Everybody wants to be happy! Many people make it a lifelong, and futile, pursuit of making money, collecting things, and searching for new, ever more exciting experiences. But sooner or later in each life, we realize circumstances are not always good, friends and family will sometimes let us down, tragedy, illness, an even death will occur, and all this leads to many people falling into depression, anxiety, and a sense of pessimistic hopelessness. Recent studies have shown that the youngest generation in America has a higher rate of depression, anxiety, and hopelessness than any previous generation! Their rate of suicide is also the highest ever! So, is there an answer to this common feeling of un-happiness?
The biblical book of Philippians is often called the “epistle of joy”, written by Paul as he was imprisoned in Rome. Biblical joy is greatly different than our culture’s shallow pursuit of “happiness”. In my Life Application Study Bible, it defines biblical joy like this: “True joy is deep and strong, not superficial. It is the quiet, confident assurance of God’s love and work in our lives—that he will be there no matter what! Our happiness should not depend on what happens TO us but on what happens IN us—the transformation that takes place when we put our trust in Jesus and His Holy Spirit comes to live in us, giving us God’s perspective on life and all the ups and downs that come with it”.
In chapter 1 of Philippians, Paul gives us some hopeful reminders of how to find God’s joy even in the worst of circumstances! Writing from prison, which would lead most people to fear, depression, and hopelessness, Paul instead gives us hope and a Godly perspective which will take us through the worst that life’s circumstances can hit us with!
1) Always seek to know God better and get his wisdom and insight because he intends to use your life for good!
Paul prays with joy for his Christian friends and reminds them that he is confident that “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ” (v.1:6) Because of that confidence, he continues to pray this for them:
9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ–to the glory and praise of God. – Philippians 1:9-11 (NIV)
Do YOU believe that God has a specific plan and use for your life, up until the day you die? Or, are you just always working on YOUR agenda for your life, and somehow hoping God will “bless and rubber stamp” your plans?
2) Paul found great joy, purpose, and power in knowing that he (and all of us as Christians) are on a mission to share the gospel and bring others into Jesus’ eternal Kingdom!
Many people are unhappy because their self-determined plans for their lives fall short in disappointment, and they see external circumstances limiting what they dreamed and hoped their ideal life would look like. If you keep insisting that God should approve and bless “your plan” for your life, you will never be fully happy, and will miss out on the greater plan and purpose God has for you!
Even though he was confined to prison, Paul saw every day and every place he found himself as an opportunity to share the good news of Jesus! So, he joyfully shared Jesus with his captors and many of them became Christians, and became God’s “secret agents” in Caesar’s household! Paul would say that whatever happens to him, whether in good or bad circumstances, it was “all good” because nothing can stop the advancement of God’s Kingdom!
Paul was not only confined to prison, but he saw that others used his imprisonment to “backstab him” by trying to take over his churches and leadership and get all the credit and recognition for themselves! While many today would cry unfair and whine about the unfairness of that and question God’s plan, Paul saw it entirely differently! He calmly says:
15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 They preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. -Philippians 1:15-19 (NIV)
3) Paul was able to find joy in the midst of suffering because he knew Jesus has promised his followers a future hope that will last forever and can never be taken from us!
Our pastor likes to speak of the “capital H” hope as opposed to the “lower case H” hope. The lower case hope is what we all hope for daily in life. Things like good health and jobs, a happy family, finding the right girl/boyfriend or future spouse, great vacations, good friends, an easy life with no conflict or drama, etc. While those certainly are good and happen often, life is never always easy and often ends up being difficult, hard to deal with, and discouraging. No one ultimately escapes the worst in life, and we all will eventually die physically. As someone said, “None of us are getting out of here alive”!
The “capital H” hope, on the other hand, is what Jesus promises to those who trust their lives and future to him. He has promised us eternal life, a new, amazing quality of life that beings now as his Spirit indwells his followers and lasts forever when we fully enter into his present and future Kingdom that will last forever! When we live in that perspective, we see all of our life and circumstances from God’s perspective. We can enjoy each day and see God’s hand at work in our lives in spite of the trials, injustice and setbacks that come our way. And we have joy because God is always with is and will never abandon us, and he will give us the strength we need to face the hard times in life!
Paul loved people and life, but he wasn’t afraid to die because he knew that when that happened he would be with Jesus forever and that would be even better! He said:
20 I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. – Philippians 1:20-24 (NIV)
Paul was so confident of God’s love that he was basically telling his enemies “ I have no fear of you. The worst thing you can do to me is kill me, and if you do, I get to go home to Jesus and live forever in an even better and amazing life!” And, because of that perspective, he was truly free to love his enemies, pray for them, and share the hope of Jesus with anyone he could. He encourages his followers to have the same attitude and live a similar life worthy of being a follower of Jesus! He tells them:
27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved–and that by God. – Philippians 1:27-28 (NIV)
WHATEVER HAPPENS…..
LIVE FEARLESSLY IN A WAY THAT HONORS JESUS AND ADVANCES HIS KINGDOM!
You may be going through a difficult time now, and you are not at all “happy” and don’t think you can feel any “joy” right now either! But remember, biblical joy is not at all about how we feel at the moment, nor about the circumstances you find yourself in. God’s joy consists of an internal stability in spite of external circumstances!!
When I watched my wife Claudia fight cancer for 18 months, only to die in October 2020, I can’t say there was any time in that experience that we would say we were particularly “happy” about any of it! Sure, there were times when the chemo reduced tumors, and the long surgery appeared successful, at least for a few months. But all of that time was hard, it was depressing, it was scary for us, it was just “awful”, and although we had several moments of “lower case” hope happening, in the end, our hope and prayers for God’s healing of Claudia didn’t go the way we were praying. From a human standpoint, it would have been easy to be angry at God, feel we were unfairly punished, and we could have been bitter and actually turned away from God!
HOWEVER…..
Because Claudia and I were both blessed with decades of knowing and experiencing Jesus’ love in our lives, we were able to experience the “capital H” hope of seeing this whole experience through God’s perspective!
And because of that, I can truly say that we experienced God’s “joy” many times in the midst of that difficult journey. There was NEVER a doubt that whether Claudia died of cancer, or was healed, that she was going to live forever in the presence of Jesus in his future Kingdom! Towards the last months of her life, as difficult as it was to watch her body waste away to that awful disease, we both felt a peace in our souls that was beyond our human understanding, and our perspective and prayers changed to asking for Jesus to take her home, gracefully and peacefully, to where she ultimately longed to be.
So, today, I can rejoice that Claudia is victorious over death because of what Jesus did on the cross for us, and I am truly delighted that she is wonderfully alive and singing praise to God more than ever, something she lived for and loved to do in this life!
And as Paul wrote, I can also rejoice that God will now use the rest of my life and finish the plans he has for me, however long that journey may turn out to be. As Paul might say, whether I live many more years or die soon, I’m going to enjoy and be thankful for what God brings me each day, I’m going to share Jesus with everybody I can, and I going to strive to live in a life worthy of Jesus, filled with peace, joy, and never-ending hope!
I wish you all many “lower case” hope fulfillments in your life, but above all I pray you will experience the “capital H” hope of eternal life that only comes with personally giving your life to Jesus. With that comes God’s joy, peace, and assurance that is beyond anything this world can ever offer you!
I leave you with Paul’s wonderful exhortation and encouragement in Philippians Ch. 4:
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me–put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. – Philippians 4:4-9 (NIV)