Sermon Tone Analysis

Let me ask you a couple of important questions this morning.

Are you ready?

Here's the first question: "Are you a happy Christian this morning?"

The second question is similar to the first.

Here it is: "Can you rejoice in what God has done for you in the past, what He is doing for your now, and what you expectantly anticipate Him to do in the future?"

God wants you to be a joyful and expectant Christian.

Our joy is an outflow of the same message that the Angel’s gave to the shepherds in the fields around Bethlehem:

Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

As we sit here this morning, you and I are a part of the all people that the angels give good tidings to.

It’s news that ought to fill our hearts and minds and souls with great joy: A Savior has come who will forgive us of all our sins.

If we were to literally translate that phrase great joy it would read mega-gladness!

Let me ask you another question: Does the presence of Christ in your life bring you mega-gladness?

Few things have done more harm to the cause of Christ and brought more disrepute to His Church than joyless Christians!

God wants you and I to experience a joyful heart and to have cheerful faces.

You see the two are connected:

* Proverbs 15:13 "A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance,"

* Proverbs 15:30 "A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,"

God has even designed us in such a way so that it is easier to exhibit cheerfulness then to exhibit sullenness.

It takes 64 facial muscles to make a frown, but only 13 to make a smile.

I'll tell ya what folks: I see a lot of Christians who are working their faces too hard!

Their attitude is (say with frown on face and crossed arms) /"Yea, I'm a Christian.

Hallelujah."/

The church needs to learn that laughter in the sanctuary is not pagan or a sign of disrespect to God.

ILLUS.

The German theologian, Helmut Thielicke, wrote: /"A church is in a bad way when it banishes laughter from the sanctuary and leaves it to the cabaret, the nightclub and the toastmasters."/

Joy in the Christian's life should flow as naturally from the believer's heart as singing does from a bird at sunrise!

The message of the angels was designed to give great joy to the shepherds and all who would come to the Savior.

So let me take some time this morning and talk about the coming of joy into our lives through Christ.

!

I. REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS!

* Philippians 3:1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord!

* Philippians 4:4 /"Rejoice in the Lord always.

I will say it again: Rejoice!"/ NIV

* 1 Thessalonians 5:16 /"Be joyful always;"/ NIV

!! A. THE WORLD NEEDS TO SEE JOYFUL BELIEVERS

#. the non-Christians in our culture see too many mean-eyed furrowed-brow, locked-jaw, crossed-arm, petty-minded, unsmiling Christians

#.

I don't mean any of your of course!

#. the world needs to see joyful believers who can praise the Lord no matter what their circumstances are or their lot in life may be

#. the Apostle Peter told the recipients of his first epistle that the Christian's joy is an inward grace that issues from the believer's faith despite trials and temptations

* 1 Peter 1:6-9 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

7 These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

#. joy is not merely a simplistic or sentimental way of dealing with life, but a way to meet life head on

* ILLUS.

A number of years ago Bobby Mcferrin wrote and sang a song that became very popular.

The lyrics were simple:

Here's a little song I wrote

You might want to sing it note for note

Don't worry, be happy.

In every life we have some trouble

But when you worry you make it double

Don't worry, be happy.

Don't worry, be happy now.

CHORUS: Don't worry, be happy.

Don't worry, be happy.

Don't worry, be happy.

Don't worry, be happy.

Ain't got no place to lay your head

Somebody came and took your bed

Don't worry, be happy.

The landlord say your rent is late

He may have to litigate

Don't worry, be happy.

CHORUS

Ain't got no cash, ain't got no style

Ain't got no gal to make you smile

Don't worry, be happy.

'Cause when you worry your face will frown

And that will bring everybody down

Don't worry, be happy.

CHORUS: (Don't worry, don't worry, don't do it.

Be happy.

Put a smile on your face.

Don't bring everybody down.

Don't worry.

It will soon pass, whatever it is.

Don't worry, be happy.

I'm not worried, I'm happy...)

#.

I hated that song.

But in it, Mcferrin implies a deep-seated joy that circumstances cannot doom

#. joy is an effectual, spiritual gift given by God to believers that helps to sustain us in difficult times and increases our happiness in good times

#.

happiness is a feeling and usually is determined by outside events or circumstances

#. joy, on the other hand, is an attitude, a disposition, a mind-set that flows from a deep conviction that God is alive and real and in your life and in control

#. it enables you to meet the challenges of life and to wade into impossibilities with enthusiasm and expectancy

#. /"rejoicing always"/ in the Lord enables you to let go of the frustration and pick up the broken pieces and start over again

!! B. REASONS BELIEVERS CAN REJOICE

#.

FIRST, we can rejoice because of saving grace

* Matthew 1:20-21 /“ . . .

an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”/

NIV

#.

Jesus said that being born again is like finding buried treasure

* ILLUS.

In the early 1950's a Florida resident by the name of Mel Fisher began searching the waters of the Caribbean for sunken Spanish treasure ships.

His dream of 'hitting it big' was scuttled time and again.

His all-consuming passion was to discover the resting place of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha.

This Spanish treasure ship had sunk in a hurricane somewhere off the Florida Coast 300 years ago and was reputed to be carrying the proverbial "king's ransom" in gold.

Fisher, quit literally, sold or hocked all that he owned in order to fund the years of searching.

Finally, one day in 1971, he and his crew found what they had so long been looking for.

The wreck yielded tens of millions of dollars in gold, silver, and precious stones.

They were overjoyed.