Message Description

Director of Adult Ministry, Russ Brasher, completes the 'Ridiculous Joy' series looking at Philippians 4:10-23 teaching about finding joy through confidently trusting in God.

Message Transcript

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Well, good morning, and welcome to Orchard Hill Church. It's great to be together worshiping this morning in person, and also for all those who have joined us online. I just want to take a quick moment, and can we just give a round of applause for all the volunteers that we see working around here at the church? I can tell you this. If it wasn't for my man down here, I would be so out of breath, having to try to carry this heavy thing and talk at this moment. So just thanks for the little things, your treasures are in heaven, my friend, and I'll get you a free cup of coffee afterward. If I haven't had a chance to meet you yet, I would love to do so. My name is Russ Brasher. I work in Adult Ministry here at the Wexford campus, and I would love to begin our time together by asking all of you a question. How are you? 

How are you, is one of the most used and popular greetings that we know. In fact, it's so popular that it has gotten the attention of an Ivy League school that we know called Harvard. And here's what Harvard has discovered during a research experiment. After analyzing over 300 online conversations, they determined that and before I say what they determined, this is Harvard saying it, not me so please don't get mad at me, but here's what they found out. That how are you, these three words are the most useless in the world of communication. The person asking doesn't really want to know, and the person responding doesn't tell the truth. What follows is a lost opportunity and meaningless exchange with zero connection. They then go on to offer seven steps to have a meaningful conversation, none of which we will explore this morning, but how much of this statement and this discovery do you agree or disagree with? 

And before you answer that, think for a moment about this. How many times have you asked somebody, how are you, but secretly you're just being nice or being welcoming? And that can be a good thing, but really you are hoping and sadly, maybe even praying, that the person does not answer honestly. Now, how many of you have been asked this question, and to the answered prayer of the person who asked you, you chose not to answer honestly, for a variety of different reasons? I know myself that I have probably been guilty of this more times than I want to know the answer to in both asking and responding with false intentions, motives, and responses. 

I was talking to our Executive Pastor, Mark, in the lobby and I was like, I've already said, how are you to 86 people knowing that I'm about to talk about this. I don't know how to stop. I'm going to start saying, you doing good, because maybe that'll be better. I don't know, let's try it for a week. But here's what I know that there are, at least in my life, and what I would hope in your guys' lives as well, is that when someone did ask you, how are you, you really could because it's been great. Things are doing good, and you can honestly answer at that moment, I'm doing great. Thanks for asking. But more times than not, it's not the case. And I don't think that we need an Ivy League school, no offense to the Harvard University or any alumni out here, but I don't think we needed them to tell us what we all know to be true about the reality of the, how are you, questions. 

But what if, the next time you were asked all of the factors and the reasons that tell us don't answer honestly, and give a universally accepted response just to get out of the moment were removed, and you really could answer with full transparency, how are you? If I had to guess, and I'm very good at guessing, it's what got me through high school. If I had to guess that what your response would be and what mine typically is, it's related to the various circumstances that are currently happening in your life and my life. 

For example, my wife does marketing for Chick-fil-A. It is so great. Every once in a while, she brings home Chick-fil-A, unexpected. Do you know how awesome that is? If you were to ask me at that moment, how am I, I am so good. Or maybe you totally forgot that after this service is the family festival. And when you pulled up, you saw food trucks in the parking lot and you said, this is the greatest day of my life. Now maybe the opposite end of that is what happened to me a couple of weeks ago. We're getting ready to go on vacation and the van, all of a sudden started flashing lights that should not be on and the van was acting up. I can't tell you how fast I went from today is so great to this is the worst day in my life. I can't tell you how bad I am when it comes to car-related issues in those circumstances. 

Now, maybe you're in this room and you have a job, and you have a boss. And one day out of the blue, your boss shows up and he says, hey, today you, my friend, you're hitting a race. Man, your day is so good. The next day that boss, the same boss shows up and says, you, you have to work overtime tonight. You have to work through the night and the weekend. All of a sudden it is so not good. Any students in the room, sorry, teachers, but any students in the room? Your teacher ever tell you the three greatest words a teacher could ever say to you? No homework tonight. When I heard those words, it was the greatest day of my life. But, have you ever been in those moments where the next day you show up and again, sorry, teachers, but your teacher says the three words you never want to hear in school? What are they? Pop quiz today. This is the worst day of my life. I start sweating in places I never knew I could sweat. We've all been there and again, teachers, we love you. 

But what happens is when the circumstances tend to be good around us, if you were to ask us how we are, we are good. But when those circumstances turn, and if we were to answer honestly, we typically don't respond with I'm good. But maybe you sit here this morning and chances are that some of you in this room, your circumstances are much heavier than the day-to-day stuff I just gave examples for. Perhaps you or someone that you care deeply about, their circumstances are centered around a severe illness, relationship problems, marriage issues, loss of a recent loved one, or a financial crisis, hard decisions that need to be made and they need to be made soon, uncertainty about your future, or perhaps even all of us as we kind of observe what's happening around the world and the countries in recent days and recent weeks. 

These circumstances, weigh heavy on us. And the point that I'm trying to make is we tend to allow these circumstances, we permit these circumstances to carry a lot of weight and deeply affect how we would really answer the question, how are you. But what if I said and better yet, what if God has revealed a way in such that it does not have to be this way? Our circumstances don't have to affect us the way that we allow them. 

As we jump into God's word this morning, would you join me in a moment of prayer by bowing your head and closing your eyes? Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you for this place, this opportunity to gather and worship together. Lord, right now I lift up on a global level, the circumstances that affect all of us, the circumstances that are unique to each of us on a personal level. Lord, you know exactly what those are, and we ask that you begin, at least in these moments in our time here together this morning, would you begin to do a work in such a way in each of our hearts that we can begin to take our eyes off of ourselves and off of our circumstances? And because of who you are, would you allow us to begin to fix our eyes on you and your son, Jesus Christ? We ask this in your name. Amen. 

The big idea that I want to give now to all of us and what my hope for this time together is, is that as a group that we could collectively begin to faithfully lean into this idea that when we are confident in who God is, we become content in who we are, regardless of our circumstances. Again, where I hope we land today is this idea that as we become confident in who God is, we begin to become content in who we are, regardless of our circumstances. 

Today's scripture, Philippians 4:10-23 is found at the very end of the Book of Philippians, and it also brings us to the conclusion of this series called Ridiculous Joy that we've been in for the last few weeks. This series, it's called Ridiculous Joy because the writer of the Book of Philippians, Paul, is writing this book during some very complicated and hard circumstances. But yet throughout it all and evident in the letter, Paul is joyful. Now, here's what you need to understand, as Paul was writing this letter, here are the circumstances that he finds himself in. We know this to be true by looking at scripture. 

For the last two-plus years, Paul has been imprisoned in chains. His life is currently at risk. He is awaiting trial. Some of his friends and the local pastors in the area have turned their back on him and began to spread false rumors so they don't end up in prison about who he is and his reputation. And to make matters worse, the Roman government has decided that Paul needs to start paying rent for the room in which he's imprisoned. I don't even like paying my mortgage, I can't imagine paying rent for my imprisonment. Now I've never been to prison, nor do I plan on becoming a member anytime soon so I cannot speak to what it might be like, but I at least know this, that prison is in no way pleasant or preferred. 

The other day, my wife loves to do stuff around the house, or at least I think she does. And when she does those things, she likes to listen to Christian podcasts. I listened to music to motivate me to do the things that I hate, but she listens to podcasts. And one day, in particular, she was listening to a woman. I don't know who this woman was, I have no idea what she was talking about or where she was talking. But as I passed through the kitchen, I heard her say these words, "We are all just a bad day and one poor decision away from prison. We are all just a bad day and one poor decision away from prison." 

And as I passed through the kitchen, I stopped for a moment and I thought to myself, knowing my own personal brokenness and sinful nature, and apart from Christ the things that I'm capable of, I thought to myself, I don't know if she's right, but she's definitely not wrong. And you see Paul finds himself in prison, not because of a poor decision that he made, he decided that he chose to share and spread the gospel message and the love of God, and people didn't like it. And so, he finds himself in prison for something that he didn't even deserve. And my point in this is that when you look at Paul's circumstances, I would be willing to bet that 99% of us in this room, myself included, if someone asked us, how are you with just one, not to mention all five of those things taking place in our life like they are in Paul's life, we would come off and say probably anything other than something that resembles joy. 

But yet in this text, in a prison cell, Paul is joyful. And you start to have to ask the question why and how. But we see this joy put on display as we look at our texts, the first verse, verse 10 says this. Paul says, "I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last, you renewed your concern for me." Paul starts by saying, "I rejoice in the Lord. I rejoice in the Lord greatly." If you can recall when we started this series and began to look at the beginning of Philippians, Paul is now closing out Philippians with the same joyful attitude and heart that he started it with. Mind you he's been in prison this whole time. If you remember, Philippians 1:1-5, Paul begins to say things like in verse two, "Grace and peace to you from God." Verse three. "I thank my God." Verse four. "I always pray with joy." And in verse five, he says, "I have become confident in God's good works." 

If you're like me, when you begin to look at texts like this, at least at first, they don't make sense. How can Paul be in such joy regardless of his circumstance? What is it that Paul knows that I don't or perhaps forgotten? What is his secret? Because again, this big idea that I would love for us to faithfully lean into is this idea of, as we become confident in who God is, we become content in who we are, regardless of our circumstances. If you were to take the time to begin to study the life of Paul and the books that he wrote in scripture, you would begin to see that Paul has become confident in who God is. And in this pursuit of God, God has humbled Paul, by revealing to him the truth of the gospel message. And the gospel in its simplest form is that you and I are more sinful than we ever dared realized yet at the very same time, more loved than we ever dared hope. 

The gospel message can be summed up in three of the most popular verses known in scripture. The first being John 3:16. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever should believe in him shall not perish but have eternal life." Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through his Son, Jesus Christ." And Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "That for it is by grace that you have been saved and this is not from yourselves, but it is a gift from God so that no person can boast." 

These three verses are just an example of the understanding of God's character and nature that Paul has grown confident in as he's sought out God, and God has begun to change and humble Paul's heart. Paul has put his faith and trust in the person and actions of Jesus Christ and in doing so has begun to taste and see for himself the joy that only can come from knowing God intimately made possible through his Son, Jesus Christ. And so, Paul, as he becomes more confident in who God is, he is all of a sudden learning to become content in who he is, regardless of his circumstances, which in this case, let's be honest, are pretty bad. But again, how can Paul be so confident? 

Warren Wiersbe, a very popular biblical theologian, and commentator wrote this about the Book of Philippians when we look at Paul. He says, "We, like Paul, can learn to become content through God's providence, God's power, and God's promise." And just a quick side note, as you look at this text, Paul is very quick to make sure that you and I don't look at him as the main character or the point of all of this. Paul says, "Do not focus on me." And your response should not be, we just need to become more like Paul, or if we were like if we are better at doing what Paul does, that's not what Paul's driving us towards. He is pointing us towards God. And Paul is saying, this has nothing to do with anything I've done or any of my own merit, but it is all God. But like Paul, the same things that he has come to become confident and know to be true about God. Those things are available for us to begin to learn and become confident in too if we were to give God space in time in our lives like Paul chose to do. 

So, we learn to become content through God's providence. We see this again in verse 10 and verse 11, where again, Paul says, "I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." And we see evidence of Paul's awareness and confidence in God's providence and that's a word that I'll define here in a minute. But we see evidence of Paul's awareness and confidence in this when he begins to use words in these verses like at last, opportunity, and I have learned, because what these words imply is that over time, not overnight, not in the first couple of weeks, but over time Paul has learned about who God is and began to see God's work in his control and things that only God could have done in his life and he is leaning into it. 

One author describes defines God's providence in this way. Divine providence is the governance of God by which he, with wisdom and love, cares for and directs all things in the universe. The doctrine of divine providence asserts that God is in complete control of all things. 

You see, learning first about God, and then learning to trust in things like God's providence takes time. This is something that we have to learn. One of the best ways to learn this is to jump into God's word, to look at the biblical narrative. And wherever you jump in, whether it be at the beginning or towards the end, you will begin to see that God has put on display and demonstrated throughout human history, that he is good and that he is in control. Even when we can't see how, we can't connect the dots as to why, he shows that he is in control, aware of all things, and will use anything and everything for his good and his glory. 

Another way to do this is to sit down with someone who has put their faith in Christ, to sit down with a Christian and ask them, hey, tell me about this God that you've put your faith in and listen, and watch as they begin to share their testimony of how God has done what only God can do in their heart and their lives. That regardless of the situations that they find themselves in, the good and the bad, they have this joy and this peace that they cannot explain, and they did not do or get on their own. And most importantly, but I hesitate to say that because I don't want to lay down or lighten God's word, but if you begin to engage in a personal relationship with God yourself and personally seek out who he is, you will come to know just how provident God is because you will begin to see him in ways that you never understood or thought possible. You will begin to look at your life and be able to see that his hand has been in it, through it, and continuing to work on it. And you can step back and go, I bring nothing to the table. We sang that he has set the table for me. The Bible says that that is true, and it awaits your invitation. 

So, we learned to be content through God's Providence. We also learned to be content through God's power. We see this in verses 12 and 13, where again, Paul says, "I know what it is to be in need. I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in every, in every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Paul says that he has learned the secret of being content, but Paul, not like a little punk who keeps it to himself, says, I'm going to tell you the secret. It's not really a secret, because I'm going to tell you. 

He says this, the secret to being content in every, in every situation. But before we dive into the answer, let me ask you, when I say the word content, what comes to your mind? Do you have a memory of ever being content? If so, how long did it really last? And maybe the heavier question that we need, and that deserves an answer is, when you see your circumstances getting the best of you, what is it that you find yourself more times than not turning to, and maybe even scarier running towards just to experience what you know is going to be at best temporary in generic contentment? 

So, here's what I know to be true about contentment. It does not mean complacency. Contentment does not always mean happy or good times. And contentment is not natural or automatic. And if it's not natural and automatic, the opposite means that it is supernatural, and it must be learned. Paul says in verse 12 that he has learned what it feels like and what it looks like. And he wants to share that secret with you. And here's what he says. Verse 13, "I can do all this through him who gives me strength." Paul says the secret is I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Him, he's meaning God. I can do all things because God gives me strength. It is God's power. Not my doing, not my offering, not what I bring to the table, but God and God alone. The secret, Paul says, is simple. Trust in Jesus Christ and allow him to begin to do what only he can do and get out of the way. 

What I love about the gospels and one of my favorite verses is John 1:39, because in John 1:39, what we see take place is Jesus meets three men who would become three of the 12 disciples, John, Andrew, and Peter. In John 1:39, Jesus invites these three men to come and see, to come and see who Jesus is because Jesus knows that if you come to see who he is, you are coming to see who God is. The Bible tells us in Colossians 1:15 that the son, referencing Jesus, is the visible image of God. This means that if you've ever wanted to know, if you walked into the doors or clicked on that link to participate in this worship service, seeking out and curious about who God is and is he really all that my friends and people in the world might be saying about him. 

The Bible says, look at Jesus and he will tell you. If you have been walking with the Lord for a while and you still have that drive and that fire and that passion to deepen your understanding of who God is, he says, make sure you take a look at my son because he will tell you everything you need to know about me. Or maybe you're in that season of life as a Christ-follower, where things are dry, and things have gone numb and you're trying to figure out how do you get back. The Bible says, turn to Jesus, come, and see, be reminded because the invitation that Jesus offered those three men, he offers to each and every one of us today. This idea to come and see, and to know that Jesus eagerly awaits at the table that has been set for you. 

Matthew 7:7 says, "Ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be open." This invitation to enter into a season of seeking out God, perhaps entering into a relationship with, becoming confident in who God is. The Bible says that this leads to you and me as believers experiencing a ridiculous joy that only comes from God, the Father, through his Son, Jesus Christ. 

Steven J. Lawson, in his commentary on the Book of Philippians, said this about what it means as a believer to be content. He says to be discontent would mean that Paul wants to be somewhere else than where the sovereign hand of God has placed him and to have more than the sovereign hand of God has chosen to give him. But check this out. He says to be content is to have a peaceful acceptance of where God has providently placed Paul. 

Content in the original Greek described a country that had everything it needed and where nothing had to be imported. Such a country had all the resources and natural products needed to be self-sufficient. Nothing else was needed from the outside world. But Lawson says, Paul is not saying that he is self-sufficient in himself, rather he is abundantly sufficient in the resources of God. 

Could it really be that simple? Is this secret really to learn, to trust, and become confident in who God is? Does that really lead to a life of peace and joy that can be unshaken regardless of our circumstances? Again, Lawson continues later in his commentary to help us answer these three questions. He says, if you look to him, referencing Jesus, he says that if you and I look to Jesus, if you trust him, live for him, worship him, adore him, serve him, follow him, and obey him then this joy will increase by filling and flooding your soul. I need this, you need this. We all need this. 

You are either in a very difficult set of circumstances, Lawson says, right now, or you are about to head into one, or you just stepped out of one for a moment and then are going to jump right back into it. God has only one son without sin, but God has many sons with sorrows. You will know what it is to be hungry. You may know what it is to be full, but Lawson says this, and I love it. But this is the secret which Paul has let us know. You have all you ever need in Christ, and you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. We learn to be content through God's providence, God's power, and finally, God's promise. 

We see this promise hinted at in verse 19 when Paul responds to the Philippians when he says, and my God, not Paul, not something else, but Paul says, "And my God will meet all of your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Paul is Responding to this very generous donation and gift that the people of Philippi have given to Paul in his time of need. Paul is acknowledging and reminding his readers, and when he does that, he's also reminding you and me that at the same time revealing to us, that God is in fact, a God who, when he makes a promise, he keeps his promise. 

Again, if you were to begin to seek out and study the book of the Bible, you would begin to see that throughout it, God makes promises to those who have put their faith in him, to his sons and daughters. And every promise that he makes, he delivers on, and he continues to deliver and this one is no different. In fact, another commentator described verse 19 of Philippians four, says that this verse has one of the greatest scripture promises found throughout all of the Bible. And it's the promise of the assurance of the divine supply of God. Again, this has nothing to do with Paul and everything to do with God. For this promise to be true, it has to be God who delivers on the promise because Paul is in no position right now to do anything about it. Paul cannot reimburse. Paul cannot make ripe, only God can because God makes sure that he provides for those who give in ways that glorify him and spread the gospel message. 

And there's so much. We could do an entire series and I don't have enough time left to go into exactly what it means and to be understood and to make sure that this verse is not taken out of context. And it is why Paul puts two words in that one sentence, according to, because he wants to make sure that we understand something. According to, means that how God chooses to reimburse, does not always mean in the terms of wealth, but it guarantees that it means in some sense, how God chooses to reimburse and provide for our needs will be in such a way that brings glory to God and shares the gospel. 

The point here is that one way believers can put our faith and trust in God on display and share the gospel message is by sacrificially, yet joyfully, giving away the resources that God is the one who blessed us with in the first place, knowing that in doing so, we have a God who promises to always provide for our needs in a way that brings him glory and shares the gospel. You see, when we become confident in who God is, we become content in who we are regardless of our circumstances. We learn to be content through God's providence, God's power, and God's promises. As we close this morning, I promise, but more importantly, don't take my word for it. See that God promises you through his word, that what you heard today is true. Ridiculous Joy is found in those who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. But it's not anything that you and I do, but it's what God begins to do in the lives of believers. 

I met Christ when I was 17 years old, and I can promise you, I can testify that this is true, that there have been moments in my life, good and bad, where I have tasted and seen for myself the joy and peace that only comes from knowing God, the Father. I've tried the world, it doesn't end well, Jesus is the only way. But I also have to tell you, and this is a moment of honesty, I'd be leading you down a false path, if there aren't times in my life where my circumstances have gotten the best of me, and I have forgotten gotten this truth. My joy has been disrupted because I've taken my eyes off of God, fixed them on myself, and tried to do it on my own merit, on my own time, and in my own way. 

Just this other week, we recently moved, and we got a new house. And when you get a new house, there are all these lists of projects. Everyone, nod your head. Yes, I know. There are all these projects that you want to do. And I knew that part of moving meant that three of my four kids had to go and start at a new school, and this was going to be a ton of change and a lot of up and down experiences and emotions. I was trying to center my life around this and get my world in order so that I could be available to them as best I could. But the projects didn't go how I wanted them to. They were harder than I thought. And so, they started to creep into this week. 

On top of that, all of the exciting things that are beginning to start and kick up in the fall season of the church, that I kind of helped run and lead were all starting up and taking up time. And those are good things, but they were taking my time and energy. On top of that, school for me also recently started back up. I've been pursuing my MDIV through Moody for a couple of years now. And I got to be honest, I have been putting off the class of Greek for years. I barely passed English in high school, and I've been speaking that my whole life. But this semester, finally, I couldn't take any other classes without this prerequisite, so I'm in Greek. And of course, Kurt goes on sabbatical for three months and he's the one I would go to in the past to help me understand it, and now he's gone too. 

So, this pressure, these circumstances, and these are just little things, but what happens is all of that came to a head. And I have to admit that I blew it this week and the people who felt that the most were the people that I love more than anything, and my wife and my kids. And how I responded to them, how I talked to them, my patience was zero. I didn't listen. I just wanted to fix it. I just wanted to make everything okay. And no part of me that was joyful. There was no peace in my soul because I had removed myself. I had forgotten, I had let other things creep in and take priority in my life. But even in my brokenness and even in my shortcomings, in my sin, God, because he is provident because he is powerful and he delivers on his promises, he has a way of doing what only he can do. And that is reveal himself and show up through his unlimited grace, unending mercy, and unconditional love to remind me of who he is. Now he usually does this through my wife, who I've started to just call the Holy Spirit. 

But the point is, is that he constantly chases and pursues us. He wants to remind us of what we forget. He wants to show us what we can't remember and reveal himself because you see, joy, ridiculous joy, it runs deeper and it's stronger than circumstances. This joy, it's a quiet, confident assurance in who God is, not who you and I are. It comes down from heaven, from the throne of grace, and it can only be found in the name of Jesus. 

I want to pray with us, so would you bow your head and close your eyes and just know that this prayer is from a worship song that has recently caught my attention and captivated my heart. And I'm not going to sing it because that is not a sound that brings glory to the Lord, but I will read it and let its words be our closing prayer this morning. 

Are you past the point of weary? Is your burden weighing heavy? Is it all too much to carry? Well, let me tell you about my Jesus. Do you feel that empty feeling because shame has done all its stealing and you're desperate for some healing? Let me tell you about my Jesus. He makes a way where there ain't no way, rises up from an empty grave, ain't no sinner that he can't save. Let me tell you about my Jesus. His love is strong, and his grace is free. And the good news is that I know that he can do for you what he's done for me. Let me tell you about my Jesus and let my Jesus change your life. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Amen. Amen. Go in joyful peace.