VITAL SIGNS                                                                      EAST BAY FELLOWSHIP

(Series, #2)                                                                                           September 11, 2005

JOY

TEXT: Neh. 8:10

INTRODUCTION

· “Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak.”   C.S. Lewis

· The word “joy” appears well over 200 times in the New International Version of the Bible, clearly identifying it as a vital sign of God’s Word

1) WHAT IS JOY?

· Joy is a part of God’s character and is a primary source of strength for every believer.

· There are 3 Greek words very closely related in the New Testament that will help us understand the depth of joy. Chara is the word most often translated by joy.  Chairo is most often translated by the word rejoice.  And charis is the word for grace, or God’s divine favor.

2) WHAT DOES JOY DO?

· a study was done, at the University of Baltimore, looking at the difference between patients who had suffered heart trouble and those who had not.  They discovered several important things for us:

a. Laughter - releases a chemical into the blood stream that relaxes the

the blood vessels

b. Hearty Laughter – lowers blood pressure and heart rate

c. Individuals with heart problems – were 40% more likely to respond

with laughter

· “A cheerful heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit makes one sick.”   Prov. 17:22 (TLB)

· “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who For the joy set before him endured the cross…”   Heb. 12:2 (NIV)

3) WHERE DOES JOY COME FROM?

· “The enjoyment of (God) is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied…”   Jonathan Edwards

· “You will go out in joy…the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the fields will clap their hands.” Isa. 55:12 (NIV)

CONCLUSION

· “Either the circumstances will mold your attitude or your attitude will rise above them.”   Bob Reccord, Forged by Fire, Nashville, TN (2000)