sermon notes (rough draft) for 8-17-08

Series: Immitate Christ Topic: Joy Scripture: Philippians 4:10-19

Nehemiah 8:10 says, “...the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

Do you have that Joy today? That’s what we are going to be seeking.

We can all experience the Joy of God in a greater way if we will apply these models to our lives.

This morning, I would like to share with you all a passage that really took hold of me when I was about 14 years old, and it never let go.

Philippians 4:11b – 13 “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

(#1) Paul here is a model of what it is to rely on God for his strength. How many of us can relate to what he says here. I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty.

I do. I’m 33 years old. I don’t remember the 70’s more that an image here or there. But I do remember the 80’s. In 1982, I was 7 years old. My Daddy was a farmer in a little town called North Middletown, KY. We lived in a great big house. And my family had a lot of money. At that point in life the only reason to do without, was because my Mom didn’t want to drive into town to get whatever it was. But it was that same year that all that changed. I remember the conversations and the tension that went on. But I didn’t know what it ment that the Bank was calling the note due, nor did I know what Bankrupsy was. But they kept telling me we would have to move. That was ok w/ me. Just a different location I thought. To settle all that out took about 3 years. And in 1985, we moved to Winchester. Oh wow, we were going to live in the city. COOL!. Friends, stores, paved roads. Just awesome. But I was a heafty little boy. I mean, I could eat. We went from having a wide aray of food on that big farm opperation to having Brown beans every night. Now, I like brown beans as much as any contry boy would. But when the idea of daily variety consisted of “Son, would you like white bread, or crackers with your beans tonight?” It did get a bit worn out.

-But I was learning a lesson at that point. I was learning what it meant to live in plenty and in want.
-The model that Paul sets here says that he had edured hard times, and enjoyed some good times. But thru it all, the secret to that happiness has been Jesus.
-His faith in Christ has enabled him to edure.
-His faith in Christ has enabled him to stay focussed.
-His faith in Christ has enabled him to enjoy the life set before him through all the experiances life throws his way.
-Paul exhibits the true understanding of faith in God. That we do not exhit our faith by getting from God what we want. But rather our faith is exhibited by accepting from God what he gives.

Examine your own life. Are you content whatever the circumstances? It is a hard thing. I struggle with it even to this day, even with the experiances that God has allowed to come my way.
You can not experience joy without contentment. But you will experiance the joy of the Lord by accepting whatever God gives through faith that he will use it for the good in every situation.

Well, Bob, you may say, this speaks of contentment, but you said we’d have the model for joy in our lives. Where is the rest. Well, lets keep reading in our passage here and see what we find. Continuing on in Philippians 4, this time vv. 14-19.

(#2) Here is the another model that we have to pay attention to. Paul was encouraging the Philippians. Where was Paul when he was writing this letter? He was in prison in Rome.
-Paul was spending his time encouraging others, while his own circumstances were miserable.
-Paul took joy in the fact that he was also counted worthy to suffer on account of his faith in Jesus and he took joy in watching God work through his own situation as well as that of the Philippians.
-In other words Paul found his Joy in the workings of God through him and thouse around him.
-Two points that we can learn from there.
-The first, Do we put effort into really encouraging others at every chance we get? That doesn’t mean that we refuse to tell them the truth if they are messing up.
-But it does mean that if you see someone struggling with something, -- do you offer an encouraging hand, or an encouraging word, or do you just look at them and say, well what’s wrong with you? You should be able to handle that.

Those aren’t the kinds of comments that help. They are destructive.

Here in his letter to the Philippians, Paul, in jail, took the time to encourage those who were meeting at teh church in Philipi.

Do you encourage others, even when you are in a difficult circumstance. The model we see here says we should.

The second lesson here, Do we enjoy seeing God work through us and arround us?

You know, first things first. you can not see God at work in your life, or anywhere else if you aren’t looking. If you close your eyes to the movement of God, then I promise you, you won’t see it.

But if you would open those spiritual eyes and look at what we see here, a man relishing the success and glory that God is recieving and pouring out, then you will be full of the Joy of the Lord because you’ll begin to see God work in, around and thru you in a supernatural way.

So we can experiance the joy of the Lord by encouraging others and watching God at work.

(#3) The final model that we are going to look at here springs from the final verse that we read. v. 19, “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
-That is Pauls faith coming through even in prison.
-We have been looking for joy in this passage.
-In real life, when would we say something like this. We may say it when we are down and trying to encourage someone else. But I think that most of us, myself included, would be more likely to say this in a moment of excitement, in a moment of joy.
-Paul is wrapping up his letter to the Philippians, and he is trying to convey how happy he is with what the Philippians are doing.
-The statement here may sound like a promise of provision, possibly given to a people who were struggling financially. But I doubt that because Paul usually paid his own way. He was a tentmaker, and usually did not accept gifts. But he does from this church. So that tells me that Paul evaluated the situation and determined that the Philippians could bear the burden to help finance the ministry accross Israel, Asia, and Europe.
-So that leads us to conclude that this statement is a word spoken out of exuberance, and confidence that regaurdless of what the Philippians would ever give, they could not out give God.
-And so we see the model come into modern terms... We can not out give God in any way, be it time, money, property, or posession. Regardless of what we give, God can give more, and will meet every need we have. The question for us is will we trust him.

To conclude here, I’d like to tell you the story of a man who gave to God what he could out of his joy for the Lord.

I told you at the begining of the service that this passage took hold of me when I was 14. A young man at the church I was going to took an intrest in me. I was 14 and he was about 20, long curly blond hair, had his own car, and a girlfriend... I thought he was cool.

He was always kind to me, but I thought he was just bing nice, after all, he was my sunday school teacher. I thought it was his job to act like he liked me.

But he had a passion for God. He wanted us boys to know God and to love God and to trust God. He knew that Jesus Christ had died on the cross to save him and all of us. And he wanted to convey that to us.
Oh he had such passion. He had the joy of the Lord. And that was his strength. He was my teacher for one year. And in that year, I can’t tell you what the sunday school lessons were. But I can tell you that his passion for God made a tremendous impression on me.

Then the end of the year came, and he told us that he would not be remaining as our teacher. I was dissapointed, as were the others. We asked why, and all he would say was that he was just going to have to give it up.

The last Sunday he was there, it was in August, when Sunday School graduation was taking place, he came to me with a gift. He said that he had forgotten to get me a Christmas present, and that I had meant alot to him. I really to this day don’t know what I did for him. But I opened up the gift. And in it was a Bible. And on the inside cover, he had written a note, and he had signed it.... Then there was a note which simply read, Philippians 4:13.
I can do everything through him who gives me strength. That is what he wanted me to remember when he gave me this Bible. It has been with me eversince.

Do we live like we believe this?
I can do everything through him who gives me strength.....

Or do we allow the distractions and circumstances of life to convince us that we can do nothing about our situation or about advancing the cause of Jesus Christ.

Do we think, wow, there are people out there who need help. But what can I do? I don’t have the ability to help them.

That is a form of disbelief and rebelion. We are called to trust him. Paul, from prison would write letters to the churches to encourage them. WOW! He would wrestle with the Roman prison system for years before finally being executed for his faith in Jesus Christ. And we think we can’t do anything because of the obstacles we have.

All Paul did was write letters. Some of them are inerrently inspired by God and considered worthy of scriputre.

My point is this. I don’t know what God has laid on your heart. But I do know that as long as you are still hear on this earth, that he has a purpose for you. And if he has a purpose for you, then we can be sure that he will equip us for it.

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strenght. Act and live in faith, that is your charge.