By Kingsley Baehr
“Please pass the potatoes.”
“My pleasure!”
“Mommy, quokquit.” [trans. - “choco-late”] [My grandson]
“What do you say?”
“Pweeze.”
“Please.” Definition: To give satisfac-tion to; to gratify
“Pleasure.” Definition: A source of de-light or joy
When we add the word “please” to a request, what we really mean is “If you please,” or “if it will give you satisfaction or delight to do so.”
So our topic this month is:
“What Pleases God?” or
“What Gives Him
Satisfaction, Delight and Joy?”
“My pleasure!”
“Mommy, quokquit.” [trans. - “choco-late”] [My grandson]
“What do you say?”
“Pweeze.”
“Please.” Definition: To give satisfac-tion to; to gratify
“Pleasure.” Definition: A source of de-light or joy
When we add the word “please” to a request, what we really mean is “If you please,” or “if it will give you satisfaction or delight to do so.”
So our topic this month is:
“What Pleases God?” or
“What Gives Him
Satisfaction, Delight and Joy?”
“The LORD takes pleasure in His people...” [Psa. 149:4a]
How amazing is that! I am a source of delight and joy to Him! I, who am weak, and prone to fall into sin? I, who often have the wrong goals in mind? I, who fall far short of His perfections? He takes pleasure in me? How can it be?
The answer seems to be in the words, “His people.” I am one of “His people,” not because of who I was, but because of Who He is—my Savior, Redeemer, Friend —Who has “beautified [me] with salva-tion!” [Psa. 149:4b]
As I was meditating on this incredible portion of God’s Word, I began to wonder, “What else pleases the LORD?” So the search began, and I was amazed at what I found. I am going to share it with you, so prepare to be surprised and humbled by what our wonderful God does to bring Him pleasure.
He has exercised His creative power: That is why you and I are here.
The answer seems to be in the words, “His people.” I am one of “His people,” not because of who I was, but because of Who He is—my Savior, Redeemer, Friend —Who has “beautified [me] with salva-tion!” [Psa. 149:4b]
As I was meditating on this incredible portion of God’s Word, I began to wonder, “What else pleases the LORD?” So the search began, and I was amazed at what I found. I am going to share it with you, so prepare to be surprised and humbled by what our wonderful God does to bring Him pleasure.
He has exercised His creative power: That is why you and I are here.
“You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will [and for Your pleasure – NKJV] they exist and were created.” [Rev. 4:11]
He has made His eternal plan absolutely sure through His omniscient omnipotence: There is great comfort in knowing that nothing can ever thwart His plan for the ages. “Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure...’”[Isa. 46:9,10]
He does whatever He pleases, and be-cause He is a holy, sinless God, everything He does is right and good.“But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.” [Psa. 115:3]
“For I know that the LORD is great, and our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the LORD pleases He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deep places.” [Psa. 135:5,6]
He speaks His Word which will never return empty, but will always prosper and accomplish Its purposes, so we can abso-lutely depend on Its truth and reliability.“So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” [Isa. 55:11]
Thus far, we can easily see how the above attributes and activities of God would be pleasing to Him. But as we continue, what pleases Him becomes more and more incredible. Read on. He foreordained that we could be adopted as His beloved children through the Lord Jesus Christ! And that would please Him? That is what my Bible says!
“Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, accor-ding to the good pleasureof His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Be-loved.” [Eph. 1:5]
But how could He or would He ever ac-complish that, when we were so separated from Him by our sin? Even more incompre-hensible than the question is the answer:
“Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise [crush] Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.” [Isa. 53:10]
For the sake of brevity, I will list the other passages I found which tell us Who the LORD is and what He does that pleases Him. May I challenge you to look them up in the order in which they are listed, read them carefully and spend some time medi-tating on the wonder in them all, and on the progression of thought from one to the next.
- 1 Corinthians 1:21
- 1 Sam. 12:22
- 1 Cor. 12:18
- Phil. 2:12,13
- Eph. 1:7-9
- Gal. 1:15,16a
- Prov. 16:7
- Lu. 12:32
Part II, dealing with what we can do that gives pleasure and/or delight to the LORD will follow next month. My hope is that you will grow to appreciate our precious LORD as you consider what He does that pleases Him and how much we are a part of it all.