Timothy Keller Sermons Podcast by Gospel in Life - Real Joy

Episode Date: November 7, 2025

How do you know whether you’re just trying to be good, or whether the Holy Spirit has really brought transformation into your life?  The way to know is to look at what’s called the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. There’s a whole set of characteristics of a supernaturally changed heart. We’re looking now at the first of these: joy. Romans 5 tells us three things about joy. It tells us 1) joy is important, 2) Christian joy is unique, and 3) where Christian joy comes from. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 18, 2010. Series: The Real Signs of the Spirit. Scripture: Romans 5:1-11. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Welcome to Gospel in Life. The Bible says there's a world of difference between a willpower-driven heart and a supernaturally changed one. Today, Tim Keller is unpacking one of the fruit of the spirit, helping us see what it means to move from trying to be good to truly changing from the inside out. The scripture reads, reading comes from Romans chapter 5 verses 1 through 11. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained

access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance. Perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom he has given us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man, someone might possibly dare, to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved

from God's wrath through him? For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life. Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. This is God's word. The premise of the Bible, well, there's a lot of premises, but the premise we're thinking about tonight, one of the premises of the Bible is that there's a difference between a morally restrained heart and a supernaturally changed heart.

There's a difference between using your willpower to suppress your self-centeredness and your fearfulness. It's another thing to have the Holy Spirit permanently change your heart, not through the power of willpower, but through the power of the spirit itself.

And himself. However, what we're going to be looking at over the next few weeks is a series of characteristics of a supernaturally changed heart. How do you know whether you're just trying to be good or whether the Holy Spirit's really brought transformation into your life? The way to do that is to look at what's called the fruit of the spirit in Galatians chapter 5. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness. There's a whole set of traits or characteristics of a supernaturally changed heart. And each week we're looking

at one of them. And tonight, we're looking at joy. And this passage, Romans 5, 1 to 11, tells us three things about it, about joy. It tells us that joy is important. It tells us that joy is secondly, Christian joy is unique. And then thirdly, it tells us where Christian joy comes from. It's important. Christian joy is unique. And we're it comes from. Okay? Number one, that joy is important. Verse one talks about justification by faith. Therefore, since we've been justified by faith, we have peace with God. And what Paul's doing there is he's referring to everything he's been talking about in chapter 1 to 4. And what does this justification by faith mean? Every other religion says, live as you ought, and then God will bless and

accept you. But only Christianity says, you receive God's acceptance and blessings of free gift through faith because of Jesus' record, not your record. And then you can and will live as you ought. Total reversal, very revolutionary. And to be a Christian is to be someone who's now justified by faith. You have peace with God. You're accepted by him because of what Jesus has done. And now, what is the main mark of a real Christian life? What's the main characteristic? And according to chapter 5, 1 to 11, look, it says in verse 2B, it says, now we rejoice joy in the hope of the glory of God.

And then in verse 3, not only this, we rejoice in our suffering. And then down at verse 11, it says, and we rejoice in God. So John Stott, who's written a commentary on the book of Romans, says it seems clear from this paragraph that the main mark of justified believers is joy. The major main mark, which means this text is saying that to live a Christian life, in fact, to live life, you need a center of joy, an enormous joy at your very center. Now a lot of people don't believe that. A lot of people don't believe that. A lot of people are afraid that pursuing joy is a dead end. For example, Amy Bloom, over the last few years, by the way, there's been a lot of happiness studies, happiness psychology. Have you seen those? Lots of books trying to explore what makes us happy and how we can be happy. And there's tons and tons of books

on positive thinking and how you can get control of your life so you can be happy. And by and large, the intelligentsia, you know, the intellectuals and the writers and the pundits and the artists and the philosophers hate all of that talk. Amy Bloom, just a couple months ago, wrote this in the New York Times essay. The name of the essay was The Rap on Happiness, and here's what she says. She says, the fashion, she says this, excuse me, quote. smart people talk trash about happiness and worse than trash about books on happiness

and we have done so for centuries because happiness studies and positive psychology we don't see as being the work of the devil but the work of morons and then she goes on to explain some of the reasons why but here's the main one she says the real problem with happiness is not as pursuers or their books

it's happiness itself it's transience it's deep but often brief the world passes away from us the petals fall and the beloved dies and no amount of fashionable scowling will keep us from savoring the pleasure of the sun on our faces

or save us from our adult understanding that it cannot last now what she's saying is this if you really want serenity in life don't pursue happiness because anything you get joy from will not last. No matter what it is, it's going to disappoint you. So the only way to get serenity is not to try to be happy,

not to try to pursue joy. Now, look, I understand this. When I was a 13-year-old boy in the summer of 1964, okay, do the math, my team with the Philadelphia Phillies, and with 12 games to kids, ago, they were six games ahead of the second place St. Louis Cardinals in the National League. Twelve games to go, six games ahead. They were going to go to the World Series. And then they

proceeded, some of you historians know, to lose ten in a row. Ten games in a row. And they lost and they never went to the World Series. Now, when you're a 13-year-old boy, and that's your team, those ten games, I lived through every pitch, every at-bat, every out. I was dying a thousand in deaths I was experiencing an agony that no 13-year-old boy believed was possible. And when it was done, and my heart was literally broken, and you know what, okay, we're laughing, but you know, it was awful. What I said was, never again. I am never giving my heart to, okay, fill in the blank. Because you see, all of us have something like that. Now, you know, there are people who, to this day, are not past the emotional level of a 13-year-old boy,

and it's still sports teams that are breaking their hearts. But for most of the rest of it, it's what? I'm never going to, you know, it's a man or a woman, or its love, or its career, its success, or something like that. And what happens is, because our hearts want joy, and our hearts are like a big vacuum pump that has this enormous amount of sucking, And it fixes itself on something, said, this is going to make me happy.

And when it disappoints, then it will disappoint. Say, it will not last. Then you say, okay, the only way I'm ever going to get serenity is to stop pursuing joy and get what the philosopher is called detachment. In fact, that's what Buddhism is about. Buddhism is all about that. And the old philosophers, the Greek philosophers, were always about detachment.

Don't give your heart to anything. And that's the only way you'll be serene. Don't pursue joy. Don't pursue happiness. But there's a problem with that. Joseph Epstein, who's a brilliant scholar, has taught English at Northwestern University for years. He was the editor of the American scholar, and he's just retired. But recently he wrote an article in the Notre Dame magazine, and in it he recounts one of the great Greek philosophers, ancient Greek philosophers named Epicurus.

And at one point, Epicurus got his disciples together. in his garden and said, I can give you a four-step remedy for anxiety. I can eliminate anxiety from your life. You can just be completely serene if you just do these four things. He says, I can eliminate anxiety in the world if everybody will do these four things. Would you like to know what they are? Oh, all right. Well, okay. Well, here's, and this is what Epstein says. He says, this is his summary of Epicurus's four steps. Step one. Do not believe in God or in the gods. Okay. Why? Okay. Step two. Therefore, now you don't have to worry about death.

Death, be assured, is oblivion. Nothing more than eternal, dreamless sleep. See? There's no God or God. There's no heaven or hell. You know, therefore, don't believe in God or gods. Therefore, death is nothing to be afraid of. When you die, it's like before you were born. It's just an eternal dreamless sleep. Step three. Don't be afraid of pain. Why? Because pain will either soon diminish and go away, or it will intensify, in which case death is not far away, and as we've already seen, that's no problem. And now step four, do not attempt to acquire things or money or fame or power. Why? Don't try, don't set your heart on anything. because if you try for them

you may not attain them which of course will mean you're very unhappy but even if you do he says they never give you the value that is as great as what you spent trying to obtain them the game is not worth the candle

so there's the summary and Epstein summarizes Epicurus's four steps for an anxiety free life he says forget about God forget about death forget about pain and forget about acquisition and then he says the only way to find the only way to find serenity according to the philosophers

is to stop seeking joy detach yourself from everything don't attach your heart to anything and here is what epstein says conclusion my guess is that this program would work but even if it did work would such utter detachment from life constitute a life and complex enough to be worth living for many would say yes i am not among them now actually c s louis has said a little bit more eloquently he says if you don't want your heart to be broken if you always want serenity don't give your heart to anything don't give it to anything don't give it to the philadelphia phillies don't give it to anything okay don't give it to a man or woman anything well it doesn't mean you can't get married but don't

completely give your heart to anyone or anything. Put it in a little casket, you see, to make sure that it never breaks, but in that casket, it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, and irredeemable. And see, what Epstein is saying, what St. Louis is saying is, yes, on the one hand, if you give your heart to things, you're going to be disappointed. So if you seek joy, you're going to be disappointed. If you detach yourself and say, I'm not giving my heart to anything, that dehumanizes you. It hardens you. Well, is there any way forward now? The answer is yes.

Why? Because it's a sermon, and that's only point one. Now there's point two. And point two is Christian joy is unique, and Christian joy gets you out of the dilemma. How so? There's two ways that Christian joy is unique. And the first one is that Christian joy is not based in circumstances at all. look what does it say in verse three it says we rejoice in our sufferings what now what are

sufferings sufferings suffering is favorable circumstances going away now here's the place where we're I think I'm going to part ways with the word happiness if you don't mind because I actually don't believe that Christian joy is what the world calls happiness what the world calls happiness is getting control of your life so that you keep your circumstances favorable. Did you know that there is a happiness.com? And at happiness.com there is this, the surefire top five components for happiness. All right? Five things.

If you put these in place, you're happy. Number one, it says be in possession of the basics. Food, shelter, good health, and safety. Number two, get enough sleep. All right. Sure, fine. Three, have relationships that matter to you. Four, take compassionate care of others and yourself.

And five, have work that really interest and engages you. Okay? So get the basics, food, shelter, good health. Do you realize how ridiculous that is? You say, what do you mean, ridiculous? Sure, you need all that to be happy. Sure, you need that to be happy. Most people, most places, most centuries have never had that.

What are we going to do about all the people who could never get enough food, sheltered, good health, and safety today, they'll never will have it. You talk about engaging and interesting work? In other words, what this is saying, and this is what the world believes, happiness is getting my circumstances in the right place. I'm happy if things are going well, circumstances are favorable. But what about most of the people in most of the times, most of the places that never have favorable circumstances like that? Are they doomed to no happiness? Yes, they're doomed to no happiness as you and I define happiness in this culture today but joy is available to them and that

christian joy is not based in circumstances at all in fact look when it says we rejoice in suffering it doesn't mean by the way it's not saying you rejoice for your suffering you don't say we i'm suffering hey that's great that's masochism okay forget that one it says we rejoice in our suffering well how can you rejoice in your suffering if all your circumstances are going bad verse 11 you rejoice in god and he's not susceptible he's not subject to circumstances but here's what's really interesting about verse three and four it says you rejoice in suffering what why because suffering produces stronger endurance perseverance means character and perseverance and courage and that leads to more hope and that hope is in the future glory of God, which makes us rejoice. See, verse 2B says, we rejoice

in the future glory of God. We'll get there in a minute. Verse three says, suffering can actually give you more of that hope and therefore more of that joy. And what this is saying is, Christian joy, unlike worldly happiness, not only can be maintained when all circumstances go unfavorable, but it can also grow. In fact, it does usually grow. You say, how can that be? Christian joy can grow when things are bad? See, the worldly happiness goes away when things are bad. Why? Because it's based in good circumstances. But Christian joy can actually get stronger. How? Well, don't you remember how your mother used to always say, don't eat that candy before meals?

You know, if she would ever want, any time within about 30 minutes before you're about to eat, you know, a meal, your mother would be all over if you're eating potato chips or candy or anything sweet or anything like that. she says it'll ruin your appetite and mothers aren't always right mothers are never in you know often wrong but never in doubt however they are right about this and that is the trouble with eating candy is it gives you a sugar buzz and you don't feel hungry but you're but it masks the fact that your body needs proteins and it needs all kinds of stuff that you don't have candy gives you a sugar buzz that mat that masks the fact that your body needs nutrients that you're not giving it. And sex and money and power and success. Favorable circumstances are spiritual sugar.

And what happens to Christians is you say, oh, I believe in God, and I know I'm going to heaven, whatever. But you actually base your day-to-day joy and happiness on circumstances. And when the circumstances go away, it drives you into God. Because when the sugar goes away, when the candy goes away, you're forced to to go after the feast that your soul really needs, to get the nutrients your soul really needs. What happens when things go bad is it drives you into God and you develop a poise, you develop a power, you develop a strong kind of joy that never goes away regardless

of circumstances. The Psalms can profoundly shape the way you approach God. Even Jesus relied on the Psalms to face every situation, including death. and Kathy Keller's 365-day devotional, The Songs of Jesus, you'll find daily readings through the Psalms with fresh biblical insight. If you don't have a regular devotional practice, this book is a wonderful way to start. And if you already spend time and study and prayer, then reading and praying through the Psalms can help you bring your deepest emotions and questions before God and discover a new level of intimacy with Him. We'll send you Tim and Kathy Keller's

devotional is our thanks for your gift to help gospel in life share the love of Jesus with more people. Request your copy today at gospelandlife.com slash give. That's gospelonlife.com slash give. Now here's Dr. Keller with the rest of today's teaching. So first of all, Christian joy is unique because it's not based on circumstances. It's not grounded in circumstances. But secondly, Christian joy is unique because it's already, but not yet. it's already but not yet look on the one hand verse 2b says we rejoice in the hope of the glory of god now what's that mean it means when you become a christian because your salvation is not based in your good works and your efforts there's a certainty you've got about your future

see remember what we said about all other religions all other religions say if you live as you ought then god will bless you which means in every other if you believe the reason god blesses me the reason i believe i have a relationship with god is because i've lived a good life and i'm living a good life and i'm praying and i'm doing you know i'm doing all these things that means you have no certainty about your future spiritually speaking because what if you give up or what if you don't keep it up you can't be sure because you haven't gotten the end of your life yet and you might fail or you might do something so religion in which your salvation essentially is earned by you creates an uncertainty about your future but christianity says there's now no condemnation for those who are in christ jesus and it's

absolutely certain that someday you will share in the hope of the glory of god that you'll live in the world before him in this world is going to be completely renewed and we're When you get there, the moment you get there, you're going to stamp your foot and you're going to say, I've come home at last. This is my real country. I belong here. This is the land I've been looking for all my life, and I never knew it until now. And the knowledge of that, the knowledge of that, it's not yet, but it's there.

It's coming. the word hope in the Bible does not mean hope so it's not an uncertainty hope in the Bible is life-shaping certainty of something that you're going to have but you don't have it yet but even the stories about it and the thoughts about it and the biblical texts about it and our understanding of that future is is grounding see it's poise creating when when other circumstances are are going away becoming unfavorable we know about the hope of the glory of God that's the not yet but is that all we have we just know what's going to happen. We just think about it.

So when we're suffering, we just say, I know in the future it's going to be better. Is that it? No, that's not all we have. Because look carefully. Verse four and five. It says, suffering produces perseverance

and perseverance character and character hope, and our hope does not disappoint us why. Because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit who he has given us. What does that word pour out mean? Does that mean the Holy Spirit just tells us that God loves us? Does that mean that we know that God loves us?

We already know God loves us. What is this talking about? The pour-out metaphor is a way of expressing experience. And this is saying that sometimes that feast that we know we're going to have in the future, we get an hors d'oeuvre now. Sometimes that glory that we're going to have in the future, sometimes you experience it now. And this is at the very heart of the Christian joy

that's available to you through Christ, through the faith in Christ, through the Holy Spirit. It's a foretaste of that glory. Some of the old people, I mean, some of the old British pastors like Richard Sibbs and William Guthrie write about it like this. Listen, this is 17th century English, so work with it.

here he says uh richard sib says sometimes our spirits cannot stand in trials so the immediate testimony of the spirit comes to us saying i am thy salvation and our hearts are stirred up and comforted with joy inexpressible this joy has degrees sometimes it's so clear and strong that we question nothing and other times doubts come in soon william guthrie says it's not an audible voice. We don't hear an audible voice. Rather, what we're talking about here is a ray of glory filling the soul. It's like the word of Jesus to Mary. The Lord only said her name in the garden, Mary. And it filled her soul. So she no longer doubted she was his. How glorious is this manifestation of the spirit. You will not have the Christian joy that roots and

around you, no matter what the circumstances, you will tend to simply rely on worldly happiness which is based on favorable circumstances, which of course is so fragile. You will not have the Christian joy unless sometimes you have experiences of the love of God direct to your heart through prayer. It's the foretaste of that. It's the already foretaste of the not yet. And you heard what Richard Sibb says. It doesn't happen a lot. It doesn't happen constantly. Sometimes it's very high. Sometimes it's kind of low and it goes away fast. But you know it. When you have those experiences, I know it's weird to have a Presbyterian minister saying this. When you have those experiences, that goes along with your knowledge, see, because I know I'm saved by grace,

I know that the glory of God is my destiny. And yet at the same time, I've got a subjective as well as an objective nature. It might not only have my mind, I've got my heart. And the Bible says, Christian joy gives you what you need, both head and heart. And do you not see now how this in a sense answers the dilemma we talked about in the first point? Because the first point dilemma is this, things in this world are great. And yet if we give our heart to them, then we get disappointed. So then we detach. And then we don't rejoice in things. C.S. Lewis's autobiography is called Surprised by Joy.

And it's all about the fact that before he was a Christian, he was always trying to find joy in other things. And whenever he found something that he thought would give him joy, he binged on it. So, for example, the first time he read an Icelandic saga, he loved it. And he started to say, oh, I want to get that feeling back.

I had when I read it. It was so exciting. So what did he do? He reads every Icelandic saga and then he goes and learns Old Norse so he can read it in the original. And yet as he works through it, he comes to realize, well, somehow the joy I thought was going to give me never comes through. And then suddenly he gets a friend. And you know, sometimes there's nothing more wonderful than a great evening talking with a friend and you come back feeling so good. And when he first made a, he would get a friend and he would binge on the friend. Every night, let's get together. Let's talk. After a while, the friend's saying whoa maybe not tonight you know i mean uh or maybe not for a while you know he would binge

and at one point he becomes he starts to realize that there's a god behind the joy and as he was getting converted as he was sort of moving toward becoming a christian he says this at one point he says the book i came to realize that the books are the music in which i thought the beauty and the joy was located, betrayed me if I trusted in them. The joy was not in them. It only came through them. These things, these things, the joy, the beauty, if they're mistaken for the thing itself, the things that give it through which it comes, if they're mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the joy itself, these things that bring it. They are only the scent of a flower.

we haven't found yet the echo of a tune we have not heard yet the news from a country we haven't visited yet and at the very end the last chapter the last page of his autobiography he's become a christian and here's what he says it's very very interesting he says for many years he thought the joy's here the joy's here and he would go to that that landscape or that set of friends or or that book or that writing or whatever and then he came to realize it was from god and the joy was coming through the things and then he comes he ends with this fascinating illustration

I want to tell what I would give you because I think it actually answers the problem he says if you are lost in the woods and you first come upon a signpost it's a big deal the one who first sees the signpost in the woods says look

and the whole party gathers around and stairs and says ah finally that's the direction but if you've found the road, and if you're passing signposts every few miles, you don't stop and stare at the signposts. They encourage you, and you will be grateful to the authority that set them up. But we will not stop and stare at the signposts, or at least not too much, though their pillars are of silver, and their lettering is of gold. Why? Because we would rather be in Jerusalem. See his point? He says, if you really are lost, when you find a signposts, you get pretty

excited about it. But when you know your way, when you know the thing to which the signposts point, that's where you're on your way. And you don't stop and look at the signposts. And what he realizes is food, friends, success, acclaim, popularity, money, all the things that we think, if I have that, that's going to give me the joy, are signposts. So enjoy them. Some of them are great. Some of them are made of silver with letters of gold. But don't mistake the signposts for what they're signing, the thing they're pointing to, which is the city of God, which is God himself. And that gets you out of either being afraid of enjoying things in this life or at the same time resting your heart too much in them. And that's final question. How do you really

get this joy? Because I've been all along saying Christian joy is like this and Christian joy is like that. Well, how do you get Christian joy? You say, oh, I guess become a Christian. Well, let's be a little more specific. Because I know an awful lot of Christians that don't have much of the joy. And here's what I'd like you to see. The last part of the passage, the last part, is, you know, worth five or six sermons. And by the way, there's plenty of people who preach five or six sermons on these, you know, verses. However, the essence of them is the gospel. And in verses eight and nine, there's a beautiful little summary of what the gospel is. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us

that we might be saved from God's wrath. Now God's wrath is it's not just crankiness God's wrath is his judicial opposition to evil his settled judicial opposition to injustice and evil

and the human race deserves punishment because we have participated in evil and injustice. But Jesus Christ, while we were still sinners, that's grace. Not because we cleaned up our life. While we were still sinners, Jesus Christ took the wrath. He took the condemnation. He took the punishment.

And that's the gospel. How does that bring joy? Two ways. And these are very important in their practical. Number one, the gospel shows you the magnitude of your danger. Now, this is counterintuitive because from the outside, the gospel, the the first part of the gospel, which is you're a sinner, you're lost, you deserve punishment, you deserve wrath. That sounds negative. Gee, why would you consider that negative? Well, of course

it sounds negative. But you know what that means on the inside? On the inside, we realize the size of the debt and the magnitude of the danger we were in, which we weren't aware of before. One preacher put it like this. He says, imagine that you went away and a friend of you was staying in your home. And when you came back, your friend said, you know what? A bill came for you, and I opened it. I hope you don't mind.

And I saw what the bill was, and I paid it for you. I paid it out of my own money. And the preacher says, okay, now, how should you respond? And the answer is, you have no idea how to respond. You know why you don't know how to respond?

Because you don't know the size of the debt. You don't know how big the bill was. Was it postage due on this package? Then you would have said, oh, thank you. That was very kind of you. But what if the IRS finally found where you lived? And that was the bill for back

taxes that you know you have no resources of your own to fulfill that bill. And that was paid for. In other words, the preacher says, until you know the size of the bill and the size of the debt, you don't know whether you to say, hi, thank you very much, were to fall at his feet as dead, saying

you've saved me. You don't know how grateful to be. You don't know how joyful to be. until you know how bad off it was, right? And J.C. Ryle, the old Bishop of Liverpool, says, one of the reasons why you get so upset over the debts, your financial debts, your financial problems, is you don't realize that the great debt, the only debt, the debt of sin,

the only debt that could really sink you, has been paid. And when you see that, then all other debts, no matter how great they seem to be to you, are little. You follow that. See, from the outside, the idea that you're more wicked than you ever did believe and you deserve wrath, you deserve to be punished, that sounds like bad news, but from the inside, once you believe in the gospel, and you see that all those years, the sort of Damocles was over your head and you never knew it was about to fall. When you see the magnitude of the debt, the magnitude of your danger and you realize what you were delivered from, it inflicts a joy on you that never goes away. that is if that sounds odd to you it's because you're not deeply on the inside you really haven't come on the inside you haven't really accepted that if you accept the bad news of the gospel that

you're a sinner needing salvation from the inside it creates a joy that says you know what okay i've got debts i've got diseases but the only debt that can really sink me has been paid and the only disease that can really kill me eternally has been healed and even cancer can't do that it can't really sink me because if i belong to him i've got the hope of the glory of god The real disease has been healed. The real debt has been canceled. And so the first thing that the gospel does is it shows you the magnitude of your danger. But the second thing it shows you is the magnitude of Jesus' pain.

There's a weird place, and I do consider it weird, in John chapter 16, where Jesus is trying to comfort his disciples the night before he's about to die. And he's trying to say, look, look, you know, this is going to be. going to be hard on you. But then he says, a woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come. But when the baby is born, joy for a child is born into a world. And so it is with you. What is he saying? And I looked it up because every time I look at that passage, I always look at the commentators to make sure I'm not imagining. All the commentators agree. Jesus Christ is identifying with a woman.

and here's what you have to remember nowadays most women have babies have some pain but there are these things called epidurals and things like that but in those days not only did women never give birth except through excruciating pain but women constantly died in childbirth all the time and what that meant was the only way for a woman to give birth to a new baby and the joy of a new life was for her to go into a tunnel of anguish and pain and danger and Jesus Christ says that's what's happening to me as I'm going to the cross I'm like the woman who's giving birth to joy and a new life by going through all this anguish and here's how you develop joy you look and say Lord Jesus

you lost all joy that I could have eternal joy you experience enormous anguish so I could have new life and that's how the love comes here's verse five it says this is the key to joy that sometimes the Holy Spirit pours the love of God out on your heart and you okay you know how that happens would you here's a here's how it happens don't say oh okay Lord make me feel loved I'm waiting that's abstract that's not what happens how does it happen you look at what Jesus has done you look at him saying I'm like the woman who lost her life

to bring new life. I'm like the one who lost all joy to bring you joy. You look at what he has done for you, and that's what sometimes, by the power of the Holy Spirit, inflicts a joy on you and a sense of how loved you are that makes you able to handle anything in life, no matter what the circumstances are. That's it.

To the two things, the two ways the gospel gives you joy, is it shows you the magnitude of your danger was so great that all your other problems seem small, by comparison to the one problem which has been solved already. And number two, you see what Jesus has done for you. You see what He's given up. You see how He lost all joy to give you joy. And as you meditate on that and as you pray on that, day in and day out,

sometimes the Holy Spirit gives you a sense of God's love on your heart, that it gives you the power to handle anything. And that's how it works. Go get it. It's available. Let's pray. Thank you, Father, for giving us joy. and giving us the capacity for far greater joy than we have.

Lord, I pray that anyone here who has not really come onto the inside of belief in the gospel has not really received it, has not really accepted it, has not really come to know you by faith, it's not really experienced justification. I pray that they would, and that they would therefore begin to understand this joy.

Joy in the face of the future, joy in the face of suffering, joy before you but i also pray lord for all the rest of us who already believe but to great degree are relying on worldly circumstances for our happiness give us this joy root us and ground us in joy give us an experience of your love so that we can have the joy that jesus had for the joy that was set before him he endured the cross and for the joy that you have given us we can endure anything because he endured that for us it's in his name that we've been we pray. Amen.

Thanks for listening to Tim Keller on the Gospel on Life podcast. If you'd like to see more people encouraged by the gospel-centered teaching and resources of this ministry, we invite you to consider becoming a Gospel and Life monthly partner. Your partnership allows us to reach people all over the world with the life-giving power of Christ's love. To learn more, just visit Gospel and Life. www.com slash partner. That website again is gospelonlife.com slash partner. Today's sermon was recorded in 2010. The sermons and talks you hear on the Gospel in Life

podcast were recorded between 1989 and 2017 while Dr. Keller was senior pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church.