THE SEARCH FOR JOY
Text: 1 John 4:7-14
INTRODUCTION
1. The one thing all people search for in their lives is happiness or joy
2. In this lesson we will dispel all doubts and demolish all rumors as to how to attain true happiness
a. There are those who say that happiness is a state of mind
b. Some say happiness is tied up with possessions
c. Some say it is a matter of physical placement in the world
3. With little due respect to all these people I would beg to differ with their opinions
4. Joy is the place you end up when you learn to do things God’s way and He is the one who places you there
5. Read Text
6. We learn about JOY in these verses
7. Joy is used as a simple acronym to help us keep focus and find real joy:
a. J= Jesus, first in our lives
b. O= Others, they must come next in our humble approach
c. Y= Yourself, you have value in the world because the blood of Christ was shed for you
8. When we keep this acronym as the rule for our lives God will add the joy to our hears, joy that fills to overflowing
TRANSITION: First of all, our number one priority must be:
I. Jesus
A. Jesus is the propitiation for our sins (V. 10)
1. What does propitiation mean?
2. It means appeasement
a. Like when natives of volcanic countries have offered women to appease the god of the volcano
b. Because of our sin God needed appeasement
c. Unspotted bull calves and goats were offered but that was not doing the job
d. Only real perfection could answer for our sins
e. We needed someone who could look sin in the eye and defeat it completely
f. Only Jesus could do that, only He did that, and we will never be able to match that feat
3. This appeasement or propitiation occurred because He loves us and does not want us to be victim of our own devices, the wages of our sin (Rom. 6:23)
4. Love drove Him out of His seat in heaven down to the physical body of a man, up to the hill and cross, down to the grave and Hades, out in the resurrection, out into the disciples for encouragement and back to heaven to prepare a place for me
B. Having been the recipient of such love, I ought to return such love to Him
1. How do we love Him in return?
a. John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments”
b. Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
2. How many times do we ask, “What can we do?”
a. The heart of this question is, “How close can I come to my own will and still not make God mad?”
b. What part of the world around me can I add to what God wants and still be OK?
c. Can we add things to His worship that we came up with that He did not directly address, can I do things in my life that He did not directly forbid?
3. The problem with this line of reasoning is that we are asking the wrong question
a. My question is, “What does God really want from me?”
b. “How can I be more pleasing to God and more of what He really expects of me?”
c. Not “how close to the world can I get” but “how close to God can I get”
4. The more we look like the world the less we look like Christ and the less we love Him
5. And 1 John 2:16 says that when we begin to follow our own direction we are giving into the world and that is not of God
C. Loving God is following His commandments, not because He forces us to, but because we want to please Him and not ourselves
TRANSITION: One way to do that is to love:
II. Others
A. Loving God demands it
1. “If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1 John 4:20)
2. V. 7, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love”
a. We cannot love God as we ought to and not love our fellow man
b. Matthew 22:39 says that the second of the two greatest commandments on which all laws hang is that we love our neighbor
c. Again, if we love God we will love obey His commandments
d. One commandment we must obey is clearly to love our neighbor
3. And the Good Samaritan answered the question, “Who is my neighbor?”
a. Neighbor is not based on who others are
b. It is based on who we are through the love and blood of Christ
c. So my neighbor is the one in need that I can help
B. This is the basis for our salvation
1. Jesus died so that the ungodly would have hope
a. Man was not at the height of spirituality when Jesus was nailed to the cross
b. We were depraved and abase, His Jewish system was a sham
c. Essenes dropped out of life, Sadducees embraced worldly life, and Pharisees thought they were above it
d. The common man had no place of religious refuge as the temple and synagogues were corrupt and embarrassing
2. The love of God was not just granted to His friends
a. Many of those 3,000 on the day of Pentecost had just a few days prior been yelling, “Crucify Him, Crucify Him”
b. Yet He was there offering His sacrifice to them as well
c. And adding them to His church when they obeyed and were baptized
C. As Christians we must do as Christ did
1. He hated sin but loved the sinners
2. He went to the woman at the well in John 4 whom society had shunned and offered her the opportunity to become a child of God
3. He told the woman in John 8 to quit the sin and not be condemned when others wanted to stone her
4. Time and time again Jesus shows compassion on sinners and offers them the hope of salvation
**There is the story of the man from Pennsylvania names Peter Miller who had an enemy in town Michael Wittman. Wittman was arrested for treason and on trial. Miller, who was friends with George Washington, made the 70 mile trip on foot to Pennsylvania to plead for Wittman’s life. Washington initially said no that he would not spare the life of Miller’s friend. Miller said, “Friend, he’s the bitterest enemy I’ve ever had.” Because of his efforts Wittnam was freed and the two men returned home not as enemies but now as friends
5. If we are withholding our love from fellow men we are killing an opportunity to teach about the love of God and separating ourselves from the benefits of the love of God and the mercy and grace that accompany that love
6. We must demonstrate love for our fellow-man showing the love of God and opening doors for teaching of the truth
TRANSITION: Remember in all this that you must also love:
III. Yourself
A. The saying goes, “I know I’m somebody because God don’t make no junk.”
1. Leviticus 19:9 says that we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves”
2. That second commandment in Matthew 22:39 says we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves
3. Ephesians 5:28 commands the husband to love his wife as he loves his own body
4. Humility places others ahead of yourself, but that does not diminish your worth
a. As much as the blood of Christ was shed for the rest of the world
b. It was also shed for you and that makes you immensely valuable to God
c. The object of the love of God is a lovely thing and ought to be cherished and cared for
B. Love yourself enough to do the right things
1. Some groups of Gnostics hated the flesh and despised their physical bodies
2. Martin Luther punished his body to attempt to defeat sin
3. So often people miss the fact that they are not without value as humans and they turn on themselves
a. They resort to sex, alcohol or drugs to find pleasure or escape
b. They forget that God’s love is the greatest high that man can find
4. Remember that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19)
a. You do not need cigarettes or marijuana
b. You have no need for alcohol, drugs or censual pleasures
c. You need only love God and operate within His directives in your life
C. Real joy comes at the age of 75 when a man looks back on the wife of his youth who still shares his love, his arms, and his bed
D. Real joy comes when our children are out of the house and are teaching Bible class, becoming preachers, deacons, and elders
E. Absolute joy that cannot be contained will overwhelm you when you stand at the bar on high and hear the words, “Well-done good and faithful servant, enter in to my Father’s rest”
CONCLUSION
1. We have misguided adventures into wrong places looking for the wrong happiness
2. All that we really have to do is keep life in the proper perspective
3. Look for real Joy
a. Seeking first Jesus, the things He desires for your life, not trying to get as close to the world as possible but as close to Him as possible
b. Seeing second Others, the needs and desires of others, helping my neighbor in need and being a servant to God’s creation
c. Loving Yourself is the final piece to Joy’s puzzle, never forget that God loves you and that makes you worthy of love, love yourself to do the right things and let God’s love instill in your heart real joy
4. Remember the acronym as you live your life in what time God allows us to continue on His earth
