Live Free with Josh Howerton - The Happiest Being in the Universe // Phil 4:4

Episode Date: December 4, 2024

Does God want you to be happy? Think about this: God is the happiest being in the universe. He invented laughter. He calls us to rejoice and delight in Him. God gave us His Word, and there are over 2,000 verses that include words like joy, happiness, rejoice, feasting, and pleasure. Pray and ask God to help you find lasting joy and happiness in Him alone and not seek out lesser things.    For more information, visit lakepointe.church/dailydrive

Thanks for tuning in to today's Daily Drive with Lake Point Church, a daily dose of God's Word for your morning drive. When the word, not the world, becomes the majority of your week, your life will start to change. For that reason, our prayer is that God will speak to you through today's devotional. For more digital content to feed your faith, visit lakepoint.combe.com slash daily drive. And now let's dive in to today's devotional. Well, hey guys, welcome to our daily drive. If we haven't met him, my name is Carlos, and I get to be a part of the pastoral team here at Lake Point. And we get to hang out this week for a few minutes every day as we dive into the Word of God.

And this week we're talking about how Jesus is good news that brings great joy. And today I want to read from Philippians chapter 4, verse 4. This is where the Apostle Paul writes this letter from prison, and this is what he says. Listen to this. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again. Rejoice. And that's it.

That's the verse. Hey, let me share this. I became a U.S. citizen like five years ago. And I got to say, ever since I was in high school, living in El Salvador and took an AP U.S. history class, I always thought U.S. history was awesome. I always thought it was fascinating. I love learning about all the presidents. And I've always found U.S. history intriguing. And one thing I've always found absolutely fascinating is the declaration of the president.

of Independence. A movie I actually happen to cherish deep in my heart is Nicholas Cage national treasure. It's such a classic. And I love it because other than the fact that Nicholas Cage is Nicholas Cage, that movie is also full of little nuggets about the Declaration of Independence. And I think I have a little bit of a nerd in me when it comes to U.S. history. And I find interesting how when you read the Declaration of Independence, it says that we are endowed with certain unalienable rights. And think about how we say this. We say we are guarantee. We say we are guaranteeing guaranteed the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Now, if you pay attention, it says that life and liberty are guaranteed.

Like, it's coming. That's happening. But happiness has a little bit of an asterisk to it. What it does not say is that you are endowed to happiness. It says you're endowed to the pursuit of happiness. And I've heard it said before that people are not necessarily on a truth question. but they're actually more on a happiness quest. And so the question today is, does God want you to be happy?

And so let's talk about that. Here's what you need to know to briefly answer that question based on what the Bible teaches. Number one, God is the happiest being in the universe. When people think of God, we think of many things, good, holy, just, perfect, all powerful. But throughout Scripture, you actually find that God is a God of joy. God sings in creation and causes creation good and then very good. God writes, literally writes parties and celebrations in the Old Testament law. God literally is the inventor of laughter, of humor, of happiness, of gladness.

There's a prophecy about Jesus in Psalm 45, verse 6 to 7, about how Jesus would be anointed. We listen to this with the oil of joy. many people don't know this but Jesus was the happiest man who's ever lived in John chapter 15 verse 11 he says I have told you this so that you may be as happy as I am even at the cross Hebrews chapter 12 verse 2 says Jesus endured the shame of being nailed to a cross because he knew that after so much suffering he would be very happy and now he sits at the right hand of God's throne. So one, you and I, we belong to a God who is a happy God.

That's just what the Bible teaches. Number two, God repeatedly, emphatically, graciously calls us to rejoice, rejoice, rejoice. He calls us to delight and to be happy. And listen to this, he also calls us to seek that happiness in him, to pursue. that happiness in him. We read this in Philippians chapter 4, verse 4. You see it in Ecclesiastes 9-7, Proverbs 518, Psalm 92. When God says rejoice, be happy, be merry, be glad, on and on and on, depending on your Bible

translation, those are not suggestions. Those are literal biblical commands. We'll talk about this later this week, but even in difficult situations, even when we don't feel like it, God says, hey, we can actually rejoice. Paul wrote the words that we just read, rejoice, rejoice, from prison. Nehemiah said that in the middle of his grief, the joy of the Lord was his strength. So yes, it makes sense that a happy God would want us to find joy and happiness in him. And number three, the Bible is.

It's actually a very happy book. There are over 2,700 verses in the Bible that include the word joy, happiness, gladness, pleasure, celebration, laughter, delight, and feasting, aka partying. So today, if you find yourself in some sort of pursuit of happiness, I would invite you to look at the happiest being in the universe, to go back to God, your heavenly father. And say, Lord, would you help me find that joy in you today? Would you let me find that happiness in you?

Do not let me fall under any illusions that anything else could ultimately satisfy me or give me lasting joy apart from you. St. Augustine said once, he said this, you have made us, Lord, for yourself. And our heart is restless. it rests in you. Because of what we're talking about today, I'd actually remix that quote and say,

you have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is joyless until it finds joy in you. Listen, not comfort, not success, not popularity,

not money, not pleasure, not the right circumstances. Only Jesus satisfies the soul with his joy. We'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for tuning in today. For more biblical teaching and worship, join us for our church online live weekend services on Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information about all the digital ministries of Lake Point, visit lakepoint.church slash daily drive. Also, if this podcast was helpful to you, would you be sure to rate, review, and share this podcast to help get the word out.