Fruit of the Spirit - Joy

Order of Service

• Call to Worship — Psalm 113
• Hymn — Jesus Christ Is Risen Today (#273)
• Westminster Shorter Catechism (Questions 9 & 10)
• Hymn — It Is Well with My Soul (#691)
• Pastoral Prayer
• Sermon
• Hymn — Praise My Soul the King of Heaven (#76)
• Benediction — Numbers 6:24-26

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Sermon Title: The Reality and Requirement of Joy

Scripture: Galatians 5:16-25

I. Defining Joy

A. Joy is not a transient emotion produced by circumstances B. Joy is gospel-informed contentment

1. J.B. Fesko: joy is not the absence of pain or suffering, but a contentment grounded in Christ, steadfast in the knowledge that one is firmly in the Savior's grasp
2. Joy relates more to its object than to its outward expression C. Christian joy has to do with a status change worked by Christ: from enemy to friend, from condemned to blameless, from orphan to child of God

II. Joy Is a Reality of New Life in the Spirit

A. The Fall resulted in both physical and spiritual death — the source of spiritual life was cut off (Genesis 2)

1. A soul dead in sin turns in on itself, pursuing the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21)
2. The flesh seeks life but is cut off from its source B. The Spirit is the life-giving animating breath who enlivens what was dead
3. As God breathed life into Adam, so the Spirit breathes new life into believers
4. The believer becomes a new creation and bears new fruit C. The fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) is one fruit — not distributed piecemeal, but given whole to all who are made new D. Joy — gospel-informed contentment, the assurance of belonging to God — is a present reality for every believer
5. Romans 8:16-17: the Spirit bears witness that we are children of God, heirs of God, and co-heirs with Christ
6. Joy is not merely held out to the believer — it is being produced in them by the Spirit

III. Joy Is a Requirement of New Life in the Spirit

A. Joy's requirement flows from joy's reality — the relationship between the two must be kept in proper order B. The double imperative of Matthew 5:10-12: Rejoice and be glad

1. Jesus gives this command in the context of the Beatitudes — the upside-down life of the Kingdom
2. Those who live the upside-down life will suffer persecution, mockery, and loss for the name of Christ C. First context: rejoice in your suffering situation
3. Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord always
4. The command extends to all earthly hardships — illness, injury, loss of stability
5. The Greek for be glad carries a strong emotional sense; joy is not merely intellectual
6. Rejoicing in suffering does not sugarcoat or call suffering good; suffering is always an evil in a fallen world D. Second context: rejoice in your salvation status
7. Matthew 5:12: Your reward is great in heaven — status changed from condemned to blameless in Christ
8. To rejoice in suffering is to look through it to the awaiting glory
9. Hebrews 12:2: Jesus, for the joy set before him, endured the cross — the believer follows the same pattern E. The believer is not left alone to produce this joy
10. Richard Sibbes: a Christian is an able man — whosoever has the Spirit of Christ has a large ability
11. The Spirit makes his home in the believer, enlivening in them a new and larger ability — the ability to be content in all circumstances and to see through them to the awaiting glory
12. Joy does not require mustering up outward cheerfulness; it goes broader and deeper than personality or temperament
13. Every redeemed person is called to be a joy-filled person — on good days and bad — helped by the Spirit who walks beside them