There is always a reason to rejoice, if you are a fully devoted follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. This fact is made very plain by the final passage in the book of Philippians, Philippians 4:10-23. Remember where the Apostle Paul was when he was writing Philippians, the book of joy. He was a prisoner, chained to a guard virtually 24/7. He had no money of his own, no investments, no 401k. He was separated from most of his family and friends. He was an enemy of the state, an enemy of the Jews, and an enemy to certain charlatans inside the church (1:15-17, 3:2, 3:18-19). He had suffered all of this simply because he had proven to be a fully devoted follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Furthermore, at the time of this writing, he was only a couple of years and one more imprisonment away from a violent death by execution. Even still, Paul writes to the Philippians that there is always a reason to rejoice.

Last week I pointed out the first three reasons to rejoice from this text. God’s people give us a reason to rejoice (verse 10, verses 21-22). God’s providence gives us a reason to rejoice (verses 11-13). And, God’s reward gives us a reason to rejoice (verse 14-19). Today I want to give you two more:

God’s glory gives us a reason to rejoice (verse 20).

Sooner or later Paul always gets around to the glory of God. This is why he lived and breathed and ate and drank and preached and taught and worshiped and witnessed. He did everything for the glory of God.

When Paul thought of his Christian friends, he gave glory to God. When Paul thought of all the provisions God had made for him in his life, he gave glory to God. When Paul thought of all he had given up and given away, knowing that it was storing up greater treasure for him in heaven, he gave glory to God. And when he thought his short life might be spent soon, he gave all the glory, forever and ever, to God.

It does not matter if you are rich or poor. It does not matter if you are successful or unsuccessful in the eyes of the world. It does not matter if you are in a big church or a small church. What matters is whether or not your life brings glory to God. If it does, you have a major reason to rejoice.

God’s grace gives us a reason to rejoice (verse 23).

And there’s one more reason for rejoicing. It is the word which begins and ends the epistle to the Philippians. It was one of Paul’s most favorite words. It made Paul one of the people of God, gave Paul all he needed for life and ministry, and enabled him to glorify God with his life. The first and last reason we can rejoice is “grace.”

Grace saves. Sure it is through faith, but without grace there is no faith. Grace serves. I could not preach and you could not serve the Lord without his grace. Grace supplies. If I got what I deserved I would have no savior, no freedom, no pleasures, no hope. But because of grace I can do all things with whatever I have been given from God. Grace will send us home, in God’s time. It’s his grace, so he can determine his time. I promise when the time comes, there will be a reason for rejoicing.

The “Doomsday Clock,” invented by scientists in 1947, now reads 11:55 p.m. They just moved it up about two minutes in response to current events including international wars and ecological disasters. Only God can judge the accuracy of this clock. All I know is this gives me one more reason to rejoice. I hate war and love the environment and try not to preach gloom and doom. But I believe Christ is coming again, that he is coming again soon, and that is just another reason to rejoice. I may have only five minutes more to serve him. But no matter what the circumstances are in this life, if you are a true follower of Jesus Christ, you can find plenty of reasons to rejoice.