Today's Message: The Choice to Rejoice
Good Morning Beloved,
Thank all of you for joining us here today.
Heavenly Father,
Thank You for the truths today for all of us, those You have assembled us together today, to receive it.
I pray that it will settle deep within our hearts, and we may become changed by this rich and glorious text. Lord, I ask that You will lead us to share it with those we encounter, that we may help to bring about a change in our society, and in Your world. That we may truly fulfill Your command, to love our neighbor. Be it all for Your glory.
In Christ's name
Amen
Open with me, if you would, your Bibles to the book of Philippians, chapter 4. I believe, God has a message for all us of us today,one I hope and pray will be encouraging to you.
"So then, my brothers, you are dearly loved and longed for—my joy and crown. In this manner stand firm in the Lord, dear friends. 2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to agree in the Lord. 3 Yes, I also ask you, true partner, to help these women who have contended for the gospel at my side, along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers whose names are in the book of life. 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that once again you renewed your care for me. You were, in fact, concerned about me but lacked the opportunity to show it. 11 I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. 12 I know both how to have a little, and I know how to have a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content—whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. 13 I am able to do all things through Him who strengthens me. 14 Still, you did well by sharing with me in my hardship.
15 And you Philippians know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that is increasing to your account. 18 But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance. I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. Those brothers who are with me greet you. 22 All the saints greet you, but especially those from Caesar’s household. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit."
Philippians 4:1-23
How many of you know the word, platitude? So what is platitude? A "platitude" is a comment or statement that a person makes that is often flat or dull that is meant to sound very fresh and profound. At first, these statements often appear deep, but in the end, they really mean nothing at all, or just simply aren't true. Whether you realize it or not, I'm sure that you've likely heard many of them. Typically, they have something to do with when life gets hard or difficult or we have problems and attempt to say, that somehow, the situation will work out fine. Platitudes are usually NOT helpful in any way shape or form. Allow me to share with you a few examples:
"It is what it is"
"Everything happens for a reason"
"Every cloud has a silver lining"
"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"
"What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger"
And there are certainly a plethora of others, many of which are easily seen about, on T-shirts.
I want to share with you today, a phrase, one I hope will not be seen as a platitude, but I pray will be found to be helpful, useful and transformative in our lives. As this is a phrase grounded in Scripture.
One that, I pray can speak to us when our life is spiraling downward, provide an umbrella of truth that can encourage us when the rain is pouring in our lives.
"Make a choice to rejoice!"
I realize, that initially, it may not appear to be helpful. It sounds like just a nice thing to say, but doesn't have any impact in real life. It doesn't really effect our reality. But allow me to share with you today, a Word from God, through the Holy Spirit, that we can find is rooted in the book of Philippians 4. Allow me to just read our text to you:
"So then, my brothers, you are dearly loved and longed for—my joy and crown. In this manner stand firm in the Lord, dear friends. I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I also ask you, true partner, to help these women who have contended for the gospel at my side, along with Clement and the rest of my coworkers whose names are in the book of life. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that once again you renewed your care for me. You were, in fact, concerned about me but lacked the opportunity to show it. I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know both how to have a little, and I know how to have a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content—whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. I am able to do all things through Him who strengthens me. Still, you did well by sharing with me in my hardship.
And you Philippians know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone. For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that is increasing to your account. But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance. I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. Those brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, but especially those from Caesar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit."
As we can see from our text, as Philippians 4 opens, we find that not everything is going well in the church of Philippi, and there is a trouble brewing. The apostle Paul, knows several of them in the midst of the problem. To be honest, these are not people that Paul just knows, but are people that he calls "loyal yokefellow." These are people that Paul considers, to be partners, partners in preaching.
These are, comrades of the Kingdom, as it were. Paul mentions by name, Euodia, Syntyche, and Clement, in verses 2 and 3. There is something amiss with them. Notice that in verse 2 these two women, Euodia and Syntyche, are not just arguing about something petty, something easily agreed upon, but they are actually arguing, their disagreement has to do with faith. I am thinking that the disagreement is so intense, that it is causing a problem within the church. So much so, that Paul feels the need to mention it in his letter.

I would like to encourage each of you to just think about that for a moment: People that Paul knows and loves, are arguing with one other and their disagreement, is causing problems in the church. I am quite certain, that makes him feel saddened, disappointed. I imagine, Paul feels very frustrated with them. Because, he not only asks them to resolve their differences, but notice that in verse 2, that Paul "pleads" with them. He pleads with them to resolve their differences. I don't know about you, but to me, that shows how serious the issue has become and how important these two ladies are to the Philippian church. Therefore, we can sense, Paul determines, this has become a serious, serious problem.
And so, in the midst of dealing with disappointing people, Paul is speaking about the disagreement of Euodia and Syntyche and then instructs us to rejoice! Verse 4 says, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" In the midst of disagreements, problems, disappointment or painful circumstances, we can, indeed, rejoice in the middle of it.
Paul continues to write to the Philippians about how they should approach their lives. He focuses their attention on two areas as they deal with anxious situations in their lives. These two areas are the foundation of making the choice to rejoice.
First, Paul shares with us in verse 6 that we are to pray and ask God about all things in our lives.
Prayer is communication with God, it is the first area in which we can demonstrate that we are rejoicing. Prayer is a decision. Prayer is a choice. Prayer is not something that automatically happens, but rather prayer is a conscience decision, to stop, to pause, and direct our attention, our minds and hearts to God. We seem to allow ourselves, to get too busy to pray. We sometimes forget about praying, because our minds are preoccupied. Sometimes, because we think praying is pointless.
We can do what we want when we avoid praying. Sometimes, when God allows us to go through certain things, we don't understand, we can be too angry to pray. And sometimes, we just pray to God as a last resort, when everything else, has failed to work. Why do we do that? Why do we go to God, as a last resort, when we've exhausted everything we know to do?
Whenever, we have a problem:
We have a need to go to Him.
We have a problem we need to bring it to Him.
We have a medical concern, we need to share our fears with Him.
We are stressed out over our parents, our children, or grandchildren, we need express those concerns to God.
We have an issue with our car, we need to take it to Him, ask Him to work it out for your good.
Beloved, we all have situations, or people in our lives, that disappoint us, we need to pray for them.
The first step in choosing to rejoice in our lives is keeping God at the forefront in our lives, in all things. Without prayer, making the choice to rejoice is not possible because rejoicing is rooted in God.
Secondly, Paul shares with us in verse 8, that we are to discipline our thinking to Godly things. Paul tells us that our thought life determines our reality. How we conduct ourselves, comes from how we think. How we react to situations, comes from how we think. How we feel inside, comes from the things our minds are settled on. And, our speech, the words that come from out of our mouths, are a direct result of what is going on in our hearts.
In Matthew 12:34, it says, "Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. A good man produces good things from his storeroom of good, and an evil man produces evil things from his storeroom of evil. I tell you that on the day of judgment people will have to account for every careless word they speak. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
Therefore, Paul tells us to focus our thoughts in certain areas on a regular basis:
Truth, Rightness, Purity, Love, Admiration, Excellence, Praise
These seven areas are the core of good holy Christian thinking. When we focus our thoughts on those things, our hearts and minds and spirits will be in a right state to rejoice. Even in any and all circumstances, we find ourselves in. Its no secret, that by allowing other thoughts to enter into us, it crowds these out. We begin to focus on lies, on things we're unhappy about, about being wronged, impure thoughts, we begin to think about hatred, selfishness, laziness, or entitlement and our perspective about life will become severely impacted. And, so will our attitudes.
In choosing to rejoice in our lives is to keep our mind centered on Godly things. Without the discipline of directing our hearts and minds heavenward, we cannot rejoice! Why? Because we will begin to focus on self, and our thoughts tend to stay there. What I'm going through, what they said to me, how unfair that is.
I want you to know that the Apostle Paul did not live a life that was free from difficulty, free from hardship. He was a traveling evangelist for Jesus Christ, who was often in physical danger and was often in need. In the verses we just read, Paul again focuses us on rejoicing, in verse 10. Paul talks about some of his hardships, in the midst of his rejoicing he describes them. He has felt alone. He has been isolated. He has been physically hungry. He has needed clothing or shelter. He has had a deep want in the pit of his stomach. Yet, Paul was rejoicing.
I would like to point out here, that the often quoted, Philippians 4:13 verse, about us doing all things through Christ, in context, implies being content with our money and physical material things, in the midst of hardships. Paul found that the only way he could be content with his financial circumstances was through his faith in Christ. He was not overwhelmed by loneliness or hunger or want because he was relying on Jesus for his worth and for his strength. It was faith that gave Paul the proper direction in hardships. It was his faith in Christ, that gave Paul the foundation for rejoicing in the midst of hardships.
The Apostle Paul, ends his letter to the Church in Philippi, reflecting on his interactions with them over the years. Paul traveled from place to place teaching about Jesus and investing in the lives of all the people around him. And at times, he was only scraping by. The Church in Philippi, according to verses 15-16, supported Paul in his work.
Now, Paul is thinking about his ministry in verse 18, Paul has the supplies he needs. We can imagine this means food, clothes, money for travel, and money for shelter. He says in verse 18 that he has all he needs and more. He had even just received gifts from the Philippians and he is thankful. The gifts they sent were the answer to a prayer. Paul prayed that his work would continue, he relied on Jesus Christ for his strength to continue.

So, in verse 18, Paul tells us that in the midst of this answered prayer that he is rejoicing in God. He is thankful to the Philippians for sending Epaphroditus with gifts. He is thankful to God for their sacrifices, which they made for him. He rejoices that these gifts are a fragrant offering to God and that God would return the blessings to the Philippians. Paul gives credit to God for the generosity of God’s people in Philippi and praises God for His provision. Beloved, do you know what that is?
That's rejoicing, that's rejoicing!
As we think about this message about choosing to rejoice, I would like to share with you today, a personal story. Not because, its such an interesting story, that I'm just dying to tell someone about, but because I believe its relevant, to the point I'm trying to make today. The Christian way of life is choosing to think on God and praise God, even in the midst of whatever is going on. Its not automatic, it is a decision, a choice and a discipline we must make part of our daily lives.
As we think about making the choice to rejoice in our lives, God should not be left out of our gratitude, our thankfulness, our acknowledgement of what is good, but that God should be the first One we praise and pray to when rejoicing occurs.
As I was preparing this message, I was reminded of a situation I was facing last summer. My vehicle, which I owned out right, so it had been paid off, was suddenly in need of repair. As I need to travel, almost daily, I needed my vehicle to be working properly. I first, took it to the dealership, where I had purchased it, only to learn it was a problem, they no longer address, as it was one of internal nature. Meaning, it required the engine, to be partially disassembled, repaired and put back together, in order to resolve the problem. Which the dealership, was no longer capable of handling. They recommended several mechanic garages, which I contacted, who informed me, they no longer repair those types of issues, they now, simply replace the engine. In my frustration, and shall I say, disbelief, that a mechanical facility, would no longer "fix" mechanical issues. I informed them, I'd check around, and contact other garages. The gentleman, chuckled, and said, "good luck." I of course, thanked him, and told him, that I didn't need "luck," I had God on my side.
After contacting numerous garages, and even taking it into several, I arrived at the conclusion, literally no one was willing, and as I was later informed, were not capable, of doing such a repair. Now, the funny thing is, I remember growing up, my dad, often, did these types of repairs. And yes, they were often challenging, and usually required some time and effort, but were in no way, an impossible repair.
Anyway, in speaking with one of the mechanics, I was able to determine, they would simply purchase an engine from the "junk yard," one with "likely, in order to keep the costs down, over a 100,000 miles on it," and all this would come with a 30 day warranty. All at the cost of $14,000. Which, needless to say, I didn't have. So, I began looking around for a reasonable, used vehicle. Now, I needed something that would accommodate my parents who no longer being able to drive, now relied heavily upon me, for their transportation needs. It didn't take long, for me to quickly realize, I couldn't afford, the repair nor could I afford to purchase a vehicle that would accommodate my needs. I was feeling completely lost.
I just couldn't understand, why God would allow this to happen. I mean, beyond the responsibility of caring for my parents, that I was also helping my sister and my five nieces and nephews, I needed a vehicle, to do all that He asks of me. Now, unable to accomplish any of that, what was I supposed to do? And so, I began checking with friends and associates, even some neighbors, literally anyone I could think of, to see if someone, had a vehicle I could either use temporarily, or purchase. And nothing. So, I continued my search. Finally, I settled upon a vehicle, contacted the dealer, we agreed on a price, however, I would need to hear back from their financing department, on payment, interest and length of the loan, et cetera.
In the meantime, I was searching for ways, costs I could eliminate, in order to be able to afford another monthly payment, and likely an increase in insurance premiums. I was able to eliminate a few things, that my sons and I could do without, and several ways in which I could reduce a few monthly expenses. It wasn't very much longer until I received a call back from the finance manager, telling me the costs of purchasing this particular vehicle. Not surprisingly, it was more than I could come up with. In attempting to, "close the deal," he then asked when I'd like to come in, sign the paperwork, and take possession. I informed him, that payment amount, just just beyond what I could come up with, he worked for a few minutes and was able to come up with a payment that I thought I could afford. So, I agreed and headed to the dealership, in the vehicle, that was now, barely able to make the journey.

He began telling me, how he was able to find better terms, a better interest rate, therefore, lowering the monthly payment. Now, I'd like to point out here, it was substantially lower. I signed the documents, thanked him for all his effort and took possession of the vehicle. When I arrived back at home, I contacted my insurance agent, reporting the change in vehicles, and awaited to hear the cost of the higher insurance premium. She calculated the numbers and said "Well, I have the amount of your new premium." I sighed, and awaited the bad news. She proceeded to tell me, that though it was a newer vehicle than I previously had, it was in a different category, the new premium was reduced. Again, I'd like to point out, it was a substantial amount. I thanked her for taking care of everything and ended the call.
Now, let me fill in an intentional omission from this story. I had been praying, through this entire process, asking God to take control over the situation. To somehow, make this bad situation, work out for my good. I took it to Him, in prayer. And God worked things out, and He did it, for my good.
All praise and glory to God. In all of our circumstances, His grace is sufficient.
And if you will allow Him the opportunity, if you take to Him your burdens and concerns, ask Him in prayer, to take control, He will do the same for you.
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
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