THE SECRET OF HAPPINESS (PSL)

( Matthew 5:1-12 )
A Message by Rev. Dr. Stanley Lim on 18th & 19th November 2000

INTRODUCTION:

Beginning with Chapter 5 right through to Chp.7, the Lord Jesus is seen teaching & preaching about many things pertaining to kingdom living. These 3 chapters is termed as the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus opens the sermon with the teaching on the Secret to Happiness. Verses 1-12 is often called the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes begin off with the word, “Blessed”. Blessed means to be happy, not in the world’s sense for the world’s happiness is superficial and depends on circumstances. The happiness spoken here does not mean as such but rather the kind of happiness that fills the soul even in the midst of the most depressing events of life.

If there was one person on earth who was truly happy, it was Jesus. The truth of Jesus’ real happiness is that His life was free from murmuring and complains. If is when we start to murmur and complain about everything and anything that we lose the joy of our happiness.

Dr. Billy Graham in his study on the Beatitudes wrote, “If by happiness we mean serenity, confidence, contentment, peace, joy and soul-satisfaction, then Jesus was supremely happy.” Jesus did not possess an external stimulus to make him happy. He moved with calmness, certainly and serenity throughout the most trying circumstances of life even at his own death.

A Texas millionaire once said, “I thought that money could buy happiness, I have been miserably disillusioned.” Voltaire, the famous Frenchman of Europe in the 18th century cried out to his doctor as he laid on his bed, “I am abandoned by God and man. I will give you half of what I am worth if you will give me 6 months life.”

Let us discover the secret of happiness in the light of the Word of God.

I. We must recognise that we will never get anywhere in our search for happiness until we give up trying to find it by our own efforts.

This simply means that God is the source of all true happiness as well as in other things. James presents this truth in James 1:16,17 – “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

This is where the world misses the message. Some free gifts that you receive as a result of purchasing some products are mere sales gimmicks. The price that you paid for the products has already included the cost of the free gifts as well.

Open your heart and receive the free gift of God’s Son and stop looking for happiness in fame, fortune, power or even in a marriage. These things might even give more heartaches instead of true happiness.

II. We must realise that the happiness of God in the individual begins with the forgiveness of sin.

When David wanted to speak of the happiness of the believer in the Old Testament he wrote in Psalms 32:1,2 - “Blessed is he writes transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man of whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.” Sin is a horrible barrier that divides and separates a person from God. For the unbelieving person, his sins is like a great black umbrella that keeps him away from the shower of God’s happiness. The sin factor must be dealt with first if happiness is to come into our lives.

In the original Hebrew, there are 3 degrees or extent of sin. The English Bible uses 3 different terms i.e. transgression, iniquity and sin. Psalms 51:2,3 – “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.”

a.) Transgression:
“pesha” means rebellion. It means to deny God’s authority in our lives. It is going against a personal God.

b.) Iniquity:
“awen” means perversity, crookedness. This refers to the repeated acts of sin, e.g.. David.

c.) Sin:
“Hatah” means to miss the mark, falling short of the goal. This refers to the human weakness that lies embedded in our flesh.

III. We must remember that fears in our lives hamper the happiness of God. Gen.3:9,10 – “Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” Verse 10 is the first record of fear in the Bible. Notice how this fear robbed Adam and Eve of the joy and happiness of God’s presence with them. Fear today is the greatest thief of our lives.

Because of that first incident of fear today man has become the recipients of many kinds of fear. True happiness is when we are free from fears of all kinds. 2 Tim.1:7 – “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

CONCLUSION:
True happiness begins in our lives when we seek first the kingdom of God. The ultimate happiness we must find is the happiness in our spirit. From it this happiness will permeate into other areas like our physical, mental, social and all else.