More Than A Feeling
Nathan Adams · Tidal Church Shediac · October 18, 2026 · Joy Anyway series
Nathan Adams explores Philippians 2:12-30, showing that God works in believers by giving both the desire and the power to follow through. Through Timothy and Epaphroditus, he shows that joy means becoming like Jesus and serving Him now, whatever our circumstances.
More from Nathan Adams · The Joy Anyway series
Topics: Joy, Purpose, Discipleship
Transcript
[0:00] Well, we are on week four of Joy Anyway, going through the book of Philippians. Philippians is a fantastic book. It has more... People used to talk about tweetable sayings and stuff like that. I don't know if you say exable now, but anyway. It has more catchy, pithy sayings that you could like just have going through your head than any other book probably in the Bible. So we've been passing out these little memory verse cards on the way out. And I hope you're getting it. Remember week one, it was Philippians 1 6. He who began a good work in you will be faithful to carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ.
[0:48] And I got to share that message on that one. And I remember, I don't know if you remember, but I remember talking about rejoicing that God will bring everything to completion and rejoicing in people and rejoicing from right down in our heart as God's put joy in our hearts and talked about making advancing the gospel our truest joy. And so that was kind of to get us going. And it's really like Paul is introducing some themes that he's going to be developing through the book of Philippians. And then to live as Christ and to die is gain. And we actually had Barry share on that one.
[1:34] And Barry grew up in the Philippines and the Philippines, Bahamas and no connection. Anyway, grew up in the Bahamas and was a youth pastor there. And then when he came up here to Canada, he ended up going back to Oregon because his family members kept dying. His grandmother, his brother was murdered, lost a friend, lost another one. I think he did four funerals. And that was just last winter, guys. But he got up here two weeks ago and talked about the joy of the Lord. And he said, you know what? We can still smile. Why can we smile? Because we're S was saved. M was because we're maturing through it all. I was because we can still be interceding for others in prayer from what we've gone through that we know that we're loved by God.
[2:26] And the last thing in smile was that we're being equipped by God for good works. And just to have someone share that from what he's been through is really meaningful for our congregation. Plus, he's an amazing preacher with a style that none of us can imitate. So that was great. I hope you like that. And then last week was the polar opposite. We had Kenzie here rather than the big Bahamian style of delivery. We had Kenzie with a very thoughtful delivery, quiet delivery. But he spoke off the verse that we had in Philippians 2.5, which is, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus. Have the same attitude, the same mindset. And Kenzie talked about Christ's authority. And who could have more authority than Christ?
[3:14] Who being in very nature, God, from all eternity, God, the Son, instead of holding on to his authority and lording it over everyone, he lets it go in an ultimate display of vulnerability. And he becomes obedient, even to the point of death and across, doing the obedience you and I should have done. He does it. And then he's exalted to lordship. And Kenzie's trying to show that in this life of joy, this life with Jesus, there's a different path where we use our power to open up to others and be vulnerable and then see what God does with it. And so there was a really thoughtful, compelling message that he shared about last week. Now, this week in week four, and we've got an eight week series, the verse is Philippians 2 13.
[4:08] And I believe this verse is actually expanding upon the very first verse that we started with. Remember the very first verse? He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it. God will be faithful to complete it. This verse is like more information about how this happens. So check it out. For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. So the point is very simple. You can see it here. You don't need some brilliant exposition. God works in you. Okay. God's working in you. This is pretty simple. God is working in you, but I guarantee you're underestimating that.
[4:57] I guarantee you're underestimating that God is working in you. God is working in you. He's not just working around you. He's working in you. And he's not just working through other people. He's working through you, little old you, Kathy. He's working through you, in you. And sometimes, guys, we're looking around and we spend so much time looking for God to change our circumstances that we overlook what he might be wanting to change in us. So we pray God change the situation, fix this relationship.
[5:43] God open this door. God make this easier and keep on praying that way, guys. God has asked us to pray about everything big and small. There is nothing wrong with those prayers. He does not run out of time for you. There's not a quota of his attention or his power. He cares about even the smallest things in your life. Keep praying those prayers. But Philippians reminds us that God is actively working in us, in us, even when nothing appears to be happening around us. Have you ever been stuck where nothing is happening around you? Someone asked me the other day, how are you doing? And it was just someone I knew. And I said, in this certain area of my life, I am stuck. Like, nothing is happening.
[6:36] But what's happening inside? And this is what we can go into today. Because what if God wants to change something even more important than your circumstances today? What if he wants to change something in you? What if he's developing patience in you right now? What if he's developing trust? What if he's growing compassion in you? What if he is changing your perspective? Something's being broken down so something beautiful and new can be developed. And what if he's preparing you and me for something that we have no idea about yet? But he knows. And so, in our small groups this week, we have a question for you to consider.
[7:27] This is the question, looking back on a difficult season, can you recognize something God was developing or changing in you even though you couldn't see it at the time? So, think about that and think, bring that to your small group. This is going to be a key question for you to work out. But this verse that I've given you, it comes with the context. So, it was verse 13. We're now remember where we're at. We've just heard the big hymn of who Jesus is. Nature of God humbles himself, becomes a human being, is obedient to the point of death. Therefore, God raises him from the dead, gives him the name that's above every name that at his name. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
[8:17] And then boom, therefore, my dear friends, as you've always obeyed, obeyed the word of Jesus. Not only in my presence, says Paul, when I was with you in Philippi, but even much more in my absence while I'm in here in Rome in prison. He says, I want you to continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Now, I want to talk about fear and trembling here for a second. How does fear and trembling go together with joy? Well, the answer is Ferrari. It really is. Has driven a Ferrari. Okay. And it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I mean, I've been in powerful cars before, but the Ferrari, I can't even describe it. It's just pure power and electricity and not the power that goes, and then gets to the point eventually and gets you down the road.
[9:25] No, no power like rain back in it. And so I had terror and joy at the same time. I was terrified. I was going to smash this thing too. You know, have you ever seen anyone driving around will or Boulevard, like an absolute maniac? I wouldn't have done that. I just want to tell you that I'm in church. I shouldn't be lying. Anyway, that's the fear and trembling and the joy combined. Who's working in you guys? God, the power of God is working in you and Ferrari doesn't hold a candle to the power of God. And so we have joy. We also have fear and trembling because there's a lot of power at work.
[10:11] There's something very, very important happening in that process. And then in verse 13, it explains the process. It says, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. So the first question is, what is this work? Well, the work's pretty clear. He started talking about, Hey, make sure you keep obeying. And remember last week with Kenzie, he's talking about how Jesus obeyed to the point of death on a cross. So this obedience to God, following his will, submitting our lives to him, that's the work. All right. So that's the work that's happening. Now who's doing the work? Because it's a little confusing.
[10:58] In verse 12, it says, work out your salvation, you know, make sure you're working at it. And then in verse 13, it says, God's working in you. And so that's, that's the thing. It's a little bit confusing, but the priority is God. God's working in you and you're working along with him. He's taking the initiative. You're responding senior partner, junior partner. And the way he works is he puts the desire in you and he puts the power in you. So if you look at it, God is working in you to will. So we might want to hold a grudge, but God puts this desire in us to forgive.
[11:56] Even when you don't want that desire, he's still putting that desire in you. It's coming from God. Sometimes we want to complain and something checks us from within and there's a desire to rise above that and develop a deeper gratitude. Sometimes we're wanting to put ourselves first, but this strange desire to humble ourselves and look to the other people's interests as much as, or maybe even more than our own sometimes comes upon us. Well, that's God. It's starting with desire, with a will that's being put in you to do something. Now, one thing I love about the testimonies that we do sometimes is I get to have a longer conversation with the people beforehand and hear more of the story.
[12:50] And one of the little pieces of story that you shared with me yesterday was so funny, Kathy, because you said, because in your life, you've been wandering around searching and you're getting almost drawn in by some groups that are really not correct. Okay, Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons. I don't want to say a whole bunch of bad things, but they wouldn't say it. Yeah. And they wouldn't say that I see in creed with us. They wouldn't say the apostles creed with us. Like they're outside of the mainstream of Christianity. And so not perfect. Okay. Not great. But you said, when God tells me, then I'll know it's my church. And so you came to our church, which is not a perfect church, but it's a good church. We believe the Bible as the way Christians have always believed it. And God spoke to you and said, this is it.
[13:37] This is it. And you knew. And then something changed in her. She actually quotes this verse, not realizing she was quoting it. She says, it was like God put a will in me to want to go to church. I used to go to church, just, I don't know, seeking obligation, but all of a sudden I wanted to be there. I said, Kathy, you just preached my sermon for me tomorrow. And it was pretty cool. It was pretty fun, but that's how God does. He puts this desire in us, these various desires, and that starts the process. But how many of you have heard that the road to hell is paved with good intentions? All right. I've heard lots of good intentions.
[14:24] In fact, some of the most dangerous people will tell you all about their good intentions. Everything's going to change. All right. But God's putting these good intentions and he doesn't just give us good intentions. Cause the second part is God is working in you to will and to act, to act. God is working in you to will and to act. What's cool in the Greek is that this is working in the Greek. And then this act is, you could also translate it working. It's the same root word. The way God works in you is he gives you the desire and then he gives you the working energy. You know, like he gives you the ability to follow through. So, now that you've got this desire for forgiveness, to give forgiveness to people, he gives you the power to have that conversation, to offer forgiveness.
[15:21] Now that we have a desire to be kinder, he gives us the grace to actually be kind. Like he's giving the power, not just the desire, but the power to follow through on the desire. And now that we want to become closer to God, he gives us the power to actually follow through in the activities that will put us in God's presence. The things like reading the Bible, entering into prayer, actually going to church on a regular basis, going to small groups, listening to worship music, whatever it is, going on a long walk where it's just you and God, whatever it is that connects you to God, the desire has been put there, but now he's going to give you the power to follow through. And instead of being a road to hell paved by good intentions, this road to heaven, that it happens by follow through.
[16:11] Because he's given you the will and the power to act. So, the second point though, that Paul gets at after he's explained how this God working in us works, is he talks about God working in us to shine through us. So, listen to what he has to say. He says, do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Can you say that with me right now? Warped and crooked generation. That's our world.
[16:59] But he wants us to shine like stars. As we hold firmly to the word of life, and Paul says, and then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. He says, but even if I'm being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service that are coming from your faith, I'm glad and I rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with all of me. So, Paul says that we should be differently, that we should shine like stars in the sky, like stars in the cosmos, actually is the word that's used, cosmos. You know Greek, there you go, cosmos.
[17:46] And I love that picture because we don't see the stars when it's sunny, do we? We don't even see the stars when it's cloudy. Only in the deepest darkness do you see a star. And so I think the same is true about our joy. Sometimes our joy becomes most noticeable when there's every reason in the world to not have any. When someone else is, everyone else around us is complaining, for some reason we have gratitude. When people are disappointing us, for some reason we have grace for them.
[18:32] When we're walking through difficult situations, for some reason we refuse to give up and we trust in God's goodness. And it's at those points that our joy shines the brightest when it's dark. Anyone can be happy on a sunny day, but you can have joy even when it's dark. I think the important distinction though comes up here. Our joy isn't just for us, it's also for our witness to those around us. Now I've seen that misused. How's everything? Great, great. You know and they're just, I've seen people under pressure to perform that they have joy because they're Christians.
[19:23] That's not what it is. You can have a genuine joy that shines through despite the pressure, despite the circumstance, and the people around us will notice if it's genuine or not. Our families, our co-workers, our neighbors, and our friends. Now as we look at this verse that we've just read too, I want you to notice how the theme of joy is still there. He says, I want you to be glad and rejoice with me. Paul says, even though my life is being poured out like a drink offering before God. So if you think, we don't do this anymore, but they still had Jewish rituals and stuff like that where they do a libation.
[20:11] People talk about libations, but they don't know what they're talking about. They're just drinking. Okay. A libation was when you'd take something that was viable, a drink, and you'd pour it out as a sacrifice to God. And so Romans did it to the false gods. The Jewish people did to God. And Paul says, that's my life. It's being poured out for God in an act of worship. And he says, and I don't want you guys to be sad about this going on for me. I want you to rejoice. I'm rejoicing. I want you to rejoice with me. And so that's that deep seated joy that he's got there. Now, the cool thing about Paul is he then immediately moves into some examples for the Philippian church that they would understand. So they don't have a Kathy in Philippi, but they've got a guy named Timothy who's been there, who's Paul's friend and ministry companion. He's with him in Rome.
[21:12] And they've got a guy named Epaphroditus who was from Philippi. And so Paul says, let me tell you, I'll give you two examples of what I'm talking about. This joy that's in us because God's working in us, giving us the will, giving us the power to follow his will and then shining through us. So he says in verse 19, I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon. So Timothy's with Paul in Rome. In fact, he's probably writing the letter down that Paul's dictating to him to the Philippians. And he's going to, Paul's going to send Timothy with the letter to the Philippians. He says, I hope to send Timothy to you soon that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. He says, I have no one else like him who will show genuine concern for your welfare.
[22:02] For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proven himself. Let me stop there for a second. So in Philippians chapter two, verse four, we're still in chapter two. Paul has just said, you need to have the same attitude and mindset of Jesus Christ who's looking out for other people's interests, at least as much as his own. And he says, Timothy is doing that. He's doing it. It's a doable job, in other words. And there's an example of a guy that's living out what I've been teaching you right now. So he says in verse 22, but you know that Timothy has proven himself because as a son with his father, he has served with me in the work of the gospel.
[22:55] That's like an apprenticeship. You know, I was talking to a young man recently, what are you doing? I'm working with my dad in the trade. Oh, okay. You're going to do that? I don't know. But I guarantee he's learning it. I learned when my dad was a carpenter. And I learned a lot besides how to pick up all the junk and heavy stuff on the work site when I was a teenager, because I'm still watching. Right. And Paul says, Timothy, you've been like a son to a father, you've been apprenticed. And he served with me in the work of the gospel. Verse 23, I hope therefore to send him to you soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon. So here's Timothy, he's literally Christ -like. He's got the interests of others above his own.
[23:41] He's been mentored by Paul and he shows genuine concern for others. So this is a real life example of what he's been teaching. Then the second example of how God works in and through us is Epaphroditus. And so Epaphroditus, you're going to pick this up here, but I'll just lay it out, was actually a Philippian from Philippi that was sent to Rome to bring gifts to Paul. He's in house arrest. He's got nothing, you know, he can't go out to Walmart. People have to bring him stuff, right, to keep him going. And they sent Epaphroditus to Paul. So he says in verse 25, but I think it's necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, my coworker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs.
[24:28] For he longs for all of you and is in distress because you heard he was ill. Indeed, he was ill and he almost died. But God had mercy on him and not only on him, but also on me to spare me sorrow upon sorrow if this man had died. Therefore, I am all the more eager to send him so that when you see him again, you may be glad and may have less anxiety. So then welcome him in the Lord with great joy and honor people like him because he almost died for the work of Christ. He risked his life to make up for the help you yourselves could not give me. What was that verse that Barry had for me to live as Christ and to die as gain? Epaphroditus is living that out. And Paul calls him his coworker.
[25:15] And I think this pulls this whole idea of work that we've been talking about together because there was what's the work? It's being obedient to Christ and laying around our lives to Christ. How does it happen? Because God's working in us to put the desire and the power to follow through on the desires. Okay, but who does it happen with? Co-workers. You see how the work all comes together? And so Paul calls them a co-worker. And that's my friends what we are as we serve together as a congregation and as title church overall to bring the gospel to people or co -workers. God's working in us. We're working with him in fear and joy and trembling and we're working with one another.
[26:02] And that's how it works. So Timothy is demonstrating this sacrificial service. Epaphroditus is demonstrating this same thing. And it lets us know that when we think about this joy, we need to remember that joy isn't just about feeling better. It's about becoming more like Jesus. You see, when Paul keeps talking about joy over and over again, he keeps coming back to being like Jesus. That's why he'll say, have the same mindset as Christ. And then they'll come right back to talking about joy. And then I'll say, and be Christ like, do these things and you'll joy. And he's tying them together so closely.
[26:53] Now, the fact is that a joy filled life is not necessarily an easy life. Paul had joy. Paul was imprisoned repeatedly. Epaphroditus had joy. He just about croaked. He was so sick, but he had joy. Timothy was serving in very challenging circumstances, but his life was still marked by faithfulness, love and concern for other people. You see, these people weren't waiting for perfect circumstances before they served God and experienced joy. They were doing it right where they were. And that's a challenge for us. It really is, guys, because sometimes we tell ourselves, when life settles down, then I'll get involved.
[27:45] When I'm less stressed, then I'll be more patient. When things improve, I'll be more generous. And when I'm happier, I'll start encouraging other people. But what if God wants to work in us and through us right here, right now, in the midst of our imperfect circumstances? One of the things that comes to me, because I've been in ministry for, I don't know, 13, 15 years. I have trouble counting. It depends on how I served. But preach the word, Timothy, in season and out of season. So when you feel like it and you don't, when things are going well and when they're not, when the crowd is receptive and when they're not, when you're getting appreciation and when you're getting persecution, preach it, Timothy, all the time. Because the day that you preach might be your bad day, but it might be the day that someone finds Jesus and goes to heaven forever as a result of that day.
[29:06] And so, if that was Paul's advice to Timothy, what is his advice to us today? In whatever circumstance that you're in, now's the time. It is always the time to serve the Lord. It is always the time to encourage others. It is always the time to lay down our lives before Him. And He's such a good God. He knows when we come to limits sometimes. He knows when it's time to change it up. But we can't put Him off waiting for the right circumstances. We've got to serve Him now. And so, I want to invite our prayer, our praise team, not prayer yet, our praise team, our worship team to come up. And I want to remind us where we started with this message. The memory verse that you'll receive on the way out is, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose. And the bottom line is that God is at work in you to make you like Jesus and to shine through you to draw and build up others.
[30:13] And when you have God working in you and through you, what happens around you doesn't determine your joy. You can have joy anyway. We can have joy anyway. So maybe today, you're in a season where things aren't going the way that you expected. Maybe you're discouraged. Maybe you're tired. Maybe you're struggling with something that has gone on much longer than you thought it would. And you've been waiting for something to change. Well, I want to encourage you with this truth. Just because you can't see where God is working around you does not mean He's not working in you. And that's the most important thing.
[31:00] My goodness, that's the most important thing. Because circumstances are very easy for God to change. He can change any circumstance at a whim. But the human heart, that's the hard one to change. And He's working with your heart right now. Above anything else, He's putting desires into your heart. He's putting follow through and power into your heart to change your heart. So today, I just want you to think and ask this one question to God. God, what are you wanting to change in me? Not around me.
[31:46] Yeah, pray that prayer. You know He's working. He's faithful. He's going to complete what He started. But right now, right today, forget about around. What are you wanting to change in me in this moment? And as we worship right now, I want this one question to be what we meditate on and dwell upon. God, what are you wanting to change in me? And if you can just be open as we worship and identify that and lay it down before Jesus, well, that will be part of your joy today. Let's worship the Lord together.