EMOTIONS OF GOD #3/4

#1 · August 18, 2003, 2:55 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on August 18, 2003, 2:55 pm
Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

EMOTIONS OF GOD #3/4
DIVINE JOY
August 17, 2003

Text: Luke 15:20-32

In a four part sermon series, I am preaching on the topic of the emotions
of God. On the past two Sundays, I have addressed the topic of Gods
jealousy and anger. These are two emotions that are typically unsettling
to us as humans, and even more so when they are attributed to Gods
mighty power. Yet, even though these emotions which can be terrifying,
Gods Word reveals His ongoing redemptive nature. God will not do
anything that is not redemptive.

This morning, I address an emotion that is probably more pleasant to us:
joy. When we think of someone expressing joy, we can probably feel more
at ease. I think that most of us typically do not feel threatened by a
joyful person. Joy is a happy emotion.

The Bible indicates that Gods joy is a happy experience as well. In
Nehemiah chapter 8, we read of one of Israels revival times. The people
are assembled and hear Gods Law read. They hear it, understand it, and
are convicted by it. They weep because of their conviction. But Nehemiah
tells them not to weep. Verse 10, Nehemiah said, Go and enjoy choice
food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared.
This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is
your strength. This is the basis for one of our songs, The Joy of the
Lord Is Your Strength.

Gods joy brings joy to His faithful followers. The Psalms are filled
with references to joy and rejoicing. Psalm 28:6-7. Praise be to the
Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my
shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy
and I will give thanks to him in song. Psalm 65:8. Those living far
away fear your wonders; where morning dawns and evening fades you [God]
call forth songs of joy. Psalm 98:4-6. Shout for joy to the Lord, all
the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord
with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and
the blast of the rams horn - shout for joy before the Lord, the King.
Yes, there is great happiness to be found in the Lords joy and our joy
in the Lord.

Let us not forget, though, that Gods joy is redemptive. Or, probably
more accurately, Gods joy is the result of His redemption. In a Bible
dictionary description of the word joy, I read, The one real
difference between [Old Testament] and [New Testament] attitudes toward
joy is that the [New Testament] writers go on to make the bold statement
of joy in suffering as well as in salvation. The [Old Testament] makes
clear that mans cause for rejoicing is in God and not in himself (Jer.
9:23-24). Joy is, however, related primarily to Gods triumph over evil,
as demonstrated in the recovery of health, or in some other victory of
national or personal existence. It is in the [New Testament] that we find
the statement of joy in suffering itself, or in weakness seen in terms of
a power of God made perfect in weakness (Matt. 5:12; II Cor. 12:9). (D.
Harvey, Joy, The Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible, vol. 2,
Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1962, p. 1000)

Gods triumph over evil, especially as found in the greatest triumph
through Jesus the Son, is great cause for Gods joy and, consequently,
our joy. The fifteenth chapter of Luke is probably more descriptive of
this kind of joy than anywhere else in the Bible. Three parables tell of
the redemptive salvation of the lost. Jesus concludes the story of the
lost sheep by saying, I tell you that in the same way there is more
rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine
righteous persons who do not need to repent. Likewise, in his short
story of the lost coin, Jesus ends, In the same way, I tell you, there
is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who
repents. In the third story, Jesus really sets the stage with the
description of a son who receives his fathers good gifts, senselessly
squanders them, hits rock bottom, comes to some sense, decides to return
home and beg to be just a servant in his fathers house, and is welcomed
with joy beyond his imagination. Pick up with verse 22, But the father
said, Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his
finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. For
this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.
So they began to celebrate.

We learn here that Gods divine joy can seem to us just as dangerous as
Gods divine jealousy or Gods divine anger. God, as represented by the
storys father, becomes too joyful here. He forgets that this rebellious
son squandered his wealth. He brought his father all kinds of heartache
as he wandered off into unknown parts of the land without letters back
home. The father did not know if he was dead or alive. And then he comes
ambling back up the lane, a shell of his former self. Filthy.
Malnutritioned. Scraggly. Hed been wallowing in the pig pen, after all!
Heres the fathers opportunity turn him around and, with a swift kick to
the rear, to launch into back down the road on his way. Or to give him
the fatherly lecture on proper responsibility. Or, at least, to deliver
the well deserved I told you so!

So what does this father do? He throws a party! A magnificent party! A
wild party! He sets out the best stuff and prepares the best stuff. He
loses track of everything else around him. He forgets everything else
going on. He forgets even to call his other son. Nothing is more
important than the joy of this moment!

Isnt this a lack of responsibility? How is the younger son supposed to
learn responsibility if hes welcomed back like this? How is the older
son supposed to be praised for his steady work and clear head? God,
youre too joyful! Knock it off!

But Jesus wants us to know that this is the way of God the Father. He
doesnt rejoice over rebellion and sin and immorality, but He does
rejoice greatly and mightily when rebellion and sin and immorality - and
evil - are defeated. There is no greater defeat over evil than when a
man, woman, or child receives Gods salvation. Subsequently, there is no
greater victory; there is no greater joy.

But what about the other brother? The one who has hung in there day after
day, steadily going about his duties while this younger sibling is off
tramping about with unsavory characters and having the so-called time of
his life? In fact, he probably had to work even harder to make up for
his little brothers absence. After all, the chores still needed to be
done regardless of who was or was not there. It seems so unfair that he
was so disregarded and forgotten about and unrewarded.

But look again. He wasnt left out. He was never left out. He was as
present in the fathers mercies as many days as the younger brother was
absent. He received his fathers blessings day in and day out. My son,
the father said, you were always with me, and everything I have is
yours. He was not left out; he was very much included.

Like the people that the older son in the parable is supposed to
represent, the Pharisees and other religious groups of the day did not
know how to deal with Gods joyous abandonment. They knew how to try and
limit it. They no doubt enjoyed the prescribed festivals, but they were
limited to the right people. No outsiders. Any attempt by anyone from an
outside group to be a recipient of Gods joy would ruin their party.
Theirs became a purity for puritys sake. They forgot about Gods
redemptive purpose. Gentiles struggled to become followers of God, and
the religious rulers ensured that they kept struggling. Backslidden Jews
struggled to correct their past, and the religious rulers ensured that
they kept struggling. God and all of heaven were rejoicing, but the
older brothers kept trying to ensure that no one they knew rejoiced.

I may be overstating the scenario somewhat; it is difficult to tell
exactly what went on back then. But Jesus story indicates that his
listeners needed a solid lesson about Gods joy. What really makes God
joyful? In these three separate episodes found in Luke 15, Jesus says
that it is when the lost one is found. When salvation is received by
anyone, and the evil satan deprived of another tortured soul - when evil
is overcome - then God breaks forth in riotous joy! He is uninhibited. He
goes crazy. He becomes embarrassingly extravagant. And He does not forget
those who walk with Him - the older brothers. The saved know that there
is supposed to be a party; we have a standing invitation. Jealousy and
righteous indignation are silly at this point. A soul has been saved; a
child has come home. This is no time to stand on stubborn
self-righteousness; it is a time to experience Gods joy.

Those who want to make God out to be some unmoving, unemotional force
just havent read the Bible with understanding. The Bible is filled with
a very passionate and emotional God. Yes, it is true that our joy and
love for God are not ultimately dependent upon our emotions of the
moment. We can be in some very tragic situations - the disciples were.
They experienced beatings and arrests and false accusations. Yet they
spoke and wrote about joy. How could they do this? Were they indeed just
living some fantasy life, as some suggest? Hardly. Their joy during the
traumatic times was as real as their joy during good times because they
knew the ultimate source of joy. They knew that when any younger
brother returned to the Father that there was a great party going on.
And they werent going to miss a second of it. There was no way they were
going to misplace their standing invitation and mope around outside with
the party of Gods joy going on inside.

But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was
dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.

Rev. Charles A. Layne, pastor, First Baptist Church, Bunker Hill, IN

________________________________________________________________
The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand!
Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER!
Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today!

Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

EMOTIONS OF GOD #3/4
DIVINE JOY
August 17, 2003

Text: Luke 15:20-32

In a four part sermon series, I am preaching on the topic of the emotions
of God. On the past two Sundays, I have addressed the topic of Gods
jealousy and anger. These are two emotions that are typically unsettling
to us as humans, and even more so when they are attributed to Gods
mighty power. Yet, even though these emotions which can be terrifying,
Gods Word reveals His ongoing redemptive nature. God will not do
anything that is not redemptive.

This morning, I address an emotion that is probably more pleasant to us:
joy. When we think of someone expressing joy, we can probably feel more
at ease. I think that most of us typically do not feel threatened by a
joyful person. Joy is a happy emotion.

The Bible indicates that Gods joy is a happy experience as well. In
Nehemiah chapter 8, we read of one of Israels revival times. The people
are assembled and hear Gods Law read. They hear it, understand it, and
are convicted by it. They weep because of their conviction. But Nehemiah
tells them not to weep. Verse 10, Nehemiah said, Go and enjoy choice
food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared.
This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is
your strength. This is the basis for one of our songs, The Joy of the
Lord Is Your Strength.

Gods joy brings joy to His faithful followers. The Psalms are filled
with references to joy and rejoicing. Psalm 28:6-7. Praise be to the
Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my
shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy
and I will give thanks to him in song. Psalm 65:8. Those living far
away fear your wonders; where morning dawns and evening fades you [God]
call forth songs of joy. Psalm 98:4-6. Shout for joy to the Lord, all
the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord
with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and
the blast of the rams horn - shout for joy before the Lord, the King.
Yes, there is great happiness to be found in the Lords joy and our joy
in the Lord.

Let us not forget, though, that Gods joy is redemptive. Or, probably
more accurately, Gods joy is the result of His redemption. In a Bible
dictionary description of the word joy, I read, The one real
difference between [Old Testament] and [New Testament] attitudes toward
joy is that the [New Testament] writers go on to make the bold statement
of joy in suffering as well as in salvation. The [Old Testament] makes
clear that mans cause for rejoicing is in God and not in himself (Jer.
9:23-24). Joy is, however, related primarily to Gods triumph over evil,
as demonstrated in the recovery of health, or in some other victory of
national or personal existence. It is in the [New Testament] that we find
the statement of joy in suffering itself, or in weakness seen in terms of
a power of God made perfect in weakness (Matt. 5:12; II Cor. 12:9). (D.
Harvey, Joy, The Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible, vol. 2,
Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1962, p. 1000)

Gods triumph over evil, especially as found in the greatest triumph
through Jesus the Son, is great cause for Gods joy and, consequently,
our joy. The fifteenth chapter of Luke is probably more descriptive of
this kind of joy than anywhere else in the Bible. Three parables tell of
the redemptive salvation of the lost. Jesus concludes the story of the
lost sheep by saying, I tell you that in the same way there is more
rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine
righteous persons who do not need to repent. Likewise, in his short
story of the lost coin, Jesus ends, In the same way, I tell you, there
is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who
repents. In the third story, Jesus really sets the stage with the
description of a son who receives his fathers good gifts, senselessly
squanders them, hits rock bottom, comes to some sense, decides to return
home and beg to be just a servant in his fathers house, and is welcomed
with joy beyond his imagination. Pick up with verse 22, But the father
said, Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his
finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. For
this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.
So they began to celebrate.

We learn here that Gods divine joy can seem to us just as dangerous as
Gods divine jealousy or Gods divine anger. God, as represented by the
storys father, becomes too joyful here. He forgets that this rebellious
son squandered his wealth. He brought his father all kinds of heartache
as he wandered off into unknown parts of the land without letters back
home. The father did not know if he was dead or alive. And then he comes
ambling back up the lane, a shell of his former self. Filthy.
Malnutritioned. Scraggly. Hed been wallowing in the pig pen, after all!
Heres the fathers opportunity turn him around and, with a swift kick to
the rear, to launch into back down the road on his way. Or to give him
the fatherly lecture on proper responsibility. Or, at least, to deliver
the well deserved I told you so!

So what does this father do? He throws a party! A magnificent party! A
wild party! He sets out the best stuff and prepares the best stuff. He
loses track of everything else around him. He forgets everything else
going on. He forgets even to call his other son. Nothing is more
important than the joy of this moment!

Isnt this a lack of responsibility? How is the younger son supposed to
learn responsibility if hes welcomed back like this? How is the older
son supposed to be praised for his steady work and clear head? God,
youre too joyful! Knock it off!

But Jesus wants us to know that this is the way of God the Father. He
doesnt rejoice over rebellion and sin and immorality, but He does
rejoice greatly and mightily when rebellion and sin and immorality - and
evil - are defeated. There is no greater defeat over evil than when a
man, woman, or child receives Gods salvation. Subsequently, there is no
greater victory; there is no greater joy.

But what about the other brother? The one who has hung in there day after
day, steadily going about his duties while this younger sibling is off
tramping about with unsavory characters and having the so-called time of
his life? In fact, he probably had to work even harder to make up for
his little brothers absence. After all, the chores still needed to be
done regardless of who was or was not there. It seems so unfair that he
was so disregarded and forgotten about and unrewarded.

But look again. He wasnt left out. He was never left out. He was as
present in the fathers mercies as many days as the younger brother was
absent. He received his fathers blessings day in and day out. My son,
the father said, you were always with me, and everything I have is
yours. He was not left out; he was very much included.

Like the people that the older son in the parable is supposed to
represent, the Pharisees and other religious groups of the day did not
know how to deal with Gods joyous abandonment. They knew how to try and
limit it. They no doubt enjoyed the prescribed festivals, but they were
limited to the right people. No outsiders. Any attempt by anyone from an
outside group to be a recipient of Gods joy would ruin their party.
Theirs became a purity for puritys sake. They forgot about Gods
redemptive purpose. Gentiles struggled to become followers of God, and
the religious rulers ensured that they kept struggling. Backslidden Jews
struggled to correct their past, and the religious rulers ensured that
they kept struggling. God and all of heaven were rejoicing, but the
older brothers kept trying to ensure that no one they knew rejoiced.

I may be overstating the scenario somewhat; it is difficult to tell
exactly what went on back then. But Jesus story indicates that his
listeners needed a solid lesson about Gods joy. What really makes God
joyful? In these three separate episodes found in Luke 15, Jesus says
that it is when the lost one is found. When salvation is received by
anyone, and the evil satan deprived of another tortured soul - when evil
is overcome - then God breaks forth in riotous joy! He is uninhibited. He
goes crazy. He becomes embarrassingly extravagant. And He does not forget
those who walk with Him - the older brothers. The saved know that there
is supposed to be a party; we have a standing invitation. Jealousy and
righteous indignation are silly at this point. A soul has been saved; a
child has come home. This is no time to stand on stubborn
self-righteousness; it is a time to experience Gods joy.

Those who want to make God out to be some unmoving, unemotional force
just havent read the Bible with understanding. The Bible is filled with
a very passionate and emotional God. Yes, it is true that our joy and
love for God are not ultimately dependent upon our emotions of the
moment. We can be in some very tragic situations - the disciples were.
They experienced beatings and arrests and false accusations. Yet they
spoke and wrote about joy. How could they do this? Were they indeed just
living some fantasy life, as some suggest? Hardly. Their joy during the
traumatic times was as real as their joy during good times because they
knew the ultimate source of joy. They knew that when any younger
brother returned to the Father that there was a great party going on.
And they werent going to miss a second of it. There was no way they were
going to misplace their standing invitation and mope around outside with
the party of Gods joy going on inside.

But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was
dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.

Rev. Charles A. Layne, pastor, First Baptist Church, Bunker Hill, IN

________________________________________________________________
The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand!
Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER!
Only $14.95/ month - visit http://www.juno.com to sign up today!