Proverbs 17:22 says:
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.”
Do you think God is joking?
It is a medicine that is not chemical.
There are no chemicals.
It is a medicine that has no side effects.
“This will cause blurry vision and dry lips and”
“your head to turn around sometimes.”
It’s medicine! Literally “medicine” is there.
A merry heart, and the word “merry” is “sameach”,
a heart that is “sameach”, “celebrating, rejoicing, happy heart.”
“Now, I just don’t like this idea of being happy for no reason.”
Your reason for “sameach”, your reason for joy is not scriptural.
If you are waiting for things to happen,
happenings that happen to happen the way
it’s supposed to happen, then you are happy,
you will never be happy.
Because happenings don’t happen to happen
the way you want it to happen, okay?
So you will never be happy all the time.
But if it’s independent of happenings,
it’s a joy from within, the Bible says it like this.
You know, Paul wrote from his prison cell the most joyful letter.
You can ask any scholar, alright?
Bible scholar who knows their New Testament
and you can ask them:
“What is the most joyful letter of Paul?”
They will tell you: “Philippians.”
The word “joy” appears more than any other book
that he wrote.
And yet, where was he writing from?
Prison.
And he wrote this: “Rejoice in the Lord,”
and again I say: ‘Rejoice!’” Rejoice.
“Do you know why this happened to me?”
“For the furtherance of your joy.”
“Hey guys, rejoice.” And then he wrote again.
“Rejoice in the Lord and again I say: ‘Rejoice!’”
Then he says this.
I am paraphrasing this, let me quote to you first
what he says.
“For me to write again these words to you”
“is not grievous for me. But for you, it is safe.”
How do you rejoice? He kept on repeating
so much that he must apologize a bit.
“I know guys, it’s not burdensome for me”
“to keep on repeating this but for you it is safe.”
“Rejoice in the Lord and again…”
Rejoice where? In your happenings?
No! In the Lord.
In the Lord. In your good Shepherd.
Even when things go wrong, rejoice in Him.
Keep a merry heart.
I tell you this, when you are flowing with the Lord,
the Lord wants you to be happy.
He looks at you and says, on the night He was betrayed,
knowing as He was betrayed, Judas just left,
knowing that as He was being betrayed,
He was saying this:
"These things I have spoken unto you”
“that My joy might remain in you and that your joy may be full."
Imagine! He was being betrayed even as He spoke those words.
"Hey guys, I have spoken these things to you.”
“My joy, the joy that You see me operating in, might remain in you."
And by the way, the word “joy” is from the word “chara.”
from the Greek.
“Chara” is the noun. “Kairo” is the verb of “chara”.
Notice, “chara” comes from? “Charis.”
“Charis” is grace.
So we rejoice not because we got a promotion.
We don't rejoice because our bodies are all well.
We don't rejoice, alright, because you know,
there is a promotion coming, okay?
We rejoice because of grace, because of God's grace in our lives.
Because of what we see in Him, in His grace. Alright?
“Chara” must be tied up with “charis.” Amen?
So the joy that comes because of God's grace.
And the Bible doesn't say “rejoice” only,
it says, “rejoice in the Lord”.
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.”
But watch this: “A broken spirit dries your bones!”
And so many medical conditions are caused by bones
that are dried up.
Osteoporosis. Arthritis.
All the “i-is” “is” is inflammation and
there is no more moisture.
What is growing old? Moisture gone already.
Why do you put moisturizer? Moisture has gone.
Now, I am going to show you something.
You all laugh.
A broken spirit dries the bones. What dries the bones?
A broken spirit.
Do you know where your blood is manufactured?
In your marrow, in your bone. Right?
So think about it, blood needs water.
Drinking water alone is not enough.
This is spiritual. It’s telling you it dries your bones.
Whatever comes in sort of like, absorbed everything and it’s gone.
Moses, when he was 120 years old,
something very interesting you read, it says in
Deuteronomy 34 before he died.
“Moses was 120 years old when he died.”
“His eyes were not dimmed nor his natural vigor diminished.”
I studied 1 time, the word “natural vigor.”
I just wondered: “What is natural vigor?”
“His eyes was not dimmed nor his natural vigor diminished.”
120 years old, y’all! Hey 120, you know!
120.
“His eyes not dimmed. His natural vigor not...”
So I asked: “What is natural vigor?”
And I looked it up and it’s the Hebrew word: “Moisture.”
“His moisture was not fled.”
Do we have the Young’s Literal Translation?
Young’s Literal says “nor has his moisture fled.”
So how is the spirit broken? How is the spirit broken?
And there’s some people that say:
“Well Pastor Prince, I have a merry heart.”
You know, in ancient Britain, when the king arrives back
into the castle, the flag is always at half-mast when he is out.
When he’s not in residence, there is no flag, okay?
Not half-mast. No flag.
But when the king is in residence, the flag is up.
“Joy is the flag flown high from the castle of my heart,”
from the castle of my heart, from the castle of my heart.”
“Joy is the flag flown high from the castle of my heart,”
“when the King is in residence there.”
Go on.
“So, let it fly in the sky, let the whole world know.”
“Let the whole world know, let the whole world know.”
“So, let it fly in the sky, let the whole world know.”
“That the King is in residence there.”
“So, let it fly in the sky, let the whole world know.”
“Well, Pastor Prince, that’s a flag.”
“But I tell you. Don’t go by my face.”
“I have a merry heart.”
No, you cannot say you have a merry heart
and it doesn’t notify your face.
Your face is the pole, the flag, okay?
“Well, well, well, I will not believe that.”
“Show me Bible.”
Okay. Don’t ever challenge me with the Bible. Alright?
Proverbs 15:13:
“A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance.”
Hey! Cheerful face! Alright?
So you know, it takes more muscles to frown than to smile.
“I don’t want to smile, because beauty.”
“I want to preserve my face. I want to preserve my face.”
“I don’t want to grow old too fast.”
“So the moment I smile, I will have laugh lines and all that.”
“I won’t look good and all that.”
Do you trust God? That God says:
“When you smile, you have a merry heart,”
“it will be moisture to your face.” Amen.
It will be moisture everywhere. Don’t worry, you will look
younger and younger. Amen. Are you with me so far?
Okay, many of you partake of the Lord’s Supper right?
Right? Alright, I’ll give you this last verse in Ecclesiastes 9:7.
“Go, eat your bread with joy.”
How do you eat your bread? With joy.
Okay let’s finish.
“and drink your wine with…” How? A merry heart.
“For God has already accepted your works.” Amen.
“Let your head lack no ointment.”
“And let your garments be white and your head lack no oil.”
“Live joyfully with the wife whom you love.”
Now the first part there, we all know is Communion
in the context of the New Testament, right?
And yet, the communion is called what?
“Eucharist.” Thanksgiving.
How many times have you attended a Communion service
and it’s very sombre? It is very heavy?
“Search your heart.”
By the time you finish searching your heart,
you don’t want to take already. Amen.
You are afraid, right?
It is called “Eucharist” or Thanksgiving. It’s joy.
It’s thanking the Lord.
So eat your bread with? Joy.
And drink your wine with? A merry heart. Amen.
I think that’s where we are missing it.
That’s why it’s not flowing in people’s lives because
they look at the Communion as a very sombre time.
And it is like we rejoice: “Praise the Lord!”
“Joy is the flag flown high, let it fly in the sky.”
“Now it’s time for Communion.”
Amen.
“Eat your bread with joy, drink your wine with a merry heart.”
And then what? “Your garments are always white.”
We know that we are the righteousness of God in Christ.
“Your head will lack no oil, anointing.” Amen.
“And you live joyfully with your spouse.”
Hallelujah!
If you need to take medicine, take both. Amen.
You won’t think of neglecting your medicine, right?
Don’t neglect the Lord’s Supper. Amen.
Rejoice. Amen.
“For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross.”
He loves you, man.
And for the joy set before Him, He endured the scourging.
No wonder He fell and He got up and fell again.
All because He loved you.
But He saw you that’s why He got up again
and He went on all the way to the cross.
He will not die until He’s on that cross.
Because there is another payment on the cross.
On that cross, He redeemed us from the curse. Amen.
“He was wounded for our transgressions.”
Can I have a good amen, people?