He is a spring waiting for your thirst. What is evil? A change happens, eyes are opened, joy is awakened. What happens when you die? The Kingdom of God that is Gods rule manifest in Jesus Christ, the King, coming into your life to exert his kingly authority is like this: Youre walking along outside that rule, and you stumble over something, and you dig around and you open it. Lewis liked to quote Jeremy Taylor, a 17th-century Anglican divine, on this deepest of Christian paradoxes: "God threatens terrible things," declared Taylor, "if we will not be happy." To be happy is not to wear a blinding smile, to be materially gratified, to be assured that everything will turn out well. In this two-minutevideo, I talk about Deuteronomy 28:47, which says, Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, When someone says, as many have, Happiness isnt in the Bible, its not even slightly true. Somehow I missed that text. If you have a Bible, you can look at it with me. Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Faith means coming to God, confident that he is and that he will be for you the reward youve been longing for all your life. My goal is to believe Scripture when it says that God who truly loves you, and Jesus who gave His life for you, has vested interests in you being happy in Him. Is that a warrant for hedonism or what? And what I hope you have seen is that they are one, because God and his name and his renown are most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in him. I cry most easily when I think about my sons and my little girl. You magnify Christ. It elevates man, the virtuous one who does his duty without any view to God to satisfy his soul. The call to love other people to live for others, to live for the joy of others, to live for the good of others, to live to relieve the suffering of others all over the world is a call for you to pursue maximum joy in God. C.S. Its exactly the same: you posture yourself, and you maneuver your life, and you devote energy and effort and time and creativity to positioning yourself under the waterfall of Gods continual blessing, so that he remains the source and you remain the empty receiver. AM. Yesterday, in an attempt to torch the glacier and to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples, I tried to make the point that God does everything he does for the glory of his name. Believing this can bring us great happiness even today. A wife is made much of when a husband doesnt say, Its my duty to take you out on you anniversary, so were going out tonight. Our people need to see in their pastor the kind of earnestness about life and worship and ministry that is gloriously happy in the child of God: happy that I am his child, happy to be called into his service, and gloriously able to show that and express that without borrowing from the same demeanor and the same vocabulary of a carnival or a talk. Heres the whole verse I quoted with the jaw-dropping one that follows: Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things, therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. Lets back it up. All his books. From this we may learn that God threatens terrible things if we do not find gladness in serving him. Some of you might be sick right now and dont even know it. The nature of faith. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. In a world under the curse of evil and suffering, something would be very wrong if we were! God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy. Thats the main problem of the universe. But a holiday at the sea? I am well aware that after reading such strong language some people will feel guilty. Otherwise I put God in the position of a beneficiary; I become his benefactor, and now I am God. You are offered in Gods presence fullness of joy. [1] Jeremy Taylor, as quoted in C. S. Lewis,George MacDonald: An Anthology(New York: HarperCollins, 2001), xxxv. Either youll hate the one and love the other. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. My delight is not in God making me the center of the universe. And the implication of that, if its true, is that you should get up in the morning and, like George Mller said before he went out and did anything, I must have my heart happy in God or I will be of no use to anybody. Objection number three? So Ive said to people all over the country and around the world, if you can come up to me and show me where I can find joy fuller than full, longer than forever, then I will cease to be a Christian instantly and go with you there. Coming to the one who is precisely with the deep conviction that he is going to reward me for coming. That was yesterday's message. I was very excited. Does John Piper Hate Fun? | Desiring God Its a quotation from Deuteronomy 28:47, and its devastating. The second point from yesterday was that this is not unloving. The Pursuit of Joy (Part 1) | BiblicalTrainingTM The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water. This is what Moses said in Deuteronomy 28:47: "Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and a glad heart therefore you shall serve your enemies." The point is plain: serving God is a receiving and a blessing and a joy and a . Yes. We are commanded to feel peace: Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts (Colossians 3:15). I dont care what C.S. All of our resources exist to guide you toward everlasting joy in Jesus Christ. So just how serious does God take His commands for us to rejoice in Him? He threatens terrible things if we will not be happy. I know where maximum joy is to be found because it was just read by that young woman a few minutes ago. Yes, there will be times of sorrow, but God can truly transform our default condition to one of happiness rather than sorrow. That is not my or Gods or the Bibles assessment of your problem. This is a prayer God is always eager to answer. That may sound harsh, but Im convinced its true, and actually hope-giving. Serve the Lord with gladness (Psalm 100:12). Im going to begin with it. So just how serious does God take His commands for us to rejoice in Him? Gods severe mercy in bringing adversity when we dont serve Him with joyfulness and gladness of heart may turn us to God, where well find in Him the only heartfelt and lasting happiness available to us. Perplexing though, isnt it. And he wouldnt do it. Several of you have said to me that you feel like your world is being turned by this conference. I will praise you yet more and more (verse 14). But he himself gives to all men life and breath and everything. God is not served, folks. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. I was in California. Deny yourself sand to stand on a rock. 5 Questions About Heaven: Asked and Answered! Or conversely, if you abandon the pursuit of your own pleasure, you cannot please God or perform good deeds. And God saw that the light was good. Suppose on December 21st that I came home with 28 long-stem red roses behind my back and rang the doorbell. Thats what life becomes. The story is that Im going to come home to my wife on the evening of our anniversary, and I have this evening all set up. Faith, in Johns theology, is a coming to Jesus for the satisfaction of our souls such that nothing else can satisfy. So you dont have to be the happiest person at the party to still enjoy God and find greater happiness in Him than youve ever known. Yes, you cannot turn these feelings on and off at will. That really piqued my interest. I know what they mean and you know what they mean. God wouldnt commandallHis children to rejoice in Him always if only the naturally gleeful could obey. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, God finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. Were talking commandments. Again and again the Bible speaks of the gift of joy and of rejoicing in all that God is done, is doing, and will do. Jeremiah 2:1213: Be appalled, O heavens, at this; My praise is continually of you (verse 6). "For you, O LORD, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth, upon you I have leaned from my birth" (verse 5). Were going out because theres nothing Id rather do than to spend the evening with you.. Tools. And the explanation is that III. I am well aware that after reading such strong language some people will feel guilty. I don't think Jeremy Taylor would mind if I say, God threatens terrible things if you will not be thankful. Its a commandment! In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). By friendship you mean the greatest love, the greatest usefulness, the most open communication, the noblest sufferings, the severest truth, the heartiest counsel, and the . Instead, if we focus on the Lord and His abundant grace, we will be happy. What about self-denial? Reread it. Now, if your normal temperament lands you on a happiness scale of 2-3 out of 10, maybe the work of Gods Spirit wont take you to a 10 but to a 6-7. The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. It has to be this way if he is God. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD . This is partly due to my personality type and emotional makeup (and perhaps genetics), while some is triggered by my long-term physical illness (insulin-dependent diabetes), and some is the result of adverse circumstances. I have to have this field because of that treasure in it, which would satisfy my soul. This is like the Kingdom. The definition of evil, that which appalls the universe, that causes the angels of God to say, No! God's Terrible Things - Bible Hub You reward. The permanence of the Holy Spirits indwelling in our lives allows us to continually access a supernatural happiness even now. Its death of the self. Great pain certainly dullsand at times even overshadowshappiness, but it cant destroy happiness thats grounded in our ever-faithful God. Weve been through a lot together really hard times and really good times. John Piper is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. Why did you lay down your life for me? you better not say, It was my duty to come, because Im a Christian. You better say, Where else would I want to go? Now what is false and what is true in the analogy of servanthood? Since God repeatedly commands His people to be happy, our happiness is a measure of our obedience. Little by little the objections come. I believe in this word about Jesus from Jesus Matthew 13:44: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who found a treasure hidden in a field and, in his joy, he went and sold everything he had to buy that field. You call that self-denial? He doesnt. Copernican revolutions are in the offing, and thats just the way you start changing. My dad taught me 1 Corinthians 10:31: Whatever you do, Johnny, in word or deed, or whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God. I knew God meant to be glorified, and I felt like I want to be happy, but can they go together? It was calling me to a quest to maximize and grow this thing, so that you will not be satisfied with inferior pleasures. Tomorrow I will argue that the way not to waste your life is love, and Im going to argue that love is the capstone of the experience of joy in God that spills over onto others and meets their needs. This is not optional, this is not icing. All you ever think about is yourself. There is nothing longer than forever; therefore, it cannot be improved. Everything changed, and I want to take you with me on a little pilgrimage of change so that if by any chance you are perhaps where I was, I could hasten your biblical discoveries that might change everything in your life as it did for me. This passage prompted British clergyman Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667) to write the striking words I used above: "God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy." [1] Read this passage . You serve money by posturing your life relentlessly, with all of your energy and time and effort, to benefit from money. I already said it, so Ill just repeat it. declares the Lord. But even at low tide, its still there, poised to move in again. Im not always happy, any more than Im always holy. Be utterly desolate, says the Lord. BIBLE VERSES ABOUT THREATS - King James Bible Online So we can confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help (Hebrews 4:16, NET). There must be a kind of service that is evil and a kind of service that is good. Thats the new creation. We are just glad to have you here! Passion 1997, as I understand it, is about Gods passion for God. He offers you the strength in the Holy Spirit to experience this happiness. The Painful Lesson of Learning Joy - Gospel Translations Thats what you do. He offers you the strength in the Holy Spirit to experience this happiness. Be encouraged, because everything God commands us to do He empowers to do, and He does it not only for His glory but for our good. Thats what I believe now. To be a joy-less Christian is to be less than a Christian. "I do that by trying to analyze, teach and apply the implications of Christian truth. There is no such thing conceivable thats fuller than full. Your way of talking about Christianity, Piper, I think, elevates emotions to an unbiblical place of prominence. Therefore, if Gods exalting himself to the degree that we can see him for who he is satisfies our souls, then God is the one being in all the universe for whom self-exaltation is the highest virtue and the essence of love. What evidence is given, what Scripture is quoted, to support this allegation? Heres the text: Jeremiah 2:1213: Be appalled O heavens, be shocked. And if you try to stop finding joy, fullest and longest, you cant love people. And today, I think exactly the opposite. Isnt Christianity essentially decision or a commitment of the will? Faith is not something else than what Im talking about. Im well aware that some readers of this blog may be experiencing deep suffering and sorrow, whether through the loss of a loved one, a debilitating disease, a difficult season of depression, or other painful life circumstances. All you ever think about is what makes you happy! Whats going on here? It is looking at God, the fountain of all-satisfying, living water, and saying No thank you, and turning to the television, sex, parties, booze, money, prestige, a house in the suburbs, a vacation, a new computer program, and saying Yes! Thats insane! But if youve found our resources to be helpful, we invite you to consider making a one-time or recurring gift to help fund our eternity-shaping work. He really wants me to experience gladness in Him, instead of consenting to perpetual unhappiness. The nature of evil teaches us to pursue our joy in God. Now, this is perhaps the most counterintuitive of all. www.epm.org/blogwww.facebook.com/randyalcornwww.twitter.com/randyalcornRead more: www.epm.org/about/staff-board/randy-alcorn/, [ivory-search id="86" title="Default Search Form"]. My passion, hes saying, is that Christ be magnified, made to look great in my life. I knew that was what the universe was about. And so many of you are there with your face in the sand, unable to imagine what a holiday at the sea called God is like. So my call to you now, in the name of God Almighty, is that you might make it your eternal vocation to pursue your pleasure with all the might that God mightily inspires within you. So it was devastating. So Piper, you are heretical in calling us to pursue the satisfaction of our souls as a life-vocation. So you dont have to be the happiest person at the party to still enjoy God and find greater happiness in Him than youve ever known. Instead, if we focus on the Lord and His abundant grace, wewillbe happy. And no one spoke of it in more terrible terms. He sells his wedding ring. Its unrealistic to expect perpetual happiness while the Curse is in effect. But we must remember that this rejoicing is centered not in a passing circumstance but in a constant realityChrist. You cannot sacrifice anything that will not be repaid to you a thousand-fold. He threatens terrible things if we will not be happy. Our problem is that we are clutching tin idols to ourselves when golden reality stands before us. 1991 - 2023 Eternal Perspective MinistriesAll Rights Reserved. Living Life in the Name of Jesus (Colossians Sermon 15 of 21) And when you stare that in the face, the loss of everything youve known and enjoyed here, and all you get is Jesus, and you say, Gain, then who looks good at that moment? It is true, it is true. And the way that my mind works is that one objection after the other comes up and I cringe, and then I go to the Bible and I weep and cry and struggle and ask and pray and talk. Joy finally won her heart and I am convinced that joy is the central quality of the life Christ gives us. Jesus. In fact, why dont you go change clothes, because Ive arranged for a babysitter and well go do something special tonight, because there is nothing I would rather do tonight than spend the evening with you.. He is not served as though he needed you or your service. (Deuteronomy 28:47). For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospels will save it. Or is that just John Pipers clever homiletical way of getting attention? Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. We should join David in praying, Restore to me the joy of your salvation (Psalm 51:12). Theres an infinite chasm between those two groups of people, because joy in Jesus joy in God is not the same as being glad you dont have to go to hell. Its not a cranky mother-in-law, or a bad roommate, or a disease in your bones. 1. This is the very essence of sin. Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent (verse 9). Fourth, it does so by defining sin as the insanity of forsaking the pursuit of your pleasure in God. My delight is in God being the center of the universe, forever, and drawing me up into his fellowship, to see him, know him, enjoy him, treasure him, be satisfied in him, for all the days of eternity. Since God repeatedly commands His people to be happy, our happiness is a measure of our obedience. Theres a square table, and my eyes fell on a little, blue paperback by C.S. So lets rewind the tape and ring the doorbell and get it right this time. In fact, for the follower of Jesus, delight is the duty as Christ is most magnified in His people when they are most satisfied in Him. But the new self the self that loves Christ above all things and finds its satisfaction in him dont kill that self. Philippians 1:23 gives the missing premise: I am hard pressed between the two. Is that what the Bible teaches, that we should be on a daily quest for maximum, longest lasting joy? As Jeremy Taylor wrote, "God threatens terrible things, if we will not be happy!" Unfortunately, most non-Christians (and too many Christians) hear just the first half of that quote, "God threatens terrible things." Christian hedonism is not a delight but a burden if we don't know the character of God. Or Philippians 4:4: Rejoice in the Lord, and again I say, rejoice.. Lewis is telling me to want to be happier, not less happy. God cannot be improved as a source of joy. Desiring God, Revised Edition: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist This passage prompted British clergyman Jeremy Taylor (16131667) to write the striking words I used above: God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy. [1]Read this passage, and youll see that Taylors statement is true. No one in Scripture spoke of hell more than Jesus did. This is partly due to my personality type and emotional makeup (and perhaps genetics), while some is triggered by my long-term physical illness (insulin-dependent diabetes), and some is the result of adverse circumstances. And it causes all heaven to be appalled, according to Jeremiah 2:12. Listen to Deuteronomy 28:47-48, where God warns Israel that if they do not obey him with joy, they will be cursed: Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joyfulness and gladness of And how does he lose all that stuff? So what about satisfaction? Tell me, what is evil? It was liberating to me at first because it said that Jesus thinks my desires to be happy are too weak, and Im settling for mud pies. And the change between those two ways of viewing life and the world came between the ages of 22 and 25, the years 1968 and 1971 in Pasadena, California. Weve got to find a way to serve in a way that is in the strength that God supplies. We know he is getting old because he prays; Even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me (verse 18). You can only do it by miracle. "God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy." The heroes of this book are Jesus Christ, who "endured the cross for the joy that was set before him"; and St. Paul, who was "sorrowful, yet always rejoicing"; and Jonathan Edwards, who deeply savored the sweet sovereignty of God; and (Psalm 71:18). Jesus says, I am the bread of life. It was just inferior, because there was, in my mind, many texts like, If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me (Mark 8:34). In a world under the curse of evil and suffering, something would be very wrong if we were! He really wants me to experience gladness in Him, instead of consenting to perpetual unhappiness. O God from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds (verse 17). We are here to serve everyone without cost, so please do not feel pressured to give! GOD, IN THE MIDST OF HIS TERRIBLE THINGS, IS NOT THE LESS THE GOD OF SALVATION. We might ask ourselves in Heaven, if we are called upon to evaluate our lives here,Given Christs finished work on my behalf, with the indwelling Son and Holy Spirit, why didnt I experience more of this happiness in God before I died? It really is. Lets pretend I have little children, they need a babysitter, and Ive taken care of that. Reread it. Scripture doesnt command us to rejoice in: Were to rejoice in the midst of these things, but of course they wont be the source of our gladness. Is it central? I was very confused. Nothing youd ever do. Thats not going to honor this unbeliever as a creature that God is after with his blood. When you get to heaven and the Father looks at you and says, Why are you here? You serve God. God threatens terrible things against joylessness. What Does the Bible Say About Being Threatened? - OpenBible.info I believe in self-denial. If we refuse to serve the Creator and Redeemer of our souls in happiness, we will surely end up serving the enemy of our souls in unhappiness. 17 Atheism Foolishness Creation No man can hinder our private addresses to God; every man can build a chapel in his breast, himself the priest, his heart the sacrifice, and the earth he treads on, the altar. Ive felt that, and then I read the next verse (it just helps to read contexts sometimes): for he who would save his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will save it. Whats the logic here? We are depraved and we are commanded to feel tender-heartedness: Be kind to one another, tender-hearted. You cant just say that forgiveness means saying, Im sorry. Youve got to feel it. Therein lies our desperate condition that we heard about last night. Thats the way it works, which is why I say Christ is most magnified in me in my dying when in my dying I am more satisfied in Christ than I am with everything on the planet, even what is most dear to me. God-centered grace is biblical grace. How does that relate to that? There is none besides God. The call to love people teaches us to pursue joy. Even in versions that dont frequently use the words. I was standing in a bookstore on Colorado Avenue called Vromans Bookstore in the fall of 1968. Alcorn has written numerous articles for magazines such as Discipleship Journal, Moody, Leadership, New Man, and The Christian Reader. Can Heaven Be Heaven If We Are Aware of Events on Earth? Leadership Urban Harvest Fellowship He is author of. Scripturedoesntcommand us to rejoice in: Were to rejoicein the midst of these things, but of course they wont be thesourceof our gladness. It caused me to ask: Am I a Christian? International Standard Version These are the words that Moses spoke to the assembly of Israel east of the Jordan River, in the Arabah desert, opposite Suph between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab. Youre all going to die unless Jesus comes, and some of you soon, so Paul says, I want Christ to be magnified as Im dying, in my death. How? We are commanded to feel fear: Fear him who can cast both soul and body into hell (Luke 12:5). There is no ultimate self-denial, nor did Jesus ever mean it that way. He wrote: "God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy."4 Would God really be angry with us if we aren't happy? Work it out for yourself. He is infinitely valuable in himself. "Alcorn is the author ofover 40 books,study guides, booklets, and tracts. Believing this can bring us great happiness even today. (Phillips). Real, Terrible, Punitive I do believe hell is real and that God sends people there. I believe in the self-denial that the rich young ruler couldnt understand but that Jesus taught in that moment: Go sell everything youve got young man and come follow me, and youll have treasure in heaven (Mark 10:21). All of the heirlooms. I used to think that God called me to glorify God. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you (Deuteronomy 28:47-48). Ive got ten arguments that C.S. Be a temporary loser of brackish water so you can have choicest wine. Thats what faith is. GIVE TODAY to help pastors around the world share Christ. Its easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for rich people to get into the kingdom of heaven. Then the disciples were absolutely stunned, and they said, Who then can be saved? And Jesus said, With men it is impossible. So objection number one fell. As Israel eventually breaks the covenant and experiences the punishments that God has described, they need God's grace (Leviticus 26:40-45). Wife gone. If you undertake to serve him then you cross his purpose! Thats the way you grow. Therefore, this text is not teaching ultimate self-denial. You heard some in the previous answer to the question over there. So lets give some answers to these objections. Its unrealistic to expect perpetual happiness while the Curse is in effect. I didnt think in those categories of being happy and God. And heres Lewis saying, Yes.. Those are two unshakable things in the universe. God is so very patient and He has forgiven us of all things, yet still, if we will not enter into His joy by keeping His commands, eventually our lives will become quite terrible . Faith is being satisfied with all that God is for you in Jesus. Sells his car, sells his computer, sells everything. It is a serious quest because if we dont delight in God, enjoy God, be satisfied in God above all things, we dishonor God. Is that a warrant to making it your life vocation to pursue your joy in God with all your might? Threats in the Bible (21 instances) - Online Bible Get your capacities for joy big, as they ought to be, so that they will be satisfied only by the big, glorious, true things. Its our joy to share freely what God has so graciously entrusted to us. Most people in the world have no experience of lasting joy in their lives. Jesus says in John 6:35, I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. So what does believe mean in that verse? 4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires [request] of your heart. May it be gone from our hearts forever. Isnt it a desperate thing to be told by Almighty God that you must do what you cannot do? Jeremy Taylor once said, God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy. I thought it was clever when I first heard it. Delight yourself in the Lord, rejoice in the Lord, serve the Lord with gladness.