How to Have Always Joy

Scripture Introduction:

The apostle Paul is writing this letter to the Philippians while imprisoned. Now when we think of Paul’s imprisonment we shouldn’t think of it as him being a cell block with iron bars and locked doors. He is likely in “rented quarters in Rome…chained to a guard at all times.” It would be a little closer to house arrest in our day and age, but rather than an ankle bracelet you’d have a Roman guard stuck to you. Paul could still receive guests but this would not have been a pleasant experience by any means. Not to mention that this isn’t a new development, this has been going on for about two years while he is waiting a court date. Dennis Johnson summarizes the situation well:

Now at last he was awaiting the emperor’s decision on his appeal, chained to a succession of Roman soldiers and confined to a rented residence. It had been years since he had proclaimed the good news in synagogues and marketplaces. Moreover, some Christians in Rome were capitalizing on Paul’s restricted mobility to try to surpass him in soul-winning success, hoping to make Paul’s chains chafe (). They saw themselves as Paul’s rivals, so they imagined that their success would compound his frustration.

Paul was “imprisoned,” but not in a cell block with iron bars and locked doors. The Greek word that the ESV translates “imprisonment” is actually “chains” (so NIV), and we should picture Paul in the situation described in the last chapter of Acts, as he awaited the disposition of his appeal to the emperor. In Philippi Paul had been incarcerated behind locked gates (), but as he composed this letter he occupied rented quarters in Rome, probably near the Castra Praetoria, the barracks of the Praetorian guards on the eastern edge of the city. One or another of those guards was chained to Paul at all times, depriving him of privacy and freedom of movement; but he was free to receive guests (28:16, 30–31). Paul was a man of action, with a restless drive to take Christ’s gospel to folks who had never heard the message of salvation (). By this point he had previously spent over two years in custody in Judea, waiting for his “case” to be resolved by provincial officials there. Then he endured a long and harrowing sea voyage across the Mediterranean. Now at last he was awaiting the emperor’s decision on his appeal, chained to a succession of Roman soldiers and confined to a rented residence. It had been years since he had proclaimed the good news in synagogues and marketplaces. Moreover, some Christians in Rome were capitalizing on Paul’s restricted mobility to try to surpass him in soul-winning success, hoping to make Paul’s chains chafe (). They saw themselves as Paul’s rivals, so they imagined that their success would compound his frustration.

Now at last he was awaiting the emperor’s decision on his appeal, chained to a succession of Roman soldiers and confined to a rented residence. It had been years since he had proclaimed the good news in synagogues and marketplaces. Moreover, some Christians in Rome were capitalizing on Paul’s restricted mobility to try to surpass him in soul-winning success, hoping to make Paul’s chains chafe (). They saw themselves as Paul’s rivals, so they imagined that their success would compound his frustration.

So I want you to picture all of this frustration. Paul’s circumstances are absolutely terrible. Things aren’t “coming up Paul”. Paul is far from living the American dream. He has an opportunity now to “vent” and to do so with dear friends. The church at Philippi loves Paul. They are concerned about Paul. They want to hear from him.

What would your letter sound like in such a situation? How would you start?

Read Text:

Does that sound like your letter? The whole thing is filled with joy. In the verses we read this morning you would hardly even know that the guy is on lock down. He doesn’t mention it for a few verses and even when he does it’s more about how God had given him an opportunity than about how terrible his circumstances are. There isn’t a drop of self-pity in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It overflows with joy. Ultimately the purpose for Paul in writing this letter is to encourage them—specifically to encourage them to continue in their advancement of the gospel. But it’s known as the letter of joy because of how often Paul speaks of joy and has a joyous tone.

I don’t know about you but I want to have this type of joy. The sermon title isn’t a typo. I know that grammatically it’d likely make more sense to say “How to Always Have Joy” but I think I worded it this way because the point I’m trying to make in this sermon is that Christian joy is something that is beyond circumstances and it’s often in spite of circumstances. I want us to have the “always” type of joy. And that is what I want us to look at this morning. But before we do that I supposed it’d be helpful for us to try to get on the same page as far as a definition of joy.

I struggled a bit with how to define this. I want to say that joy isn’t an emotion but a settled disposition—that it’s a choice. I wanted to talk about how joy and happiness are different. But honestly, that’s not really the way the Bible speaks about joy. Joy is an emotion. And the biblical writers often use things like joy/gladness/happiness/mirth interchangeably. But joy is also not wavering like emotions. You know joy when you see it. You know the longing in your heart that you have for it. But trying to pin it down is a bit elusive.

How do you define joy?

Webster’s: the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires.

Theopeida: a state of mind and an orientation of the heart. It is a settled state of contentment, confidence and hope.

John Piper: Christian joy is a good feeling in the soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, as he causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the word and in the world.

Rick Warren: Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.”

Happiness rooted in Christ

How do I have real true joy? The joy that doesn’t go away. The joy that Christ is talking about in . He has purchased joy for us. So how do we live out what he has purchased? Three things I see in this text that will help us in our fight to grab hold of this Always Joy that the apostle Paul seemed to have.

Theopedia describes it more convincingly as “a state of mind and an orientation of the heart. It is a settled state of contentment, confidence and hope.”

As a Baptist if I announce we are going to have a time of “fellowship” after the service what do you expect? You likely expect there to at least be a little bit of fried chicken or potato salad, right? But the biblical word for fellowship has a far richer meaning. It’s actually a word found here in our text this morning. In verse 5 you’ll notice the word “partnership” or “participation” or “fellowship” depending on your translation. The Greek word here—and I’m not one to usually say what the Greek word is but I almost bet some of you have heard this term—the Greek word is koinonia. It’s often translated fellowship. But it’s bigger than that. It’s a word which means “self-sacrificing conformity to a shared vision”.

Koinonia is “self-sacrificing conformity to a shared vision”

What that means is that we’re in this thing together. You can see this with business partners. Let’s say that you’ve invented the absolute best ice cream on the planet. You have a goal of taking this ice cream to every single person. If you are sold out to this vision then you sell all of your resources, you give all your time, all your energy, etc. to making this thing happen. Now if you’ve got somebody who says they want to partner with you but they aren’t willing to give any time or any resources are they really partnering? Of course not. It’s the same way with biblical fellowship—or participation in the gospel.

We see this with the Philippians and Paul. They are both committed to the gospel above all else. Paul is so committed that here he is in a Roman prison hoping to take the gospel to Caesar. But we also see that the church at Philippi is just as committed. This is what Paul means in verse 7. They have been with him from the beginning. Donating resources, communicating with him, sending helpers, praying for him. And even at times to their own detriment. They have been giving out of their poverty. It’s a shared mission. And so Paul ends up being overcome with joy in the Philippians because of their partnership in the gospel. He sees that they are part of the bigger story.

You see this also in the early church. In we see that they were giving everything to one another. This wasn’t communism. This wasn’t a system of government. This was a group of people convinced that Jesus is the Messiah and that all the promises of God are true in him. And so they are so wrapped up in this mission of making the name of Jesus great through the entire world that they pool all their resources together to make it happen. I like what Tim Keller says on this:

This is why they give away their stuff. They are together on this mission of making the name of Jesus great through the entire world. They’ve become convinced that Jesus is the Messiah and the all the promises of God are true in Him. As they are formed by the Word of God they move out into mission and community. They have a desire to know others and be known by others.

I like what Tim Keller says on this:

What the word means is simply “fellowship”. It is also used of a marriage relationship, it means an intimate bonding. You may have heard the church announce an event by saying something like “FOOD, FUN, and FELLOWSHIP”. Well we really are not conveying the proper meaning of the word. Biblical fellowship is more intimate. D.A. Carson helps us understand this quite well when he says;

In common use “fellowship” has become somewhat debased. If you invited a pagan neighbor to your home for a cup of tea, it is friendship; if you invite a Christian neighbor, it is fellowship. If you attend a meeting at church and leave as soon as it is over, you have participated in a service; if you stay for coffee afterward, you have enjoyed some fellowship. In modern use, then, fellowship has come to mean something like warm friendship with believers.[1]

That means we don’t just share our bucks, though we do. We share our joys. We share our mistakes. We share our sorrows. Now this can be done in a very icky way, and you can very artificially press this kind of community on people. It grows, and it has to grow in an organic, natural way, but I tell you, we in America are absolutely against this. In his book, Habits of the Heart, Robert Bellah says the one thing Americans hold dear is the idea I am not accountable to anybody but myself for the meeting of my own needs.

It moves outside the walls of the church. When you are in KOINONIA (fellowship) with someone whenever they hurt, you hurt. You are united by a common bond and a common goal. As a church our KOINONIA comes from the Holy Spirit inside of each of us. Carson defines KOINONIA well when he refers to it as, “self-sacrificing conformity to a shared vision”.

That, my friends, is worldliness…Worldliness is saying, “I don’t want to be accountable to anybody.”

Living in community with one another is far more than just attending a church building with similar people a couple times per week. No, God is forming something so much different. People who don’t have much else in common but their shared faith in Jesus and this changes everything. Meeting together in homes…this is crazy if you think about who this is? These are people who have nothing in common but the gospel of Jesus and their sharing their lives together.

[1] Carson, D.A., Basics for Believers, p.16

How do I have real true joy. The joy that doesn’t go away. The joy that Christ is talking about in . He has purchased joy for us. So how do we live out what he has purchased? Three things I see in this text that will help us in our fight to grab hold of this Always Joy that the apostle Paul seemed to have.

This is why I said last week that when we talk about biblical community we aren’t just talking about attending a church building with similar people a couple times per week. No, God is forming something so much different. People who don’t have much else in common but their shared faith in Jesus and this changes everything. Meeting together in homes…this is crazy if you think about who this is? (Also note that they still had their homes…helps us to see that what happened was more like people gathering together and pooling resources to help out…what we see often in our Sunday school classes).

So how does this contribute to Paul’s joy? How does this contribute to our joy?

Here Paul is thanking the Philippians for the partnership in the Gospel. While being constantly chained to a guard in a place that is not his home Paul still can have joy because he is not only chained to a Roman guard but he is also intimately eternally linked to an infinitely joyous God. And as such he is also linked to the eternal church of God. Even though he is in prison he takes joy that his fellow-workers (the Philippians) are also carrying on this shared vision of spreading the gospel of the joyful God who gives of Himself for us sinners so that we can turn our eyes from fleeting pleasures to eternal joy.

Paul isn’t just chained to a Roman guard he is chained to the eternal church of God!

Zack Eswine quote

Our joy is often small because our worlds are small. Our vision is small. Our partnership is small. If your dream can die with you then it isn’t a very big dream. I read something awhile back that was rather convicting at the time. In his book The Imperfect Pastor Zack Eswine shares the story of two pastors:

Two men left home to plant a church in a city of need. One arrived prior to the other. He dreamed of a city reached for Jesus with the gospel. Through this prior pastor, people came to know Jesus, believers gathered, a community of Jesus followers was born. It was a slow work but it was happening. His prayers were being answered.

In time, he began to meet with the one who arrived later, in order to encourage the newcomer. The old-timer and the new-comer prayed for Jesus to reach the city for the gospel. Through the newcomer pastor, people came to know Jesus, believers gathered, a community of Jesus followers was born.

Ten years later, the one who came first pastors an ordinary church. Its two hundred-plus members demonstrate the love of Jesus in ways that did not exist there ten years earlier. The newcomer who came second pastors a famous church. Its thousands of members and multiple sites around the city demonstrate the love of Jesus in ways that did not exist there ten years earlier. The prayers of both men were answered.

Why then is one of them sad?

When our joy is only tied to the stuff that happens in our little world then it’s going to be fickle. It isn’t going to be an always type of joy. If our joy isn’t about us then it isn’t going to die with us.

our joy is small because our worlds are small. our vision is small. our partnership is small.

is likely a verse that some of you have memorized. It’s one that we use often to show that one cannot lose their salvation. Ultimately the point is that what God starts then God will finish. I think we’re fine to use this as one of the pieces to the puzzle when talking about the eternal security of believers. But this text is far more than just saying once you’re united to Christ he is never going to lose you. In the context what Paul is talking about is their partnership in the gospel. So it’s actually encompassing ALL of the mission.

God is in control! The Gospel IS going to advance! The glory of God IS going to spread to the nations! God WILL ultimately be glorified! These things are definitely 100% going to happen. God and His gospel will not be thwarted. As Job declared, “I know that you can do all things and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted”.

As Paul is looking at the Philippians and joyously thanking God for their partnership from the first day of their salvation until now, he then in verse 6 focuses on the sovereignty of God and that beautiful principle that God always finishes what he starts. Now, it is worth noting that the good work that Paul is speaking of is not referring to the Philippians individual salvation. That good work is their partnership in advancing the gospel. So, what Paul is saying is that God has begun this work in you, and God is going to continue this great work of advancing the gospel until Christ returns.

God is in control! The Gospel IS going to advance! The glory of God IS going to spread to the nations! God WILL ultimately be glorified! These things are definitely 100% going to happen. God and His gospel will not be thwarted. As Job declared, “I know that you can do all things and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted”.

I love how one commentator put this:

‘Paul’s confidence is not in the Christianity of the Christians but in the God-ness of God, who is supremely trustworthy, able, and committed to finish the work he has begun.’

Do you see how great this news is and how it is connected to our joy? If you are in Christ I can say without any reservation that God’s goal for you is to give you eternal happiness. Listen to the beauty of . At your right hand are pleasures evermore, in your presence there is fullness of joy. That means joy which is without bottom and without a max. It means joy that is everlasting. Mind-blowing happiness. God is radically dedicated to your eternal enjoyment of Christ. And he has all the power in the universe to make that happen. God will finish what he started with you.

John Newton quote

Suppose a man was going to New York to take possession of a large estate, and his [carriage] should break down a mile before he got to the city, which obliged him to walk the rest of the way; what a fool we should think him, if we saw him ringing his hands, and blubbering out all the remaining mile, “My [carriage] is broken! My [carriage] is broken!”

Is your joy dashed because you have a broken-carriage? If so, lift your eyes a bit higher.

I mentioned earlier that Paul is writing this from prison. That’s enough for us to know that this dude is experiencing joy beyond his circumstances. But also consider this:

By reading (you do not have to turn there) we can see that Paul was:

1. Beaten times without number

2. Often in danger of death

3. 5 times received 39 lashes

4. 3 times beaten with rods

5. Once stoned to the point they thought he was dead

6. 3 times shipwrecked

7. He spent a day and a night stranded without a boat in the middle of the sea

8. Always in danger of rivers, robbers, always traveling, danger from his own countrymen, dangers from foreign people, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, on the sea, from false Christians,

9. Worked really hard

10. Many sleepless nights

11. In hunger

12. In thirst

13. Often without food

14. In cold and exposure (that means naked and cold)

15. Apart from all of the above he has daily the mental anguish of caring for churches all over the world.

And yet Paul had such a great experience of the joy of Christ. He isn’t just faking it. He isn’t just putting a smile on his face. He legitimately had a deep well of joy. When he thought of the church at Philippi it wasn’t in the category of “mental anguish of caring for the churches” it was a source of deep joy. His experience was what we hear about from Samuel Rutherford—himself a prisoner as he wrote this to a woman whose child had just died.

It is your part now to believe, and suffer, and hope, and wait on: for I protest in the presence of that all-discerning eye who knoweth what I write and what I think, that I would not [trade] the sweet experience of the consolations of God for all the bitterness of affliction; nay, whether God come to his children with a rod or a crown, if he come himself with it, it is well. Welcome, welcome Jesus, what way soever thou come, if we can get a sight of thee. And sure I am, it is better to be sick, providing Christ come to the bed-side, and draw aside the curtains, and say ‘courage, I am thy salvation,’ than to enjoy health, being lusty and strong, and never to be visited of God.

It’s not denying that sometimes life is absolutely difficult and painful and such. It’s adding something to it. It’s saying there is a joy that is deeper than the sorrow. And it’s this joy that is connected with our relationship with Christ. It flows out of Him. We are united to the most joyous being in all the universe. Because of this we have joy.

Paul wasn’t just chained to a Roman guard, he was chained to the eternally joyous God

But I have a question for us. What if Paul would have said, “no way” to these things? The suffering is too great. Would his experience of joy have been lesser or greater? It would have been less, wouldn’t it? Because there is a sense in which our experience of joy in Christ is wrapped up in our obedience to Christ. There is more joy in holiness than there is in sin. When we are disobedient to the Lord we are running away from joy and not towards it.

Our experience of joy is connected with our obedience to Christ.

But it’s also true that our obedience to Christ is connected to our joy in Christ.

God isn’t after moralistic and merely obedient people—he isn’t about creating older brothers—he wants prodigal son type of worship. Slay the fattened calf. Celebrate. Party at the wonder of redemption.

Consider the story of Odysseus:

There are two views of the Christian life and what God wants from us. One is the way of Odysseus the other is the way of Jason: The story starts with Odysseus traveling on his ship back to Ithaca. Odysseus has just rescued his king’s beloved wife Helen. On his way to take Helen back to Ithaca they must travel by the Sirens. The Sirens appeared to be beautiful. They were entrancing. Countless sailors would sail by the island and be enticed to come ashore. Once they got close to the shore however, their boats would crash on the hidden rocks beneath. They would be captured by the demonic cannibals that lived on the island. It was a trap and everyone knew it, but their call was so seductive that it seemed no man could resist.

Odysseus had a strategy. He told all of his crew to put wax in their ears and not look to the left or to the right. But Odysseus wanted to hear their beautiful music. He commanded his crew to tie him to the mast of the ship, and that no matter what he would say or do for them to not untie him until they were a safe distance from the island. Odysseus was completely seduced by the sirens. If it were not for the ropes tying him down, he would have succumbed. His hands were restrained but his heart was captivated by their beauty. Outwardly he had won the victory, but inwardly his heart desired the beautiful song of the sirens.

have succumbed. His hands were restrained but his heart was captivated by their beauty. Outwardly he had won the victory, but inwardly his heart desired the beautiful song of the sirens.

Now there was another man named Jason that would pass by the Sirens. But Jason’s solution was different. Rather than being tied to the mast or sticking wax in his ears, he hired Orpheus. Orpheus was the best musician in the land. Whenever the crew was passing close to the Sirens he ordered Orpheus to play his most beautiful, alluring, songs. Jason and his men did not even pay attention to the sirens. They were captivated by the beauty of Orpheus’ tune. They won the victory of the Sirens because they had heard something far sweeter, far more noble, far more soothing.

Now this is what we are confronted with. Whenever we stand in battle, whenever temptation is waging war on us, will we be like Odysseus; outwardly rejecting but inwardly craving the pleasures of sin. Will we struggle through life battling with sin not because our hearts have been transformed but because we are shackled by fear and shame? How will we struggle with sin, outwardly conforming all the while inwardly desiring sin? Or will we be like Jason? Will we be so captivated by the beauty and glory of Jesus Christ that sin no longer looks good to us. That is the only way to fight sin. Whenever you are so enthralled, enamored, in love with Jesus Christ will you be able to say “no” to sin, and mean it.

Now there was another man named Jason that would pass by the Sirens. But Jason’s solution was different. Rather than being tied to the mast or sticking wax in his ears, he hired Orpheus. Orpheus was the best musician in the land. Whenever the crew was passing close to the Sirens he ordered Orpheus to play his most beautiful, alluring, songs. Jason and his men did not even pay attention to the sirens. They were captivated by the beauty of Orpheus’ tune. They won the victory of the Sirens because they had heard something far sweeter, far more noble, far more soothing.

Now this is what we are confronted with. Whenever we stand in battle, whenever temptation is waging war on us, will we be like Odysseus; outwardly rejecting but inwardly craving the pleasures of sin. Will we struggle through life battling with sin not because our hearts have been transformed but because we are shackled by fear and shame? How will we struggle with sin, outwardly conforming all the while inwardly desiring sin? Or will we be like Jason? Will we be so captivated by the beauty and glory of Jesus Christ that sin no longer looks good to us. That is the only way to fight sin. Whenever you are so enthralled, enamored, in love with Jesus Christ will you be able to say “no” to sin, and mean it.

Are you connected to Christ? If you aren’t then what you have isn’t necessarily the joy and happiness that is eternal. It’s as John Newton has said:

It is a proof of the weakness and disorder of their minds that they are capable of being satisfied with such trifles. Thus if a lunatic conceives his cell to be a palace, that his chains are ornaments of gold, if he calls a wreath of his straw a crown, puts it on his head, and affects the language of majesty—we do not suppose the poor creature to be happy, because he tells us that he is so; but we rather consider his complacence in his situation, as an effect and proof of his malady. We pity him, and, if we were able, would gladly restore him to his senses, though we know a cure would immediately put an end to his pleasing delusions.

I know that sounds a bit harsh but the Bible does portray us as having a darkened mind and disordered affections. We love what we should hate and hate what we should love. Such a thing has you in a prison cell thinking you’re living in a castle. I was there. But it was a house of sand. Growing up I thought Banquet TV dinners were pretty good and that “steak” was that Salisbury steak you’d get in the TV dinner. Then I had real steak.

Are you in Christ but struggling with joy still? Going at it from the wrong end of the stick. Table your sadness and dig in to worship. That I believe is what happened with Job. It doesn’t mean don’t address your feelings, don’t feel sorrow, but legitimately take those things to Christ. Maybe for you the best thing you can do is have coffee this week with a joy-filled believer in Jesus. Or maybe you need to dig into theology a bit and meditate on our eternity.

Similarly, John Piper writes, “Christian joy is a good feeling in the soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, as he causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the word and in the world.” Rick Warren adds his own definition: “Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.”

How to Have Always Joy

When our joy is communal we will have joy beyond our circumstances

When we trust that God is in control we will have joy beyond our circumstances

When our joy is grounded in Christ we will have joy beyond our circumstances

Conclusion