Joyride - Pt. 3 - Location, Location, Location
I. Introduction
Corkscrew turns. Neck snapping changes of direction. Lunch losing lurches. For many of us that is not the description of an amusement ride that is the description of our life. We have been talking about how Jesus boards the ride of life and made made us one of the greatest promises next to salvation! We read that promise in . . .
II. Text
John 15:11
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
You will remember that I told you that it is was important to backtrack and hear what He told us (on purpose) so that we could find out what prerequisites we must meet to obtain fullness of joy.
In the proceeding verses Jesus informs us that fullness of joy is found when we are willing to embrace and appreciate pruning? Jesus makes it clear that our Father in our best interest will make cuts out of our lives. During good and bad seasons He will remove things so that our joy can grow. We can't fight the cuts. He then says we must be rooted in Him. He even tells us how to tell we are rooted. We know we are rooted when His Words are at home in you. Your level of joy is directly proportional to the Word that has made its home in you. No Word = No Joy. Little Word = Little Joy. Much Word = Much Joy. A Wordless life can't help but be a joyless life. Then Jesus says we are rooted when We become obedient to His commands. Obedience is a key component for joy!
Then last week we talked about Jesus' PED - Performance Enhancing Deposit. I challenged you that Ezra revealed that our strength level is determined by our joy level. The Joy of the Lord is our strength. I talked about how we underestimate the importance of joy. We think joy is just about feel good, goose bumps and plastic smiles. However, we talked about how according to Hebrews 12:2 it was joy that enabled Jesus to face the cross. So I said to you If Jesus' joy enabled Him to face death, then surely His joy in you can empower you to face life!
The fact that you have within you the joy of the Lord should enable you to make it through. You can endure till the end. The joy of The Lord is your secret weapon! Not your joy. His joy is in you!
So let's move forward. Does anyone in this room know the 3 most important rules in the real estate business? Location, location, and location. If you have a little 1000 sq. ft. house on Rockwell and 63rd and pick it up and set it right on the beach in Florida how many of you know the location will make a huge difference in the price of that house. Nothing changed about the house except the location. Location is a crucial factor.
Well when we talk about joy location is also very important. Let me see if I can explain.
Psalm 16:11
You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
David has a revelation that when we are in the pursuit of joy location is everything.
David is adamant that the only place to find fullness of joy is in His presence. There is only location that fullness of joy can only be found . . . in Your presence.
I bring that to your attention because I believe so often we confuse condition and location.
We pursue condition not realizing that if we would pursue location our condition would change.
Yet we either think joy is a condition or we think it exists in some other location.
Let me deal with both misconceptions:
a. Condition
Happiness is the product of condition. Joy is the product of location. The difference is that simple. Happiness is defined by the condition of your life. If your condition changes your happiness changes. While joy has nothing to do with condition. It is a location. It is a place of being.
Happiness is made up of two words that literally mean happenstance! Happiness comes from the root word hap which means an event or a happening. What this presupposes is that happiness is based on the occurrence of an event. We know that the impact of an event will change based on varying circumstances and this means that happiness is based on the occasion of an event which has no guarantee of producing a positive emotion. So Happiness fluctuates and comes and goes. But that isn't joy.
Notice the difference in the life of Paul.
How did Paul in prison, chained between guards, freedom gone, abused and whipped write Philippians? You know Philippians the letter in which he says rejoice or have joy 18 distinct times. Philippians in which he wrote to do everything without complaining or grumbling. You know Philippians where he says even if he is executed he will rejoice. You know Philippians where Paul says that he has learned to be content in any state. The condition was wrong but the location was right! His conditions were terrible. The condition dictated misery. The condition called for complaint, whining, doom and despair. However, his location was steadfast.
The reason so many of you are up, down, in and out, on the top of the mountain one day and submerged in the swamp of discouragement the next day is because you have based your outlook on condition rather than location. You have settled for a cheap, government promised right to pursue happiness and even when you find it it only lasts for a short amount of time. It lasts until the new smell of the car wears out. It is sustained until the relationship comes to a heart breaking end. It lingers until you taste defeat rather than victory. Happiness is secure until the dream job turns into a nightmare or until the best friend becomes your worst enemy. Happiness is fleeting and temporary because happiness is a condition. Therefore the condition has to continually be conditioned.
So many of you push your joy to the future by waiting for an event you suppose will make you happy. It's usually a letdown. So when I can find a boy/girl friend, a friend. When I get the promotion. When I get the right car. When I get the right house. When I get the right acclaim. When I get the right career. We never seem to understand that all we are doing is dealing with condition and not dealing with location! When we get the location correct the conditions don't matter.
b. Location
We understand that David was right. We read and quote Ps. 16:11 and mentally embrace the idea that fullness of joy can only be found in His presence and pleasure from fellowship with Him but we continue to chase joy and pleasure in every location but the One in which it can be found.
Maybe the singer should revise the song from "I've been looking for love in all the wrong places" to "I've been looking for joy in all the wrong places."
We know in the depths of our hearts that David was correct but whether from laziness or deception we continue to chase what can only be found in His presence in every other location. We want to find the strength of joy in friends, possessions, and popularity and they leave us flat because it is clear that joy can only be found in His presence.
If you want to experience a joyride you have to secure location.
We must pursue His presence if we want joy. We pursue so many things so hard only to discover when we arrive that our aim was off so the location ends up being wrong.
Paul makes an interesting statement in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17.
16 Rejoice evermore.
17 Pray without ceasing.
The two go hand in hand. Our joy is connected to our connectedness to His presence!
The reason we struggle to understand James admonition to count it pure joy to go through trials and testing is because we have failed to taste the contentment that comes as result of being in His presence.
Until we learn to abide in His presence we will have lack of joy. Our pursuit of His presence will determine our level of joy!
That is why I get nervous when you miss week after week. I am not saying that the only way you can find His presence is here. In fact, I would tell you that you have to learn that this isn't even the location you should pursue. However, not being in a corporate worship setting can be an early indication that you are pursuing other things and have allowed other things to become more of a priority than the location of His presence.
So let me say it to you like this ... You must pursue His presence relentlessly even when you are not able to pursue His presence corporately!
Your checkbook will reveal what you are pursuing. Your calendar will reveal what you are pursuing. You had better get your eyes off your condition and check your location. Are you pursuing His presence? How?
I have taught you that the proof of desire is pursuit! Joy can only be found in His presence. When was the last time you were in His presence? I know you came to church but did you get in His presence or just in my presence? I know you listened to worship in your car but did you get in His presence? I know you had your devotion in the morning but did you get into His presence? What is your location?
The reason figuring out location is so important is because once we understand the importance of being in His presence we will find ourselves with a new ability to separate condition and location. We will be like
Habakkuk 3:17-19
Condition: Though the cherry trees don’t blossom and the strawberries don’t ripen, Though the apples are worm-eaten and the wheat fields stunted, Though the sheep pens are sheepless and the cattle barns empty (that is terrible condition, that is a broke, busted, and disgusted condition - but that isn't my location so),
Location: (Yet) I’m singing joyful praise to God. I’m turning cartwheels of joy to my Savior God. Counting on God’s Rule to prevail, I take heart and gain strength. I run like a deer. I feel like I’m king of the mountain!
Today is your day to forget about, push past, and focus beyond your condition. I understand that your marriage isn't perfect. I understand your life took a turn when you had it all straightened out. I understand that you pursued something that disappointed. Your barn may be empty. But today why don't you pursue His presence and find fullness of joy and pleasures at His right hand. His right hand the hand of fellowship.
