JOY through hope

any journey that you go on will always require three pieces of information. You need to know

where you are. You need to know your starting point. You need to know where you're going. You

need to know the goal, the destination that you're heading to. And lastly, you need to know which road

to tack between those two points. The Christian life is very much a journey. Christians have not

arrived yet. There is more to learn. There is more to come, more to discover. There's room to grow.

And navigating life well as a Christian, navigating the life of following Jesus joyfully,

requires those same three pieces of information. First off, we need to know our starting point.

Paul's call in the first half of chapter three, which is what Jimmy opened up for us last week,

to forsake all else, to consider all else in our lives garbage compared to the treasure of knowing

Jesus, is not just a call, it's a testimony. Paul is sharing his own story of what it was like for him

to begin the journey of following Jesus. It's a description of how his life shifted drastically

when he became a Christian and for the very first time put his trust in the death of Jesus and the

resurrection of Jesus as a means by which he could know God. When somebody becomes a Christian,

what they do is they have their life radically reoriented. This is what Jimmy was talking about.

What used to be really important, what used to take priority, what used to consume energy and

imagination and time is reassessed in the light of the fact that they discover Jesus.

They begin to, for the first time, recognise the majesty and wonder of what Jesus does in giving his life for people.

Paul talks about being found in verse nine that Steve just read out for us, about gaining Jesus and in him

getting a righteousness that is by faith and not from the law.

See, what happens when somebody puts their faith in Jesus,

the starting point when someone becomes a Christian is they discover that God loves them in spite of who they are.

God loves them even though they don't deserve it. That, in fact, what they discover is that the only possible means

for them to be loved by God

is Jesus.

It's his death so that they might be approved by God, that they might find forgiveness

and be washed clean in the cross. And it's not just that they

discover the idea that this is the only way they can be loved.

What happens when somebody becomes a Christian is they actually

experience and encounter that love

for the very first time.

They experience what it is to be loved and adopted while they're at their worst,

while they are completely undeserving.

And because they're loved even at their worst,

they experience what it is to be securely loved.

Because they've already put forward the most unlovable parts of themselves

and found God to love them anyway.

They have a deep security and stability.

God's love for Christians has nothing to do with how good or bad they are.

How good or bad they were, how good or bad they will be.

What the Christian discovers is that God loves because God chooses to love.

God looks at people and makes the decision to love them in spite of their worthiness

or otherwise. It's love that stretches further than people could run.

And so it's a love that gives security and peace.

Because it's not going anywhere.

I remember the night that I decided to become a Christian.

It was almost 20 years ago.

It was late January 1996.

I was on a camp.

And even though I'd heard about Jesus before,

I'd been in churches before,

I'd been around Christians before,

I'd heard the stories before,

I knew how Easter worked.

It was the first time that I looked at Jesus

and the cross and his death

and understood that that was God loving me unconditionally.

That was God offering to accept me

regardless of what I had done

or even what I would do in the future.

It was the first time that I felt unconditionally loved.

And I remember sobbing.

Those of you who know me know that I'm not a big crier.

But I remember that night sobbing in a way that I never had before.

Tears of joy because for the first time,

I felt absolutely securely loved.

Like there was nothing I could have done

to convince God to stop loving me.

And not only was I secure in the love,

the love was bigger and deeper and wider

and more costly than anything I had ever encountered.

I felt no pressure to do or be anything.

I just felt loved.

I desperately wanted other people to know

what I was feeling at that point,

but it was what I wanted.

It wasn't something that I had to do.

I remember that night I felt joy

unlike anything I'd ever known.

It was a life-defining,

life-altering joy.

It's the same kind of joy

that Paul has been talking about here in Philippians.

It's the same kind of joy

that leads him to look at his whole life

before meeting Jesus

and joyfully say,

none of that is worth anything anymore.

In fact, it's garbage

compared to what I've discovered in Jesus.

He doesn't give up his old life begrudgingly.

Joyfully, he says,

this is so much better.

This is so satisfying

that is garbage by comparison.

Even the good, best bits of his life

don't come close.

Paul was so content

from the point that he met Jesus

that he became an impossible opposition

for those who would seek to oppose Christianity.

He was joyful when he suffered.

He was joyful in prison.

He was joyful in persecution.

He was even joyful in death.

Happy to face it

because he knew what waited him on the other side.

To become a Christian

is to have joy unlocked.

It's to encounter joy.

To discover how much God loves you

is to discover joy.

That's the start of the Christian journey.

That's the beginning point.

Joy.

Joy.

Now,

just as a side point,

I just want to challenge you

that you could be sitting in this room

and feeling like

that is a foreign description for you.

That's not something

that you've ever encountered.

That deep sense of release

and confidence

that God loves you

even though he knows

your deepest, darkest secrets.

It could be that

this is one of the first times

you've ever heard about

that kind of love.

And I want to encourage you

today might be the day

that you encounter that joy

for the first time.

But it could also be

that you've been around church

your whole life

and still

you wouldn't be able to point

to this sort of joy in your life.

Gently,

I want to challenge you.

This is what it looks like

to become a Christian.

to be filled with joy.

To discover that unconditional security

and peace

that is found in the fact

that God's decided to love you

and you can't change his mind.

The Christian journey starts with joy.

That's the first point.

But,

it only increases.

It gets even better

as we look to the end.

The second thing we need to know

on a journey,

having discovered our starting point,

is where we're going.

For all that Christians already have,

Christianity is clearly

a faith that looks forward.

Even as Paul is delighting

in all that he has

in Jesus,

even as he compares

his old life as rubbish,

he's clearly excited

about what's to come.

There's a tangible anticipation.

There's almost like

a sense of Paul

dancing on the spot

as he gives you

these few verses here

because there's something exciting

just beyond his reach.

Look at verse 12.

Having talked about

how amazing it is,

his desire,

he says,

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.

He doesn't have

all of the joy.

He doesn't have

all that he wants

in Christ yet.

He's got some.

He's got the joy

that comes at the beginning.

He's got that sense

of being loved and forgiven,

but he's pressing on

towards the destination.

Verse 13.

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

toward what is ahead,

I press on

toward the goal

to win the prize

for which God

has called me heavenward

in Christ Jesus.

Forgetting the past,

eyes on the prize,

straining forward,

pressing on.

He just wants to reach

the final goal

and win his prize,

but what's the prize?

It's all very exciting language,

but it's kind of vague.

Even heaven

doesn't seem really clear

to kind of wrap it up.

Where are Christians going?

Where does the journey finish?

What's the goal

that Christians aim for?

It's there in verse 20.

Our citizenship is in heaven.

And we eagerly await

a saviour 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 will be

like his glorious body.

Just read that last bit again.

will transform our lowly bodies

so that they will be

like his glorious body.

Transformation.

That's the final goal.

Christlikeness.

When we reach the end,

we will be fully transformed.

We'll be sinless.

We'll be perfect.

There'll be no sickness.

There'll be no disability.

There'll be no sadness.

There'll be no loneliness.

We will be perfect

and whole and complete.

We'll be in heaven.

That's the goal.

That's what we're aiming for.

When I visit schools

to teach scripture,

I often get asked about heaven.

Lots of people

have different ideas

of what heaven might look like,

what it's supposed to be.

And I remember

that when I was younger,

I was convinced

that heaven would consist

of two main things.

An endless supply

of free McDonald's

and an amazing beach

for me to go surfing at.

Now, it sounds ridiculous,

but my basic premise was

take the things

that I enjoy most in life,

and I can concede

they were slightly shallow joys,

take the things

that I enjoy most in life

and heaven will be that

just kind of turned up

a little bit,

maybe slightly improved.

And I imagine

you probably have

your own version

of what you think

heaven will be like

or maybe what you want

heaven to be like.

And I imagine

that it might be not

that dissimilar to mine,

at least in process.

You take the things

that you enjoy most

in your life

and you imagine

a whole bunch more of that.

Maybe you think heaven,

clouds, halos, whatever.

But in the Bible,

heaven's not a location

in the way

that we sometimes

like to think of it.

The Bible doesn't set about

trying to describe something

that's going to be

a mental picture

of a future physical reality.

heaven is the place

where what's fundamentally

wrong with our world

is fixed.

And the core issue

is not sickness,

it's not injustice,

it's not even sin.

They all matter,

but they're symptoms

of the main issue.

They're evidence

of the core problem.

The main issue

with this creation,

the main issue

with our lives now,

the issue that will be fixed

when Jesus comes back,

the difference between

heaven and earth

is relational.

in this life now,

we live separated

from the source

of life and life.

In this life now,

we live kind of

cut off from God.

People live in ignorance

of the fact

that their life

is sustained

by a God in heaven.

In ignorance of the fact

that God created them

and they owe

all their allegiance to him.

And even Christians

who have been forgiven

by Jesus

and discovered God's love

and have been drawn back

into a relationship

know that

the relationship

they have now

is not what it should be.

It's not what it will be.

Even as they get loved by God,

they know they still

mistreat God.

They know they still fail.

They know that

the experience

of being in a relationship

with God now,

while more satisfying

than anything

that this life has to offer,

is just the smallest fraction

of how good it will be

to know him fully.

In another part

of the New Testament,

Paul describes

the version we have now

as like looking

in a mirror dimly.

But then,

when we get to heaven,

we will know face to face.

Being transformed

in these verses,

being transformed

to be like Christ,

is about being restored

into full relationship

with God.

Sin will be removed,

sickness will be removed,

all those other things

will be dealt with,

so that

we can have

that relationship

with God.

That intimate closeness.

That's the goal.

That's the prize.

That's the finish line

that Paul longs for desperately.

That he would get

God himself.

That he would be

face to face

with the one

who loves him

more than any other.

That he would get

access to the author

of every good thing

he has ever encountered,

access to the creator,

access to the one

who sacrificed his son

and showed greater love

than any other.

Access to him.

Unhindered.

Forever.

That's the finish line

for the Christian.

That's the destination.

It's almost like

we get hold

of the goose

that lays the golden eggs.

The golden eggs

are all the good things

that we enjoy

in this life,

all the great gifts

which unquestionably

come from God,

but heaven will be more

than just an endless supply

of golden eggs.

It'll be access

to the source

of all those good things

we enjoy.

It'll be access

to the one

who actually in love

and in generosity

gives those things.

We get the golden goose.

We get Jesus.

Heaven might not be

exactly what you envisage.

I have a sneaking suspicion

McDonald's won't make the cut.

But I'm confident

that it will be better

than anything

that I have experienced

so far.

I'm confident

that it will be better

than any of our

grandest imaginings.

Because all we have now

is the incredible gifts

that we've been given.

And a relationship

that is just the beginning.

But then we will have

fully.

Then we will have

the one who created

the thing that gives us

our greatest joys now.

The Christian life

is a life where

every day is Christmas Eve.

It's a life of anticipation

and excitement.

It's a life where

you tolerate

the dodgy Christmas Eve dinner

because you know

that the extra effort

is going into

tomorrow's feast.

and so you smile

and you say thank you

for the toasted sandwich.

The excitement

of gifts

and presents.

But this time

you know exactly

what you're getting

and it's everything

you've ever hoped for.

The Christian life

is one of

eager anticipation

for something incredible

that awaits

just around the corner.

There is joy

in this life now

in the anticipation

of the finish line.

Joy substantial enough

to change

even dark situations.

Paul says

in another letter

that

our present sufferings

are not worth

comparing

to the future glory.

That even

our deepest

pains now

will seem

so insignificant

when we encounter

the full joy

of being face to face

with the one

who made us

and loves us.

But if we're honest

even with all that joy

from the beginning

and all that joy

to look forward to

this bit in the middle

can be

kind of hard work.

even with the glorious

hope of heaven

life can be

discouraging.

Heaven can feel

so far away

that it makes

no difference

to what I'm going

through right now.

Maybe you started

your Christian life

with that deep

overflowing sense

of joy

like I did.

But now that you

have responsibility

now that you

have the pressures

of life

now that you've

been at this

for a while

and it's not

going exactly

the way you

wanted it to

it's just

harder to be

joyful.

It's harder

to actively

rejoice each

day.

I remember

when I was

little

I've shared

this with you

before

my mum

used to try

and bribe

me to eat

vegetables.

She would

try every trick

in the book

she'd coat

them in things

she'd tell me

I couldn't

have dessert

all the classics

there'd be

yelling

there'd be

punishments

whatever you

needed

but when all

else failed

she would

tell me

that I

needed

the vegetables

that if I

didn't eat

them I

wouldn't grow

big and

strong

and otherwise

I'd be

small forever.

She'd play

the inadequacy

card between

me and my

two brothers.

Now I was

given permission

at this point

to not enjoy

the vegetables.

I was allowed

to scowl

gag

do whatever

else as long

as at the

end of the

day they

ended up

in my

stomach.

She was just

hoping that the

outcome would

be enough to

push me

through.

Now you

could be

forgiven for

feeling like

that's the

trick I'm

trying to

pull now.

Kind of

feels like I'm

saying if

your life's

difficult and

painful and

you're not

enjoying it

right now

just suck

it up and

there'll be

joy later.

Just kind of

grin and bear

it, it'll all

be okay in

the end.

And while

there's truth

to that, Paul

just said it's

not worth

comparing our

present

sufferings to

our future

glory, that's

not the whole

thing.

The Christian

starting point

is God's

grace in

sending Jesus

to forgive

us, to

die in our

place, to

invite us into

a relationship

with him.

The destination

is heaven.

It's a perfect

relationship with

God himself.

self.

And the

road that we

choose in the

middle is the

hope road.

The road that

is literally

just littered

with joy,

littered with

opportunities to

rejoice, is

the hope road.

When I was

growing up, my

dad taught me

how to surf.

Part of the

process was

teaching me how

to be safe in

the ocean.

He taught me

how to get out

of a rip, how

to see currents,

how to be

aware of what

was going on,

and basically

how to look

after myself.

With five

kids, they

didn't have

much chance

of covering

all of us

all the time.

And one

thing that he

taught me was

how to stay

in one place

when you're

out surfing.

This might

sound like a

really easy

thing to do,

but when you're

sitting on your

surfboard bobbing

around in the

ocean, a fair

way out from

shore, it's

quite difficult

to tell if

you're in the

same place

where you

started.

You can kind

of turn around

and look and

see your

family on the

beach or your

towel or some

marker that

you've picked,

but currents

will sweep you

around, and the

perspective's

different because

when I started, I

was on the

beach, so I

had about this

much distance to

check where I

was.

Now I'm hundreds

of metres away

from my point

of reference, and

very quickly I

can drift down

the beach while

still being able

to see my

point of

reference.

reference.

I could be a

hundred metres

away from my

family and still

think I'm in

exactly the right

spot because I

turn around and I

can still see the

towel, I can still

see my mum, I can

still see the thing

that I'm looking at.

You can drift while

still having a clear

line of sight to your

point of reference.

You can be out of

position before you

even realise it.

But there is a

surprisingly easy

solution.

instead of looking

at one point of

reference, my dad

explained I need two

points of reference

and all I need to do

is make sure that I

stay inside those two

points of reference.

As long as I keep

them on either side

of me, I would know

exactly where I am.

Christian hope needs

two points.

By definition, hope

is forward-looking.

It longs for what it

does not yet have.

That's why Paul

strains forward, it's

why he presses on.

Christian hope looks

forward to heaven.

It anticipates, it

gets excited, but

without a second

point, it's possible

to drift away so

that that point

becomes more and

more distant and has

less and less impact

on you right now.

It's possible to move

in the wrong direction

while still being able

to see your point of

hope, the thing that

you're supposed to be

looking forward to.

Christian hope is

future-directed, but

it's founded on what

is past.

It's based on what

has already happened.

It's strengthened and

possible and concrete

because of what God

has already done in

Jesus on the cross.

See, the better we

know and experience the

benefits of what Jesus

has won for us on the

cross, the forgiveness,

forgiveness, the

unconditional love, the

adoption into God's

family, the relationship

with God, the better we

encounter those things,

the more clearly we will

see and long for and

anticipate the glorious

prize at the end.

See, the desire for that

full relationship with God

flows out of an experience

of the beginning relationship

with God that was bought

for us with the blood of

Jesus on the cross.

Our confidence and our

security in what we hope

for is based on what God

has already done.

The two points of

Christian hope strengthen

each other.

See, as we look to the

cross, our excitement for

our future in heaven

grows because that

incredible love will

suddenly be face to

face.

As we anticipate

heaven, our

appreciation of the

cross will grow because

this incredible future

is certain because of

what God has already

done, because of the

love and the

irreversible forgiveness.

As both get stronger,

our hope gets stronger,

our hope gets more

stable.

You've got to remember

who's writing this

letter.

Remember what life

looked like for Paul as

he wrote these words.

As he eagerly got

excited about heaven and

tripped over himself to

share the joy that he

discovered when he became

a Christian.

He's in prison.

Death is likely.

His life is full of

suffering and yet his

hope so transforms his

circumstances that it's

not just a matter for him

of suck it up and it's

going to be good in the

end.

Because of those two

points, he actually has

joy in prison.

in suffering.

I think for a lot of

Christians, the bit

between what Jesus has

done and heaven can

drag.

It is full of pain.

It is full of failure.

It's full of sin and

temptation.

And we all encounter it

differently.

It's what Francis Schaeffer

calls our particular mix of

the fall.

Even though we're loved and

forgiven, we know we're not

perfect yet.

And in this bit in the

middle, we all experience

our own version of what

sin looks like.

We have different points of

struggle and failure.

Some Christians really

struggle with pride.

For others, that's a

non-issue.

Some struggle with greed.

Others don't.

Some struggle with same-sex

attraction.

Others don't.

Some struggle with

judgmentalism.

Others don't.

Some struggle with lying.

Others don't.

The point being that even

though there's differences

in how we struggle,

differences in how well or

how poorly we go, how many

times we fail, how committed

we are, the point is that we

all struggle to honour God.

We all struggle to live in a

way that reflects the fact

that the God of heaven and

earth has purchased us with

the blood of his Son.

And it's easy to get

discouraged and frustrated and

feel like heaven is just so

far away.

None of us is perfect yet.

And with that imperfection comes

discouragement and frustration,

maybe even insecurity.

A whole bunch of things that

aren't going to help you be

joyful.

Hope needs two points.

Because both those points feed

our joy now.

Every step of the journey

between them is an opportunity

to encounter and engage

Jesus as the source of our

joy.

Let's just remember that.

We've said it a few times

this series.

The series is joy for

everyone, but it's Jesus for

everyone because Jesus is where

we find the joy.

At the first point,

what do we encounter?

The forgiveness of Jesus and

the chance for a relationship.

At the end point, what will we

encounter?

That Jesus returning to fully

transform us to be like him so

that we can be face to face

enjoying him.

It's Jesus at both ends and

every step in the middle is

Jesus as well.

Every step is an opportunity to

be excited and joyful in

anticipation of what is ahead

and in thankfulness for what is

before, which guarantees what is

ahead.

We're literally surrounded by joy

in Jesus because of these two

hope anchors.

Regardless of which direction

you look, you have the

opportunity to rejoice in how

much God is loving you.

Christian hope makes every

situation and circumstance you

are in an opportunity to

encounter Jesus.

If you fail as a Christian, if you

fall back into that habit of sin

again and again, encounter Jesus

as your sufficient saviour.

Encounter him as the one who

takes your punishment and loves

you in spite of who you are and

rejoice.

When you grow in godliness, when

you have the victory over the

temptation and struggle, encounter

Jesus as the one who is empowering

you by his spirit to grow more and

more to be like him.

Encounter him as the one who is

bringing towards completion the

work that he begun when he forgave

you at the cross.

And be thankful and rejoice.

When you doubt, encounter Jesus as

the one who guarantees your finish,

not because of how strong your faith

is, but because he has loved you in

the cross.

And rejoice.

In persecution, in suffering,

encounter the risen Jesus who stands at

the finish line and beckons you home

to the room he's prepared for you

and rejoice.

In pain and difficulty, encounter Jesus

as the one who guarantees to never

leave you nor forsake you, but to walk

with you in the dark times, to finish

the work that he begun and to make sure

that you get to the finish line and

rejoice that you are not alone.

Rejoice that you cannot be taken away

from that goal that God has purchased

for you.

When our hope is anchored in these two

points, every step in the middle is an

opportunity to encounter Jesus and

rejoice.

It's not about suck it up.

There'll be pain.

There'll be difficulty.

But there we find a sufficient

saviour.

There we find our Lord on the throne.

And there we are reminded that every step,

good, bad or otherwise, is a step closer

to the finish line that God's prepared

for us.

A step closer to heaven.

Hope motivates.

Hope drives us forward.

It makes us strain for what's ahead.

It enables us to let go of what was

behind because it's begun to taste the

joy of knowing Jesus.

And hope longs for nothing more than the

fullness of that joy when we will see him

face to face.

And so Paul finishes emphatically,

chapter 4, verse 1,

Therefore, because of that two-pointed

hope, because of the joy that God has

built into every day and every situation

and every circumstance,

therefore, my brothers and sisters,

you whom I love and long for, my joy and

my crown, stand firm in the Lord in this

way.

Dear friends, stand firm anchored to the cross

of Christ and your future hope of heaven.

Stand firm anchored in the irreversible,

unconditional love that God has shown you in

Jesus.

Stand firm with eyes open to encounter Jesus

in every situation that God places in front of you.

Stand firm knowing that the destination is

guaranteed.

And rejoice.

Amen.