Discover a joy that surpasses fleeting pleasures and temporary highs—a joy rooted not in circumstances but in the unshakable presence of God. In this sermon, we’ll explore the difference between a natural joy, which depends on external achievements and comforts, and spiritual joy, a deep, abiding gladness that comes from the Lord. Drawing from Scripture, we’ll see how true joy flows from a relationship with Christ, empowering us to face trials with hope and live fully in God’s purpose. Come and experience the fullness of a spiritual joy that last forever where only God can provide!

SERMON MANUSCRIPT 

Today I want to talk to you about joy.   In the structure of our brains there is a pleasure pathway.  We are hard-wired for it. From the first moment we smile as a baby, and all the way through life we look to light up that pleasure pathway.   Not many people are masochists, those who despise pleasure.  God has made us with that pleasure pathway because he is a pleasure lover as well.  Heaven, the home of God,  is a joyful place.  One of my favorite verses is Psalm 16:11

You have made known to me the path of life;

You will fill me with joy in your presence,

With eternal pleasures at your right hand.   Ps.16:11

This verse is one of the most joyful verses in all of scripture.  It tells me God is a giver of joy, not just some joy, but fullness of joy.  There is the anticipation of this pleasure going on forever.  How good is that?

This whole Psalm is about joy.  I call it the Psalm of the happy believer

So, the question that must be asked is this?    What is joy?

Joy is a feeling, a wonderful, positive feeling of well-being and pleasure.  

 It may be defined as gladness of heart.   It is based on the ability to appreciate life.  Some have made a distinction between joy and happiness.  I see none.   These words are describing the same feeling.  With that pleasure pathway in our brains, God has given to all mankind the ability to enjoy life, to experience pleasure.  The feeling is natural and it is universal.  The gladness of a rejoicing believer is the same feeling as the gladness of a sports fan celebrating his team’s win.  Both are feeling happy.

So, is there any difference between these two joys, the natural and the spiritual?   Yes, there is.   First, there is a difference in the origin of the feeling.   Natural joy has a natural origin, whereas spiritual joy is of supernatural origin.  Christians can have natural joy, the pleasure of a good meal, the enjoyment of a favorite sport or hobby or a happy time with friends and family.   But Christians can also experience spiritual joy.   The feeling in the Christian who is happy in the Lord comes from the Holy Spirit who is living in them.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, etc.   Gal.5:22    Spiritual joy is a pleasure that comes from God, not from an earthly source. 

Second, there is also a difference in the object of the feeling, what inspires the joy.   Spiritual joy is the ability to enjoy God.   He is the object of our joy.  The happy believer is able to be happy with God as well as being happy with life.   For example, an unbeliever and a believer may both enjoy the beautiful sunset because that is a natural joy.  But the believer can warp into spiritual joy simply by offering praise to the One who created the sunset.    She is not only enjoying the visual display of beauty but is enjoying the God who produced such beauty.  And nonbelievers lack the ability to appreciate God, because they don’t believe in Him.

As you can see by this, Christians should be the most happy people on earth! We have this hidden reserve of happiness, this jet fuel of joy which far exceeds the natural joys of this world.  

Why, then, are there so many Christians who lack joy? Why is it that many unbelievers can put us to shame by their joyful hearts?   It should not be, but it happens.  Joyless Christians abound just as joyful unbelievers abound. So, why don’t we experience the joy of the Lord? Here are a few answers.

A very obvious answer is sin and disobedience.   It is mentioned right in our Psalm in verse 4.  

The sorrows of those increase who run after other gods.  I will not pour out their libations of blood or take up their names on my lips.

When we choose to seek our pleasure in sin, we become idolaters, worshipping false gods.   Even believers can be guilty of this, putting their own pleasure first at the expense of pleasing the true and living God.  And this ends in sorrow.

 When King David, the joyful singer of Israel, committed sin with Bathsheba and chose to hide his sin for more than a year, his joy quickly left him and he was in painful turmoil of soul.  That was because the Spirit of God in him was grieved.  And when the Spirit in you is grieved because of your sin, it is hard to be happy.  That, and his burdened conscience, made life very hard on him.    Unbelievers find it much easier to be happy in their sin because they do not have the Spirit, but believers will experience the sorrow of the Spirit within.  When David repented his joy returned. He could sing again and praise the Lord.

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart.    Ps. 32:11

Another simple answer why Christians do not have joy is that Christians do not ask for joy.  All spiritual blessings are contingent on having the faith to ask.   Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you—for everyone who asks receives.”  (Matt.7:7-8)  It also says in James 4:2, “You do not have because you do not ask.”  Spiritual joy in the believer is therefore not a given.   It is contingent on having the faith to ask.   It is like going to the gas station and constantly filling up with the low octane fuel, when high octane, supertest gas is available for the asking.  If you are struggling with sadness this morning or if you just are stuck in neutral,  have the faith to ask for joy.  That will be a start.

Another reason that Christians do not have joy is because they do not seek it.  After Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you,”  he says, “Seek and you will find.”    Seeking is different from asking because seeking involves work on our part.    Even in the pursuit of natural joy there is a seeking that is required for natural joys to be experienced.  When I was a boy living in our home in the country I saw my father go into the field nearby and pick some asparagus which was growing wild.  He brought it home and cooked it up and ate it.  He asked me if I wanted to taste it.  Knowing where it was from, I said no, thinking “It is just another weed in the field, and weeds are for rabbits, not for me.”  But the next day my Dad went and got some more and cooked them up and ate them, with some obvious delight.   He asked me again if I wanted a taste, so this time I tried a mouthful. And sure enough, it tasted like WEEDS.   ”No thank you.”  But Dad had some more another time and enjoyed it, so I took another taste, this time with a little more salt and a little more butter.   Not bad!    I’ve enjoyed asparagus many times since then and they are one of my favorites vegetables.  All it took was a little seeking.

It is the same when it comes to spiritual joy.  We start out not having an appetite for it.  But when we keep seeking it, the joy comes.   Psalm 34:8 tells us this:

O taste and see that the Lord is good.

This means that there are spiritual disciplines involved in having the joy of the Lord.  We have to do some seeking.  We have to persevere.  And then it comes. In Psalm 16, David reveals some of those disciplines.   Let’s go through the Psalm and find the spots where he speaks of spiritual joy and how to attain it.

1.  Appreciating the people of God

As for the saints who are in the land, they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.    (Vs. 3)

Notice the word delight.   That is a joy word. Some commentators think that this is God talking because he surely enjoys his people.  But I think it is David talking.    

Throughout David’s life he was meeting people who shared a common faith in God.   There was Samuel the prophet, who anointed him to be king when he was still a lowly shepherd boy.   There was Jonathan, Saul’s son, who saw in David the makings of a great warrior king. There was Abigail, a wise and righteous woman who later became his wife.   There was Abiathar and Zadok, priests of God who showed grace to David.  There was Abishai and  Benaiah,  loyal commanders of David’s army.     Such people as this he called glorious, not just because they were friends, but because they were saints.    He could see the presence of God in them and that thrilled him.  Enjoying  them was enjoying God.  

David is not alone in this enjoyment of God’s people.   The apostle Paul often expresses his joyous love for his fellow believers.

I thank my God every time I remember you.  In all my prayers for you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.    Phil.1:3-4

And this is how the Apostle John expresses it,

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.   IIIJo.4

Some time ago I counselled a woman who, although she was a Christian, was mired in sadness and despair.     She had not been part of a church fellowship for many years owing to some past conflicts.   In the course of counselling, I encouraged her to seek out a church which could provide her with Christian fellowship.   I didn’t see her for months and then one day she returned.   When I saw her and talked with her, I realized she was in a far better place.   Her depression had lifted and there was joy in her heart.  I enquired as to what had made the difference in her life.   She immediately replied,  “Because the Lord led me to a wonderful church where I have good spiritual food and great friends.”     That report just thrilled me.  I could see the work of God in her.  Glorious!

A few weeks ago, when Josiah was speaking to us  from Hebrews 10, he emphasized over and over the importance of not giving up meeting together. Why?  Because he is the pastor and wants his church to grow?   No.   It is obedience to God’s word and it is for your sake.     We are stronger together.    A fellowship of joy and love is what the Spirit wants, and it is what we all need. 

If you don’t love your brother and sister in the Lord, then you have a problem.   If you are not seeing and enjoying the work that God is doing in them, you have a problem.   You are missing out on one of the great spiritual joys.  No wonder you are sad!      

Pray for this joy.   Start praying for a heart to love and enjoy the saints, the people of God.   Express appreciation for Christian friends both to God and to them and the joy will come.  It is the supernatural joy of Christian fellowship, of sharing Christ together.  

Then you will say along with David,

As for the saints who are in my fellowship at Oakridge Bible Chapel, they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.

•  Appreciating the provisions of God

Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.   The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.     Verses 5-6

Notice that word delightful.  That’s our pleasure word, our joy word.   

Many words in these verses describe the things that God has provided for me:  my portion, my cup, my lot, my boundary lines, my inheritance.  Where do the blessings in life come from?    The Bible says that all good things come down from above, from God.  He is the Giver.     Those who don’t know the Lord don’t trace their blessings back to God and don’t give thanks for their good things.  Their main thought is that they earned it so they can enjoy it.   They buy their food and clothes and cars and homes with money they have, and if they are thankful, they thank themselves.   But there are so many blessings that we never earned, eyes to see, ears to hear, air to breathe, strength to move, freedom to live, the sunshine and the rain.  Unbelievers know that these things are unearned, but they still do not acknowledge the Giver.

But sadly, many believers, although we know these things come from God, still do not return thanks for His bountiful gifts.    We may complain bitterly to God when we lose some of these gifts of grace, but we remain unthankful for his many blessings.    Somehow, we think we are entitled to such goodness from the Lord.   

And we also have the bad habit of comparing what God has given to us with what God has given to others.  And we become envious and discontented with our lot.    “God, why don’t you give me more so I can be happy?”

Many years ago, Kathy and I were missionaries in Zambia in Africa.   As the doctor at Chitokoloki, one of my jobs was to do rounds at the leprosy hospital adjacent to the general hospital.  It was not one of my favorite tasks.  There were scores of burnt out cases that we could do little for, except to tend their wounds.   I remember coming up to this hut where an elderly woman lived.  She had been there for a number of years.   Her case was advanced:  severe disfigurement of her face, loss of fingers and toes, and struggling with eye infection because of partial paralysis of eyelids.   There she sat at her small fire stirring a cooking pot for her meal.  I came up to her and greeted her respectfully,  “Handenu, nkaka yami, wudi nahi lelu?”  “Hello grandmother, how are you?”     She lifted her scarred face, produced a crooked smile, and said,    “Nzambi diyi muwahi.”     “God is good.”

I remember feeling the keen rebuke to my spirit with her words.   I had not been very thankful that day.   I was inwardly complaining and wishing I was elsewhere.   And this dear Christian lady was being so thankful to the Lord for all the blessings in her life, meagre though they were.  She was enjoying the provision of God and I was not.   Her testimony to me has lingered in my mind for these many years.  Maybe her testimony will be a rebuke to you as well.  

We want to be happy, but we do not practice the spiritual discipline of being thankful for the provisions of God.   So we remain sad and discontented because we are missing spiritual joy.    We compare what we have to others who seem to have more and we add the sin of envy to our discontent.  Brothers and sisters, start to count your blessings and start to give thanks and praise to the Lord for them.  And then the joy of the Lord will come.  Instead of listing out all your troubles, make a list of your blessings.  Then, as you go through the day,  express thanks  to God for those blessings.   I have a car to drive.  It’s 10 years old but it gets me where I want to go.  When I go to my car, I say,  “Thank you, Lord, for my car.”     A thankful heart makes  a joyful heart.  

Now I can hear someone saying,  “But I don’t have a car.”   Well, having a car is not the best gift.   What is?   It is my salvation in Christ.   Jesus poured out his life at the cross to provide that salvation for us.  So how about putting that at the top of your list, and how about saying , “Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul.”   Better yet, we can sing it.    

Thanks be to God for his indescribable  gift.    II Cor.9:15

• Appreciating the presence of God

I will praise the Lord who counsels me;  even at night my heart instructs me.  I have set the Lord continually before me.  Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.  Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.  Verses 7-9

The Bible says that God is omnipresent.   This means he is everywhere.   That is a truth to be believed.   Those who want to enjoy their sin would rather not believe this, myself included.    I don’t want to think he is seeing me or hearing me when I am doing wrong.    It takes all the perverse pleasure away to think that he is present.  But God is there, and when I believe this truth and practice it, it not only keeps me from sin, it gives me great joy.   David says,

 My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.  

Look at what he says in verse 7 

 The Lord counsels me.   Even at night my heart instructs me.   

Sometimes I wake in the night and as I am lying there an inaudible voice begins to talk to me, the voice of God.  Usually he is affirming  what I have been reading in his word, or the lyrics of a Christian song.    But other times there is a strong impression that he wants me to pray for somebody, or perhaps do something for someone.   I am in awe and full of joy because the God of the universe is communicating with me.   I see some of you nodding your heads like it has happened to you as well.   Others of you may be thinking,  “That doesn’t  happen to me.” Well, there is a secret here and it is this.   When you seek to hear from God he will talk to you.   How do we seek to hear from God?  Be reading his word and studying it, and memorizing it and obeying it.    When we don’t listen to God’s word, in effect we are saying,  “God, I don’t want to hear from you.”  And opposite is true.   When we read his word, we are saying as the prophet Samuel  said,  “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.”  I want to hear from you.

David says it this way in Psalm 1:2,

But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.  

Some of us know that God has promised to be there, but we don’t see him with our physical eyes, so we end up acting as if he isn’t there.    What is the remedy for this?    David says it. 

I have set the Lord continually before me.   Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.  

What is David saying here?   Is he physically seeing God?    I don’t think so.  He is choosing rather to see through the eyes of faith.

In Hebrews 11, Josiah taught us about the heroes of faith, one of them being Moses.   In verse 27 it says, 

He persevered because he saw him who is invisible.

I talked with a Christian man who was very nervous because he had to give testimony in court.   I told him that he needed to believe the Lord was right there in the courtroom sitting on his throne of judgment over the judge’s head, and that he was in control.    So the man said,  “I will picture that.”  Sure enough, when I next talked with him he reported that things went very well.   “I kept looking up at Jesus sitting over the judge’s head. However, the judge noticed him doing this and kept looking up to discover what the man was looking at.   Finally, the judge stopped proceedings and said,   “What are you looking at over my head.”   The man answered,   “I’m looking to Jesus, He is over your head, you know.”   The judge was mystified and thought it strange,  but the man won his case.  

If you have to visualize God and Jesus to practice the truth of the Lord’s  presence, by all means do so.  It is the unseen truth.   The Lord is there.   He will never leave you or forsake you.  Jesus says, 

 I am with you always.   Matt. 28:20

And because he is there with you and he is the precious Lord who is worthy of all praise, the fitting thing to do is to praise him.   In verse 7, David says, “I will praise the Lord who counsels me.”   And again, in verse 9, he says, “My tongue rejoices.”     We heard about this last week in Hebrews 13:15,

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess his name.   

The more we practice the presence of God and voice our praises to him, the more spiritual joy we will have.   

• Anticipating the paradise of God.

My body will also rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your holy one see decay.   You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

This passage was quoted by the apostle Peter in his sermon at Pentecost in Acts chapter 2.   David was in part referring to himself, but also he was prophesying concerning Jesus who, although dead, would not see decay of his body, but rather be raised to life on the third day.   Obviously, David died and his body did see decay.  But David had strong confidence that the Lord God would be with him even in death and would then raise him to life.   That is true because of what he says in verse 11,    

You will fill me with joy in your presence(after death),  with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

It was this confidence in resurrection life in the paradise of God that led him to rejoice at the prospect.   

He speaks of it again in the beloved 23^rd Psalm. 

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  

You see, David was looking forward to happy days in heaven with the God of joy and true pleasure.  

Are you looking forward to future of joy days in heaven with God forever?    Are you sure you will be there if you should die today.    Only faith in Jesus gives you that guarantee.

But there are believers who miss out on this joy of anticipation.  They live in dread of death because they do not take God at his word.   Or, they are holding on to this present life so much that they have less regard for the life to come.  The result is that they miss the spiritual joy of anticipating.  What to do about it?     Repent of unbelief and begin to look forward to heaven.  Learn to hold on to the things of this world lightly, because they will soon be gone.   The Lord is coming soon, perhaps today, perhaps tomorrow.  The last prayer in the Bible is Come, Lord Jesus.   Learn to pray this prayer daily and start anticipating being in God’s house forever.  Then the fun begins.

 

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