Redeemer Lutheran Church

Philippians 4:4-13
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice.”

 

I. Joy

 

The Lord wants you to rejoice so much that He actually commands you to have joy. But is this a demand for you to have feelings of happiness and to always wear a huge smile on your face? In fact, this is one of those commands where the Lord gives what He’s commanding: let’s connect a few dots. Where does one get joy in the Lord? St. Paul tells us in his letter to the Galatians that joy is included as a fruit of the Spirit—which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). If these are the fruit of the Spirit, we need to ask “what comes before bearing fruit?” First, you’re a branch, a living branch, joined to the vine of Christ by the forgiveness He’s won and the Spirit delivers. In other words, this joy is not a human emotion, but rather it is a result of being a forgiven child of God.

 

So, you’re to rejoice in the Lord always—you’re always to find your joy in the Lord. And as a Christian, you have it.

 

But remember: we’re talking about joy of the soul, the joyful confidence that you are right with God for Jesus’ sake. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. Since this joy stems from faith, you may not always feel joyful. But it’s there nonetheless. It’s there, and it’s certain. It’s eternal. That’s more than you can say for any other kind of joy.

 

For example, St. Paul doesn’t say, “Rejoice in a fine dinner,” whatever that may be for you. Every pizza has a last slice, and every formal dinner has a final course. Then the bill comes. The meal is over and the joy fades away.

 

He doesn’t say, “Rejoice in your financial security.” Fortunes have a way of being made and being lost. Joy in fortunes isn’t a lasting joy, and it can disappear in an instant with a drop of the stock market.

 

Paul doesn’t say, “Rejoice in your friends.” It’s wonderful when friends bring joy, but friendships come and go for a variety of reasons.

 

St. Paul doesn’t say, “Rejoice in your strength or your health or your wisdom or your knowledge.” All of these eventually fail, and the failing robs us of the joy that came with such excitement and vitality. If this is the joy you count on, it will eventually be replaced with frustration and grief.

 

He doesn’t say, “Rejoice in your works and accomplishments.” When it comes to salvation, they amount to less than a hill of beans. Compared to the Lord’s righteousness, they’re nothing—as is the joy that comes with them.

 

And Paul doesn’t say, “Rejoice in the entertainments and diversions of the day—the digital gagets, the latest hit, the fantasy leagues, the local sports and the football games.” In the long run, those have little joy.

 

Will you find joy in any of these things? Can you find joy in any of these things? Yes—but only for your body and mind, your physical and emotional wellbeing, and only for a time. None of these things provide joy for the soul, and it’s the soul that Paul is talking about.

 

So rejoice in the Lord and the grace that He gives you, because here is the certain joy that is never going to go away. Rejoice in His incarnation, for He became flesh like you in order to save you. Rejoice in His perfect life, for He lived it to credit you with His righteousness. Rejoice in His death, because this was the joy set before Him for which He endured the cross and scorned its shame. Rejoice in His resurrection, because He joins you to both His death and resurrection so that you might rise again. Rejoice in the daily bread He provides, sure; but rejoice all the more that He continues to give you eternal food in His means of grace.

 

That’s where eternal joy is found—the joy that comes with the gift of faith, the joy that is always rejoicing, even when you’re battered and beaten in trial and feel no joy. But even in the midst of trials, your soul still rejoices because the Lord is faithful to you. And because He is always faithful, your soul is always rejoicing.

 

So rejoice in the Lord always.

 

2. Reasonableness

 

And as you rejoice in the Lord, Paul goes on to say, “let your reasonableness be known to everyone.” (Phil. 4:5) “Reasonableness” is an awkward word, but a pretty good translation. As St. Paul tells you how to deal with others, he says to let your kindness, your gentleness and your willingness to yield be known to everyone. “Willingness to yield:” that’s a pretty good definition, as in, “Be reasonable.” Because of the faith and joy that you have in the Lord, Paul now tells you to live as a servant of all.

 

You’ve been set free by the Lord’s grace to rejoice in Him and to be reasonable with others. As long as you’re relying on the things of this life for joy, you’re in competition with others in this world for it, because there’s only a limited and fading amount of joy in this world. There are only so many tables at the restaurant or seats at the game. There are only so many pristine lakes with nobody else around or shares of stock to be bought. When you’re looking for joy from the things of this life, you’re always in competition with others to get it. And in the midst of the competition, you might find yourself thinking, “I just can’t be happy as long as they’re around.” When you’re looking for joy in the things of this life, the pursuit often flings wide the door for temptations like covetousness, greed, envy, pride, grumbling, wishing ill, bearing false witness, discontent, dissatisfaction and more.

 

But no matter what, your lasting joy and true treasure are found in Christ. You might be a steward of little or much in this world, but in Christ Jesus the kingdom of heaven is yours. And because your joy is in Christ, the people around you aren’t competitors. They’re neighbors to be served—so St. Paul tells you to let your reasonableness, your willingness to yield, be evident to all. As Luther said,

 

“Direct your life so as to do and suffer everything not contrary to the commandments of God, that you may make yourselves universally agreeable. Not only refrain from offending any, but put the best possible construction upon the conduct of others. Aim to be clearly recognized as men indifferent to circumstances, as content whether you be hit or missed, and holding to no privilege at all liable to bring you into conflict or produce discord. With the rich be rich; with the poor, poor. Rejoice with the joyful, weep with the mourning. Finally, be all things to all men, compelling them to confess you always agreeable, uniformly pleasant to mankind and on a level with everyone.” (Church Postil vol. 6, pp 96-97).

 

Be reasonable, willing to yield and pleasant to all. If someone else gets a better test score, better promotion, nicer house or the job you wanted, rejoice with them. This is no time for grumbling, resentment or sniping, for such reactions arise out of envy, pride and discontent. Such actions say, “I cannot be joyful unless I have achievements in this world—the joy of the grace and life I have in Christ is not enough for me.”

 

Likewise, if someone stumbles, flunks the exam or loses the job, you weep with them. It’s certainly not a time for glee at their misfortune or plotting to take what they have failed to achieve: these are again a result of selfish ambition. Such reactions really declare: “My joy comes from the things of this life and the misfortune of others, not the eternal truth that Jesus has suffered all misfortune for me.”

 

Be reasonable, willing to yield, to all. This doesn’t mean being a doormat. Where your neighbor would have you disobey God’s Word or ignore His truth, you refuse to do so—to disobey the Lord then would be to turn your neighbor into a false god, which would be neither faithful to God nor loving to him. Where your neighbor seeks to take advantage of you, you may refuse as well, for it is not loving to encourage him in his unfair treatment of others. When Paul speaks of yielding here, he is speaking of service, not surrender. The message is this: you already have the eternal treasures of grace and faith and life. In comparison, the treasures of this world aren’t worth getting upset about when they go to somebody else. The joy they provide is fleeting—joy in the Lord is forever. Freely you have received. Freely give.

 

Paul illustrates this with his own life: “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.” Whether blessed with abundance or brought low, Paul knew contentment. Why? Because the Lord was near, near with His grace and life. Where Paul knew abundance, he gave thanks to God. When he was brought low, even near death, he only looked all the more to his resurrection for Jesus’ sake. Redeemed by Jesus, he could be content with the things passing away. In the meantime, he could do all things through Christ, who gave him His strength.

 

3. Law and Gospel

 

So examine yourselves. Do you rejoice in the Lord always, or does His salvation seem a cold, distant comfort at best? Are you willing to yield to others, or does your happiness and contentment depend on your triumphs and acquisitions? These are vital questions for examination, because we are talking about nothing else but faith and love. Faith clings to Jesus and His salvation—where faith is strong, joy in Christ is strong. Love yields to the neighbor— where love is strong, contentment is strong, too. Faith and love are fundamental aspects of the Christian life; because faith establishes the relationship between you and God, and love establishes the relationship between you and your neighbor.

 

An honest examination will indicate the need for more joy and reasonableness among us all. We’re fallen sinners who cannot see the treasures of heaven, and thus we often look to find our joy in the things of this world and we compete against our neighbors for them. We should be more joyful and reasonable than we are—and it’s a sad comment on our sinfulness that we even fail at being joyful. Our lack of faith and lack of love condemn us.

 

There is rescue, though – but it is not found in us. The solution is not for you to work at being more joyful, nor is it striving to be a better neighbor: these will not earn you more joy and contentment. Rather, the answer is found in Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sins that He has for you. What prevents us from joy and reasonableness, from faith and love? Sin does—sins like covetousness, envy, doubt, worry, pride, discontent and more. These and other sins seek to gut you of both faith and love so that you might die in your sin far away from your Lord.

 

But the Lord is near—and He is near to forgive. For the joy set before Him, He has endured the cross and scorned its shame. He has suffered your guilt and shame for Himself; and having done so, He now declares, “I do not hold your sins against you. I forgive you and eternal life is yours. Rejoice!” And where you still do not find joy in the Lord as you should, confess that joylessness and know that He is your joy for you.

 

The Lord is reasonable to you, too. He has yielded Himself for your sake, to the point where the Son of God became flesh in order to go to the cross and die for your salvation. He has paid for your life with His own, so that you might be free from sin.

 

Because of the cross, because of the Lord’s joy and reasonableness, you are forgiven. Thus, you rejoice and yield not because you must, but because you have been set free from sin’s bondage to do so. You have no more use for all those sins like greed and envy and worry and selfishness, for these are all things that only tear down faith and love. These are all things that pull you from your eternal Savior to the things of this world. They would rob you of all joy.

 

No, dear friends: rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice. Your everlasting joy is in your crucified and risen Savior. You rejoice in the Lord always because there is never a time where He fails in His grace for you. There is never a time when He is unreasonable, but even now comes to give you forgiveness and life and salvation.

 

Rejoice in the Lord always, for you are forgiven for all of your sins. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.