Count it all Joy
Good evening to the Lord’s beloved. Would you please open to Hebrews 12? I “joined” church when I was 10 years old. Back then it meant the same thing as accepting Jesus. I started out as a baby. I didn’t know anything about being a Christian. That was 57 years, six months and 72 days ago. I am finely aged! And even after all these years, I am still learning to live the life of a Christian.
Probably the first 25 years of my Christian life, it was like God knew that it would be a period when I would learn very little about Him. And I say that somewhat in jest because I grew up in a Baptist church where preaching was emphasized, evangelism was emphasized, but getting into the Word to find out who you were as a son or daughter of God was not emphasized.
It was until, and I’m being very serious here. In 2002 when I came here on a Saturday morning to meet with Pastor Jim about Grace Ministries Bible College. Now, don’t get me wrong. You do the best you can with what you have. I was studying the best I could. I used the Strongs Concordance and other study tools. It wasn’t like I wasn’t trying to move forward in Jesus but until someone can help you understand how to do it, then you’re going to be at a place where you’re floundering.
And the reason I bring this up is because I realized after some time that I didn’t learn a lot about how to be a Christian. After all, there was no one who could teach me how to be a Christian.
For example, no one helped me understand that when I got born again and received the spirit on the inside of me, I knew right from wrong. No one told me “Barry, if you are thinking about doing something wrong and there is something on the inside of you that says, ‘Don’t do it,’ that is God.’” No one ever told me that.
And no one helped me understand how important that still small voice on the inside of me was because if I had listened to it time and time again, my life would be different. Don’t get me wrong. I love my life. I’m happy where I am. But there would have been some things in my life that I would have done differently.
One of the things most Christians don’t understand is what it means to be a citizen of the kingdom. That was Barry. For all practical purposes, I could have been in an orphanage spiritually even though I was in a family and didn’t know who my Father was. But, praise God! I do now.
The reason I am talking about this is because I’m reminded from time to time that when I read the scripture, the things that the Bible says are to be normal for us as Christians are not always normal for Barry.
For example, Jesus says that if you believe on Me, John 14:12, our Bibles should fall open to that chapter. Jesus says “Verily, verily I say unto you, if you believe on Me [and we say that we do] the works that I do, ye shall do also.”
There was no waffling in that. There were no question marks after that. Jesus says that is the way your life is supposed to be. How many of you, don’t raise your hands – I’ll do it – that is the way your life is?
Pastor, I hope what I am about to say doesn’t disqualify me from you asking me to minister again, but my life is not John 14:12 yet. Barry hasn’t raised the dead yet. Barry hasn’t healed all manner of sickness. Barry hasn’t had people knocking at his door asking for healing. Barry is not there yet. But this is one thing in Barry’s favor: he knows he’s not there and he understands what needs to be done to get there. I didn’t have that as a new Christian, ladies and gentlemen.
We come to this church, and we get teaching. We come here on Sundays and Wednesdays and the Lord’s table is laid before us. And we know that what is laid before us, we can freely eat. How many of you come here expecting to eat at each service? How many of you leave each service full? If that is not who you are in this church, what that means ladies and gentlemen is you are taking what we receive here for granted.
For many of us, we receive the teaching, but it never walks out of the door with us. Until that happens, ladies and gentlemen, John 14:12 is not going to happen in your life.
Pastor has said on many occasions that the only he can do is deliver information and then it is up to us to get with the Teacher (Holy Spirit) to help understand why Pastor delivered THAT message and what THAT message means for us today.
As Christians, we live in two worlds – worlds that hate each other. Second Corinthians 4:4 says, “In whom the god of this world (Satan) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not.” Physically, we live in Satan’s world. Each morning, we wake up to a world – notice the words I am choosing to use – wake up TO this world – we are waking up to a world that hates us and hates the kingdom that we LIVE IN. a kingdom, where sin is the norm. This world hates our world. This kingdom hates our kingdom. It is opposed to our kingdom and yet there are so many in the Church who don’t have a problem with that. And if we do have a problem with that, we are keeping it to ourselves.
Revival says, and this is Barry’s perspective, the Word of God is how you live. Period. No ifs. No ands. No buts. You live by the Word of God and nothing else and until we are willing to make that stand, until we are willing to draw a line in the sand, we are not helping Revival.
We know that we live in two worlds. We wake up every morning to this world but the world we truly live in – so many of us don’t understand how to live in it. We don’t understand the results that await us when we start living out of who we are.
The sad part about all of this is that the Bible tells us that God, on purpose, in Colossians 1:13, “delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us (pulled us out of the kingdom of darkness) into the kingdom of his dear Son.”
There is an old song we used to sing “The world is not my home. I’m just passing through.” Too many in the Church have bought a house. They are camping in this world. And every year they add things to their house to let people know that this world is their home.
Ladies and gentlemen, Hebrews 12, in verse one, says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”
Do you know, and I understand that this will be shocking to some, it’s going to surprise you, you’re going to say “Oh what a revelation.” Did you know that you cannot run and stay in one place? Shocking, isn’t it? The image Hebrews 12:1 paints is of a runner in an Olympic stadium before thousands of people.
When it says, “let us lay aside the weight”, do you realize that you can’t lay aside something that you want to hold on to? If there is something that you need to lay aside and you’re unwilling to do it, this world is your home, not God’s kingdom where you live.
We are to lay aside every weight, the things that hinder us from running our race. Back in the Greek times, a runner had very few clothes on. He may have something around his waist, but as he’s running if he feels it tugging on him, he will strip it off because it is hindering him from completing his race.
What is hindering you from running your race? What things in your life, and you know what they are, are hindering you from running your race? What ways of thinking, thought patterns – you know you have them – but you need to lay aside so that you can run your race?
One of the things about living in two worlds is that Satan is the god of this world and in his kingdom we are taught how to live in the dark, how to live in and with the sinful nature, without recognizing that’s what we are doing. That used to be us. If that’s not you, hold your hand up and we’re going to get you into the kingdom right now That used to be us. At the same time, we also don’t recognize that we are living our way to hell and the lake of fire. However, In our Father’s kingdom, we are taught how to live in the light as His sons and daughters and how to live our way into eternity with Him.
Ladies and gentlemen, on the inside of us is the potential to always walk in the light. But we have to decide to do that. We must decide to always walk in the light. And the first thing we need to do is lay aside those things that cause us not to walk in the light.
How do we do this? How do we lay aside those things? Turn to James chapter one and we’re going to read the first part of verse 2. “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.”
The first thing we must do is “count”, which means “to lead or go before, go first, lead the way.” It communicates deciding on a response before something happens. We have decided beforehand what we are going to do, how we’re going to respond, and who we are going to follow. We have decided beforehand that we are going to count the situation as joy.
This is the same thing that we see in Hebrews 12:2 that we didn’t read that says this of Jesus: “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross.” He endured everything He went through because He saw to the other side.
James says “count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations.” The word “fall” means to be “surrounded by temptation.” And a temptation, a trial, has only one purpose – to pull us away from following God’s Word. Do you believe what the Bible says or not?
Satan’s kingdom is presenting us with a lot of things that go against what the Bible says and there are so many in the kingdom of God who are not disagreeing with Satan’s kingdom. I don’t know about you, but that’s a problem.
James chapter one and verses three and four: “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. (4) But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”
The word “patience” is “endurance.” James is talking about the process of growing, growing and growing and never stopping. And he’s also saying we have made a decision that we are going to face the temptations and trials and count them as joy.
As we face those trials, as we come through those trials, we are maturing more and more into the men and women that Jesus wants us to be.
Let me read James 1:2 -4 from the Amplified Bible.
James 1:2-4 Amplified – 2 Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations. [Ladies and gentlemen, we live in temptations. We wake up to temptations every single day. But praise God that we live in His kingdom.] 3 Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith brings out endurance and steadfastness and patience. 4 But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking nothing.”
When we count it all joy, we’re like David who ran to meet Goliath. Why would he do that? He already knew that the battle was won. That’s why James says, “Knowing.” This is not our first rodeo. We’ve seen this before so we know we’re coming through this temptation, this trial.
Look at Acts 4. We’re going to read verses 13 through 20.
(13) Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
(14) And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. [Talking about the healing of the lame man in chapter three.]
(15) But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,
(16) Saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem; and we cannot deny it.
(17) But that it spread no further among the people, let us straitly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.
(18) And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
(19) But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.
(20) For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. [We have already counted it as joy to speak the things that we have seen and heard regardless of the consequences that we may face.]
So, let your declaration be and please say this with me: “I have already counted it as joy no matter the situation or circumstance I may find myself in, I cannot – I will not – but speak the things which I have seen and heard.”
Now turn to chapter five. We’re going to read verses 17 through 29.
(17) Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation,
(18) And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
(19) But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said,
(20) Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
(21) And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
(22) But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told,
(23) Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
(24) Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow.
(25) Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.
(26) Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
(27) And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,
(28) Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us.
(29) Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. [The word “rather” is “much more”.]
So, let your declaration be and please say this with me: “I have already counted it as joy and my response will always be to obey the word of my Father much more than I will the word of men.”
Ladies and gentlemen, when you make that stand, you are painting a bullseye on your back, on your front, on your sides. But do you know what? “God is fighting for us. God is on our side. We have overcome. Yes, we have overcome!”
Please stand.
