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"GOD'S TRUTH PRODUCES GREAT JOY" "And there was great joy in that city." (Acts 8:8)Wouldn't it be wonderful to live in a city where it could be said there was great joy there? In Samaria, there wasn't just your run of the mill joy back then, the Bible tell us there was great joy.Well, how do you suppose that came about? Aren't you glad that the Bible tells us? If you back up to verse 5, we see where Philip (part-time deacon and full-time preacher) left Jerusalem and went down to Samaria on an evangelistic campaign. Philip had one message for the folks there and that message was Christ!That's our message as well. Be it from a pulpit to a crowd or be it in private to one, may it be Jesus Christ, crucified, buried, and risen again. Some 150 years ago, Charles Spurgeon told a group of young would-be preachers, "Men, when you prepare a sermon, select your text, expound that text, and then make a beeline for Calvary and make much of Jesus." Now folks, it doesn't get any truer than that because Jesus said that He is the way, the truth, and the life and He is the Hero of every chapter of Scripture.But wait a minute, did the great joy in Samaria come about simply because Philip preached the truth to those who were there? No! The great joy that Samaria experienced was because the people responded by receiving the truth. Verse 6 tells us, "And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake." Ah, there's what makes the difference folks. It's much more than hearing the truth; it's about heeding to the truth.Friends, there will always be joy for those who believe the Word of God, but great joy awaits those who behave it.