Our name | Mission | Vision | Leaders Ministries | Schedule | Directions | Contact Home   Gateway Church gathers for worship Sundays at 10:30 a.m. Location: 6425 Jefferson Rd. (Hwy. 129) in Athens, Georgia. For directions, click here. Ministry of the Word: Recent sermons Our quarterly e-magazine Gateway Today For the Gateway family Pastor Jerry's Weekly E-Mail A GATEWAY SERMON SUMMARY AUDIO The promise of joy (First in the series, Overcoming the Enemies of Joy) Jerry Varnado, pastor Gateway Church, Athens GA February 12, 2006 Main Scripture text: John 16:19-24 Christians -- people who have received the abundance of God's grace offered in Jesus Christ -- ought to be the most joyful people on Earth. In the New Testament, the Greek words translated joy are: 1) Chairo 2) Sugchairo 3) Chara Another Greek word is very similar: Charis. In English, we translate that word as "grace." I think the very language tells us that grace and joy are inseparably bound to one another. Joy is more than a just a promise from God. It is a fundamental element of what it means to receive God's grace. Sermons in this series 1-The Promise of Joy 2-Overcoming Unbelief 3-Overcoming Self-Centeredness 4-Overcoming Our Fear 5-Overcoming Anger 6-Overcoming Negative Thinking 7-Rejoice Always! Rejoice! Turning to a Bible dictionary gives us a theological definition of joy. It's not about being happy because everything is going well. Rather it is "the happy state that results from knowing and serving God." In verses 21-22 of our text, Jesus is talking about His time in the grave -- when the disciples would not see him. In the presence of Jesus, the disciples had great joy. How could it be otherwise? But that joy was temporal -- it would evaporate when Jesus went to the cross. But then came the Resurrection! With it -- and with the coming of the Holy Spirit -- came a joy that nothing can take away, because God's presence is not only with us but within us! Remember these two things: 1) Joy makes our faith visible -- and desirable -- to others. It is joy that makes our lives attractive and contagious. 2) Joy is critical to God's Kingdom coming on earth. Because joy has an evangelistic impact. It helps the Kingdom advance. Because joy plays a key role joy in bringing others to Christ, it is one of the blessings the devil wants to steal from God's people. He will continually put obstacles in our path to keep us from experiencing joy. We must continually guard and protect our joy. That's why Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5 to "be joyful always." It is not something that just happens. We must be joyful. Joy is a gift from God -- but we have to choose to fight to gain and keep it. That's what this sermon series is about: overcoming the enemies of joy. Supporting texts: John 15:11 | John 17:13 | Romans 14:17 | Galatians 5:22 | 1 Peter 1:8-9 | 2 Corinthians 7:4 | James 1:2 | 1 Peter 3:15 | 1 Thessalonians 5:16 A mp3 audio file of this sermon is here (38 min.). (Download to a PC by right clicking on the link and choosing "Save Target As." Mac users: click, hold, and choose "Download Link to Disk." Depending on your connection speed, the file may take several minutes to download.) An audio tape of the sermon summarized above is available free of charge (U.S. requests only). Request a tape by calling or writing the Gateway Church office. Please specify tape number 060212a: The Promise of Joy. © 2006 Gerald R. Varnado To the Gateway Church home page How to contact us