OUTLINE:

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
A word now on the nature of this joy. That is the more necessary since not a few are apt to naturalize and carnalize the same, regarding it as a mere spirit of elation or happy feeling of exhilaration.

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
Instead, it is a heavenly grace, a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22), and therefore something spiritual, supernatural, and Divine. God is alike its Author, Object and Maintainer.

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
As the peace which He gives “passeth all understanding” (Phi 4:7), so the joy He communicates is said to be “unspeakable” (1Pe 1:8)—not only excelling sense, but beyond full comprehension. It is an elevation of soul after the Lord and of things above.

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
It is a delighting ourselves in God, for since all happiness be the enjoyment of the chief good, then all felicity is bound up in Him. Joy is heaven begun in the saint, for his blessedness here and hereafter differs not in kind but only in degree.

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
It is therefore a joy which is pure and unalloyed. As spiritual love is far more than a sentiment, as God’s peace is more excellent than mere placidity or tranquility of mind, so the joy which Christ imparts to the believer is vastly superior to any natural emotion.

A. W. Pink on Biblical Joy
It is a state of exultation, a complacence of heart, a full satisfaction of soul as it feasts upon a perfect Object.

Our Continual Perspective
"Thank you God for helping us examine ourselves, so that we don't continue to dishonor you in ways we haven't yet understood."

Php 3:19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.
1Co 6:12b …but I will not be mastered by anything.
2Pe 2:19b …for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved.

Preoccupation
Preoccupation is a BIG word. Have you ever noticed that the things we are preoccupied with tend to demand our attention even if/when we want nothing more than to “turn it off”???

Do Not Be Condemned
“It’s about direction, not perfection.” - John MacArthur

What Is Misery’s Root?
God will ordain misery, but He does not desire it for His children (ultimately speaking). Misery is fruit of human flesh. You may be, in general, miserable, but the root cause is often one or two specific areas of sin you persist, knowingly in.

“Keep Your Chin Up”
Stop and ask: “For what reason?”
…to look up to Heaven, awaiting the Lord’s return…
…or, to supposedly “survive” your own self-induced misery?

Worship Time
Church should be a much smaller percentage of your overall worship time for the week. If church is the mainstay of your worship, something’s awry.

Good Choices
Find quiet time to dwell with God, even if you rise before dark, to just BE with Him, ALONE.

Misdirection
This is the very lifeline of the deceitfulness of sin. It was first made evident in the Garden with the words, “Has God said…?” To misdirect is to disorient to what is otherwise stable, secure, assured.

CHRIST-ianity
The true perspective of the Christian is to endeavor to be “like Christ” (Ro 12:2; 2Co 3:18), who for a “joy set before Him endured the Cross” (Heb 12:2). This doesn’t mean sheer will power is in view, rather humble submission to the power of God’s Word and Spirit (cp we “must worship in spirit and truth” - Jn 4:23-24).