MELVIN NEWLAND, MINISTER
RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
(Revised: 2013)
The basic point of some of my messages in recent months has been that, for most people, their faith - what they have been taught, what they believe - makes all the difference in the way they act, in the values they hold dear, & in the standards which guide the way they live.
Now, in that same vein, may I suggest that our emotions have a profound affect upon they way we feel.
Maybe King Solomon said it best when he wrote these words, "A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones." (Proverbs 17:22 KJV)
Our emotions cause us to sweat, to weep, to tremble. Our emotions cause us to turn white with fear, red with embarrassment, purple with anger, & green with nausea. Our emotions really do effect us physically.
ILL. Perhaps the most famous example of this was the recovery of Norman Cousins from what had been diagnosed as an incurable disease. He was bedridden & the doctors gave him no hope for recovery at all. So he decided on his own treatment.
His family got a movie projector & rented all the Charlie Chaplin & Abbott & Costello movies that they could find movies where you just sit back & laugh because they are genuinely funny.
He ran one movie after another, & the more he watched the more he laughed. The more he laughed, the better he felt. First thing you know, the doctors could find no evidence of the incurable disease.
ILL. Then, after that, in 1990 Paul Harvey in one of his “Rest of the Story” articles stated that for the last 10 years Norman Cousins had been on the staff of the UCLA School of Medicine, pioneering a new medical discipline called "pyschoneuro immunology."
The article stated, "Carefully controlled experiments conducted by Cousins & his associates demonstrate that you just by controlling your mind set can alter your temperature, your blood pressure & your blood chemistry in a matter of minutes."
It went on to say, "There is now evidence that cancer patients liberated from depression can actually activate the anti cancer capability of the immune system.”
“'The human body,' contends Cousins, 'is far more robust than people have been led to believe. A strong will to live, along with the other positive emotions faith, love, purpose, determination, humor boosts disease fighting immune cells.'"
So the proverb is true. If you're joyful in your heart, then that is good medicine. But if you're not joyful, if your spirit is broken, then it dries up your bones. You become old & tired, & a person no one much wants to be around.
Think about it. Who are the people to whom we are attracted? "Gloomy Gus" who walks around with a frown on his face? The person who sees all the bad things in the world, who is thoroughly convinced that everything is going to fall apart? Is that the kind of person with whom we love to spend our time?
No, not at all! We are attracted to the person who has a smile on his face, & joy in his heart.
But someone says, "Well all right, preacher, I hear you. But circumstances in my life aren't that good. Things have been tough. Just why should my heart be filled with joy?"
Let me mention 3 reasons this morning. I believe that if you will take these reasons to heart & live with them daily, that it will make a world of difference in the way that you feel.
I. WE HAVE EXPERIENCED A GREAT DELIVERANCE
The first one is this: “We who are Christians have experienced a great deliverance.”
The Bible teaches that while we were sinners God loved us. While we were sinners God sent His Son to die on the cross for us.
And it teaches that when we receive Him into our hearts when we confess Him with our lips & with our lives when we are buried with Him in the watery grave of baptism that God forgives our sins & gives us the gift of His Holy Spirit.
I know that those are familiar words maybe so familiar that the ring of them the wonder of them doesn't have the impact that it once had. We have been delivered! If that doesn't bring great joy into your heart, then I don't know what would.
ILL. I enjoy the story about the naval officer who was made the captain of a battleship & was in command of it for the very first time. Filled with pride he stood on the deck, barking out orders. Late into the night he was still standing proudly on the bridge. He was the captain & the crew obeyed his every command.
But as he stood there he saw a light slowly drawing nearer & nearer, almost directly in the battleship's path. Immediately the captain ordered the signalman. "Signal that light to alter its course 10 degrees to the south."
But back came the signal from that light saying, "Alter your course 10 degrees to the north." This made the captain angry. Confident that he was the ranking officer he ordered, "Signal that this is the captain & he is to alter his course 10 degrees to the south."
Back came the signal from the light saying, "This is Seaman 3rd Class Smith. Alter your course 10 degrees to the north." At that, the captain became even angrier, clenched his fists & barked the order, "Tell the light to change its course 10 degrees to the south because this is a battleship."
Back came the signal from the light saying, "Alter your course 10 degrees to the north because this is a lighthouse."
Lighthouses don’t move & you don't move God's Word either. God's Word is always the same, never changing.
And God's Word says that when Jesus is our Lord & Savior then we have been delivered from the bondage of sin & have the gift of everlasting life. That's reason #1 for joy in our hearts. "A joyful heart is good medicine."
II. WE HAVE A GREAT TASK TO PERFORM
A. The 2nd reason is this: “We have a great task to perform. Most people who deal with others realize that the best medicine that can be given to a person who is depressed dealing with anxiety & distress is to give that person something to do.
The bigger the job the better, because the more involved we are in performing a task especially in helping someone else the more apt we are to forget our own problems & be healed of that which is causing us distress.
ILL. Some time ago the Christian Standard magazine featured a series of articles by missionaries who had gone to various parts of the world to proclaim the gospel.
It told how they had left their homes & families & loved ones behind. It told of some of their hardships & sacrifices. It told about many of the other things that had happened to them over the years of their service.
As I read those stories my heart went out to them & I marveled at their faith. I felt sorry for them that they had to experience all of the hardships that they encountered.
But without exception, at the close of each article there was a fantastic testimony by members of each missionary family saying that in the giving of themselves they had found true joy.
B. You want a task to perform? We have one the task of carrying the gospel around the world. God gave it to us almost 2,000 years ago & it continues today. We haven't completed the task. There are still lost people, friends, neighbors, relatives people who do not know Jesus Christ.
God has said, "Here is your task. Let them know that Jesus is Lord that He is King of Kings – that He loves them & that He died for them."
ILL. There is an old legend about when Jesus ascended back into Heaven. When He arrived, the angel Gabriel came up & asked, "Lord, how did it go?" Jesus answered, "It went well. I accomplished what I went to accomplish. I went to the cross & died for their sins."
Gabriel asked, "But do the people appreciate what you did? Do they even know?" Jesus answered, "Well, some of them do - Peter, James, John, & a few others." Then Gabriel asked, "But how about the rest of the world?"
Jesus said, "They will know, too. Here is my plan. I plan for Peter, James & John, Andrew & the rest to tell some others.
“When those people hear about it, then they will each tell somebody else. And in turn, when those people hear about it they will each tell somebody else until the whole world knows."
Then Gabriel, knowing the weaknesses of humankind, asked "But what if they fail? What if Peter & James & John & Andrew don't tell anybody? Or what if those people don't tell somebody else? What if they forget the message? What if they become indifferent & complacent? What other plan do you have?"
Jesus looked at Gabriel & said, "I have no other plan."
No, that is still His plan for me to tell somebody. And then for the 2 of us to find 2 more & tell them. And then for the 4 of us to find 4 more & tell them. And for the 8 of us to find 8 more & tell them, & for the 16 to find 16 & tell them until finally the whole world knows.
There is no other plan. You want a job to do? We have one. And when we're doing it, our hearts are filled with a joy that the world will never, ever understand.
III. WE TRUST IN GOD
A. There is a 3rd element that brings joy to our hearts, & that is trust.
Every married person here knows that it is difficult for a marriage to survive unless there is trust between husband & wife. And true friendship requires trust. Where trust prevails then peace & harmony can also prevail.
In the same way, our Christian life can be a meaningful experience when we learn what it means to trust God to take care of all things.
Jesus has a word that He used over & over again. In the Greek language it is "tharsay." It means "cheer up," & is often translated "be courageous,” “take heart," "don’t be afraid," "fear not."
For example, a paralyzed man was brought to Him, & in Matthew 9:2 & 6 Jesus said to him, "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven. …Get up, take your mat and go home." Immediately the man took up his mat & started glorifying God. He was able to walk, & he was filled with joy.
Again, in Matthew 14:27 Jesus walked on the stormy sea of Galilee & looked into the frightened eyes of the apostles who were trying to row in the midst of the storm. When He saw that they were afraid, thinking that He must be a ghost, Jesus said, "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid." (Matthew 14:27)
In all the storms of life we can hear the voice of Jesus saying, "Take heart, don’t be afraid."
On that last night, in the upper room, Jesus once again started telling them that He was going to die. But they just couldn't accept that.
So Jesus looked at them & said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
B. You & I have only a limited control over the circumstances which come our way. We are not sure what the next few months or years will bring to our homes, our families, & to our lives.
Maybe some of the bad things we fear will come to pass. But there is that trust that sacred bond which brings strength to our life. And there is the voice of Jesus saying, "Cheer up, because a joyful heart is the very best medicine that you can take."
We offer to you His invitation this morning. We pray that if you have a decision on your heart that you will make it today that you will not wait until some other time but that you will come right now.
We pray that you will turn your life over to Him. And we pray that you will ask the Lord to have His way in your life as you live each day for Him.
