Christian Joy: May 21, 2017

Scripture: 1 Peter 4:12-14 (NIV)

12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.

Title: Christian Joy

1. Joy and creation – Creation itself expresses joy in the creator (Psalm 96:11-13)
2. Joy and religion – Christianity is the religion of enduring joy (Philippians 3:1-3, 7-11)
3. The joy of the lord vs. Fun – Christian joy is far superior to the fickle fun and happiness of a dying world (Philippians 4:4-7)

CONCLUSION:

A concluding thought:

Why Then is Christianity such a religion of joy, even though at its center stands the suffering of God and the cross of Christ? Because we remember the death of Christ in the light of his resurrection, and we remember his resurrection in the splendor of the divine, eternal life that is embracing our human and mortal life already here and now…. So, pain too will be caught up and gathered into joy, despair into hope, and temporal death into the joy of divine life. Pains are passing, and I hear praise everlasting. 

By Jürgen Moltmann, in “Christianity: A Religion of Joy”

– 2012 lecture at Yale Center for Faith & Culture