Sunday, 9:30 A.M. Worship Service - "Choosing to Rejoice"

Jan 11, 2026 • Rev. Dr. Rodney T. Morton

Choosing to Rejoice proclaims that Christian joy is not rooted in comfort, control, or applause, but in confidence that God is sovereign even in unjust systems and unwanted seasons. Writing from a Roman prison, Paul reframes confinement as divine assignment. What looks like setback becomes setup. What appears like silence becomes strategy.

Through chains, criticism, and mixed motives, Paul models a mature faith that refuses bitterness, resists ego, and rejoices whenever Christ is proclaimed. This sermon calls believers to a defiant, disciplined joy that sees life from God’s perspective—trusting that confinement can still produce conversions, courage, character, and Christ-centered clarity.

Sermon Big Idea

Joy is not denial of hardship; it is the decision to trust God’s purpose in the middle of it.

Sermon Movements

I. Choosing to Rejoice in Confinement Produces Conversions

Philippians 1:12–13

II. Choosing to Rejoice in Confinement Provokes Courage

Philippians 1:14

III. Choosing to Rejoice by Giving God the Credit

Philippians 1:15–18

IV. Choosing to Rejoice in Confinement Perfects Character

Philippians 1:19–20

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