Our joy is rooted in a growing love of Jesus that reveals and make much of Him...

This week, we have been looking at the opening section of a letter in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Philippians, where we see the Apostle Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to finding joy and cultivated a life that is growing in joy in that our joy is rooted in our connection to the message of the gospel and a growing love of Jesus. We talked about the reality that the Apostle Paul could talk about experiencing joy because the Apostle Paul understood that joy was not tied to or connected with one’s circumstances. The Apostle Paul understood that joy is a mind-set that produces a quality of life and not just a fleeting emotion. And in Philippians 1:3-8, we see the Apostle Paul reveal for us the reality that our joy is rooted in our connection to the gospel.

As followers of Jesus, our joy is rooted and grounded in our ongoing connection to the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel. A connection that is based on our rescue from our selfishness and rebellion so that we can live in relationship with God and in genuine and authentic community with others. A connection that is based on the certainty that Jesus will finish what He has started. A connection that is based on our partnership in God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world with other followers of Jesus. A connection that results in an attitude of delight in life that took the long view and that was driven by the love of Jesus and not external circumstances.

Today, we will see that not only is our joy rooted in our ongoing connection with the message of the gospel. We see Paul reveal another root that produces joy in the life of a follower of Jesus in Philippians 1:9-11:

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Here we see the Apostle Paul transition from expressing his thanksgiving for the members of the church of Philippi to expressing his prayer to God for the members of the church of Philippi. However, to fully understand Paul’s prayer, we first need to define some terms. When Paul uses the word abound here, this word simply means to grow.

In addition, the phrase “real knowledge” refers to a type of knowledge that results in the recognition of something. The word discernment describes the capacity to understand something. So Paul’s prayer, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: “My prayer for you is that your love for Jesus and others would continue to grow as you grow in your capacity to recognize and wrap your mind around the love of Jesus”. Paul then reveals two results that would occur in the lives of the members of the church at Philippi as they grew in their capacity to recognize and wrap their mind around the love of Jesus in verse 10. 

First, Paul prayed that the members of the church at Philippi would grow in their love for Jesus and others “so that you may approve the things that are excellent”. Now this little phrase, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to make a critical examination to determine the genuineness of something that is most superior. So Paul was praying that, as a result of having a growing love for Jesus and others, the members of the church at Philippi would be able to recognize and understand what is to be most important in their lives.

Second, Paul prayed that the members of the church at Philippi would grow in their love for Jesus and others “in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ”. Now the word sincere conveys the sense of purity of motives that is without hidden pretenses or agendas. In addition, the word blameless refers to that which is undamaged. So Paul was praying that, as a result of having a growing love for Jesus and others, the members of the church at Philippi would live out a genuine and authentic relationship with Jesus that was sincere and without guilt.

Then in verse 11, Paul reveals a third result that would occur in the lives of the members of the church at Philippi as they gained the capacity to recognize and wrap their mind around the love of Jesus. Paul prayed that the members of the church at Philippi would grow in their love for Jesus and others “having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ”. The phrase “fruit of righteousness" here is a church mumbo jumbo talk phrase that refers to the right results that are produced in one’s life as a result of living in right relationship with Jesus. So Paul was praying that, as a result of having a growing love for Jesus and others, the members of the church at Philippi would live a live that produces the right results of a right relationship with Jesus.

Paul then concluded this opening section of his letter by explaining that a growing love for Jesus and others that results in a life that produces the right results that come as a result of a right relationship with Jesus will bring glory and praise to God. A growing love for Jesus and others, reveals a life that produces the results of a right relationship with Jesus will enhance the reputation of God and bring admiration of God.

And in the same way today, our joy is rooted in a growing love of Jesus that reveals and make much of Him. As we grow in our love of Jesus and others, we will recognize and understand what is most important in our lives. As we grow in our love of Jesus and others, we will live out a genuine and authentic relationship with Him. Our increased capacity to understand and wrap our minds around the love of Jesus will reveal a sincere relationship with Jesus. And our increased capacity to understand and wrap our minds around the love of Jesus will result in a relationship with Him that is free of guilt. As we grow in our love of Jesus and others, our lives will reveal the results of a right relationship with Jesus. And as we grow in our love of Jesus and others, our lives will enhance the reputation of God and the admiration of God. 

So how have you been defining joy? Have you been defining joy, like our culture, through the prism of emotion? Have you been viewing joy as a matter of the heart? Have you viewed joy as being connected and tied to your circumstances or as being the product of your circumstances?

Or have you been defining joy in a way that lines up with the message and teachings of Jesus and the authors of the letters that make up the Bible?  Have you been defining joy, like the Apostle Paul, through the prism of a mindset? Have you been defining joy as an attitude of delight in life that takes the long view and is not based, limited, or tied to external circumstances? Have you viewed joy as a quality of life and not just a fleeting emotion?

Because the timeless reality is that our joy is rooted in our connection to the gospel and a growing love of Jesus. Our joy is rooted on our ongoing connection with the gospel. It is the gospel that provides us the certainty that Jesus will finish what he started. And it is the gospel that promotes a partnership in God’s transformational activity in the world.

And our joy is rooted in a growing love of Jesus that reveals and makes much of Him. A growing love of love of Jesus that recognizes and understands what is most important. A growing love of love of Jesus that reveals a genuine and authentic relationship with Him. And a growing love of love of Jesus that enhances the reputation of God and the admiration of God.