Sermon for 12/5/2004
Pure Delight
Psalm 18:19
Introduction:
My wife’s delight is chocolate
Rules of chocolate:
If you’ve got melted chocolate all over your hands, you’re eating it too slowly.
Chocolate covered raisins, cherries, orange slices and strawberries all count as fruit, so eat as many as you want.
The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in a hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot.
A nice box of chocolates can provide your total daily intake of calories in one place. Isn’t that handy?
If you can’t eat all your chocolate, it will keep in the freezer. But if you can’t eat all of your chocolate, what’s wrong with you?
What do we call equal amounts of dark chocolate and white chocolate: a balanced diet.
Chocolate has many preservatives. Preservatives make you look younger.
Put “eat chocolate” at the top of your list of things to do today. That way, at least you’ll get one thing done.
WBTU:
A. To take delight in something is to get great pleasure, be happy about, make merry over, and derive enjoyment.
B. Many men seem to delight in sports. For others it’s camping, fishing, or hunting.
C. Women delight in shopping.
D. Youth delight in video games. College students delight in parties.
E. One might identify delight in this way. It is what happens when there is excitement inside, a tingle, a spark. When we are doing what we really love to do, or when we are with someone we really love. Like what one young lover said to his partner, “When I held you in my arms, I felt a cold chill run down my spine. I thought it was true love until I realized your pop sickle was dripping.”
Thesis: In Whom Does God Delight? And How Does God delight?
For instances:
In Whom Does God Delight?
1. In His Son
A. (Isa 42:1 NIV) "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.
B. (Mat 3:16 NIV) As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.(Mat 3:17 NIV) And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
C. (Mark 9:7 NIV) Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!"(Mark 9:8 NIV) Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
D. God the Father delighted in his Son at Creation. God the Father delighted in His Son during the days of the Old Testament. (1 Cor 10:4 NIV) and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. God the Father delighted in his Son at his birth as a baby. God the Father delighted in his Son as he went through his human life.
2. In His bride
A. God delighted in the nation of Israel. (Ezek 16:4 NIV) On the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths.(Ezek 16:5 NIV) No one looked on you with pity or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised.(Ezek 16:6 NIV) "’Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, "Live!"(Ezek 16:7 NIV) I made you grow like a plant of the field. You grew up and developed and became the most beautiful of jewels. (Ezek 16:8 NIV) "’Later I passed by, and when I looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I gave you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Sovereign LORD, and you became mine.(Ezek 16:9 NIV) "’I bathed you with water and washed the blood from you and put ointments on you.(Ezek 16:10 NIV) I clothed you with an embroidered dress and put leather sandals on you. I dressed you in fine linen and covered you with costly garments.(Ezek 16:11 NIV) I adorned you with jewelry: I put bracelets on your arms and a necklace around your neck,(Ezek 16:12 NIV) and I put a ring on your nose, earrings on your ears and a beautiful crown on your head.(Ezek 16:13 NIV) So you were adorned with gold and silver; your clothes were of fine linen and costly fabric and embroidered cloth. Your food was fine flour, honey and olive oil. You became very beautiful and rose to be a queen.(Ezek 16:14 NIV) And your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, because the splendor I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign LORD.
B. However, because the Israelites broke the covenant, the Lord divorced Israel for a time until the time of the church. The Lord destroyed and scattered the nation of Israel until the rise of his church. (Isa 62:3 NIV) You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God.(Isa 62:4 NIV) No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called Hephzibah (my delight is in her), and your land Beulah (married) ; for the LORD will take delight in you, and your land will be married.(Isa 62:5 NIV) As a young man marries a maiden, so will your sons marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.
C. Paul is talking about marriage in Ephesians 5 and he says: Just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. The book of Revelation refers to the church as the bride of the Lamb.
D. My wedding day, on other occasions when she has taken my breath away, as I watch her sleep at night, I delight in her appearance and in her body but also in her personality and how she does things; with my children, out in public, at the piano.
3. His people, His Children
A. (Psa 149:4 NIV) For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation.
B. During silly times at my house and one of the boys does something crazy I often say, “These are my people who are called by my name.” And Crystal says, “Amen!”
C. As Christians we are his people, we are his children. (1 John 3:1 NIV) How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
D. When they are babies, when they learn to crawl, walk, talk. As children grow older it is more challenging to delight in them. We need to let children know that they are a pleasure to be around. Just watching them play and have a good time is a delight.
E. Watching them this Christmas will be a delight.
4. Me and You
A. David said in Psalm 18:19 that God delighted in him.
B. Make it more personal. God delights in you and in me.
C. Does it help to think that God delights in you? Think about it! I don’t care how ugly you think you are. You are God’s delight. I don’t care how fat you are. You are God’s delight. Even if your marriage seems such a struggle. You are God’s delight. Even if you are divorced, your self-esteem wrecked. You are God’s delight. Even if you are so depressed your life feels like a black hole. You are God’s delight. Even if you threw a pity party and nobody showed up. You are God’s delight. God doesn’t abandon you because your business collapsed. You are God’s delight. God doesn’t leave you because you’re face is all wrinkled. You are God’s delight. Now, instead of wasting all that energy trying to prove to everybody that you are worth something, you can start with this idea that you already are somebody because we are the one in whom God delights!
How does God delight?
1. Quiet You with his love
A. (Zep 3:17 NIV) The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."
B. Like a baby that is crying and someone comes over and holds the baby and cuddles the baby and the baby stops crying.
C. Tell it to Jesus! (Phil 4:6 NIV) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.(Phil 4:7 NIV) And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
2. Rejoice over you with singing
A. At the birth of Jesus, angels came and sang as they welcomed his birth.
B. Throughout the Bible people sang to God. In heaven we will be singing with the angelic chorus praises unto God and unto the Lamb.
C. This is a picture of someone taking a sleepy baby or crying baby and calming that baby with a lullaby.
D. God sings to us. Where did music come from?
E. I have a song that Jesus gave me, It was sent from heaven above; there never was a sweeter melody, tis a melody of love. In my heart there rings a melody, there rings a melody with heaven’s harmony; in my heart there rings a melody, there rings a melody of love.
3. Brings me into a spacious place
A. Psalm 18:19
B. WE are cramped here in many ways. We need some elbow room. We need some relief. We are in poverty and confinement here on this earth but in heaven…!
C. (John 14:2 NIV) In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.
D. Large enough for all!
4. Rescues me
A. I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore, very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more; but the Master of the sea heard my despairing cry, from the waters lifted me- Now safe am I. Love lifted me!
B. (Col 1:13 NIV) For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,
C. Greatest rescue mission ever.
5. Crowns me with salvation
A. (Psa 149:4 NIV) For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation.
B. Something that I will never understand is that the Lord delights in His Son. This is his Son. He sent His Son to earth and became a man. Then He watched His Son be nailed to a cross and be the sacrifice for the sins of the world. I do not know if this was his delight. I know it would not be my delights to see one of my sons suffer for people who hate him. Why? I would not do this. I delight in my children. God delights in His Son but he also delights in us so much that he sent his son to be the atonement for our sins.
C. We can delight in Him because of this.
Conclusion:
A. The Lord delights in you through His Son and only through His Son. We must be made into one of his children. We must be a part of the bride.
B. Plan of salvation.
C. (Psa 147:10 NIV) His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man;(Psa 147:11 NIV) the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.
D. (Psa 37:4 NIV) Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.
