Good morning, I'm John, if you haven't met me, I'm one of the staff here.
We have been sitting under Paul's teaching over many weeks now, through Romans and now in Philippians.
And what kind of Christian would you say Paul is?
Let's do a word cloud.
The way it works is if you open your camera and point to this QR code, you'll get to your page.
Or if you actually open your browser and just type minti.com and then the number is 1964-3376.
Don't worry if you don't have a phone, this is an exercise that you can actually ask people next to you to do it for you.
So, Wendy, maybe you can go to that page when you're ready.
Oh, okay.
It's building in.
So, if you don't have a phone, just ask the person next to you to put it for you.
You can put it multiple times, as many as you like.
Whatever comes to your mind and as often as you like.
So, hardcore, faithful, good, loving, humble, passionate.
Wow, it's going well.
Going really, really well.
So, what kind of Christian is Paul to your mind?
So, if you're in that blank, going, okay, wow, it's different.
You still doing it?
Still having fun?
It's getting bigger.
Getting harder to read the word.
Okay, let's pause there.
Okay.
What would you say about someone that's in this room?
How about me?
So, Wendy, if you go back just on your keyboard, go to the right arrow.
Yes.
John Lau is such a word Christian.
You can be brutally honest, okay, or as kind and nice as you want.
I'm ready to eat any humble pie that you throw at me for breakfast this morning.
And it will be good for my personal growth, okay?
Teddy bear.
Wow.
It's very flattering.
Thank you.
All good.
Now, we're going to go back to the presented slide.
You can look at the result later on.
It actually, once you've done it, you've got a few days to go back to look at it.
And you can feel free to keep going in, putting John Lau is such a word.
So, give some time for Wendy to...
Cool.
Finally, if you put your name...
We go back to the...
Yeah.
If you put your name at the beginning of this sentence,
what would you use in a space before Christian to describe your own life?
That's for you to think through.
In Paul's letter to the Philippians, the word grace and thanks come from the same roots in the original language of joy.
So, if you highlight those words and the related words like gracious, give thanks, rejoice with, or rejoice,
as you read the letter of Philippians,
it's very convincing that the theme of this letter of Philippians is joy,
which James has...
our assistant minister have pointed out for us the last two weeks.
Paul was in prison when he wrote the letter, but even as a prisoner, he was filled with joy,
which permeated his letters.
But that being said, we just read chapter 3.
Do you notice how many times the word related to joy appears?
In the whole chapter of chapter 3.
Once.
Right at the very beginning.
Rejoice in the Lord.
Once.
In the whole chapter.
This lack of occurrence does not mean I'm very bad at counting,
or have contradicted myself about the theme of the letter,
but it served to reveal a secret, the secret of Paul's joy.
The secret of Paul's joy was his relationship with Jesus Christ.
The proof is in the letter of Philippians,
which begins and ends with the name of Jesus.
And Paul mentioned his beloved Savior 40 times in the letter,
and 10 times in this chapter 3,
which average at least once every two verses.
The reason for Paul's joy was his relationship with Christ.
And we have observed two chapters of how Paul's joy was tested in Rome's prison.
Now, and how he held on to destroy his Savior Jesus.
If Paul's relationship to his Master Jesus Christ
could bring him joy under those conditions,
then surely we who also love the Savior
can learn to rejoice in any of our difficult times.
And if you do not know Jesus,
as Nick had pointed out before,
I hope you'll get to know him soon
and share that joy.
The last few years have not been easy for many people.
And I will be okay even to say that
the last few years have been difficult for many people.
However, difficult times should not prove to be our cute joys.
But there are things that we must watch out for
which will kill our joy.
So let's check out a few of the cute joys today
and look at the real joy that Paul wants us to know.
Please turn again back to chapter 3 of Philippians
and we are reading from verse 1 to 4.
Further, my brothers and sisters,
rejoice in the Lord.
It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again
and it is a safeguard for you.
Watch out for those dogs,
those evildoers,
those mutilators of the flesh.
For it is we who are the circumcision,
we who serve God by his Spirit,
who boasts in Christ Jesus
and who put no confidence in the flesh,
though I myself have reason for such confidence.
If you look back on the word cloud
about what kind of Christian Paul is,
I wonder how many words are related to joy.
I think verse 2 to 4 here
should have more of my image of Paul
hard line, strong word, and very to the point.
But Paul was never harsh.
He spoke strongly and compassionately
on some issue to safeguard his audience
because it can become a matter of life and death.
Paul gave a strong warning about a group of people.
He called them dogs,
evildoers,
and mutilators of the flesh.
They claimed to serve God by their teaching
and boastful
and put confidence in their flesh.
Further down in verse 18 to 19,
he said,
For as I have often told you before and now,
tell you again even with tears.
Many live as enemy of the cross of Christ.
Their destiny is destruction,
their God is their stomach,
and their glory is in their shame.
Their mind is set on earthy things.
Verse 9 hinted that they are people with a righteousness
that comes from the law,
from how well they observe the law
and make sure others follow them
in relying on their merit.
Paul gets very hard line about this intruder of faith.
Legalists that legalistically follow the law,
they are joy killers
that Philippians and believers of God
need to be aware of.
Legalism and those that bring such teaching
is the first kill joy.
God has warned his people throughout the Bible
to be aware of people or false teachers
that are not of him.
In Isaiah 56, verse 10 to 11,
God says,
Israel's watchmen are blind.
They all lack knowledge.
They are all mute dogs.
They cannot bark.
They lie around and dream.
They love to sleep.
They are dogs with mighty appetites.
They never have enough.
They are shepherds who lack understanding.
They all turn to their own way.
They seek their own gain.
The people that Paul was warning the Philippians about
were teaching a form of work salvation,
where people must work for their own redemption
and believe that their seal in influencing others
others to follow them was part of their being accepted by God.
They required the believers to become a Jew
by circumcision to be saved.
They were a mutilator of the flesh of their brothers.
Their teaching is not the gospel
because it was teaching of a Jesus plus something.
In this case, circumcision
and observing rituals for salvation.
A legalistic mindset
is one of the earthly mindset
that Paul refers to in verse 19.
Legalism is pursuing good works
to earn God's favor to save oneself,
which is not unique in Paul's time.
It is the backbone of all kinds of religion.
It is in the air we breathe in this fallen world.
It is so easy to fall into the trap
of relying on good works
and not believing that God justified us
by our faith alone.
So Paul needs to warn believers strongly.
A pastor once said,
the essence of legalism
is when faith is not the engine of obedience.
We are not operating with faith
when we work hard to earn God's favor.
Let me say that again.
We are not operating with faith
when we work hard to earn God's favor.
We might not say it out loud,
but our actions and ways of life
are saying that we must add
to the finished work of Jesus on the cross.
His work wasn't enough.
Therefore, we must work to make God happy.
We must take it into our own hands
to be accepted by God.
Most new Christians,
especially those that become one later in life
or are not born into a Christian family,
have a kind of legalistic way
of what it means to be a Christian.
I know I did.
We seem to believe
if I surrender myself to Jesus,
He comes to me and saves me
and forgives my sin,
but I have got to stay surrendered to Him.
I have got to keep being committed
or He would somehow withdraw from me.
A legalistic mindset
or legalism is the first killjoy.
It treats relations with God
as a religious activity.
I believe the pandemic
had turned the manifestation
of legalism on its head.
Instead of doing more
to make us holy in front of God,
we are also tired and stressed out
that we are looking to do the bare minimum
and crave a 1C and 3P life.
People think that
they will bring them joy,
but they are the cute joys.
Are you looking for a 1C and 3P life?
A comfortable,
pressurable,
predictable,
and problem-free life.
And what are you giving up
to get them?
We bargain with God
about our time
to build a relationship with Him
vertically
and with others horizontally.
As He's saying,
as long as I make it to Sunday church
or have watched church online,
I tick the attendance box with God
and give money
and God should be happy with me.
Don't expect me to stay
and reach out to others
to have a real relationship.
I have no time for that.
We end up judging God's goodness
based on how well life works out for us
rather than on what He has done
and is still doing
to make good on His redemptive promise.
Some Nehemiahistic believers
may come to a realization
years later
after they find themselves
falling way down
where even praying to God
become hard.
And they realize
my relationship with God
has got to be based on something
beside the state of my heart,
my prayer life,
or how holy I am.
It has to have
an objective basis
that doesn't change.
And that's when they discover
that they are saved
through the faith in Christ,
not through their works.
If you are believers,
have you had your moment
of realization yet?
What word did you put down
to describe your Christian life earlier?
One way to tell
whether you are Nehemiahistic or not
is when you look at
your Christian life,
does your heart fill up with joy?
Is your obedience
motivated by your faith in Christ
and the grace of God?
All kinds of religions surround us.
If you listen to or follow them,
their teaching will eventually
become our kill joys
and kill us.
Their teaching manifested
in different kinds of isms
and mentalities.
So let me list out a few.
Consumerism.
People become religious shoppers
and they don't have
operational loyalty
to the plan of God.
Looking for a comfortable
religious experience
that meets their failed needs,
have no problem moving
when they are dissatisfied,
and end up moving
from one dissatisfaction
to another
and kill their joy.
The good is good enough mentality.
People are easily satisfied
and thankful
for the changes
that grace has brought
into their life.
A bit of biblical literacy
and knowledge about God,
a slightly better marriage,
a little personal spiritual growth,
or so on,
are good enough.
They quit seeking
and pursuing God,
but God is far from finishing
with transforming His people.
This kind of mentality
kills a chance
to experience
transforming joy.
And these bad things
can work mentality.
People work to make
the best out of
what God says
is not good.
For example,
a married couple
learns to negotiate
one another's idolatries
and end up having
their own thing
outside their marriage
rather than working
towards a truly
godly marriage.
Their marriage life
is no longer alive
but dead,
let alone enjoyable.
And the fourth one,
event versus process
mentality.
We all want
instant fix.
People want God
to do the good things
He promised,
but do not want
to persevere
through a lifelong process
to get them.
We want God's work
to be an event
rather than a process.
When it's not,
our commitment
begins to lag
and we have no joy
in growing together
and belonging
to each other.
And et cetera,
et cetera.
Humans
are sinners
living in a fallen world.
We were made
to glorify God
with our life,
but we rebelled
against God's plan
and bent on glorifying
ourselves.
A Christian,
a believer of God,
would understand
this predicament
a little bit better
than someone
who does not believe
in God,
but is by no way
completely free
of this peril.
The list of kill joys
can go on and on
in this world
we are living in.
We can let this
fourth mindset
or many others
kill your joy
or take up the safeguard
that Paul lived
with the Philippians
to rejoice in the Lord
for real joy
is Jesus Christ.
If we go back
to chapter 3,
between verse 7
to 14,
Paul repeated
the idea
to consider
loss
and take hold
of three times.
And between
these two ideas,
there are
verse 10
and 11,
which say,
I want to know
Christ,
yes,
the power
of his resurrection
and the participation
in his sufferings
become like him
in his death
and so,
somehow,
attending to the
resurrection of the dead.
To know Christ
is what Paul
wants to do
at this point
in his life,
not because he's
stuck in a prison
and cannot go anywhere.
He looks over his life
before he met Jesus
and over the 30 years
that he has been living
to make Jesus known,
he concludes that
to consider
whatever things
that were gained to him,
his physical ancestry,
his religious orthodoxy,
his spiritual activities,
his morality
and social status,
loss
because of Christ.
He said in verse 8,
what is more,
I consider everything
a loss
because of the suppressing
worth of knowing
Christ Jesus,
my Lord.
For whose sake
I have lost all things,
I consider them garbage
that I may gain Christ
and be fine in him,
not having a righteousness
of my own
that comes from the law,
but that which is
through faith in Christ.
to gain Christ
and be fine in him,
make sitting
in a dark prison cell
of Rome
not just unbearable,
but enjoyable.
Paul is thanking God
for putting him in prison,
for the opportunity
to look back
on his past
and recount all the situation
that Christ
has taken him through.
And to consider
the possibility
of the future
where he can press on
to take hold
of what Christ Jesus
took hold of him.
Not that I have already
obtained all this
or have already
arrived at my goal,
but I press on
to take hold of that
for which Christ Jesus
took hold of me.
Brothers and sisters,
I do not consider myself
yet to have taken hold of it,
but one thing I do,
forgetting what is behind
and straining towards
what is ahead,
I press on
towards the goal
to win the prize
for which God
has called me
heavenward in Jesus Christ.
Paul wants to know
Christ deeply
by experiencing Christ
with his life,
even after being
Christ's ambassador
for 30 years.
He wants to know
the power of Christ's
resurrection
and participation
in his suffering
and becoming like him
in his death.
Paul decides
to know Christ
better and develop
Christ's likeness
in his life
until his last breath.
The prize that he
is pressing on towards
is to permeate
Christ Jesus
through his life.
It's like saying
Apostle Paul
is such a Christian
without needing
any adjective
because he lives
and breathes Christ.
The knowledge
of the person
of Jesus Christ
sets Christianity
apart from all religion.
our faith
is not one
of system,
doctrines,
regulations,
or ritual.
Christian faith
is a personal
and intimate faith.
Christian knows
a person
who has changed
their lives
and they live
in fellowship
with him.
He lives
with each Christian
by his spirit
and we can know him
better and better
as we walk
with him daily.
As Nick
has suggested earlier,
as you read his word
every day.
If you call yourself
a Christian,
do you have
a personal
and intimate faith
with Christ?
Have you been
getting to know him
better and better
each day?
Have you been
observing a religion
like what the rest
of the world are?
Or are you enjoying
your relationship
with God?
Real joy
is only fun
in relationship
with God,
so consider
and take hold
of Christ.
Paul wants
to participate
in Christ's suffering
and keep maturing
in his knowledge
of Christ.
Paul has set
himself and others
as examples
of Christ's followers,
as those
that have
taken hold
of Christ
and are being
like-minded
with him.
He calls
in verse 17
to join together,
he calls us
in verse 17
to join together
in following
their examples
as our model
to keep our eyes
on how they live.
When thinking
about example
of faithful followers
of God,
I cannot but think
of Hebrews
chapter 11 and 12
with the list
of names
including
Moses,
Enot,
Abraham,
Joseph,
and Rahab,
such a great
crowd
of witnesses.
And Hebrews
11 and 13
said,
all these people
were still
living by faith
when they died.
They did not
receive the things
promised.
They only saw
them and welcomed
them from a distance
admitting that
they were foreigners
and strangers
on earth.
In verse 32
to 38
of Hebrews 11,
give us,
the readers,
a vivid picture
that those people
are not afraid
to suffer
for their faith.
And I find
something
that's very
encouraging to me
in verse 39
to 40.
These,
which is those
people,
were all
commanded
for their faith,
yet none
of them
received
what had
been promised
them.
Since God
had planted
something better
for us,
so that only
together with
us would
they be
made perfect.
Since God
had planted
something better
for us,
the readers,
so that only
together with
us,
those who
come to
believe in
God after
seeing their
example,
would their
faith be
perfect?
We are
the key
to their
maturity
in faith
of being
made perfect.
Together with
Christ,
we are the
keys for
all these
people's
maturing in
faith.
You
made
Moses,
Abraham's
faith,
perfect,
perfect as
you watch
and imitate
his way
of life.
You
made
Paul's
faith
perfect as
you pursued
knowing Christ's
life,
what he
does.
That is so
incredible and
glorious.
I'm lost for a word
when I think of
that.
When I think of
God using me
to make perfect
the faith of all
those faithful
people in the
Bible,
that fills
my heart with
joy.
Paul said
back in
Philippians 3,
20 to 21,
that our
citizenship is
in heaven and
we eagerly
await a
savior from
there, the
Lord Jesus
Christ, who
by the power
that enables
him to bring
everything under
his control
will transform
our lowly
bodies so
that they
may be like
his glorious
body.
Transformed to
be like his
heavenly savior,
the Lord
Jesus, is
what Paul
eagerly
awaits and
is what
gives him
hope and
joy even
in the
prison of
Rome.
He is
certain that
by the
power that
enables Jesus
to bring
everything under
his control,
Jesus will
transform our
lowly bodies
to be like
his glorious
resurrected
body.
Paul's
certainty
comes from
the fact that
God alone
made him
right, not
by anything
he has or
could have
done.
is that
what you
are looking
forward to
and living
for?
Real joy
is knowing
Christ and
being known
by God.
Real joy
is pressing
on to
become more
like Christ
daily in
suffering and
maturing.
Many
earthly
mindsets
will capture
us and
kill our
joy if we
do not
watch out
for them.
Let's
join with
Paul and
others,
all these
faithful people
in the
Bible to
rejoice in
the Lord
and wait
for our
transformation
in Christ.
I hope
whatever you
have filled
for that
space in
front of
Christians in
your sentence
at the beginning
of today's
sermon will
become words
related to
joy, that
people will
see that you
are a
Christian, one
that permeates
joy.
May God
make it clear
to you and
mature to
the point
that you
can take
such a
view to
rejoice in
the Lord and
take hold of
Christ, the
one that
has taken
hold of
you.