We are now four weeks past Palm Sunday and three weeks past Easter. However, today I want us to go back to the last night Jesus had with the disciples. He washes their feet to teach them humility and servant hood. He begins to reveal to them the fact that He must die. He gives them the promise of the Holy Spirit. He also promises them that the world would hate them.
In John 17 Jesus begins to pray. He prays for himself and his disciples. “After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.
I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, for I have passed on to them the message you gave me. They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me.
My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. During my time here, I protected them by the power of the name you gave me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for destruction, as the Scriptures foretold.’”
Let us skip to verse 20 “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message.” From this verse, we gleam that Jesus is praying for us also. Over the next few weeks, we will begin to examine his prayers for us and how we can experience the power of his prayers.
This past week I posed the question “What brings you joy?”
Overwhelmingly the answer was family. Someone answered “sunshine”. For some, it was possessions. Others it was hobbies. Even some answered their jobs brought them joy.
But what happens to your joy when you lose that job? What happens to your joy when the fish don’t bite? What happens to your joy when your possessions are stolen? What happens to your joy when the sun doesn’t shine? What happens to your joy when your spouse disappoints you or your child rebels against you? That kind of joy is fleeting. That is not the kind of joy that Jesus prayed for us to have.
John 17:13 “Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy.”
Jesus did not pray for us to be filled with joy but rather his joy. What does his joy look like? Max Lucado expressed it better than anyone did.
"No man had more reason to be miserable than this one – yet no man was more joyful.
His first home was a palace. Servants were at his fingertips. The snap of his fingers changed the course of history. His name was known and loved. He had everything – wealth, power, respect. And then he had nothing.
Students of the event still ponder it. Historians stumble as they attempt to explain it. How could a king lose everything in one instant? One moment he was royalty; the next he was in poverty.
His bed became, at best, a borrowed pallet – and usually the hard earth. He never owned even the most basic mode of transportation and was dependent upon handouts for his income. He was sometimes so hungry he would eat raw grain or pick fruit off a tree. He knew what it was like to be rained on, to be cold. He knew what it meant to have no home.
His palace grounds had been spotless; now he was exposed to filth. He had never known disease, but was now surrounded by illness.
In his kingdom he had been revered; now he was ridiculed. His neighbors tried to lynch him. Some called him a lunatic. His family tried to confine him to their house.
Those who didn’t ridicule him tried to use him. They wanted favors. They wanted tricks. He was a novelty. They wanted to be seen with him – that is, until being with him was out of fashion. THEN they wanted to kill him.
He was accused of a crime he never committed. Witnesses were hired to lie. The jury was rigged. No lawyer was assigned to his defense. A Judge swayed by politics handed down the death penalty.
They killed him.
He left as he came – penniless. He was buried in a borrowed grave, his funeral financed by compassionate friends. Though he once had everything, he died with nothing.
He should have been miserable. He should have been bitter. He had every right to be a pot of boiling anger. But he wasn’t.
He was joyful…He was joyful when he was poor. He was joyful when he was abandoned. He was joyful when he was betrayed. He was even joyful as he hung on a tool of torture, his hands pierced with 6 inch Roman spikes…
Jesus embodied a stubborn joy. A joy that refused to bend in the wind of hard times. A Joy that held it’s ground against pain…."
The writer of Hebrews expressed it this way;
Hebrews 12:2-3 “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up.”
Jesus looked beyond the hostility of those whom He came to save because of the joy awaiting him. He endured being crucified on the cross, fully nude, falsely accused, shamed and humiliated because of the joy awaiting him. That was his joy in spite of his circumstances.
When Peter and the apostles were whipped for preaching the Gospel the Bible tells us that they “left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.” That is his joy.
The letter to the Philippians is known as the book of joy. Paul speaks constantly about joy and rejoicing while in prison handcuffed constantly to two guards. Paul writes to the Christians in Philippi “Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.” (Philippians 3:1) Then Paul begins to warn us about things that can rob us of our joy.
1) Legalism
Philippians 3:2 “Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved.”
Nothing can rob us of our joy like legalism. Those Jews who had been converted but knew nothing about grace were trying to balance grace with the law. Paul considered them nothing more than mutilators. They were trying to rob people of their zeal.
Those who walk in legalism are about substituting grace with the three Rs.; rules, rituals, and regulations.
A rule is a principle or regulation governing conduct, action, procedure, and arrangement. You behave a certain way, you act a certain way, these are the steps to assure you are a Christian; this is the arrangement that has been made.
While it is true that we should behave a certain way act a certain way, take the correct steps and accept the arrangement that has been made, legalistic rules throw out grace so when you break a rule you are back to square one. There is no joy in that.
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, and objects, performed in a sequestered place, and performed according to set sequence. We can make the ordinances of water baptism and communion into a hollow ritual. Legalism spells out with clarity the gestures and words we are to use. Legalism demands that we use certain objects. The Lord’s Prayer can become the only prayer we ever pray making it nothing more than a ritual.
A regulation is a law, rule, or other order prescribed by authority, especially to regulate conduct. For those who were in Philippi it was a group of men who insisted that the regulation of circumcision was required. Some pastors like to exert their authority in establishing regulations for their church. This often leads to a loss of joy and a decline in attendance.
There are some signs that point to people who have lost their joy due to legalism. One, they have a difficult time with the idea of grace. Those robbed by legalism are waiting for the sweet by-and-by, not realizing that they can experience grace now. They are like addicts, ever seeking to please God with their works and finding an ever-fading reward.
Another sign is having difficulty in submitting to spiritual authority. They have been burned once and will not be burned again. They will react in either open defiance or reluctant compliance, neither of which is good.
Alternatively, perhaps by being so motivated to perform they will procrastinate and no nothing for the Kingdom of God fearing failure and rejection. On the other hand, they will be caught on the treadmill of performance, constantly doing and never knowing when to say “No.” Either situation will rob of us joy because we lose the sight of grace.
2) Our Resume.
Philippians 3:5-7 “I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pureblooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.”
Paul is relaying to the Christians at Philippi that he had done what was required of this legalist. He had been circumcised. He had the correct lineage. He knew the Word. He was on fire to do what he considered the right thing. He was righteous without fault.
However, all these valuable things were worthless compared to the sacrifice of Jesus. In fact, he uses the word “skubala” that in Greek was equivalent to a four-letter word used in the English language to describe human waste. It is the only time this word is used in the Bible. In rough language, Paul was saying, “My resume wasn’t worth a _ _ _ .”
Trying to live this life of perfection is a joy robber. When we fail, we may strike out at ourselves or even others. Grace is not about performance, knowledge, or heritage. Grace is about being filled with joy.
In fact, the words “joy” and “grace” comes from the same root word. Grace means I do not need an impressive resume to meet God’s approval. That becomes the source of my joy.
3) Misplaced Goals
Philippians 3:10 “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death,”
We all should have goals in our lives. We should business goals, retirement goals, and spiritual goals. For us we have taken a course to aid the homeless, which is a great goal. Some of you have goals to build a youth group. That is a fantastic goal. There are other spiritual goals that you may have in your personal life. But these goals will not bring you joy until you have the most important goal in line. That goal is know Jesus and experience the power of the Holy Spirit.
What is the best way to get to know someone? The answer is spend time with them. When you want to know someone, do you hang out with them moaning about your problems and asking favors? No. Usually you get to know someone from having fun with them. When is the last time you talked with Jesus just to be filled with joy? No requests, no complaints. There is nothing wrong with making your request known but if that is the only time you spend with him, then you really have not had an opportunity to get to know him. This relationship with Jesus is the only sure way for you to experience his joy.
So what best describes the Jesus joy?
John 15:10-11“When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”
It’s very simple. You want to have his joy, the joy He prayed you would have, and then obey his commandments. I am going to give to each of you a list of the commandments of Jesus. You can read it. You can meditate on it. You can post it somewhere as a constant reminder. Or you can throw it away. The choice is yours. But the joy He desires for you to experience is dependent on you.
Love God more than anything else.
Love all people as you love yourself.
Follow the Ten Commandments.
Treat others as you want to be treated.
Forgive everybody of all offenses against you.
End disputes quickly and in orderly ways. Turn the other cheek.
Do not oppose other believers who are not in your group.
Be like the good Samaritan.
Love other people with the love of Jesus. Serve each other.
Be merciful to each other.
Go, teach, and baptize all people.
Let people see your good works.
Go the extra mile for others. Love your enemies.
Give to the poor to please God and not others.
Do not judge other people.
Feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked.
Comfort those in distress.
Love little children, do not despise them. Do not swear oaths.
Do not take titles meant for God upon yourself.
You must be born again
Abide in Jesus and let him abide in you.
Get rid of anything that would cause you to sin.
Pray private, simple prayers without trying to be impressive.
Model your prayer after the Lord’s Prayer.
When you fast, do it secretly.
Store up your treasures in heaven.
Do not worry about material needs.
Do not worry about the future.
Trust God to take care of you. Have total faith in God.
Ask God for whatever you want.
Beware of false prophets and exercise power over demons.
Handle holy things properly.
Have communion.
Be prepared for his return.
