The Fruit of the Spirit - Joy
Galations 5:22
Scripture: Galations 5:22
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
Introduction
The last few weeks we have seen in the scriptures that it is God’s plan and purpose for our lives to:
o Live in Freedom in Christ.
o A freedom to do what we ought not what we want
o A freedom that is based upon walking in the spirit and not according to the flesh
o That our lives manifest the Fruit of the Spirit and much of it to bring glory to the Father.
o That fruit is manifested as we yield, and surrender our will to the will of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us
o The Fruit of the Spirit is one fruit, but is seen in the nature of Christ manifested in the transformed character of the believer
Last week we looked at one of the manifestations of the Fruit of the Spirit – Love
o We saw that Love (Agape) is the true manifestation of God for God is Love
o That it is truly the more excellent way as Paul described it in 1Cor 13
o That the nature or character of love seems to parallel much of the other manifestations of the “fruit of the Spirit”
o And that this Agape Love – is the bonafide proof (not our works) that we are truly desciples of Christ
Today we want to consider another manifestation of the Fruit of the Spirit that should shine through us if God is dwelling in us – Joy!
Humor
I love the story of the grumbling motorist. "What am I supposed to do with this?" grumbled the motorist, as the police clerk handed him a receipt for his traffic ticket. "Keep it," the clerk said, "When you get four of them, you get a bicycle."
What is Joy?
In the bible it means:
Grk - chairo khah’-ee-ro
1) to rejoice, be glad
2) to rejoice exceedingly
Here is one persons description of Joy… ““Joy is like the hidden note in the glass. Joy is tuning in to what God is doing around you, seeing the world through his eyes, picking up on his delight in us as his children. Anyone can find happiness for a while… Happiness depends on what is happening to you. Joy is different; joy goes deeper. Joy is when your whole being sings because you have caught a glimpse of God at work. Joy can creep up on you and surprise you in unexpected places.”
Jim Kane(Illustrations on (http://www.SermonCentral.com)
Robert Louis Stevenson noted years ago, “To miss the joy is to miss everything.”
The Bible nowhere speaks about a “happy” Christian; it talks plentifully of joy. Happiness depends on things that happen, and may sometimes be an insult; joyfulness is never touched by external conditions, and a joyful heart is never an insult” (Oswald Chambers)
Joy produces a manifest “Happiness” but it is much more than happiness. Joy is an attitude developed by an awareness of the indwelling presence of God in us.
Remember the quote a few weeks ago from Max Lucado’s book entitled, “Grace For The Moment.”
I CHOOSE JOY. . . I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical . . . the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.
Max was saying I choose to be aware of God in my life. I choose to allow that to impact every area of my life. I choose to have an attitude of Joy.
I. How Is This Joy Obtained
I. Joy Is the Natural Sequel to Experiencing the Love of God
o Have you ever witnessed two people who are truly in love
o They are not just happy, they are filled with JOY!
o It seems as though no matter what happens they they are aglow. There is something deeper about joy, that even though it manifests it’s self as a strong presence of happiness, it is more. Joy is an inner strength born out of love.
To come to know God, is to come to know He who is Love
Joy is experienced because of the Presence of God –
Ps 16:11
o 11 You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
II. How Is Joy Maintained
1. Give it away
a. Dr. Billy Graham was once approached asked by a lady who had given her heart to the Lord during one of his evangelistic campaigns. She had given her heart to the Lord early in the week and had attended the meetings every evening that week. As she spoke with Dr. Graham she described the overwhelming sense of Joy that she had been experiencing ever since she accepted Jesus Christ as her Savior and Lord and she asked, “Dr. Graham, what must I do to keep this joy?” To which he replied, “ You must give it away!” One of the key elements of keeping the Joy of the Lord is to share it constantly with others.
b. 1John 1:1-4 1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) 3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
c. Describe the Joy of sharing Christ
2. Experience the Relationship and Power of God Daily
a. John 16:20 - 24 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. 21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembers no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. 22 And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you. 23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
b. It is experienced in the Hope of the His Return
c. It is made Full as you experience his power in your life
i. Prayer
3. Since the foundation of the Joy is Relationship with God those things that maintain a strong relationship with God become necessary
a. “Joy in Christ requires a commitment to working at the Christian lifestyle. Salvation comes as a gif, but the joy of salvation demands disciplined action. Most Christians I know have just enough of the Gospel to make them miserable, but not enough to make them joyful. They know enough about the biblical message to keep them form doing the things which the world tempts them to do; but they do not have enough of a commitment to God to do those things through which they might experience the fullness of his joy.” (Tony Campolo. Seven Deadly Sins. p. 21)
b. Spiritual Disciplines
i. Prayer
ii. Fellowship
iii. Study of the Word
iv. Giving
The Lady who asked Dr. Graham how to keep the joy was on to something very important because….The Joy of the Lord is our Strength
Neh 8:10
10 Then he said to them, "Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."
The Joy of the Saint:
• Is to be abundant - 2Cor 8:2
o 1 Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: 2 that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality.
• Is to be Exceeding - Ps 21:6 & Ps 68:3
o 6 For You have made him most blessed forever; You have made him exceedingly glad with Your presence.
• Is to be animated - Ps 32:11 & Lk 6:22-23
o 11 Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous; And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
o 22 Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake.23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven,
• Is described as being unspeakable & full of glory 1Pet 1:8 (kjv) 8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
• Is Constant – 2Cor 6:10 & Phi 4:4
o 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
o 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
• It is lasting – 1Thes 5:16
o 16 Rejoice always,
• Is Supported/Based upon Hope – Rom 12:12
o 12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;
• Not diminished by circumstances:
o Of Sorrow 2Cor 6:10
10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing;
o Of Trial Jas 1:2 & 1Pet 1:6
2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,
o Of Persecution Matt 5:11-12 & Heb 10:34
11 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 "Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you
34 for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven.
Remember Paul and Silas in Prison Acts 16
o Of Calamity – Hab 3:17-18
Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls–– 18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
D. L. Moody has expressed it so well: “. . .Joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows on through the dark; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows all through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can’t see and doesn’t know anything about. The Lord gives His people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to him” [–Edith draper, Draper’s Book of Quotations for the Christian World (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1992). Entry 6529.].
Conclusion
C. A little girl, on the way home from church, turned to her mother and said, “Mommy, the preacher’s sermon this morning confused me.” The mother said, “Oh! Why is that?” The girl replied, “Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. Is that true?” “Yes, that’s true,” the Mother replied. “He also said that God lives in us. Is that true, too?” Again the mother replied, “Yes.” “Well,” said the little girl. “If God is bigger than us and he lives in us, wouldn’t He show through?” I like that little girl’s way of putting it. If God lives in us, then there’s no way of keeping him from “showing through.” That’s the essence of Christian living- living in such a way that people around us will see God in our lives. Davon Huss (http://www.sermoncentral.com)
A young girl became a Christian in an exciting revival at her church and was baptized the closing Sunday morning. That afternoon she ran through the house singing and dancing. Her sour grandfather rebuked her with these words, “You ought to be ashamed of yourself. You just joined the church and you’re singing and dancing on the Lord’s Day!” Crushed by her grandfather’s attitude, the little girl went out to the barn, climbed up on the corral fence, and observed an old mule standing there with a sad, droopy face and bleary eyes. As she reached over and patted the mule sympathetically, she said, “Don’t cry, ole mule. I guess you’ve got the same kind of religion that Grandpa has!” (Bart Legger http://www.sermoncentral.com)
Vance Havener said, “There is something wrong with our Christianity when we have to beg most of our crowd to come to church to hear about it.” Have you forgotten the joy of your salvation?
