronomy 31:6 – “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
  
  
• Psalm 37:1 – “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers!”
  
  

So let’s ask the question, why is anxiety sin? Why is anxiety something that Jesus had to come and shed blood for? Let’s come at this question from a different angle. What does the Bible tell us sin is? Listen to these two text:

• Romans 14:23 – “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.”
  
  
• Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please him”
  
  

Sin is not just doing bad things, it is doing anything that does not have at its foundation faith in a Sovereign God. Sin is whatever comes from a heart that does not trust in who God is and what he has promised. Sin is living your life in such a way that you do not believe in the authority and power and plan of God in your present situation. So is anxiety a sin? Absolutely, for your anxiety is the opposite of faith. It is the opposite of trust. It is the opposite of believing.

Here is a quote from John MacArthur, “Worry is the sin of distrusting the promise and providence of God, and yet it is a sin that Christians commit perhaps more frequently than any other.”

And today we see the command of God telling us to not be anxious about anything. This means don’t be anxious about your job, your finances, your health, your children, your retirement, your life. We are a nation of worriers. We live in the most affluent place and the most affluent time in all of history. We are the cream of the historical crop, yet we walk around afraid of our shadow. I have never once lived in a house that didn’t have food in the cupboards. I have never once gone to a closet that had empty hangers. I have never once gone without medicine for myself or my family. I have never once gone to bed worried about neighborhood bombings, or someone kicking down my door to take me hostage. And I am guessing that very few of you have either, however we run around like the sky is falling.

You of Little Faith

Why? Because we lack faith in an all-powerful, all knowing, all present, all loving, Sovereign God of this Universe. We have taken the God Who Is, and shrunk him down to the God we want him to be, and because of that, our lives are a wreck. We don’t believe that God is in control. We don’t believe that he has the power to change hearts, move mountains, heal disease, provide bread, or calm the storms. We don’t believe the God of the Bible.

We forget that Jesus himself says in Matthew 10:29, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.” If God is control of the falling of a sparrow, he is control of your life. Trust him.

We forget what it says in Ephesians 1:11, “In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,” All things include your current circumstances. Trust him.

We forget the promise of Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Whether you recognize it or not, if you love God your struggles, no matter what they are, are being used by God for your good. If you do not love God, then this promise is not for you, because all things will actually work towards bad, namely your destruction in Hell.

How crucial are these text! We desperately need to remember these words when our marriages are hanging by a thread, when we lose our job, when we get the call from the doctor, when our lives are falling to pieces. So how do we do it?

We Pray with Gratitude

Verse 6, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” The answer to your anxiety is to pray with thanksgiving.

This is important, the text doesn't just say pray, but pray with thanksgiving. This is crucial. And I am guessing that very few of you implement this. My guess is that you are really good at praying and making your requests known to God, but rarely is your heart full of gratitude. Most likely you are so focused on your problems, the last thing on your mind is to be thankful, but this is exactly what you must do.

So how might this look? Lets say I go to the doctor and they tell me I have cancer. That night I am laying in my bed and can't sleep because I have a thousands thoughts running through my mind. My wife, my kids, this church, the chemo, the finances, the uncertainty, etc. Then I start to pray:

“Father, I am a wreck. I don't know what I am going to do. Thank you for being with me in this time of difficulty, and thank you for hearing my cry. Father, I am worried about my wife and kids. They are so precious to me. Thank you Lord for blessing me with me. Thank you for putting them in my life. If something happens to me, please be with them. Father, I am not sure how this is going to work with Cornerstone. I don't know if I will be able to keep up the pace. You are doing so much good in those people's heart, and they are so on fire for you. I praise you and thank you for all you have done. Will you keep doing it? Father, I am scared about dying. I am scared of the pain and the uncertainty surrounding it. Father, thank you for the life that you have given me. Thank you for all the days that you have blessed me with. Thank you for creating me and sustaining me up until this point. Father, if you do decide that I should die. I thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending him to die on the cross for my sins, thank you for pouring out your wrath upon him, so that I could be forgiven and have eternal life in your presence. Thank you that death is not the end, but the beginning. Thank you for the glory that awaits me in your presence. Thank you for loving me and never forsaking me.”

When I pray that way, what do you think is running though my mind at the end of that prayer? More of God's Sovereignty and less of my anxiety. When I put my worries up against His blessings, His goodness vastly overshadows my problems. When I pray with God-centeredness, my perspective on my situation changes. I quickly realize that God has always been in control and will always be in control.

This is what I love about this text, it is so practical. When we implement this strategy of praying with thanksgiving, our prayers are being answered just by the formula of our prayer, and the pinnacle of the formula is gratitude for Jesus Christ. There is no greater blessing in our life the the gift of God's Son. No matter what you have going on in your life, if you pray to God with thanksgiving in your heart for the gift of Jesus Christ then the peace of God will descend upon your mind and your heart. Why?

• Romans 8:32 - “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
  
  

If God loves you so much that he is willing to hand over His Son to be a sacrifice for you sins, then what are you worried about! God cannot go to any greater length to prove to you that he loves you and will not forsake you. He purchased you, he adopted you, he ransomed you, he saved you, he loves you. We must never forget who your Father is and what he did. He is the sovereign God who created the heavens and the earth and sent his beloved Son to bleed out so that you may live.

I have no doubt that this is was how Paul lived his life. Remember, when Paul wrote this letter, he was not skipping through the tulips, he was walking thought the valley of the shadow of death, chained to a Roman guard. He had way more “problems” then most of you will ever experience, and it was the Soverign Love of God that sustained him in the hardest of times. I have no doubt that this is how all the apostles lived, for they had to. Our lives are pleasure cruises compared to theirs. Listen to what Peter says.

• 1 Peter 5:6-7 – “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. “
  
  

As we close today, instead of my prayer, I am going to pray Peter's prayer in Acts 4. This was the prayer that Peter prayed after he and John were arrested in the temple for the proclamation of the Gospel. This would have been a time of great anxiety for the early Church.

• Acts 4:24-30 - “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25who through the mouth of our father David, your servant,d said by the Holy Spirit, “‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain? 26The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’e--27for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. 29And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servantsf to continue to speak your word with all boldness, 30while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” Amen.
  
  

Preached at Cornerstone Church in Cascade, IA on Mary 10, 2015.

Turn with me in your Bibles to Philippians 4:4-7.  We will spend two weeks in these verses because I think they are extremely important for your Christian walk.  Let us get right to work by reading our text, pray that God would open our hearts and then will we work through what God has revealed to us in His Holy Word.

• Philippians 4:4-7 - “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;6do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
  
  

Wired for Joy

Blaise Pascal, a French Mathmetician, in the 17th century said this:

“All men seek happiness.  This is without exception.  Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views.  This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves.”  

Do you agree with this?  Our Founding Fathers did.  In the Declaration of Independence are the famous words, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”

It is not only 17th century mathematicians and historical statesmen, but it is modern day therapy.  Perhaps the most common question for social workers, psychiatrists, psychologist, and coffee shop counselors is “Are you happy?”

There is something hardwired in every human being that craves for happiness.  Every decision we make is oriented to what we believe will achieve greater happiness.  Even the decisions that are difficult, are still made with the hope that when all is said and done things will be better then if we hadn’t made that decision.

Unfortunately, because of sin, we seek happiness in things that will not ultimately produce happiness.  I believe the parable of the prodigal son is a good illustration of this fact.  The youngest Son requested his share of the inheritance and off he want into the world and “squandered his property in reckless living” until one day he found himself so broken to the point that he was coveting the food for the pigs.  The youngest son’s pursuit of happiness independent of his Father left him ultimately broken and unsatisfied.  This is a picture of all humanity in eyes of God.  We are wired to seek joy, and absent Christ, we seek it in the troughs of pigs.  

Chief End of Man

Changing gears, If I were to ask, according to God’s Word, what is the Chief end of man, what would you say?  According to the Westminster Shorter Catechism the answer to that question is “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and enjoy him forever.”  Do you agree with this?  Do you agree that, not only are you wired for joy, but God designed you to enjoy Him?  Do you agree that you exist to have joy in God?  

When we hear of read statement like the Westminster Catechism, or some creed, we should always ask, what is the scripture behind it?  We don’t just want to accept this comment wholesale just because some theologians in 1647 said it was so.  We should be like the Bereans in the book of Acts who searched the scriptures to compare what is said to what we know to be true, namely, the Bible.  So let us look at some text.

• Romans 14:17 - “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
  
  
• Luke 2:10 - “And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
  
  
• Matthew 13:44 - ““The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. “
  
  
• John 15:8- 11 - “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. “
  
  
• Psalm 16:11 - “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”   
  
  

Obviously this is just a sampling, there are many, many more text that speak to the Christian life being a life of joy. What I want to do is merge these two thoughts that I have brought up. We are wired for joy and God designed us to find joy in him. How often do you think this way? For a lot of you of you, probably not very much. We wrongly think that to follow Christ means we abandon joy, as if they are two roads leading in different directions. We believe that when we except Christ we abandon any hope for being happy in this world, that life will be boring, unexciting, dull, humdrum.

For those who see a relationship with God as being joyless, I say this, you don't know my God, and I would encourage you to take a good long look in the Spiritual mirror and ask some difficult questions about your salvation. For true joy is only found in God, all other joys are counterfeit.

However, having said this, fullness of joy in God is not easy. Joy does not just show in at your doorstep with a little pink bow on it upon your conversion. To use a phrase from John Piper, we must fight for you, and you can see this in our text today.

Command for Joy

Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice.” First we must recognize that this is a command. Paul is commanding the Philippian Church to rejoice. If joy came naturally for all Christians, a command would be unnecessary. Paul's command for us to rejoice tells us that joy is something that must be intentionally chosen.

I wonder how often we think this way. Do you wake up each morning intentionally choosing to have joy in God. Do you implement practical things into your life that will produce joy in God? If not, why not? Most likely it is because you have never thought about it. You have never thought about Joy in God as something you work at. Most likely, you have wrongly believed that joy is based on circumstances, and you are just a passive in experiencing it. You see yourself as a victim of joy or joylessness. This is not how the Bible speaks of joy. Joy in God is something we must pursue.

Second, we must recognize that joy is not optional. As I said, this is a command. Paul is commanding that early Church to rejoice. In fact we find this command of rejoice in the Lord in the midst of other commands: stand firm in the Lord, agree in the Lord, rejoice in the Lord, do not be anxious. A Christian life that does not have joy is a Christian life outside the will of God. Once again, let that sink in. Having no joy in the Lord is disobedience. We are commanded to love God. We are command to have joy in God.

Pursuing Joy

So this leads us to how, how do we have joy in the Lord? This morning I want to suggest five ways to pursue joy. First, we must recognize that apart from the Spirit of God in our lives, we have no hope for joy.

• Galatians 5:22-23 - “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
  
  

If you haven't accepted Christ into you life, then you will never have joy. You will always be experiencing counterfeit joy. You may think you are happy, but you are just fooling yourself. Money will not give you joy, sex will not give you joy, success will not give you joy, entertainment will not give you joy, your spouse and your kids will not give you joy. You are not made to find ultimate joy in those things or those people. You are designed to find joy in only God, and until you give your life to Jesus Christ you will never be satisfied.

For those who are Christians, we must recognize that but for the Spirit of God dwelling inside us, we will never bear the fruit of joy. We cannot capture joy in our flesh, only by the Spirit of Christ that dwells in us. Therefore, step one is that we ask for joy in God. James 4:2 says, “ You do not have, because you do not ask.” We need to ask for joy, not in this world, but in the Creator of the world. Having said that, once again, this does not mean that joy will be produced in us in a passive way. Each fruit of the Spirit must be pruned to produce more.

Second, we must have eyes to see Christ for who He truly is. Think about what produces happieness in your life. Is it not the value you see in something. I have happiness when I look upon my wife, for I see great value in her. I have happiness when I look upon my children, because I see great value in them. Likewise, we must see that true value of Christ. As we saw in chapter 3 of Philippians, we must see the surpassing worth of Jesus. We must stare into the face of Christ and be overwhelmed by the image of the almighty Sovereign God who hung the stars staring back at us.

Third, we must recognize what Christ has done for us. Some of you may have heard this story, but several years ago I prosecuted a vehicular homicide case. It is a charge that carries 25 years in prison. The case was somewhat complicated, but like all cases that go to a jury trial, there were issues. There a few moments in life when time seems to freeze. Jury verdicts are one of those times, especially when 25 years of liberty on on the table. I still recall the look on the defendant's face when the verdict came in saying “We the jury find the defendant...not guilty.” In that moment there was nothing that could steal his happiness. I could have burned down his house, and he would have cared less. Why? Because he escaped punishment. He was free. This pales in comparison to what Christ has achieved for us of the cross. We deserve, not 25 years in prison, we deserve eternity in Hell. Because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus we escape eternal torment. We escape weeping and gnashing of teeth. We escape the unquenchable fire. We escape the out darkness. We escape the wrath of God. When we forget this, we undermine our joy.

Fourth, we must see what is waiting for us. In Luke 10:20, Jesus said this to his disciples he had just sent out to do expand the Kingdom, “Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Our joy is not built upon our circumstances, it is built upon our destiny. These names are written, past tense, in this book. This book of life will be opened on the last day, the day of judgment. And all those whose names are in the book, we be ushered into the presence of God.

• Romans 8:18 - “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.  “
  
  

In our life we wrongly focus on temporal things. We focus on earthly things, therefore, we get worked up about the most minor of issues, and this robs us of our joy. Instead we must keep our eyes upon what awaits us in Heaven.

Conclusion

So to summarize today. We are designed for joy. The source of of this joy is found only in God. As Christians we must not assume that this is automatic. We must fight for joy. WE must therefore, pray that God would help us see Christ for who he is, what he saved us from and what he saved us to. If we do this, I promise you that joy awaits.