Joy Pumps
“Joy Pumps” was preached by Pastor Mike Ray at Hopewell Baptist Church on Sunday Morning, 10/6/2024.
Introduction
If you have your Bibles, would you open them, please, to the book of Nehemiah chapter eight. I’ve preached some of this message here in the past, though it’s been a long time. I’ve added a lot of new Scriptures with it. It’s a great truth, and I think it will be a help for us today.
Nehemiah 8. The background to this is that Israel has been brought into captivity. They worshiped idols, turned their back on God, and turned their backs on the word of God. So God removed His protective hand, and judgment came on Israel. They were very humbled here. Their temple was destroyed; the wall was down.
And so God used Nehemiah — not a preacher or a prophet, just a layman in Israel. God used him to rally the troops, to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem, and to help bring families back to rebuild their lives. God is in the building business and the rebuilding business. He builds the youth; He rebuilds the adults.
And it doesn’t matter how many pieces your life is in — God can take that Humpty Dumpty who’s been pushed off the wall, fell off the wall, or jumped off the wall, and God can take the pieces and make something great of your life. But you’ve got to give Him those pieces.
So they’re celebrating — the wall is finished in 52 days. You might ask, why so fast? They didn’t get a permit from Napa County, and that’s why it got done so quickly.
Text
Nehemiah 8:10 says, “Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet…” They’re cutting the ribbon, if you will, “…and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord. neither be ye sorry…” Here’s the key phrase: “…for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
And that’s a famous verse. That statement is mentioned one time in the entire Bible: “For the joy of the Lord is your strength.” And that’s your strength physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Let’s say that phrase together. If you can remember it, here we go: “For the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Just the men: “For the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Just the ladies: “For the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
That’s pretty good. All the millionaires — silence!
I want to speak on that subject. We could call it “How to Have a Joyful Nation.” We could call it “How to Have a Joyful Home.” We could call it “How to Have a Joyful Marriage.” Or, I like this one: “How to Have a Joyful Life.”
We live in such a tense, angry, opinionated, selfish, dangerous day. It’s really easy to lose your joy. And God says it’s our only strength. We have to have it. We’ve got to have it.
Let’s pray. Father, bless the brief time we have. Use Your word to teach us something that we can take home with us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Here’s what I hear: “Pastor, they got the results. It’s cancer.” “Pastor, the cancer is back.” “Pastor, surgery is needed.” “Pastor, my husband has now filed for divorce.” “Pastor, I won’t be in church for a while. Something happened, and I’m going to be serving some time.” “Pastor, we lost our house.” “Pastor, they didn’t make it through surgery.” “Pastor, the job I’ve been waiting on — I didn’t get it.”
What’s the Answer?
When I was a young pastor, you could bring me any problem you had, and I had the answer. Now that I’m older, and hopefully wiser, sometimes I look at people and just say, “I have no idea what to tell you.” But as they walk out of my office, I will say this: don’t even try to make it without joy.
The world is searching for it. They search for it in happy hour — aren’t you glad Christians have eternal life, not just a happy hour? And you have to pay for it, and it’s only between three and five! I have a happy day.
The world is searching for it. They search for it in a bottle; they search for it in a chemical or a plant; they search for it in an injection; they search for it in a big bank account or possessions; they search for it in relationships; they search for it in power. And somehow, it just seems it’s always out of reach — they never can find it.
Ask Solomon about Joy
Solomon, the richest man that ever lived — he had all the wealth. It took thirteen years to build his house — not because they were slow; it was elegant. It took seven years to build his wife’s house. I guess she needed a separate one. He ended up building the temple, wrote four books of the Bible, wrote a thousand and five songs. He was the most famous person on the planet. Queens traveled many days just to be in his presence. And Solomon said this: “Therefore I hated life.” He had everything we would think would make us happy and joyful, yet he was a miserable person.
What It’s Like to Have No Joy
Having no joy is like being a doctor with no scalpel. It’s like being a preacher without a Bible. It’s like being a baseball star without a bat or a mitt. You can’t make it without joy.
We sing the children’s song, “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart,” and then it ends, “down in my heart to stay.” But have you found it doesn’t always stay, does it? You can have joy this week and be miserable and joyless next week. You can have joy this year and no joy next year.
Where Does Joy Come From?
It doesn’t come from circumstances or happenstance — it’s not what happens to you, it’s Who is in you. It’s not what you possess, it’s Who possesses you.
What is Joy?
Joy is not a luxury. Joy is not an accessory. Joy is a necessity. It’s the pep of God in your step. It’s that spiritual second wind. It is a fruit of the Spirit. It’s that inward giggle. It’s that strength that only comes from God — and it’s joy.
People say, “J: Jesus, O: Others, Y: Yourself last.” If you get it mixed up — you, others, and Jesus — it’s “yoj” — kind of weird sounding, huh?
When the Whole World Stinks
I heard a story — it’s an old story, but I have to tell it. Two of you haven’t heard it. I heard about this grandfather, whose grandchildren were babysitting him. You know how grandfathers babysit — here’s what they do: they do this [gestures sleeping]. That’s how they babysit. Well, he was babysitting, fell asleep, had a little mustache, and the grandchildren thought it would be funny to open the refrigerator and find some old Limburger cheese and put it in his mustache. So, they rubbed it in his mustache, and soon he wakes up. Once he smelled it, he stood up and said, “It stinks in our living room!” He went in the backyard, “It stinks in our yard!” Finally, he went in the front yard, “The whole world stinks!” It wasn’t that; it was what was in his mustache.
And I found that when you have no joy in your life, pretty soon your marriage stinks. And it’s not long before your kids stink, and it’s not long before your church stinks. Soon, the sermons stink, and the choir stinks. It’s not that the whole world stinks — it’s that you’re trying to live without joy.
Joy in the Present Tense
It’s a present tense. He says, “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” It can’t be “was” or “will be”; it’s got to be right now. It’s got to be present tense.
The Joy Robber
You might ask, “Pastor, what would take joy away? How could I have it one year and not have it the next?” Only one thing takes it away, and here it is: sin. Anything that comes between us and God, whether it’s mental sin, inward sin, emotional sin, outward sin — whatever the sin is, however small you think it is, however big you think it is — anything between you and God is like an extension cord pulled out of the wall. It looks good, but it’s not plugged in, and there’s no joy. Sin will always do that.
I remember as a teenager, I was a joyful teenager. I was kind of shy, but I was the first one to church and the last one to leave. The pastor would have to say, “Mike, it’s time to leave; we’re turning the lights off now, y’all go home.” I couldn’t get enough of church, couldn’t get enough of my friends and God’s people. But something happened in my heart, and it started getting cold. I started hanging around some of you — I didn’t even know you then. After a while, I was the last one to church and the first one to leave. How come? I was miserable. I had no joy.
The joy of the Lord is your strength. You can’t make it in school without joy. You can’t make it in college without joy. You can’t make it with your relatives without joy. You just can’t do it.
I got my heart right with the Lord. I was on the couch one day, studying my eyelids, and I heard my mother on the phone. She said, “I don’t know what happened to Mike, but I’ve got a brand-new boy.” I wasn’t a brand-new boy; I just got my joy back. I just got my joy back.
I must hasten. Jesus had it. You wonder why the multitudes followed Jesus? He was joyful…
For the rest of the message, be sure to watch the video above or visit our church website. You can watch archived services on YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, or audio podcast. Stay up to date by following us on Facebook and Instagram.
Hopewell Baptist Church is an Independent Baptist Church in Napa, California pastored by Mike Ray. It is Bible-based with a warm, friendly atmosphere. Hopewell is dedicated to bringing the water of life to the Napa Valley and beyond.
