Psalms 21:6

For Thou hast made him most blessed forever: Thou hast made him exceeding glad with Thy countenance.

Exceeding gladness

You have heard a great many sermons upon the Man of Sorrows, you cannot have heard too many; but probably you have never listened to a discourse upon the Man of Joys! I venture thus to name the Christ of God. We do not meditate enough upon the happiness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, it was for the joy set before Him that He endured the Cross; and the expectation of joy is joy. The light of that expectation shone on His daily path. Sin is the mother of sorrow, and Jesus knew no sin. He was the Prince of Peace, even when He was despised of men. He had the joy of knowing that His Father heard Him always, and that His every word and act were blessings to fallen men. A man cannot be full of such benevolence as that of Christ and be utterly miserable. Unselfishness necessarily brings with it a measure of joy. The fountain which yields such streams of blessing has its own flash and sparkle; we feel sure of it. As pearls may lie in plenty in caverns over which there rolls a dread tempestuous sea, so there slept in the heart of Jesus treasures of joy even when the ocean of His holy soul was lashed with hurricanes of woe. And what must not His joy be now in heaven! To this the text and the verses preceding primarily refer. As God, as Mediator, He is filled with joy; for His work is finished. “Consummatum est” is written at the foot of His throne. And He is the fountain of priceless, numberless, endless blessings to men. “Thou hast made Him blessings forever,” for so our text may be read. It is ever good to be the channel of blessing to others; what, then, must be the joy of Christ? Think, too, of His joy in the conversion, the comfort, the justification, the salvation of every soul that comes to Him. We read, There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Nearly all readers take this as telling of the angels’ joy. And no doubt they do rejoice. But the Word does not say so. It says, “There is joy in the presence of the angels; that is to say, they are present where there is joy, they look upon the face of Christ, and see the joy which fills His heart. And He has joy in all the deeds of His saved people, and in their patient suffering, and especially in their joy. He is the blessed Leader of a blessed company. And now, turning to His people--

I. That gladness is the peculiar privilege of saints. Why should we not be glad?

1. It is all right between us and God. There is no quarrel between the believing soul and God. And--

2. Many are their present solaces. We can count our sorrows, we are quite “au fait” at adding them up. But recapitulate your joys with equal readiness. Why not? Review the shining ranks of your mercies Are they not new every morning? I heard a brother in a prayer meeting say, “The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we desire to be glad”; and I wanted to jump down that man’s throat, and pull that passage back again, and put it into its natural shape. What business had the brother to mend the Bible and talk such wretched stuff. Whereof we desire to be glad! Why, if the Lord has done great things for us, we are glad.

3. We have a brilliant future before us. And--

4. All blessings secured to them. In the parable it is said, they began to be merry, and it is not said they ever left off. Let us also begin.

II. Their gladness is of a peculiar sort.

1. God has wrought it.

2. It is permanent.

3. Exceeding. Who would think it to see many Christians? I am told that many shopkeepers are so poor that they put the most of their goods in the shop window; but this is a method which few Christians follow, for the opposite is the fact; their window is badly set out, and yet they have a costly stock upon their shelves. The children of this world are wiser in their generation in this as in other things. I would recommend such believers to dress their windows a little, and show some of their better things. Put your ashes into the backyard, but pour out the oil of joy in the parlour. Let people see it.

4. It comes to us in one way--“with Thy countenance.” Have you not sometimes been made very glad with the look of a friend’s face? But what must the countenance of God be to us, when He smiles on us as reconciled, as approving us, when listening to us?

5. But through many channels. Read the Psalm--“The King shall joy in Thy strength,” and “in Thy salvation.” Answers to prayer are told of. Preventing With the blessings of goodness, giving us mercies before we seek them. Then, be glad in the Lord, as we are bound to be.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Saviour, Jesus Christ,

Who hath blessed us with such blessings, all uncounted and unpriced;
Let our high and holy calling, and our strong salvation be

Theme of never-ending praises, God of sovereign grace, to Thee.”

(C. H. Spurgeon.)

The light of God’s favour

Flowers, when deprived of the rays of the sun, lose their bright colours, and become pale and sickly. This is generally seen in the night-blossoming plants, which are, for the most part, pale and unattractive. The soul that has not found God will lose all joy, and the beauty of life will fade without the presence and love of Christ. If it is to flourish, it must be ever basking in the healing rays of the Sun of Righteousness.