The Joy of Happiness

I Thess. 5:18

Introduction: Last week I attempted to share and sort out the difference between thankful and grateful and how they are found among the abundant blessings we have from the Lord.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, ‘Always be joyful (Rejoice always). 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus’. (NLT)

Psalm 16:11, ‘You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore’. (Psa 16:11 NKJ)

Question: So, what about happiness?

[For this is the will of God] That ye should be always happy; that ye should ever be in the spirit of prayer; and that ye should profit by every occurrence in life, and be continually grateful and obedient; for gratitude and obedience are inseparably connected (from Adam Clarke’s Commentary).

Application: Saw an author from NY (Arthur Brooks is a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Business School, where he teaches courses on leadership and happiness.) on CBS, taught Ing his book about happiness and how it can be attained.

Happiness is a complex emotion that can be defined in a number of ways, including:

• A feeling: A feeling of joy, contentment, satisfaction, or fulfilment
• A way of thinking: An optimistic way of thinking
• A way of being: A general sense of well-being
• A life evaluation: A positive evaluation of one’s life and accomplishments

Happiness is often associated with positive experiences, such as spending time with loved ones, achieving goals, or engaging in enjoyable activities.

It’s also often expressed with a smile, and can sometimes cause people’s eyes to sparkle.

Happiness can have many health benefits, including:

• Improved heart health
• Better immune functioning
• Longer lifespan
• Slower disease progression
• Faster recovery from injury or illness
• Reductions in pain
• Lower levels of stress and anxiety
• Better sleep

Happiness can also be contagious, and sharing it with others can help create closer relationships.

Question: But is happiness a biblical concept and possible?

Question: Wouldn’t it be amazing to live a life of thankfulness, gratitude, joy and happiness?

Worldly happiness vs. Biblical joy

We are getting ready to begin to say, ‘Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year’.

Question: Is it a biblical concept and is it possible?

Happy or happiness is found

KJV – 50 x NT

NKJ – 24x

Here is the ‘key’ to happiness!

Makarios = blessed, happy

Makarios was originally used to describe any fortunate person, and did not have a religious connotation. The Latinized form of makarios is Macarius.

The Greek word makarios (Μακάριος) means “happy, fortunate, blessed”, and is the closest Greek word to the English word “happy”. It appears 50 times in the New Testament.

The word makarios had multiple meanings in ancient Greece:

Gods – The ancient Greeks used makarios to describe the gods because of their divine power and privileges.

The rich – Makarios was used to describe the rich who were free from the worries of life.

The dead – Makarios was used to describe the dead because they were beyond the worries of the living.

The righteous – In the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament, makarios was used to describe the state of the righteous.

In Jesus’ time – Makarios was understood as the supreme blessing.

Propositional: The Key to Happiness is when it comes from a Biblical understanding and standing.

Worldly Happiness v. Biblical Joy

Nicole Fryling, MA, LLPC is a licensed professional counsellor and a graduate of Grand Rapids Theological Seminary where she specialized in trauma and marriage counselling

• What is your deepest desire in life? I will be honest with you, a lot of people come to my office, saying things like “I just want to be happy,” or “Well, God wouldn’t want me to be unhappy, would he?”
  
  
• These are common statements in our Western, American culture.

What is “happy?”

• We live in a “do-whatever-makes-you-happy” culture.
  
  
• That being said, in my opinion, this approach to life is dangerous. It has potential to result in the complete opposite, leaving people miserable.
  
  
• The truth is, there is suffering and hardship and there is no way around it. If our main goal is “happiness,” is that even possible?

Question Fryling asks, ‘Do you want cultural happiness or Biblical joy’? Even if you are not a Christian, I encourage you to read on. This has the potential to alter how you view life, suffering and blessings.

What is “joy?”

The Bible does talk about happiness, which is sometimes interchangeable with the word joy.

James 1:17 tells us that ‘every good and perfect thing is from above’.

What God seems to talk even more about is joy.

But the Biblical definition of joy is very different from the cultural view of happy.

• Joy comes from His presence (Psalm 16:11),
• His strength (Neh. 8:10),
• deliverance (Psalm 71:23),
• after grief and suffering (Psalm 30:5),
• and through trial (James 1:2) just to name a few.

Application: This is so countercultural. It may almost seem impossible to have joy. God reminds us we are in this world but warns us not to be of this world.

(Fryling) ‘It is not my belief that God promises happiness. He knows that’s not possible after the fall when sin entered the world. What He does promise is that He has overcome the world and there is joy in Him. This is our strength to fight through a life and a world that is inevitable to include suffering and hardship’.

Question: Does He want us to be unhappy? No. Does He know we will be at times? Yes. So, do we chase after happiness that is fleeting, or do we pursue joy which is everlasting?

Worldly happiness v. Biblical joy

The chart I made, pictured below, helps explain my view on the difference between happiness and joy.

Happy                                     Happiness & Joy

Based on circumstance	Despite Circumstance
US focused	Kingdom focused
In reaction to accomplishments, achievements, and material gain	From a place of gratitude, praise and confidence
Is a feeling (remember feelings are fleeting	State of being
Looking to earthly things	Viewing from a heavenly/godly perspective
Hope in ‘It’ (it being the thing you think will bring you happiness)	Full of Hope

M.H. I will go a step further by saying that God’s blessings produce ‘joy’ which equals happiness!

God’s blessings = Joy + Happiness!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, ‘Always be joyful (Rejoice always). 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus’. (NLT)

Psalm 16:11, ‘You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore’. (Psa 16:11 NKJ)

Bonus Text – Matthew 26-34, 26 ‘Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one [a]cubit to his [b]stature?

28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not [c]arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.