The Secret to Unspeakable Joy [Part 1]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan Ryan gave everybody became a helium balloon and a sub anytime during the worship where you feel the joy just go ahead and release the balloon to just float on and the past was sad to realize that the end that one doubloons of never been released. This of the Philippian epistle is a call to go ahead and release the balloon okay go ahead and take joy and rejoice in the Lord. That's Pastor Alan Wright welcome to another message of use that will help you see your life in a whole new life. I'm Dino. Excited for you to hear the teaching today. In the series.

Unspeakable joy is presented at renewal the church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program I want to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now.

It can be yours for your donation this month to Alan Wright Ministry as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer. Contact us at pastoralan.org or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860. More on that later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan writing good news.

Sisters pain is inevitable, but misery is optional and there's a big screen being happy and being joyful you can be. Believe it or not unhappy and yet joyful. It must be so because Paul said, rejoice in the Lord always again I say rejoice, and we are today launching into a series on the epistle to the Philippians that Paul wrote while he was imprisoned in Rome probably 60 to 62 A.D. and this letter is different than other letters because usually when Paul is writing like the Christians at Galatia or Corinth or the Colossian Christians. There is some big problem was going on in the church, a heresy, a wrong belief terrible practices in their behavioral life or something like that. And Paul would write an address and we have learned as we studied in recent years from these epistles, but the Philippian congregation was different in many ways it was it was a congregation. Perhaps a poll of the most you can just sense the warmth throughout the letter. It is written in the style of for friendship, letter a letter written to friends. He's writing to a healthy congregation then I just think that this is so appropriate for this congregation, and for many others who will be listening on these messages that we turn in a timely way. In the midst of a world around us. That's increasingly pagan, but here in the womb of a church that is healthy and growing and loving and vibrant. What does God have to say to his friends in a healthy church and thus we come to Philippians joy is at the heart of this epistle and joy is at the heart of gospel centered living so often joy is treated as a more minor player amongst the virtues in the Christian life, but it is actually at the center of the fruit of the Spirit is love and joy and peace and we tend to think I found sometimes that joy is only for the superficial or joy is for those that are less serious minded about the weighty matters of life and in fact those of you only know me now and have seen me for the person I am with so much joy has come in my life over the years to the presence of the Holy Spirit that you would find it hard to believe that I was not always this way. For me, and in fact I had a time in my life that I really thought the people that were joyful all the time that they either they had a way to easy life and that's why there joyful. They had never had to face anything or if there were sort of superficial and that they just didn't understand the depths of the problems of the world and the dilemmas of life and they were taking life seriously enough. And what I've come to discover about joy and what will be unveiling in weeks ahead is just the opposite is in fact the joy of the Lord is not a diversion from the serious and weighty matters of life, but the joy of the Lord is our strength for walking through the difficult things and life in an effective matter that the deepest people are joyful people. GK Chesterton said that joy which was the small publicity of the pagan is the gigantic secret of the Christian someone once asked Mother Teresa. So what were the primary attributes that she looked for and whether to accept people to come and work with her and her ministry amongst the poor and Calcutta and you might think that she would say well the number one thing is concern for the poor, or an awareness of the injustice of the world.

You might think that she would point first to love or patients, but instead she said I look for two things. So I need to bill work hard and secondly many joy joy in the midst of the of the garbage heaps of Calcutta join them is to see the were suffering in the world. Joy is something that is not essential just for the individual but for the people for the body of Christ. I love being in a church that loves to celebrate and this takes a little doing for us as Presbyterians because it's not initially been our strongest suit terms of our heritage to those who been labeled the frozen chosen Bruce Larson tell the true story of the of a cover congregation in Nebraska. True story. And because these Presbyterians were never hard time releasing their joy. They try to an activity minister tried it. It's a game. Everybody became in a helium balloon and just said that anytime during the worship where you feel that joy just go ahead and release that blunt letter just float on up and the pastor was sad to realize that the end that one third of the blooms have never been released to visit the Philippian epistle is a call to go ahead and release of the balloon. Okay, go ahead and take joy and rejoice in the Lord and and I want to point first to the fact that it only 104 verses in Philippians.

There are 16 references to joy or its derivative word rejoice. You might want to just follow along if you're there at Philippians just to give you a couple examples.

A few examples of this. Philippians 1 verse three I thank my God in all my remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy is prematurely is remembering them with joy.

Verse 18, chapter 1 what then only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth crisis, proclaim, and in that I rejoice.

Yes, and I will rejoice for another through your prayers and help the spirit of Jesus Christ.

This will turn out for my deliverance in verse 25 commits to this. I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith is chapter 2 verse one. If there's any encouragement Christ any comfort from love any participation in the spirit any affection and sympathy complete my joy by being of the same mind chapter 2 verse 17.

Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering about the sacrificial offering of your faith. I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise, you should be glad and rejoice with me.

Chapter 4 verse one. Therefore, my brothers whom I love and long for my joy and my crown and and then the well-known verse four of chapter 4 rejoice in the Lord always again I say rejoice.

There's a spiritual battle to try to rob us of joy. I think probably the biggest problem that competes against our joy is the temptation to let the circumstances of our lives be the determiner of our joy, or of the level of our joy.

Take one thing away from Philippians just have to just keep focused on this, the man Paul is in prison and he has joy he might be facing execution and he has joy. He is in prison because he been mistreated.

His life is been filled with suffering and he has joy but more than that. Think of this. This man who is in prison is writing to people who are in prison encouraging them wanting them to have Joy so the point of this is that it must be possible to rejoice in the Lord always. Or else we would not be given such a command from the Lord is with her something very different about about happiness, which is related to having good circumstances is quite all right to be unhappy it is. It's quite all right. In fact, if you never unhappy there be something that is probably wrong with your soul because in this life you can face trouble and when you face grief. The proper response is to be sad about that. The proper response to life itself is not sadness, but the proper response to the difficulties in the disappointments and the losses in life. It's that sadness something about Jesus heat he was.

He wasn't like the Stoics. The Greek philosophers who are always try to conceal their tears always try to act as though he had no feelings but instead he openly showed his tears he was openly sad, even though he knew of the glory of the outcome of his mission.

He was still sad and Jesus was angry at times flinging furniture down the down the steps of the temple in a rage against the misuse of the message of God and so Jesus very real and and. And God called us to be real. What we're talking about we talk about joyful time at a spiritual thing were talking about something that is of the heart. Something in my sins of the spirit. You might say that that happiness is something of the soul with joy something of the spirit is something that is produced by God's presence within our life and and that's what we really want to learn about them was seen in and in Paul's life and there is a principal at Paul's lifting up here of the power of having joy in the midst of something that's very difficult.

Author Leo was going to tell the story some years ago about his mother and what he called their mystery dinner. His dad came home one day from work and said to the family look like they would have to file bankruptcy because his business partner had absconded with their firms, funds in the Scoggins that his mother did a very strange thing.

She went out and she sold some jewelry in order to buy food to come home and prepare a sumptuous feast and they had this big feast and some of the family members extended family member scolded her for it.

But she responded and said the time for joy is now when we need it most.

Not next week, that's Alan Wright will have more teaching in a moment. Today's important series is not actually right reserved for those who have no problems or have you ever assume that some people are just born with a joyful personality. If so, get ready for some good news. Joy is a fruit of the spirit available to all in Christ, no matter the circumstances of life there. Paul was in jail when he read his epistle to the Philippians he spoke of joy 16 times matter what you're going through. You too can discover the secret to unspeakable joy as pastor at NYPD through a life building explanation of Philippians. When you make a gift to sharing in light ministries.

Today was thinking a new CD album the secret and unspeakable joy as our way of saying thank you for your partnership. Your gifts are the only way we are able to continue broadcasting the message of grace all over the nation. Happiness may rise and fall with happenstance that Julie is ever present in the spirit to become a partner today and discover joint like never before. We are happy to send this to you as I thanks from Alan Wright Ministries, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor out and got like today's teaching now continues your once again is Alan Wright everything about Paul's letters pointing to this truth, that your joy is not determined by whether life is going the way you wanted to go then and this is so important because I don't know that you personally but and in my life.

The great competitor against joy is not just difficult circumstances. But if those times when life is just not being fair at all and is a hard thing to accept the. The rain falls on the just and the unjust is a very hard thing to accept very hard thing to accept. I was reading the paper this week that there was a couple in Virginia maybe you saw this, that one of a share of $1 million lottery and the problem is they bought the lottery ticket was stolen money and they had proof of it because this couple worked in a grocery store, and money was disappearing from the grocery store so they owners installed hidden video camera and the video camera showed them what they were doing as they would ring up phony returns like some I had returned an item so they ring up like there was return, and they pull the cash out the door put in your own pocket and they had video them ring up phony returns take the cash out and buy lottery tickets and then they win the lottery I might come all God now. I mean you like that is like no, wait a minute, wait a minute. If you let somebody win the lottery. Don't take it to give it to the person who just stole the money to do it, but in life. Funny like that. I had an old friend in town. This is sweet my Vandals buddy Richard and I we get adopting a ground play some golf and we came up to a whole is dogleg right and the only real problem on this whole is a big tree that's right there just at the edge of the fairway on the right and so if you tried to cut off too much.

You hit that big tree. You gotta play it out to the left so I told Richard to listen play it out to left side fair like forget about that tree, I stepped up there and when I do I hit it right into that tree.

I mean I hit it hard right in that tree. I said through it and the ball listen to me and the ball just made it through this thick tree went 30 yards on the other side leaving me a small lob wedge into the screen. It was best drive I'd hit a long time there been that close that hope and and and Richard said yeah you know, I guess the Lord loves you, and I laughed with him and I said I said you are so funny where I play golf with people. If I get a good break like that Arab eyes are like, well, that's the preacher you know you get the good break like that and we laughed about that little bit and he got up there and he hit the exact same shot that I hit right into that exact same tree.

I mean, he had about the same pace the same height it was the same shot and he said to get through it and instead it rattled all around the tree and drop right behind a tree totally blocked from going at the great and Richard is 50 yards behind me doesn't have a shot ring looked upset serve you to witness these silly to say well you know what the Lord loves Alan morning love Richard is ministries going better and richer drive now and God blessed you with that would not just be silly. So I would ever do that about big things in life either takes on this variance develop a long time ago on this, but the Philippian church got started in part because Paul and Silas were in prison put in shackles and into the innermost part of the prison at Philippi and then by a mighty act of God, which was a earthquake that is a powerful visitation from the Lord shackles fall off the jail and they are set free and immune is so powerful it is so amazing that the jailer gets converted and become part of the of the church there at Philippi and then instead of slipping on out of town again out of there. You know the deal. What will you guys better doing out here in N0 and and polish so copies of Wheeler go on your quality was about people know about that. They put is inherently good. When I believe in secret, let them see God set us free to be so powerful and so confident and yet he's writing a letter to the Philippians incarcerated in Rome for a couple years with no earthquake. I figure the business I because now I'm in prison and then I was broken free. Now I'm not blessed and then I was. We understand anything about the ways of God. Do and in this world. The rain falls on the just and the unjust. If the rain falls and we need it in one farmer needs it, who loves the Lord and he's right next to another farmer done lovelorn. The rain falls right down both their field and the unfairness of life can make it where we just feel like, man.

It's so hard to feel blessed when life seems so unfair.

Although in this epistle. He just surprises me.

I just my first beginnings of the study. As I just went through and I just are right now my surprises of the things that Paul doesn't talk about thing about myself that if I was right in prison and and and I was right with you guys and I was over somewhere in another country wrongly imprisoned and now try to put myself in what would I be writing to you guys would still like told him to sell it to me. I'm surprised I'm surprised he doesn't talk about being wrongly imprisoned.

There is no reference here about how the Jewish people should become against him.

What really doing anything wrong.

I don't deserve to be imprisoned in a setting like that and referred the difficulty of the circumstances that to say that is learned to be content in whatever circumstances then write about how vexing it is to try to figure out why God would allow it because he would be immediate. Gotta wonder why what wines always is going on but he just doesn't go there with his mind. He's not trying to answer unanswerable questions and he doesn't allow his soul to be vexed by these difficult questions I'm dealing with that event is he doesn't try to rally support to get him out of prison that he wants to get out and you say I appreciate your supporting me financially appreciate you praying for me. I'm believing for my deliverance from this prison, I mean he wants to get out his is it is not that he will sustain present but if you found right. You gotta be like organize all the lawyers get a protest, a petition going to the government send Rachel Maddow give me out here. We've got a lot of good. We still need to do. I can't do it for probably not bother me when I pulled into it like that doesn't think he doesn't denigrate the Roman government. This stupid government. These pagan people don't even know Lord no one.

Ron imprisoned this is our whole problem when it is protest against government so that you get frustrated with me for not talking politics from the pulpit and if you're one of those get frustrated about that. I want you to know this. Don't think it doesn't mean that I don't care what don't think I'll wake up in the morning and look at the paper and get mad about what Isaac don't think that I wake up in the morning and feel like just like the letter to the editor every single day about something. Don't hope for a moment think that I don't care. But just this is my model is causing prison government surrounded by phony gods and goddesses and instead what is he do he just keeps preaching the gospel care. You should care. The point of thing is is it because it's been anytime here talking about the evil empire that is put him into a doesn't vent his anger against the Jews who were responsible for the present doesn't talk about the rigid evils that are rampant all around them to the paganism and idolatry that surrounds them their gods and goddesses were celebrated on every street corner where he was.

He doesn't spend time addressing any of that and Paul is not on the other hand, in any sense of denial of the difficulties that he is facing right in today's teaching as we kick off this new series unspeakable joy.

It's the secret to unspeakable joy. Alan is back in a moment with additional insight on this for your life and define the word new sold it seriously and constantly desires to label the rights. Julie is an elusive dream reserve for select who had no problems or for those who were born with a joyful disposition actually joins the fruit of the spirit available to all in Christ, no matter what you're facing. You can have the joy of the Lord in the midst if possible. Paul.even his epistle to the Philippians. While in prison he spoke of Julie 16 times. Alan writes newest album, the secretive unspeakable joy takes you chapter by chapter 3 Paul's explanation of the secret of joy when you make a gift to data sharing in light beacon light new CD out on our way of thinking. Thanks for your partners come apart and discover the secrets unspeakable joy. We are happy to send this to you as I thanks from Alan Wright Ministries, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website past Rowan.work and were excited about launching this new series and right in the middle of his first teaching the secret to unspeakable joy. What is our take away from the series issue this.

It's a huge surprise that Paul doesn't talk about being wrongly imprisoned, doesn't talk about the difficulty of his circumstances doesn't write about how vexing it is to try to figure out why God would allow it or why there is so much injustice in the world. It doesn't denigrate the Roman government, which was so oppressive doesn't vent his anger against the Jewish people originally responsible for the present day, and if he doesn't spend his time in that but is not in denial instead. This is an authentic joy that is not connected to circumstances. Instead it is connected to the experience of the gospel of grace and that's what were going to be learning about all throughout this incredible journey. The secret of unspeakable joy if you only caught part of today's teaching. Not only can you listen again online but also get a daily email devotional that matches today's teaching right to your email inbox free. Find out more about these and other resources at pastor at.org that's pastor out at.org. Today's good news message is a listener supported production Alan Wright Ministries