**not a word for word transcript, but the sermon manuscript**
Several years ago, Jason and I were visiting another church because Jason was filling in for the pastor that week. Before Jason got up to preach, we obviously had a time of worship in music
—if you can call it that. As the pianist played the Hymn “He Has Made Me Glad” the entire church sounded like it was singing a death march. They may have been singing about rejoicing, but the tone and atmosphere was anything but joyous.
But the thing is, that was not the only time we have witnessed that kind of attitude in a worship service—in fact, far from it. That kind of apathy—that lack of enthusiasm in worship is a widespread issue within the Church. And that should not be the case.
Scripture Passage
Philippians 4:4—Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
---
So, the question we are going to ask ourselves today is:
If we are called to rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS, why are we not rejoicing?
You see, the Philippians 4:4 calls every believer to rejoice in the Lord—not just occasional, but ALWAYS.
But instead of rejoicing, we find every little excuse for why we can’t.
We blame the worship music, the pastor’s preaching style, the noisy kids sitting behind us—we even blame the color of the carpet in the sanctuary.
“We cannot worship in these conditions! I can’t rejoice properly when things aren’t ‘just right.’”
Well folks, I have news for you. The call was not to “rejoice when our environment suits us”—it was “rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS.”
And yet, we aren’t rejoicing. We sit like bumps on a log as we listen the pastor drone on and on about a passage of scripture we honestly could care less about and in fifteen minutes, we are going to forget everything they said anyways.
We use our lives as an excuse for why we cannot get excited about being in the presence of the Holy Spirit.
“I’m too busy!”
“I’m too stressed out!”
“Life is difficult.”
But we have no problem getting excited about the newest episode of our favorite show, or when the Wildcats score a touchdown.
We rejoice—we get excited—when it comes to the things of earth that we love. But in Church, we seem to be bored at best.
So why, when we can rejoice when our favorite songs come on the radio, or when our teams win the championship, do we struggle with rejoicing in the Lord—in whom we claim to love and trust above all else?
Well, let’s examine this for a moment? What is it about the things we love that make us rejoice in them?
Why do we rejoice when our teams score? Because we have belief that they may win the game. Why do we get excited about the next episode of our favorite shows? Because we believe that the storyline is going to be entertaining and engaging.
Let’s look at children as an example? Why do they get excited about holidays and birthdays—because they believe that those days will bring fun, gifts, and candy.
When we believe in something with all we are, we become excited about it. We rejoice to the point that our joy is infectious.
So why are we not rejoicing?
I’m afraid it is because we lack a sincere belief in what we are preaching.
5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.
Do we really believe that? Do we really believe that God’s presence is in this place? Or are we just here because going to church on Sunday is just what we are supposed to do?
If we don’t really believe that the Lord is surely in this place, why are we here? What is the point?
The Lord is near! We should be rejoicing! So, Church, Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS---for he is near!
6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Do we really believe that God answers prayer? Do we really believe that God brings peace? Because if we don’t, why are we here? Why waste our time listening to a sermon about a God we really don’t trust?
God not only answers prayer, he longs for us to share our requests with him—our burdens with him So Church, Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS because he longs to bring us peace!
Do we really believe in the God we profess to serve? Do we really believe in the power of his name?
Do we really believe that he is here in our midst?
Why does Sunday morning feel more like a funeral than a celebration? Why do our faces look somber—if not completely bored or angry instead of excited to be in the presence of the King of Kings?
If we believe, then why are we not rejoicing?
---
When that belief becomes real, nothing else really matters.
But we find ourselves distracted because the music is too fast or too slow. We complain because the kids in the busy room are a little too loud. We scowl through the service because the preacher isn’t to our taste.
We can’t rejoice because we don’t believe that the Holy Spirit can move outside of our comfort zones.
Folks, we’ve got to get our minds off of ourselves and focus instead on the good things.
Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
We weren’t told to rejoice in the Lord when the music suits our tastes.
We weren’t told to rejoice in the Lord when the kids aren’t too noisy.
We aren’t told to rejoice in the Lord as long as the pastor fits into our mold.
No, we are told to rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS.
How do we do that? By laying our egos down and thinking on what is good, right, and holy instead of focusing on the things that we don’t like.
When we allow our own preferences to get in the way of our ability to rejoice in the Lord, we become idols of our own design. We worship, not according to God, but according to ourselves.
The fact of the matter is that the movement of the Holy Spirit is not hindered by the music. The God who moves when the Hymns are sung is the same God who moves with the LOUD and repetitive Praise and Worship music.
The Holy Spirit isn’t hindered by the sounds of kids playing—because the same God who meets us in the quite is the Same God who commanded his disciples to let the Children come to him and not to hinder them.
You want to know what hinders the Holy Spirit’s movement in the Church?
You and me allowing our preferences to take priority and close our ears and hearts to him.
The Lord is already here! The Lord is already moving in our midst. If we aren’t feeling him move in this place—in this moment, it isn’t because of some external element. It isn’t the kids giggling. It isn’t the music. It isn’t the speaker (because, if God can speak through the mouth of a donkey, then the speaker isn’t going to prevent God from speaking to the listening ear)—it is You! It is me!
So, are we ready to put ourselves aside and allow ourselves to adopt an attitude of worship and rejoicing in the Lord?
You know, the last several weeks, I have had the same song cycling through my head—and we will be playing it here in a bit. But the chorus says:
There’s joy in the house of the Lord
There’s joy in the house of the Lord today,
And we won’t be quiet
We’ll shout out your praise.
There’s joy in the house of the Lord,
Our God is surely in this place
And we won’t be quiet
We shout out your praise.
Church, is there joy in the house of the Lord today?
Is our God surely in this place?
Then let’s stop being silent bumps on a log when we gather together. Let’s stop being quiet. Let’s make noise, praise his name. Let’s get excited. Our God is HERE! The KING OF KINGS IS HERE! So let’s rejoice.
Let’s all stand and sing this last song together—and as we sing, let us rejoice in the Lord today.
