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00:01 Uh we are closing up our series on uh praying through our emotions and in the
00:07 last five weeks these are some of the emotions that we have prayed through and today I'm going to wrap up this entire
00:14 section of it. Let me give you one verse from each of these emotion that we all
00:20 have uh been the various speakers have taken us through. Now just look at it.
00:26 I'm not going to read it through. Or whether you're praying on confession of fears or anger or doubts of guilt. Look
00:32 at that one verse there. Each text, each text there is a proclamation of joy, a
00:41 proclamation of happiness, whether directly, exuberantly, or passively and
00:47 passensively. But there is joy. Now what are the psalmists telling us? The
00:53 psalists are telling us in any situation you are however dire whether you're
01:01 struggling with sins or fears or angers in any situation there is joy. You see
01:09 there are two types of happiness. There is the happiness that when everything goes right with you and that rarely
01:16 happens in the real world. But there is another kind of happiness which we really want to let the word of God speak
01:23 to us today and that is a happiness that is endearing.
01:29 A joy that is lasting. So today we want to look at the fullness of joy. A joy
01:37 that just completely overwhelms you when things don't go well. And we hope that
01:43 that becomes quite relevant. Now what is interesting about this psalm
01:49 psalm 4 I mean psal verse 4 of psalm 27 is one of the most well loved verses in
01:56 the psalm but the psalm in itself isn't really talking about happiness is actually talking about confidence and
02:02 you just look at the way the psalm is broken up verses 1 to 7 you find David
02:10 having great confidence and he's having great confidence at a time of war. I
02:16 mean, David just ran through the entire psalm, but you look at the way the language here is military language.
02:23 That's up to verse six. But however, when he moves to verse 7, you find that the the tone shifts, you look at the way
02:30 verse 7 starts out. He says, "Hear my voice when I call, oh Lord. Be merciful
02:35 to me." Suddenly, there's a lamentation. He's now unhappy. And as you go on, he
02:41 talks about how his father and mother forsaked him. He talked about how false witnesses rises against him. So it it is
02:48 very real and that's why this verse this this psalm is so interesting and so relevant because the key is not about
02:55 happiness per se but the key is how do you and I be happy when things go bad
03:02 and that's what we really want to look at this morning. Let me just start off a few proposition.
03:08 The first proposition is everybody searches for happiness. Period. Everyone
03:14 searches for happiness. So there's this very famous song that came out last year. Okay. Uh very catchy. Okay. If
03:21 you've seen the movie, it makes as much sense as the minions. Okay. Clap along if you know happiness is the truth. Now
03:28 what does that mean? What is the truth? Is happiness truth? Clap along if you
03:33 know what happiness is to you? And that's a question. What is happiness to me and to you? So let's break it down a
03:40 bit. Now this is a popular proposition among Christians. The proposition is
03:47 Christians should not pursue happiness. They should pursue God instead. And here
03:55 are two quotes which are found in uh John Piper's book this extremely
04:01 fantastic book called Desiring God. And he says this is it not a contention of
04:06 morality that we should do good because it is good. We should do the good and
04:12 perform virtuously. I suggest because it is good and virtuous that God will bless
04:18 it and cause us to be happy as a consequence of it but not a motive for
04:24 doing it. For the Christian, happiness is never a goal to be pursued. It is
04:30 always the unexpected surprise of a life of service. So in these quotes,
04:36 happiness is a byproduct. I want to ask a question here. How many of you
04:43 don't agree with it? If you don't agree with it, put up your hands. So, universally, everyone agrees with
04:50 it. Huh? Everyone thinks this is a biblical statement. This is what John Piper says it. I regard these quotes as
04:58 contrary to scripture. Or does it mean everyone here was wrong? Contrary to
05:03 scripture and contrary to love. And in the end though unintentionally
05:10 dishonoring to God. When I read this I was extremely insulted because let me tell you what happened. I preached on
05:16 happiness some time back and this was my proposition. This was my proposition.
05:23 So I I I began to ask how can John Piper say this? And if you know Piper Piper doesn't say anything without checking
05:29 his Bible. Now here are few of his facts which I I thought is quite worth digesting.
05:35 You see the reason why in Christian circles it is popular to say you
05:42 shouldn't seek happiness is because it makes you out to be very self-centered. You see only non-Christians seek
05:47 happiness. Christians should serve you know you should go and do good. Go and
05:52 go and help others be selfless you know and along the way God will make you
05:57 happy. Now there are two problems with this. Let's tell you the first problem. The first simple problem is this. As a
06:05 matter of observation, there are a lot of Christians who are not happy. Correct or not? Simple. There
06:13 are a lot of people who come to church, serve in the church, faithful in the church, do a lot of things, but are not
06:19 happy. And this they struggle with. Here's a second proposition, a second reason, and
06:25 it comes from Jonathan Edwards, a Puritan. And this is what he says. He says in some sense the most benevolent
06:32 generous person in the world seeks his own happiness in doing good to others
06:38 because he places his happiness in their good. His mind is so enlarged as to take
06:45 them as he were into himself. Thus when they happy he fills it. He partakes with
06:51 them and is happy in their happiness. Now there is nothing wrong about seeking
06:57 happiness in others. Piper actually clarifies it. But don't say that that is
07:03 the main biblical reason because being benevalent, being morally upright, being
07:09 sacrificial doesn't just happen to Christians. Mama Gandhi was all of that. He was a happy man. There was this
07:16 Chinese businessman, I don't know whether you saw TV, and he does a lot of charity in America. In fact, he went to
07:22 New York and fed the homeless. And CNN interviewed him and he said this. He said, "The joy of seeing this homeless
07:29 people when I give them money is enough to make my heart just fill up." You see,
07:34 there is still a bit of self-centerness. And he goes on to say, "Some rich people in China collect cars, some people
07:41 collect jade, some people do this. I like to help the poor." You see, you got
07:46 to pause a bit. In the end, even the most generous man has a bit of that. And
07:53 there is a certain danger about this because it leads us to self-righteousness. You think you're
07:59 better because look at the other guy who doesn't do all the good, doesn't do all this righteousness. Oh, he's a terrible
08:06 Christian. But look at me. I'm so selfless. I'm righteous. Hallelujah. That's actually quite unbiblical. But
08:13 the bottom line, Piper says, and why I love Piper because Piper is very real. Piper just says, "Look, everybody get
08:19 real. All men seek happiness. Don't kid yourself. Don't talk nonsense."
08:26 This is without exception. Blaze Pascal, whatever different means they employ,
08:32 they all tend to this end. The cost of some going to war and of others avoiding
08:38 it, it is the same desire. both attended with different views. The will never
08:44 takes the least step to do this object. This is the motive of every action of
08:49 every man even of those who hang themselves. So Christians then take another
08:55 position. They say well I know you're just playing with words. The issue is not that we shouldn't seek happiness. We
09:02 should seek happiness in God. This is playing with what we call semantics. You know that means you're playing with
09:08 words. Let me tell you why. So here there are proposition. My happiness is found in God. I suggest to you is
09:15 semantics meaning just words. And in this book I tell you what this is important because when I first began
09:23 preaching I think 10 15 years ago or 20 years ago I lost count. I spoke in
09:28 Pantai Baptist Church. I took this book copied down the five points and gave a whole message on it. So I need to
09:34 confess it today because now I look back and I tell you what I spoke was wrong
09:40 and this is a godly man or bear with me on this. You see Max Anders really godly
09:46 man but I have to say I don't agree with him. Now he starts off by saying happiness isn't found by pursuing it is
09:53 a byproduct of pursuing God. Same position and this is where Piper's quite
09:58 right. Then he gives you how this is broken down. He says, "How can we cultivate greater capacity for
10:04 happiness? By being grateful for the things God has given us. Is he right?" Yes, he's right. Then he says another
10:12 page, "If you allow yourself to be happy over little things, happiness becomes a much more frequent visitor." Is he
10:18 right? He's correct. There's only one slight problem with these two points.
10:23 You don't have to be Christian to believe this. You can say I'm grateful for what life
10:30 has given me. It sounds like a positive thinking seminar
10:35 to be happy over little things. You don't have to be Christian to believe that. And he says happiness is a gift to
10:42 those who follow God's truth. A lot of people existentiously
10:49 if they believe in their religion, they are happy. So truth becomes relative.
10:55 So that's the struggle with when you take a happiness message and you move it
11:00 along this way, it becomes very little different from a secular message. You
11:05 look at that five points on the right. I could take that five points, put some
11:10 Bible verses on it, pack in some illustrations and give you a sermon next week, you know, and there will be people
11:17 who are not happy listening to and say, "Brother Anna, thank you for your message." But I tell you it's not from
11:24 the Lord. Quite shocking, huh? I remember when I read this, I was very troubled and it really took the scales
11:31 off my mind and I and if I offended you, take time to talk to me later. Why? I believe with so much conviction that
11:38 Piper is correct. Now the key is then what is the secret to happiness? Let's
11:45 look at a verse and we'll today we're only going to look at one verse, nothing
11:50 else. We're just going to concentrate on one verse and look at verse four. We're going to look at it in totality and then
11:57 we're going to break it up. Now, see the way is written, one thing I ask of the Lord. This is what I seek that I may
12:05 dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to gaze upon the beauty
12:11 of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. What is the imagery you get?
12:17 It's a man in love. He's in love with God.
12:24 And here is you ask me the fundamentals of what being a Christian is. Do you
12:31 know what is the secret of happiness is to fall deeply madly in love with God.
12:38 That's it. If you don't have that, everything else that falls after that is false.
12:47 It's a tremendous truth. Much harder to do. But let's get what it
12:53 means first. But this is what the Bible teaches. Very powerful truth.
13:00 Why is that so? Because why are we happy? We are happy because we love
13:07 certain things. Am I not right? You love food that makes
13:12 you happy. You love to play golf that makes you happy. Not criticizing anyone
13:19 playing golf here. Was always carried myself to church. You love playing tennis. Tennis makes you happy. You love
13:25 computer games. You love a woman. You love a man. It makes you happy. Love is
13:31 the key. Now here this is why this is important. You see here
13:37 people come to church, they come to FBC. They are new. They sit at the back. We
13:44 say are you a visitor? They put up their head. We say welcome to FBC. We take them out. We sit them down. We give them
13:50 macakan. Then we show them some hospitality.
13:56 They feel happy. After a while, they like the environment. They come back. They find
14:03 friends they connect with. They like the environment. They like the worship. The messages are okay. After a while, they
14:10 stay. Now, let me ask you a question. Are they in love with God or in love
14:18 with the setting? They're in love with the setting. You notice a subtle danger in these things.
14:26 It's a very very subtle danger you know are we in love with God or in love for
14:33 we get from being in ABC and why this message means very personal to me is
14:39 this we've seen people come to ABC make declaration of faith they stay then
14:45 after a while like human nature they get into issues with other people oh this person say this no this preacher say
14:51 they honor I don't like what he said no always targeting golfers say this and
14:57 that. Have grace with me brother. I just tell you a joke. Afterward they get upset. You see then upset builds another
15:04 upset. Then they pick a fight or someone picks a fight with them. After they don't get very happy they sit at the
15:09 back then they say ABC full of hypocrites. Then the Chinese call yana they tahan tahan. After a while they
15:17 leave. You see our danger. See this is a very very important point to pick up.
15:22 And this morning you and I just have to ask ourselves this. Are we in love with God? Now how do we do it? Let's start
15:30 off with the first line. One of the most beautiful verses and the opening. He
15:37 says one thing, not two things, not three things, one thing. In fact, his
15:45 one thing is his everything. And I'll give you the context later which makes
15:51 it even more powerful. But let's start off with the meaning. One thing and everything. In the 1970s,
15:59 there was a very popular song Kong, you're my everything. How many of you old enough to know this song? You're my everything. Anyone old enough? Ah,
16:05 you're my everything. The sun that shines above you, I can't sing, so I won't.
16:13 But the point is, these are the most corniest lyrics. I mean, you know, the one that makes your hair stand.
16:19 You know, in your 70, they write this and then you all you young, think back
16:24 when you're young and you fell in love and you couldn't sleep or your stomach churn and you were so in love and your
16:30 your salivies,
16:43 the person change. Or worse still, you really love that
16:50 person and that person breaks your heart. You see what the verse is trying to tell
16:55 you? The verse is telling you what you cherish.
17:01 If it can be taken away from you, that happiness is going to cause you
17:08 pain. That is so so revealing to the mind. You see what has David discovered?
17:17 He's discovered a happiness that conquers anxiety. When you look at verse 1 to three, one word or one thinking
17:27 continues through all the verses. Verse one, whom shall I fear? Of whom shall I
17:33 be afraid? Verse three, my heart will not fear.
17:38 Why? Because the context of this is very likely war.
17:44 The king is in the midst of going out to battle.
17:49 His army is with him. Maybe he's going to fight Abselon. Maybe he's fighting
17:54 the Philistines. We don't know. And in the midst of war and preparation of war
18:01 where everyone is getting very anxious, the king goes into the temple. And he
18:07 doesn't go to the temple with a pumping heart and say, "God grant me victory." He goes to the temple and says, "God, I
18:14 love you." It's extremely powerful. Why? Because the secret out of his anxiety
18:22 is his love for God. Why? Because that one thing cannot be taken away. He has a
18:28 happiness that conquers anxiety. For us, we have a happiness that causes anxiety.
18:38 Look at this list here. Everyone here, our happiness is based on
18:43 that. If we are honest, I have a small family.
18:49 I'm anxious if anything happens to them. You have money in the bank. You get
18:56 anxious if that's taken away from you. Your health, you see where David is
19:02 going? David is saying, "Yes, these things make you happy. It's fine. But
19:08 discover a deeper happiness. A happiness which doesn't cause you anxiety.
19:14 Discover happiness that cannot be taken away. Discover that one thing. Discover
19:21 a joy that cannot be taken away. Psalm 73 verse 26. My flesh and my heart may
19:29 fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm
19:36 27:10. Though my mother and father forsake me, the Lord will receive me.
19:42 When I arrive at this point, I will be the second happiest person of
19:49 in the world. Not the happiest yet. I'll tell you later who is the happiest person in the world, but I'll be the
19:55 second happiest, which is not bad. And this is our journey. When you arrive at
20:00 this, your happiness abounds. No jo no no description. You have found a
20:06 happiness that is lasting and endearing. How do we do that? How do we discover
20:13 that? We're going to learn from David. And there's three things he did. He dwelt in the house of the Lord. He gazed
20:21 upon the beauty of the Lord. And he seek God in the temple. Let's look at the first one. Dwell. That I may dwell in
20:29 the house of the Lord all the days of my life. Now again remember the context is war
20:36 you know there's a temple before he goes out to war he goes into
20:42 the temple when he enter the temple he's so happy there he says he wants to dwell
20:49 in the house of the lord then he says something else which is quite interesting all the days of my
20:55 life. Now what does it mean? Does it mean he wants to stay in a temple not get out? We know that's not true. So there's a symbolic meaning in this and
21:02 the way to look at this is in two ways. The first is God is sacramentally in the
21:07 temple and secondly God is experientially in his everyday life. Now
21:12 let me ask you when you come to church on Sunday morning most of us when we
21:18 come if we are honest with ourselves we come out of sense of duty you know hey you better come to church on Sunday
21:24 morning and we sit there and sometimes it's interesting sometimes it's boring
21:29 sometimes you want to fall asleep sometimes you want to do this but what David does when David goes to the temple
21:36 and let me tell you going to the temple service is much more boring I tell you than coming to church on Sunday
21:42 really really boring but he doesn't get distracted. He goes there he's so
21:48 focused on God that the presence of God just fills in and then when he leaves
21:54 the temple when he goes to war or goes through life goes through all his
21:59 problem the presence of God continues with him. So to dwell in the house of
22:04 the Lord means to live permanently in God's presence. Psalm 16:11b in your
22:11 presence there is fullness of joy. So here's is some of the secrets of finding
22:18 happiness. How often do you desire God's presence in your everyday life? For most
22:24 of us, we come on Sunday, we get the music up, we get pumped up, then we feel a bit of God. We go back Monday,
22:31 Tuesday, Wednesday, we forget God. Then things hit us. We get unhappy. Then we
22:36 say, "Where is God?" So what David is saying is you want to be happy, God has
22:41 to be with you every day, his presence. Here's a simple clue. Here's a simple
22:47 test. Do you think of God when you're at business? When you're in a meeting, do
22:53 you think of the Lord? When you're at home and and you're watching TV, does it does the Lord come into your mind? When
22:60 you're out there with your friends, do you think of the Lord when you you're you're having macan? Do you think of the
23:05 Lord? Now let's take this one step further because the imagery here is
23:12 temple as David entered the temple and then he sees a sacrifice of bulls and
23:19 then there's the high priest. Now in the New Testament who or what is the temple
23:25 and John 2 tells us the temple is Jesus because Jesus says he will when the
23:31 temple is torn down he will rebuild it up and he was talking about his body. So Jesus is a temple. And who is considered
23:39 the sacrificial lamb in the New Testament is Jesus. And who is considered the high priest of the order
23:46 of Mechisedc? Is Jesus. So Jesus is the temple. He's a sacrifice. He's the high
23:52 priest. So this is what Psalm 27 is telling us. Is Jesus in your everyday
23:59 life. When when I go out and I I want to buy a
24:06 nice car, I want to take the new Chinese New Year money and do something nice. Do
24:11 I think of what did Jesus do with money? Did he did he spend it on himself?
24:18 Or when I I meet some important people in business and part of me wants to try
24:23 to connect with people because that makes me happy. Do I think of Jesus and how Jesus spend time with the poor? When
24:30 I get very angry with somebody and I want to really really pick a fight, do I
24:36 think of Jesus and how how on the cross he took away my sins? You see, it's not
24:42 just enough to have Jesus in your hearts. He must be in our everyday lives. And here again, the church
24:49 sometime does a disservice. You see, we have watered down being a Christian into this. You know,
24:56 you want to be Christian, come do the sinner's prayer. Accept Jesus into your heart. Jesus in your heart, right?
25:02 Hallelujah. You're a believer. Now, you see, we cheapen faith, you know. So,
25:08 people come to church, they like the environment, they like the they like the feel, then they say a sinner's prayer,
25:16 they see Jesus comes into their heart like this like this poster up there. Then they expect Jesus to do things for
25:23 them. Then as they go on, life hits them. They get sick. The business
25:29 doesn't do well. People offend them. They get unhappy.
25:36 And then they come to church, they say, "Why should I be a Christian?" Because
25:41 in the first place, Jesus was not really really in their hearts. Because if Jesus
25:46 is really in your hearts, he's in your lives. So here's the first point about the secret to happiness. You must have
25:54 Jesus in your everyday life. Secondly, to gaze. What does it mean to gaze upon
25:60 the beauty of the Lord? Now when we do worship, uh most of us
26:05 think of gazing as this. Now I I I love what we call to raise my hands and close
26:11 my eyes. Some of you don't, some of us do. This is worship is from the heart.
26:17 But I want to ask a question. You know we sing a lot of songs that says I look into the beauty of your eyes. Hallelujah
26:24 Lord I gaze upon you Lord your beauty. Now what does it mean to look upon the
26:32 face of God. You know in the Old Testament no one ever sees God's face.
26:37 You know no one ever does that. Yet this is what David says. David says here he
26:45 is actually wanting to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. That's looking at the face of God. So what does he mean
26:52 more importantly when you sing all these songs you know what goes through you? Now this is what I suspect
26:59 and most people when they get into this euphoria and the music is playing and they say oh God you're so beautiful.
27:06 They are enamored with the love of God. They think wow God is so great. He died
27:11 for me on the cross. He's such a loving God. Hallelujah. Lord I love you. Then
27:17 Monday go to work you forget everything. Now I'm not saying that's wrong. But can
27:23 I suggest to you that's not what that verse means? You know, so what does
27:29 it mean when you say to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord? Psalm 90:17
27:35 says this, "May the favor of the Lord rest on us." Now that's easier to understand, right? And he says,
27:42 "Establish the work of our hands for us." But the King James version says
27:47 this. And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us. You see, if you look at
27:54 it symbolically, if you I give you example, you imagine again last time when you were deeply in love. When
28:01 you're in love with someone, you stare at the guy, right? If you if you if you're not in love, you don't stare. You stare at him. People say there's something wrong with you, right? But you
28:07 love with someone, you stare. You're in love. What does the other person do if he's in love with you? Does he look
28:13 away? What does he do? He looks back at you. Correct? That's why they call
28:18 blinded by love. Oh, just staring goofish eyes at one another in love. You
28:24 think about the imagery. Now, what the psalmist is saying is that if you stare at God, what is God going to do? God is
28:30 going to stare back at you. And when God stares back at you, the psalm is saying,
28:37 what is he going to see? You see the beauty of the Lord is reflected in how
28:43 we glorify God with our lives. It's nothing to do you getting high and
28:48 hallelujah Lord praise the name. Oh, music. Hallelujah.
28:55 I mean, I I love that, I tell you. But it's very dangerous. You know, you stare at God, God stares back at you. And God
29:02 is going to say, "What am I going to see?" If I see a life which is not
29:07 pleasing to me, I see a life which does not honor me. Well, you know what's God
29:15 going to say? You're not going to be happy. You see, he goes on when he was
29:21 struggling, he says, "Seek his face. Seek his face." Why? He wants to experience God in verse eight. And how
29:27 does he experience God? He says in verse 11, "Teach me your way, O Lord. Lead me
29:34 in a straight path." That's how he is restored back to the happiness of God.
29:39 He's restored back when God teaches him. Jesus says this, "If you keep my
29:46 commandments, you will abide in my love just as I kept my father's commandments
29:51 and abide in his loves." But why does he do it? Does Jesus do it to make your life difficult? He says this when you
29:58 keep his commandments. These things I spoken to you that my joy may remain in
30:04 you and that your joy may be full. You see, God's not a party pooper. You
30:10 know when you honor God and it's difficult when you try to walk right when you meditate on scripture when you
30:17 have communion and you're honest with your Christian life and daily daily as
30:22 you change the promise of scripture is your joy will be full. Now there's
30:27 another part of it and there's another expression of it which is interesting and you look at Psalm 27 after he goes
30:34 on verse four he you find he then goes to verse 5 he talks about his day of
30:40 trouble he talks about how God will keep him safe in his dwelling how God will help him in hide him in the shelter of
30:46 the tabernacle and then verse eight he got he starts to get really happy my head will be exalted above the enemies
30:53 who surround me and then look at what he does at the second part of verse six. At
30:58 his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy. I will sing and make music to the Lord. See how the
31:05 progression goes. Yeah. He is there at verse four. He's worshiping God. He
31:10 thinks of how God has done things to him. How his life is walking with the Lord and he comes out with shouts of
31:15 joy. Let me try to explain this to you. I want to divert a little bit to worship. In our church, we got a very
31:22 famous architect. You know, his name is Unwa. Anybody is unwa here
31:27 today? I think he is he's not here right rats. Never mind.
31:34 Okay. Maybe God wants to keep him humble. Now let me say this honestly to you.
31:40 Brother is a very good architect. He's a very brilliant architect. This project
31:46 of his won many awards. So I told myself sometime I go why this fellow so famous. I must go and see for myself. So I went
31:53 there being a fellow architect too. I stood there and I looked at his
31:59 handiwork. I looked at his beauty. I looked at his
32:05 space. Now what do you think I did after that? Did I stand there and go very
32:10 nicer? No, you don't do that. Right? When you're filled with beauty, when you
32:16 see what God has done, what do you do? You stand there and you say, "Wow, why
32:22 count? This guy very good architect man. Did Wong ask me to do that?" No, he
32:28 didn't. Did I need to do that? No, I didn't. It came out naturally.
32:35 Now, I think that's quite important, you know, because what David does is this. As he meditates on God, as he meditates
32:42 on the beauty of God, as he looks at how walking in obedience has changed him,
32:48 what does it do? It comes out in praise. You see, happiness is glorifying God in
32:56 our everyday lives. But can I suggest that's not complete? Happiness is
33:02 incomplete unless expressed. I think there's a very powerful truth.
33:08 If you ask me how you define worship, worship is defined only one word. Is
33:13 happiness in God expressed? And if it doesn't come out naturally,
33:20 it probably means you're not very happy. You see, when we come to worship, there
33:27 two groups here and we oscillate. Some of us come and say, "Oh, you better sing because part of the church will sing
33:33 hallelujah. Hallelujah." We call that duty.
33:38 The Bible says they honor me with their lips but their hearts far away. Then
33:45 there's the other need the speakers who really amp them up. Hallelujah.
33:52 They're actually quite the same because you take away the music, they're no longer feeling it. But the man who
33:59 really really loves God, who really sees God in his life, when he comes to church
34:06 and the words get up there, he cannot help but express it. Happiness is
34:12 incomplete unless expressed. And that's why David says at the end of it, at his
34:18 sacred tent, I will sacrifice with shouts of joy. I will sing and make
34:23 music to the Lord. Let me end with the last one. And David says to seek him in
34:29 his temple. And you see how now the text is moving. It starts with dwelling God's presence. Then to gaze, to look at what
34:38 God is doing in his life, to contemplate is he honoring God. Then only he gets
34:45 down on his knees and he presents his request. And we find in verse five, the request is that the battle goes well for
34:52 him. that God keeps him in his shelter. The the flow is quite important.
34:58 Now in the early church there was a very famous woman called Ania Falonia Proba.
35:05 Now you must understand during those times is a very sexy society. Very few women make the headlines. So for woman
35:11 to get a sculpture or headbust means you're very important. You see she was a Christian in what we call the first
35:18 century doing what is known as the Nissian fathers. And Augustine, a very famous uh first century church leader,
35:25 wrote letters to encourage her. Now, one day, Ania asked Augustine, teach me how
35:30 to pray. And so, Augustine writes a letter. It's called letter 130. You Google it on the internet, you get a
35:37 whole letter. And I I read it on the net. It's fascinating letter. And this is written hundreds of years ago. And
35:44 this is how Augustine tells Ania. When when Ania asks Augustine, how should I pray? He tells Ania this first. In
35:52 saying these things to you, rich and noble and a mother of an illustrious
35:57 family have asked for me a discourse and prayer. Then he says something very insulting to her. You are desolate.
36:05 Hello, I'm from a good family. I'm rich.
36:10 I got good children. You say I desolate. Hello. This is something everyone here
36:16 will like. Especially your Chinese. to the Chinese what is the most important thing must have money must have faith
36:23 must have good children correct this is happiness to the Chinese you know Austinan tells her you're desolate so
36:30 stunning you are desolate and then Austinine reminds us so long as you have not attained to that life in which is
36:38 the true and abiding consolation so Austinine is telling here don't put your
36:44 happiness in these things then Augustine tells Pray for happy life.
36:50 Like hello. Very frustrating. You read a letter. Why are you trying to tell me? I
36:55 got every reason to be happy. You tell me I shouldn't put my happiness in that.
37:01 Then you tell me pray for happy life. So where should I put my happiness in? And then what Augustine writes is extremely
37:08 profound. He says why then are our desires scattered over many things? And
37:14 why through fears of not praying as we ought do we ask what we should pray for
37:19 and not rather say the psalmist one thing have I desired of the Lord that
37:25 will I seek after that I might dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord
37:32 and to enquire in his temple. Isn't this just so beautiful? And Augustine turns to Psalm 27:4 and
37:42 tells her that's the secret. And he tells her, you want to be happy, this is what you pray for. You seek God in these
37:50 things. But Augustine is also saying something else. And it's very relevant to all of us. Don't seek the things
37:57 that's going to make you dissolute. This one things you seek, this
38:02 everything, they will make you dissolute. There's a program on TV called Rich Kids of Beverly Hills. It's
38:08 a terrible program. Completely terrible. And that's why we like to watch terrible
38:13 programs. You see, it shows you people who are very rich. This girl is Dorothy Wong. Her father is the biggest retail
38:20 developer in China. Money is really like water. Literally like water to them. She
38:26 has Rolexes. And look at what she says down down there. Now, here's the thing.
38:33 Especially for Chinese, I want to particularly pick on Chinese. To Chinese, if they have this, they think they're very happy. But to Paul, to
38:41 Austinine, to Jesus, to David, you're actually the saddest person on earth.
38:46 You know, because you're completely desolate because the moment these things are
38:53 taken away from you, you have nothing. You see, this is the key to happiness.
38:60 Happiness is that one thing, that one thing that cannot be taken away. And
39:05 John says this, until now you have nothing. Ask nothing. My name ask and
39:10 you receive that your joy may be full. What is John telling you? The moment
39:16 happiness is your goal. Happiness in God. You're not going to ask for the Rolex. You're not going to ask for that
39:22 14 month bonus at Chinese New Year. Now, does it mean having that is wrong? No. Does it mean having good health is
39:28 wrong? No. But there's a higher form of happiness. So Timothy Kellis says if God
39:33 is our greatest love, if knowing and pleasing him is our highest pleasure,
39:39 then it transform both what and how we pray for a happy life. And this is how
39:45 we should pray for happiness. Who are the happiest people in the world? I told
39:50 you just now about the second happiest. The happiest people are people who do
39:55 this. We are told in Hebrews, you know, let us fix our eyes upon Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who
40:02 for the joy set before him endured the cross. And Paul talks about Colossians,
40:08 now I rejoice in what was suffered for you. The second happiest people are
40:14 those when things go bad, they are still happy because they have a lasting joy.
40:21 So, I didn't get my bonus. I'm sad for a while, but God's love with me. I'm still
40:26 happy. So, my health, you know what? I prayed for a better health. Didn't
40:31 really go my way, but you know what? I'm still happy. So, I prayed for a husband.
40:37 I prayed for a wife. I prayed for my marriage. Didn't go my way. I'm still
40:42 happy. You're the second happiest. The happiest guy is when he's so happy with
40:49 God. He looks at God so much. He's willing to suffer voluntarily. And just
40:56 now Peter look at the Macedonian church. I want to read you about the Macedonian church. You know, it's found in 2 Corinthians chapter 8:2. Just just hear
41:03 me. It's a fantastic verse. He says this about the Macedonian church and why they
41:08 gave know you see what he says. Out of the most severe trial they are suffering, huh? Their overflowing joy. I
41:17 mean, wow. and the extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. I pray
41:25 you know how unhappy I am when I read this. Here is a church that's going through trial and yet they have
41:31 overflowing joy. And look what it says. Entirely on their own, they urgently
41:37 pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.
41:43 is completely completely mind-boggling. And these are the happiest people in the
41:50 world when they're willing to suffer for the cross just as Jesus did because they
41:55 see a greater reward. Let me close with this. In Luke 11:13,
42:02 in Luke 11:13, the disciples asked Jesus, "Teach us how to pray." And Jesus
42:09 tells them, God is the God of the how much more. Saying that, you know, God's going to give you the spirit. God when
42:16 he gives, he doesn't give you a little bit. He opens the door and floods it to you. I want to end on this and let ask
42:23 the worship team to come. I want I want you to pause a bit on this. Now, when God gives love in Ephesians 3:18-19, you
42:31 know what kind of love he gives you? He gives you the kind of love that is beyond description. And Paul describes
42:39 it is too wide, too deep, too long. Is the kind of love which is unimaginable.
42:46 That's the kind of love God wants to give you. Then in Philippians 4 6 to7, he talks of peace. And he says, "Pray
42:53 for peace." Now, what kind of peace God's going to give you? Is it a little bit of peace? Is the kind of peace that
42:59 surpasses understanding. So if you follow that trail of thought
43:07 and you ask God for joy, you really go home tonight and you ask God for joy and
43:14 you do it like the way the psalmist does. What kind of joy do you think God's going to give you? Is he going to sting back? He's going to give you the
43:22 kind of joy you cannot describe.
43:27 Now we are all on that journey, you know, and it is so powerful. But this morning, I just want to encourage you.
43:33 You have a good God, a God that wants to make me and you happy. But why is it we
43:40 fall short and we're not happy? And let me quickly just close with this.
43:45 There's a story of Mary and Martha. Because we're very often like Martha. You see, the story is this. As Jesus and
43:52 his disciples went on the way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened a house to him. And she had a
43:58 sister called Mary who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. You know
44:03 what's Mary doing? Mary is doing Psalm 27:4. He's in the presence of the Lord.
44:09 Wants to learn from the Lord. But Martha is like us. Martha was distracted by all
44:14 the preparation they have to make. She came to him and asked, "Lord, Lord, don't you care that my sister has left
44:20 me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me." You see what Martha is? Number one, Martha's like us. We're always
44:25 running around doing church work, doing this, doing that. And the other thing, have you noticed about Martha? She's not
44:31 happy. She's not happy. It's is really, really, really, really,
44:38 you know, think about it. It speaks volume. And then Jesus says something
44:43 which is extremely meaningful. He says, "Martha, Martha, in love." That means he
44:49 loves Martha. The Lord answered, "You're worried and upset. Unhappy. You're
44:55 worried. I'm upset about many things like us. We're worried. We're upset.
45:01 You're sitting there. Your your your your job's no good. You're lonely
45:08 for so long. You're lonely. Things not going right. You want you think if you get that your
45:14 happiness is there. God is telling you find a better happiness, a happiness that's enduring." Life in the sinful
45:21 world is bad. Then he says, "But only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better. It will not be taken
45:27 away from here." You know what's the key word here? One thing,
45:34 one thing, one thing I ask of the Lord. This is what I seek. That I might dwell in the
45:41 house of the Lord all the days of my life. to gaze upon the beauty of the
45:46 Lord and to seek him in his temple. Church,
45:52 be happy. Let's pray. Lord, we come before you now in utter
45:58 humility and we we very often are like Martha. We run here and run there and we we say we do things for you and like
46:05 Jesus says, we are we upset about many things. And Lord, you know,
46:11 as we sit here right now, there are people in our midst who worry about their health. They worry about about
46:17 work, about relationships, and they're valid reasons, Lord. And and and we sit there and we say, "Lord, if if only you
46:23 remove this from me, I will be happy." But Lord, you're saying there's a better way.
46:30 Choose a better way. like Mary Lord because even if these things these
46:36 trials of ours are removed you know next month next year another trial will come
46:43 while we on this earth pain and suffering is our neighbor.
46:49 So Lord this morning we we think of what King David did in the temple
46:54 and he just asks for one thing. Lord, this morning we just have one
46:60 simple prayer. Is a difficult prayer, but it's the most profound prayer. And I pray for myself.
47:07 I pray for everyone here. Make this our deepest most prayer. Lord, teach us, oh
47:13 Lord. Teach us to fall deeply, deeply in
47:18 love with you. Because that, oh Lord, is the secret to
47:24 lasting and enduring happiness. For in your presence, oh Lord, there is
47:31 fullness of joy. And we say this in Jesus name. Amen.
