Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
November 8, 2020 - W2045

"The Gift of Joy" 

Uncommon Gifts Strangely Wrapped

Pastor Wayne Cordeiro

November 8, 2020

Aloha and Welcome, New Hope Oahu--Everywhere and Anywhere!

Today, we'll continue our series Uncommon Gifts Strangely Wrapped and our topic is "The Gift of Joy."

Psalm 51:10-12 RSV says: "¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. ¹¹ Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy holy Spirit from me. (Then he says) ¹² Restore to me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit."

Did you know that the devil has no authority to steal your salvation? Aren't you glad for that? Your salvation is not wrapped up in what you do--but in what God has done! Salvation is not spelled "D-o"; it's spelled "D-o-n-e," DONE! Your salvation is not wrapped up on your conquest; it's in His conquest. The devil has no authority to steal your salvation, so he goes after The Joy of your salvation--and you drop out on your own! The devil has no authority to steal your marriage, so he steals The Joy of being Married, and you drop out and disqualify yourself! The devil has no authority to steal your ministry, so he goes after The Joy of Your Ministry, and you disqualify yourself. 

Joy is a very precious commodity, so protect it! God has given each of us gifts, as mentioned in 1 Corinthians chapters 12 and 14, and you'll see the importance of God's grace. If someone is an outgoing and exuberant type of person, we say he is a person with the Gift of God's Grace, or that person is charismatic. They are super confident that God has already won the battle, and they will be just fine as they know that Jesus is still on the Throne! The root word charis in the Greek is grace.  

The world thinks that happiness is the same as joy, but it's not! Happiness is determined by a happenstance, something happening. For instance, if something good happens, then they are happy; but joy is independent of good things happenings. It doesn't matter what bad thing is happening, they know that God is still in charge of every situation, and they are absolutely fine! Paul and Silas had that kind of joy; even when they were beaten and thrown into prison, they were able to sing and praise God! Where did they get that deep-seated joy? Paul wrote in...

2 Timothy 1:12 NKJV: "...for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him."

We must know and be persuaded that Jesus is unconquerable--He has no rival!

Where did we get the notion that being somber and serious with a frowned brow that we are a better Christian than anybody else? It really is a spirit of criticism, and that kind of legalistic spirit must be completely extracted from our lives so that we can have the Joy of the Lord!

THREE THINGS THAT WILL HELP YOU TO BE A PERSON OF JOY:

James 1:2-4 NASB says: "¹Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. ⁴ And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

1. DO YOU BELIEVE JESUS IS ALREADY VICTORIOUS?

The Joy of the Lord is independent of something happening; it's very different from happiness. The Joy of the Lord is a gift that we need to protect because it can be stolen so easily; and, when it is stolen, we have joyless Christians. The damage joyless Christians does to the Kingdom is enormous. There is something far better than my feelings; my faith must be far deeper than that--called the Joy of the Lord!  

John 15:10-11 NASB says: "¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love.¹¹ These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full."

2. TRUST GOD'S PLAN (even if you don't see it). 

Isaiah 55:9 NASB says: "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts."

1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT says: " Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely."

Jeremiah 29:11 MEV says: " For I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord, plans for peace and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." 

3. LEARN TO CELEBRATE OFTEN...

When Nehemiah learned that the walls of Jerusalem had been destroyed, burned, and charred, and the people were discouraged and distressed, he decided to repair the walls. During the repair, his enemies, Sanballat and Tobia, began to criticize and tried to stop the work, but Nehemiah ignored them and completed the walls and said, "We're going to celebrate!" 

Nehemiah 8:10 NIV says: " Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” 

The Joy of the Lord is your strength; that's the reason the devil goes after your joy for if you're joyless you are vulnerable and susceptible to his accusations and temptations, and you think you're a bad person and he steals your joy! Psalm 51:12 says, "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation."

Matthew 25:21-23 MEV says: ²¹ “His master said to him, ‘Well done, you good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over many things. Enter the joy of your master.’ ²² “He who had received two talents also came and said, ‘Master, you entrusted me with two talents. See, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ ²³ “His master said to him, ‘Well done, you good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over many things. Enter the joy of your master.’"

To each of them that did well, the master gives the same answer, "Enter into the joy of your master!" You must protect this gift from your master because that's the gem that the enemy will go after! 

1 John 1:4 NEV says: "We are writing these things to you so that our joy may be complete."

There's a completeness of joy even when you go through problems. Remember, where you are is not what you are; and where you are is not who you are!

Always talk about your problems as changing...my finances aren't that good right now but it's changing. It gives you hope that God is still on the Throne. When you say it's changing, it's giving your faith a chance because He is the potter and you are the clay--and He is not done yet! 

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. What is the difference between happiness and joy?
2. Why is The Joy of the Lord important?
3. Why did Pastor Wayne say to talk about your problems as it's changing? Share an experience you had and what happened when you began to say, "It's changing" to a bad situation?
4. Why is it important to celebrate often?