In our text that I read, I'd like to take the title of this
message from five words in verse 10, the pleasure of the Lord. In verse 10 of Isaiah 53, we
read, the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand, meaning
in Christ's hand. This word pleasure means the
state of feeling satisfied, pleased, or gratified, receiving satisfaction
from, a source of enjoyment or enlightenment. It also means
desire or inclination, such as when our Lord says, I will do
all my pleasure. I'll do whatever I'm inclined
to do, whenever I feel like doing it, with whomever I feel like
doing it. And our God is not driven by any outside sources.
or influence when it comes to doing his good pleasure. He's
driven by his nature, his attributes. The scriptures give us some insight
into what that nature of our holy God is. It tells us that
God is love, that God is just and right, that God is not a
man that he should lie, that God is merciful and gracious,
that God is long-suffering, that God is abundant in goodness and
truth. But what is this pleasure of
the Lord that is going to prosper in the hand of Christ? Before
I look at that, I would like to look at a few texts that tell
us the things that are not pleasurable to God that bring God no pleasure. First, he takes no pleasure in
punishing sinners for their unrighteousness. A lot of people, when they hear
the doctrine of election, a picture of God who gets up each morning
and just looks through his book and thinks, okay, who do I get
to send to hell today? As our pastor used to say, nothing
could be further from the truth. God takes no delight whatsoever
in punishing men for their sins. He tells us as much in Ezekiel
33 in verse 11. He says, as I live, saith the
Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but
that the wicked turn from his ways and live. Turn ye from your
evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?" I find that
verse simply astonishing. Here we see the holy, sovereign,
almighty God beseeching sinners to turn from their unrighteousness.
And he's not beseeching them because he's done all he can
do and now it's up to them to make his grace effectual. No,
he beseeches them to repent and live because he delights to show
mercy. Paul, in writing to the Corinthians
in 2 Corinthians 5.20 said, Now then, we are ambassadors for
Christ, as though God did beseech you By us, we pray you in Christ's
stead, be ye reconciled to God. This word, beseech, means to
implore. to request earnestly, to entreat
with urgency. This is astonishing, amazing
grace. We pray you in Christ's name
that if Christ himself were standing here pleading with sinners, do
not be so foolish as to perish in your sins. When God stands
ready to save, when God is rich in mercy, when God delights to
show mercy, Christ implores us, turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways, and live. Ezekiel 18.23 says much the same
thing. Have I any pleasure at all that
the wicked should die, saith the Lord God, and not that he
should return from his ways and live? Also in Ezekiel 18.32 we
read, for I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth,
saith the Lord God, Wherefore, turn yourselves, and live ye. The God that we worship delights
to show mercy. He gets no satisfaction whatsoever,
despite what men believe, he gets no satisfaction from casting
sinners into hell. It is not something in which
he takes pleasure, but he must, because of his nature, he must
punish sin. And yet, even though sinners
will spend eternity in torment, it cannot be imagined that God
is not appeased by that. That word, pleasure, means in
this context that God will never get any satisfaction from punishing
sinners. If that were the case, he would
eventually be able to say, all right, you've suffered enough,
come forth and live. Next, turn with me to the book
of Hebrews, please. We're going to look at chapter
10 of the book of Hebrews, considering things from which God gets no
pleasure. Hebrews chapter 10. We'll read
the first 18 verses. For the law, having a shadow
of good things to come, and not the very image of the things,
can never, with those sacrifices which they offer year by year
continually, make the comers thereunto perfect. For then,
why would they not have ceased to be offered? Because if the
worshiper once perished, should have had no more conscience of
sins. But in those sacrifices, there
is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not
possible that the blood of goats and bulls and goats should take
away sins. Wherefore, when he cometh into
the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offerings thou wouldst not,
but a body has not prepared me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices
for sin thou hast no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come, in the
volume of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, O God. Above when he saith, Sacrifice
and offering, and burn offering, and offering for sin, thou would
it not, neither adds pleasure therein, which are offered by
the law. Then said he, Lo, I come to do
thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that
he may establish the second. by which will we are sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest sinned, daily
ministering and offering, oft times the same sacrifices, which
can never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered
one sacrifice for sin forever, sat down on the right hand of
God, from henceforth expecting, till his enemies be made his
footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is
a witness to us, for after that he hath said before, this is
the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith
the Lord. I will put my laws into their
hearts, and in their minds will I write them, and their sins
and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission
of these is, there is no more offering for sin. Here the writer explains to the
Hebrews that there's no satisfaction, no pleasure for our God in any
sacrifices offered by men, even though those sacrifices involve
the shedding of blood and they were commanded to be done of
God. But our God has no pleasure in
the bloody sacrifices offered by men, Hebrews 10 tells us,
in burnt offerings and sacrifices thou hadst no pleasure. They
were only offered to picture that true sacrifice that would
one day come, that would finally offer that sacrifice that would
indeed satisfy our God, that would give Him pleasure, the
offering of Christ on a Roman tree. Hebrews 10.4 tells us the
reason why Our God takes no pleasure, gets no satisfaction, and no
sacrifices for sin that were offered on Jewish altars. Because
the Scriptures tell us it is not possible that the blood of
bulls and goats should take away sin. The verse tells us that
sacrifice and offering, and burnt offerings for sin, neither has
pleasure therein. In order for God to be satisfied,
to be appeased, to find any satisfaction or pleasure in any sacrifice,
that sacrifice must be powerful enough, efficacious enough, to
take away sin. Not just to cover it, but to
take it away. Not just to sweep it under the
rug, but to completely eradicate it. Those sacrifices were offered
daily, as we're told in Hebrews 10-11, but that same verse also
tells us that those same sacrifices can never take away sin. Hence,
they give God no pleasure, no satisfaction. The hymn writer
put it this way, not all the blood of beasts on Jewish altars
slain can never give the guilty conscience peace or wash away
the stain. But Christ, the heavenly lamb,
takes all our sins away, a sacrifice of nobler name, and richer blood
than they, as a scapegoat, symbolically carried away all the sins of
God's people into the wilderness, so much more than our blessed
Redeemer actually carried our sins away into the wilderness
of God's forgetfulness and forgiveness, never to be brought up against
us again. Third, in Ecclesiastes 5.4, It
tells us that God has no pleasure in fools. And who are these fools? We're told in Psalm 14.1 and
53.1, which say almost exactly the same thing. The fool has
said in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt. They have done abominable works.
There is none that doeth good. The fool will one day, when it
is far too late, see the folly of mocking God and his people.
Paul gave us such a warning in Galatians 6. He said, Be not
deceived. God is not mocked. For whatsoever
a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to the
flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption. But he that soweth
to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. Fourth, the scriptures tell us
that our God takes no pleasure in our so-called righteousness. In Job 22, Eliphaz the demonite
asks, Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise
may be profitable unto his own self? Is it any pleasure to the
Almighty that thou art righteous? Or is it any gain to him that
thou make thy way perfect? is not thy wickedness great,
and thine iniquities infinite. Indeed, it is the height of presumption
for any man or woman to think that anything that they do can
give God the least measure of pleasure or satisfaction. The
Scriptures are plain. There is none righteous, no,
not one. There is none that understandeth. There is none that seeketh after
God. They are all gone out of the
way. They are together become unprofitable. There is none that
doeth good. No, not one. It doesn't say there's
not many. It says there is none. How many
times must we be told that all our righteousnesses are as filthy
rags before we actually believe it? Now let's look at some texts. that speak of things which do
give God pleasure, and some things which speak of God doing His
good pleasure. First, our God takes pleasure
in uprightness. In 1 Chronicles 29, 17, it reads,
I know also, my God, that Thou triest the heart, and hath pleasure
in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness
of mine heart, have I willingly offered all these things. And
now I have seen with joy thy people, which are present here,
to offer willingly unto thee." This uprightness of heart that
is spoken of here is a trait that God required of the kings
that he sent over the nation of Israel. Let me read a couple
of texts that illustrate that very thing. Back in 1 Kings,
1 Kings 9 If I can find it, we will begin reading
in verse 1. We're speaking of uprightness. And it came to pass, when Solomon
had finished the building of the house of the Lord and the
king's house, and all Solomon's desires which he was pleased
to do, that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as
he had appeared unto him in Gibeon. And the Lord said unto him, I
have heard thy prayer and thy supplication that thou hast made
before me. I have hallowed this house, which
thou built to put my name there forever, and my eyes and my heart
shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before
me as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart and in
uprightness to do according to all that I have commanded thee,
and will keep my statutes and judgments, then will I establish
the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel forever. And as I promised
to David thy father, saying, there shall not fail thee a man
upon the throne of Israel." In these verses we see that God
giving to Solomon the very things that Solomon had asked for in
1 Kings chapter 3. Turn over there just a few pages
back with me. These things that God just spoke
to Solomon about. our fulfillment of what Solomon
asked the Lord to give him. In 1 Kings 3, we'll begin reading
in verse 5. In Gibeon, the Lord appeared
unto Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, Ask what I shall
give thee. And Solomon said, Thou hast shown
unto thy servant David, my father, great mercy. according as he
walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in
uprightness of heart with thee. And thou hast kept for him this
great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit upon his
throne, as it is this day. And now, O Lord my God, thou
hast made thy servant king instead of David my father. And I am
but a little child, for I know not how to go out and come in. This is Solomon, a man that was
gifted with unbelievable wisdom like no others, and yet he knows
his true state before God. Verse 8, And thy servant is in
the midst of thy people, which thou hast chosen, a great people
that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore
thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that
I may discern between good and bad, for who is able to judge
this thy so great a people?" And the speech pleased the Lord
that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because
thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself all
life, neither hast thou asked riches for thyself, nor hast
asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thyself understanding
to discern judgment. Behold, I have done according
to thy words. Lo, I have given thee a wise
and understanding heart. so that there was none like thee
before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. This uprightness of heart involves
purity, honesty, obedience, goodness, and blamelessness. And those
of us that have been shown by the Spirit of God the depravity
of our natural heart Know that this uprightness of hearts spoken
of here is only found in that new heart that God promises to
give us when we are made new creatures in Christ. Secondly, things that God takes
pleasure in and those doing His good pleasure. In Isaiah 46 we
read, Remember the former things of old, for I am God and there
is none else. I am God and there is none like
me. declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times the things that are not done, saying, my
counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. Calling a ravenous bird from
the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country,
yea, I have spoken it. I will also bring it to pass.
I have purposed it. I will also do it. Our God doesn't
need anyone's permission to do the things that He pleases to
do. Most of the lessons that I've learned in life, like you
probably, I've learned the hard way. But turn over with me to
Daniel chapter 9, and we'll read of Nebuchadnezzar, who learned
the lessons of God's sovereignty in about the hardest way possible. I'm sorry, Daniel chapter 4.
A text that we're familiar with, but I'd like to read it. Daniel
chapter 4. verses 28-35, And all this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months he
walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake and
said, Is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house
of the kingdom of the might of my power and for the honor of
my majesty? While the word was in the king's
mouth, their fellow voice from heaven saying, O King Nebuchadnezzar,
to thee it is spoken, thy kingdom is departed from thee and they
shall drive thee from men and thy dwelling shall be with the
beast of the field and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen
and seven times shall pass over thee until thou knowest that
the most high ruleth in the kingdom of man and giveth it to whomsoever
he will. That same hour was this thing
fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven from man and
did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of
heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagle feathers and his nails
like bird claws. And at the end of the days, I,
Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding
returned unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised
and honored him that lived forever. whose dominion is an everlasting
dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation,
and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing,
and he doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven
and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay
his hand or say unto him, What doest thou? God does according
to his pleasure, with whom he wants, when he wants, how He
wants and why He wants, and answers to no one. And as you know, being
His people, we wouldn't have it any other way. Third, Psalm
3527 reads, Let them shout for joy and be glad that favor my
righteous cause. Yea, let them say continually,
Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure, in the prosperity
of His servant. Our God gets satisfaction from
giving good things to His people. And how could He not? He's already
given us His Son. How could He possibly withhold
any good thing from us? Any parent, worth their salt,
desires to see his or her children do better than they have in life,
not struggling to make ends meet, but enjoying life more than their
parents did. And our God delights in not just
seeing His children prosper, but bringing to pass those things
that cause His children to prosper. He delights to do us good. But
some would no doubt say, how can you say that God delights
to do us good when we see so many bad things happening to
His people? Sickness, hardships, their children
breaking their hearts. And it's because we look on these
so-called bad things And we don't have the wisdom of God. We can't
see the beginning from the end. When we read of Joseph being
sold into slavery and being cast into prison, do you think any
folks around him thought, boy, God sure is doing him good now.
And that ultimate sacrifice of our beloved Savior on our behalf. Do you think that any of the
disciples at that moment thought to themselves, boy, God sure
is doing us good. God taking pleasure in the prosperity
of his servant involves all things, good and bad, that he does for
his people, not just those things that we presently see, but those
things from eternity past to eternity future. We don't have
the wisdom to see the end, therefore we don't look on those things
as being good things. But our God does not err, He
does not make mistakes. All things that He does for His
people are good things. Now in Psalm 149.4 we read, For
the Lord taketh pleasure in His people. He will beautify the
meek with salvation. Now that verse is astonishing
to me. God takes pleasure in sinners. Those that minute by
minute, day by day, hour by hour, continually sin, those that fall
on their face a thousand times a day, how could God possibly
take pleasure in that bunch of losers? And yet we read that
it's so. And He does for one reason. Because
those sinners stand complete in Christ. That's the only way
that God can take pleasure in His people. He looks on those
people as He looks on Christ, His dear Son. That verse says,
He taketh pleasure. As our pastor used to tell us,
when you see those letters, E-T-H, at the end of a word, it means
a continual, ongoing process. Our God continually gets pleasure
from His people, because those people are looked upon the same
way He looks on His Son, of whom He declared, this is My beloved
Son, in whom I am well pleased. Is it any wonder, then, that
God takes pleasure in doing us good? Fifth, in Luke 12.32, Christ
says, Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good
pleasure to give you the kingdom. This kingdom which your Father
gives His people clearly is not a kingdom on this earth, because
we know that this earth is not an everlasting earth. It's going to be burnt up one
day. Daniel 7 states clearly that God's kingdom is an everlasting
kingdom. The psalmist tells us in Psalm
145.13, Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth
throughout all generations. All that Christ has, we have
in Him through His substitutionary work. All the things that the
term kingdom of God involves, whatever they are, we shall one
day inherit. Christ, speaking of his glorious
return, told his disciples in Matthew 25, then shall the king
say unto them on his right hand, come ye blessed to the father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of
the world. That kingdom of which it is God's
good pleasure to give us one day. We are after all joint heirs
with Christ. And because of that, we are entitled,
and I chose that word purposely, we are entitled to all that Christ
has and all that He is. Not entitled by our own merits,
certainly, we know better than that, but entitled because Christ
has purchased that kingdom on our behalf. And that's not presumption,
folks, that's just fact. In Psalm 147, we read, the Lord
taketh pleasure in them that fear Him, and those that hope
in His mercy." The word fear in this context, it does not
mean the same thing as an abusive father that beats his children
for no reason and causes terror in their hearts. That is not
what this word fear here means. It has to do with a holy reverence
and an adoration. Turn with me to Psalm 103. Let's
read some verses speaking to this very thing. Psalm 103. speaking of those that fear Him,
those that fear Him in whom He takes pleasure. Psalm 103, begin
reading in verse 8. The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always
chide, neither will He keep His anger forever. He hath not dealt
with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above
the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the
west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Like
as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that
fear him. For he knoweth our frame, he
remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass,
as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind
passeth over it, and it is gone, and the place thereof shall know
it no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting
to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness
unto children's children. To such as keep his covenant,
and those that remember His commandments to do them." Now, notice in these
verses the frequent reference between the term, those that
fear Him, or them that fear Him, and its connection to mercy in
those verses. And the reason that we have hope
in Christ and in our God is found in Lamentations 3.21. It says, This I recall to my mind, therefore
have I hope. Why? It is of the Lord's mercies
that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They're new every morning, great
is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith
my soul, therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good to them
that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh Him. It is good
that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation
of the Lord. And when we are by God's grace
and able to do that, our God takes pleasure in it. Now in
closing, let me read just a few verses that speak of God doing
His good pleasure. I'll just touch on these and
maybe come back to them at a future date and look at them in detail. In Ephesians 5, and these are
all very familiar verses, Ephesians 1, 5 I should say, having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according
to the good pleasure of His will. God adopted us and made us join
heirs with Christ because it was according to His will. No other reason. Our Lord in
Matthew 11 told His disciples the reason He did so. It reads,
at this time Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from
the wise and prudent and has revealed them unto babes. Even
so, Father, so it seemed good in Thy sight. And in Ephesians
1-9 we read, having made known unto us the mystery of His will
according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself.
Here Paul tells the Ephesians, that God shows His mysteries
to His people, and those mysteries have been hid from ages and from
generations, but are now made manifest to His saints. Christ
Himself told His disciples much the same thing in Matthew 13
and 11. He said, explaining why He spoke
to the multitudes in parables, He said, He answered and said
unto them, because it is given to you to know the mysteries
of the kingdom of heaven, but to them, it is not given. Next in Philippians two, we read
wherefore my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in
my presence only, but much more in my absence, work out your
own salvation with fear and trembling for it is God, which worketh
in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Here Paul
explains to the Philippians that everything that comes to pass
in the life of his saints comes to pass because God wills it
and brings it to pass. No accidents, no happenstance,
no silly karma, simply God's will being carried out. 2 Thessalonians
1.11 reads, Wherefore also we pray always for you that our
God would count you worthy of his calling and fulfill all the
good pleasure of his goodness and the work of faith and power. God delights to bestow goodness
on His people. In Joshua 21.45 it says, There
failed not ought of any good thing that the Lord had spoken
to the house of Israel. All came to pass. Not most came
to pass. No, it says all came to pass.
And in Isaiah 46.11 we read, I have spoken it, I will also
bring it to pass. If our God says it's going to
happen, it's as good as done. Actually, I'll take that back.
It's not as good as done. It's already done. It just hasn't
happened yet. In Revelation 4.11, Thou art
worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and power, for Thou hast created
all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. People stumble around in darkness
and confusion and ask, why am I here? What does the universe
want me to do? I have family members who believe
in reincarnation. They claim to be Christians,
and yet they say that they believe in reincarnation. And it would
be amusing if it were not so very sad. And this verse tells
us plainly why anything and anyone exists. Their chief end is to
bring glory to the sovereign God of the universe And each
and every thing and each and every one will ultimately do
that. And don't forget by whom this
was done, because Colossians 1.16, speaking of Christ, says,
For by Him were all things created that are in heaven, that are
in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers. All things were created by Him
and for Him, In other words, for His good pleasure. At the
beginning of this message, I ask, what is this pleasure of the
Lord spoken of in Isaiah 53? And as we've seen, it's a pleasure
He has in uprightness, which is embodied in His Son and imputed
to us. It's a pleasure that He has in
the prosperity of His servants, His elect. It's a pleasure that
He takes in beautifying the meek with salvation, that salvation
that was purchased by the blood of His Son. It's a pleasure He
takes in giving His Kingdom and all that it encompasses to His
people. And He takes pleasure in them
that fear Him, them that hold Him in holy reverence and adoration. And our God works all things
as we have read according to His good pleasure. in and through
his Son, our Savior, the Lord of Lords and Kings of Kings.
Now lastly, to those that may be listening today who do not
know God in saving faith, know this, that you will either go
through life serving your own pleasure and perish, or you will
bow to God's will and serve his good pleasure. I've already told
you at the beginning of this message that God takes no delight,
no pleasure, no satisfaction in casting sinners into hell.
So I will ask you the same question that God asked the house of Israel. Why will you perish? If you're
able, beseech God for mercy, knowing that you deserve after
everlasting punishment, but also knowing this, that our God delights
in mercy. He delights to show mercy to
sinners. And if from your heart you're
able to do that, it's a promising sign that God has indeed begun
a good work in you. May God grant you that ability
today. Jimmy, please come and lead us
in a song.