Edmunds Joy
(The Joy of the Lord is My Strength.)
Philippians 1
And
Nehemiah 8:10
The last couple of weeks we have been talking about the Movie Narnia.
This weekend Friday and Saturday it had already grossed almost 68 million dollars. That is better than the first two LOTR movies did their first weekend. I heard a report the other day that the trend in Hollywood to have a successful film is to make children’s movies or family friendly films. Of course Hollywood and most of the elite media who practically despise the idea of Jesus being anything other than a prophet/teacher scratch their heads in wonder over this fact. I believe it is because there is so little positive in the world today people need a break from “reality.” We have the Biggest loser, Super nanny, Survivor, Super date, Fear factor, you name it and they have a reality T.V show for it. I don’t know about you, but I have enough reality in my own life without watching someone else’s reality. I have an idea for a reality show. What about a reality show that follows an average Christian around and watches their reality…Hmmm maybe not.
The truth is our reality is not any different than the reality of someone who is not in church. We still have sickness, we still have financial problems, and we still have our idiosyncrasies and dysfunctional families. Many people have identified the only difference between Christians and non Christians is that Christians are forgiven. I disagree. Christians are forgiven. But that’s not the only difference. An argument can be made on the Wesleyan side of things that if someone has never heard the word of God, or had the opportunity to confess his/her sins that they are forgiven also. Grace covers their sins. A Child even though innocent in our eyes has not accepted Jesus as its savior, yet it is forgiven. The fact that we are forgiven is not enough of a distinction. Another reason it is not a good distinction is that it teaches that sin is inevitable. For those of us who know right from wrong sin is a choice.
Tonight I want to talk about Joy in Jesus. Joy is one of those words that are difficult to define. Q quick search of an online dictionary defines joy as an emotion: rejoice: feel happiness or joy.
• the emotion of great happiness
• something or someone that provides pleasure; a source of happiness; "a joy to behold"; "the pleasure of his company"; "the new car is a delight"
• gladden: make glad or happy
This morning’s sermon “Ten Tasty Things About Turkish Delight” used Turkish delight as a metaphor for sin. We learned that sin eventually leads to death. Death will definitely still your joy. But death is not the immediate consequence of sin. But before we get too far into that lets look some more at joy.
So what is Joy? We have defined it as emotion from the world’s point of view, but what is it to a Christian? If joy is as the world defines it a high form of happiness and thing/toys make us happy then when we get a new car that car brings us joy.-Right? Maybe Joy for someone else is getting their own way. The Bible tells us that selfishness is a sin. Can sin be joyful? Using this definition of sin the answer is yes.
Edmund had joy when he tasted the Turkish delight. In fact one of Miriam-Webster’s definitions of joy is delight. So Edmund literally tasted JOY. Yet for Edmund it was sin. The Turkish delight was not sinful. However for Edmund it represented compromise with evil therefore it was sin.
Edmund had seen enough of this witch to know she was not a good person. He knew when the witch offered him the Turkish delight it would come with a cost. There were strings attached.
Considering joy from this perspective I’m not satisfied with the definition of Joy as high state of emotion stemming from success, great satisfaction, etc. Let’s explore it from God’s perspective.
Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi says more about joy than any other New Testament book. Even though Paul is under arrest and in chains, he rejoices because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He writes to thank the Philippian Christians for the help they gave him and to encourage them to face their own trials with "joy in Christ Jesus." What in the world is Paul talking about? What is delightful about facing trials? Is there anyone in here that is delighted when they face trials? I’m not. I do not experience happiness when times are difficult. When one has just found out he/she has terminal cancer I doubt he/she is delighted. Yet Paul specifically tells them to face their own trials with "joy in Christ Jesus." Therefore Paul must not be talking about the same joy as defined by Meriam-Webster.
Paul’s joy is rooted in God’s faithfulness: "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (v. 6). Since the Philippians had begun so well, Paul is confident that they will persevere in the faith—not on their own strength, but because God will continue to work in them. "All of you share in God’s grace with me" (v. 7).
Clearly Joy as defined by Christians is much greater than a simple emotion. Joy is a contentment and delight in God that is not based on circumstances or material things. Yet that still does not seem appropriate. It seems incomplete. Let’s explore further this biblical definition of joy.
Using Bible software these are some if not all of the occurrences of Joy in the Bible. What we find in these next few references support the above definition of Joy as “contentment and delight in God that is not based on circumstances or material things but expands it. It widens the scope. Joy has a depth and certain shallowness, and most people tend to see only one of those two sides. This is consistent with Jesus. Almost every parable and answer he gave had simplicity, yet depth.
Joy is a mature Christian emotion; it is deep and profound. It is inspired by all the things that are part of being rightly related to God; for example, the Lord’s judgment (1 Chron 16:33), observing others’ obedience to the Lord (1 Chron 29:17, Rom 16:19, Phil 4:1), faithfulness to God through trouble (Job 6:10), and God’s commands (Ps 19:8) all cause joy. As a Christian matures, so will his/her joy, and his/her capacity for joy will expand. Oswald Chambers’ definition of joy is fitting. "Joy means the perfect fulfillment of that for which I was created and regenerated."
Joy is based on being rightly related to God, surrendering to his will as Jesus did; it is not based on transient life circumstances. "Where do the saints get their joy from? If we did not know some saints, we would say -- ’Oh, he, or she, has nothing to bear.’ Lift the veil. The fact that the peace and the light and the joy of God are there is proof that the burden is there too." Joy is not found in the absence of trial, but in the faithfulness of God through trials.
However, we must be careful not to make joy a profound super-spiritual experience. Scripture simply doesn’t support such a narrow definition. Consider some of the Hebrew words that we translate "joy": salad literally means to skip for joy, and balag means to flash a smile. Joy is caused by personal victory (Ps 21:1), the ability to give an apt reply (Prov 15:23), a cheerful look (Prov 15:30), perfume and incense (Prov 27:9), eating and drinking (Ecc. 8:15), material blessings (Jer 31:12), the birth of a baby (Jn 16:21), physical healing (Acts 8:8), and the company of those we love (Phil 1:26, 2 Tim 1:4, 2 Jn 1:12).
Clearly, joy is wrapped up in the everyday concerns of human life, and we must be careful to remember that such "shallow" things are just as much from God as "deeper" Christian experiences. "Beware of allowing yourself to think that the shallow concerns of life are not ordained of God; they are as much of God as the profound. The danger is this type of thinking is it does not allow for God to be present in the mundane experiences of our lives. God is both transcendent and immanent. A transcendent God is one who is beyond perception, independent of the universe, and wholly "other" when compared to us. An immanent God, however, is one which exists within - within us, within the universe, etc. - and, hence, very much a part of our existence. If these thoughts seem to be in tension with each other they are. However we can not exclude either aspect of God. This is why the definition of biblical joy is so difficult to express.
“It is not your devotion to God that makes you refuse to be shallow, but your wish to impress other people…The shallow amenities of life, eating and drinking, walking and talking, are all ordained by God" (Chambers).
Joy is bound up in and caused by both common everyday life and the most mature of spiritual experiences, but in both of those it has the same goal: the glory of God. We are commanded to serve the Lord with gladness because we have seen the difference between serving him and serving earthly masters. John Piper points out that when the Israelites forsook the Lord in 2 Chronicles 12, he punished them by making them slaves of another country "so that they may learn the difference between my service and the service of the kingdoms of other countries." As Piper writes, "There it is. God’s zeal that we know the difference between serving him and serving anyone else. The lesson they had to learn was that serving God is a glad service, or as Jesus said, a light burden and an easy yoke." God is most glorified when his people recognize his goodness and rejoice in it.
Finally, true joy is founded on truth. It is based on our knowledge of God’s goodness to us as revealed in both shallow and deep experiences, and as revealed in his Word. It is based on the truth that God will always be faithful regardless of the circumstances we face.
Remember I said that while Sin fully grown was death; Death was not the immediate result of sin. Sorrow is the immediate result of sin. Remember when Edmund had the Turkish delight? He experienced the worlds definition of joy but when that temporary joy ended it begot sorrow. Edmund realized that he had betrayed his brothers and sisters for temporary joy. As a consequence of seeking this temporary joy the laws of Narnia required he die. Edmund experienced even greater sorrow when Aslan died in his place. Aslan was innocent. Edmund deserved death, not Aslan. All because Edmund wanted temporary joy. He wanted the immediate result with out the trials tribulations of life. That’s the problem with basing our joy on anything but God. It always has strings attached.
Aslant rises from the dead just in time to win the battle for Narnia. Aslant paid the price for Edmunds sin and now Edmund had TRUE joy. It was not based on circumstances, it was not based on the truth that some one greater than him has made the sacrifice on his behalf. Aslan died on the granite Table for Edmunds sin which brought joy to all of Narnia.
When we base our joy on God it is not a temporary state but a quite assurance that nothing will change the truth of biblical doctrine. As long as we are seeking God with our heart mind and spirit our joy is complete.
Piper writes that doctrine is the new "foundation of exuberance" that catches us when the childish naiveté that we had based our exuberance on gives way to real life. "This is the whole counsel of God. If you intend to dance in the April sun"- and surely this is what we were intended for, rejoicing in the physical and spiritual blessings God has given us - "just remember, either you do it with your eyes closed or you do it on the great granite table and of the whole counsel of God, also known as doctrine."
Joy. It is from God, who can also take it away. It is caused by a score of things, things that we call both shallow and deep. It is based on the truth of God’s word and his character. Most importantly, it is for the all-surpassing glory of God.
"Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then is was said among the nations, ’The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy." Psalms 126:2-3
