CELEBRATING JOY

Joy was created by God for man. Joy brings laughter but laughter is not joy.
Joy brings health even to the sick and it is a thing to be desired by all. Some look for joy in different places and surprisingly in wrong places and they meet sorrow. Some get everlasting sorrow.
There is temporal, momentary joy and the lasting joy, which only God can give.
 

1. SOURCES OF FALSE JOY Job 20:5-9  That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?  Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds; Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he? He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night. The eye also which saw him shall see him no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.
   1. Eliminating those that stand on your ways 1Kings 21: 5 – 7 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread? And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. 1 Kings 21:15-16 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but dead. And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
2. Covering sin 2 Samuel 11:5-8 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child. And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered.  And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king’s house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king. 2 Samuel 11:26-27 And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.

• Putting your trust in things 1 Samuel 4:3 And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the LORD smitten us to day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of Shiloh unto us, that, when it cometh among us, it may save us out of the hand of our enemies. 1 Samuel 4:5  And when the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again. 1 Samuel 4:10-11  And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

1. Putting your trust in man – in the case of the Philistines, they put all their trust in Goliath and when he was killed, all their joy disappeared. If your trust is in man, you will be highly disappointed sooner or later.
2. Achieving your set goals 2 Samuel 16:15 And Absalom, and all the people the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. Absalom was very happy that he achieved his set goals for becoming the king. How long was he on the throne?

2. SOURCES OF TRUE AND LASTING JOY
3. Salvation Psalms 51:12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
4. Sacrificing willingly 1Chronicles, 29:9 Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

• Personal and Church revival Psalms 85:6 Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?

1. When we understand Cod’s promises
2. Seeing success in everything we do
3. Thankfulness

• Seeing the good side of everything
• Having wise and trained children Proverbs 23:24 The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.

1. Consciousness of the presence of God Psalms 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
2. Having the opportunity to serve God 1Chronicles 15: 25 So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the house of Obededom with joy.
3. Victory over the enemy 1 Samuel 18:6 And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick.; 2Chronicles 20: 27 Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat in the forefront of them, to go again to Jerusalem with joy; for the LORD had made them to rejoice over their enemies.

• Recognizing the love, plan, and purpose of God for your lives
• Knowing that “all things work together for good”

3. BLESSINGS OF JOY – 2 Chronicles 30:25 – 26 And all the congregation of Judah, with the priests and the Levites, and all the congregation that came out of Israel, and the strangers that came out of the land of Israel, and that dwelt in Judah, rejoiced. So there was great joy in Jerusalem: for since the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there was not the like in Jerusalem.
4. Brings physical strength 1Samuel 17: 51 – 52 Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.
5. Gives the boldness to destroy idols 2Chronicles 31:1 Now when all this was finished, all Israel that were present went out to the cities of Judah, and brake the images in pieces, and cut down the groves, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim also and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned, every man to his possession, into their own cities.

• Gives the impetus to fight the enemies

1. Leads to purification and consecration
2. Breaks the prison doors and chains Acts 16:25-26 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.