Sermon Central
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Living Joyfully With Christ Series
Contributed by T.j. Conwell on Mar 2, 2015 (message contributor)
Summary: Living joyfully is not about what happens to you today. It is about what God has done, through Jesus, and He has given you all the joy you will ever need by the Holy Spirit living in you. Are you living joyfully with Him?
“Living Joyfully”
Philippians Sermon Series, Part 14
Introduction
- Throughout this series we’ve seen several aspects of living joyously
-- All of them surround the simple concept that we live because we love Him
-- It is the outpouring of our hearts because of who Jesus is to us
- Mike gave a great explanation of joy and how it compares to “happiness”
-- Happiness (is external) - depends on what is happening
-- Joy is from within - does not change by our external surroundings
-- The joy of the Lord is internal; placed by the HS, given to us as encouragement
- Today, we conclude our series with three charges to the Christian
-- These charges are timeless; this means we can stand on them today and forever
- I really got to thinking about how to end this, and Chapter 4 was just perfect
-- Rather than taking it apart, let’s just read it, and then hear what God has for us
-- I believe it is in the application that we see our need for living faithfully for Him
- Read Philippians 4:1-23
∆ Point 1 - Stay Unified (1-3)
- Christians have a common bond and frame of mind … but what is it?
-- IMP: JESUS! More though: We have a belief and a hope of eternal life
-- APP: This should drive us to live constant in our walk with God
- But, there is difference of gifts and talents that we have; we are part of a body
-- However, are we not renewed but the same Spirit? Do we not have Christ?
-- Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
-- 2 Corinthians 4:16, “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.”
- If we are, then are of like mind; we have a common bond; we have unity
-- We must continue to resist the urge to turn on one another and stand firm
- This is easier said than done (especially in today’s microwave society)
-- It is TOO easy to give up, to turn away, and to justify our sins, isn’t it? (v2)
-- Too easy to compare ourselves to one another and refuse to repent
-- Too easy to argue and give up on one another as these two women did
- What Paul is writing is really challenging us to be different today … WHY?
- IMP: We are to stand firm, hold to Christ’s grace, and depend on Him!
- Let believers be of one mind, and ready to help each other
-- Paul knew how helpful we could be to one another (v3b) see “contended”
-- These women stood by his side to be of service; to aid in the ministry work
- He knew how comfortable it is to have the help of one another
-- APP: We should be looking for ways to do that; to rejoice that we are together
-- More so, take comfort that our names are found in the book of Life (v3c)
-- IMP: There is none greater than Jesus; so we are to equally SERVE one another
- Joy found in God is one of the greatest rewards in the Christian life
-- Christians need to be again and again called to it; reminded of how good it is
-- The world is looking at how we handle challenges; how we respond to struggle
-- They are looking at how we handle difficulties of life; do we handle life well?
∆ Point 2 – Rejoice (4-9)
- So to us, there is proclamation: handle everything with JOY (v4)
-- “REJOICE!” That means even in the bad times we proclaim “He is good”
- We ought to be consistent; to live upright before God seeking Him first
-- APP: v5, “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.”
- FACT: God’s Day of Judgment will soon arrive for all on this Earth
- FACT: It is NOT our job to ensure people are “pre-judged” before that time
- Our place in living joyfully is: Love God, Love People
-- To live completely for Him, taking everything to God in prayer (life-long)
- Our joy in Him ought to outweigh our sorrow in our circumstances
-- We must let the world see how we deal with good times AND bad times
-- This is our witness, this is how we must live, and this is v6-7 in a nutshell!
- We must also join thanksgivings with prayers and supplications
-- We must seek supplies of God, but celebrate the mercies we have received
-- God doesn’t need to be told our wants or desires; he already knows them
