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Have you ever stopped to consider what brings delight to the God of the universe, the one who controls everything? The things that bring us delight might seem mundane to the God who resides in heaven in the greatest of beauty. But God finds so many things to delight in that I actually ended up splitting this lesson into two weeks because the Bible contains so many verses about what brings God delight. Let’s take a look.
God Delights in Himself
As the most supreme being that exists, God finds delight in the one thing that is perfect—himself. He delights in his Son, in his law, in his words, and in his works.
God Delights in His Son
When the Old Testament prophecies about the coming of the Messiah, it says that even though there’s nothing about his appearance that we as humans should desire him, God delights in him because he is the chosen one who has his Spirit.
Isaiah 53:2: He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
Isaiah 42:1: “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.”
Once Jesus was on earth, God made it clear that he was pleased with his Son. We see this both at Jesus’ baptism and his transfiguration.
Luke 3:21-22: 21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Matthew 17:5: While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Why was God pleased with Jesus? Because all of God’s fullness dwells in him, and it is through Jesus that all things, including all humanity, will be reconciled again to God.
Colossians 1:19-20: 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Jesus], 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
God Delights in His Law and in His Word
To connect with people and to show us how he wants us to live, he gave us his law and his word through the Bible.
Isaiah 42:21: It pleased the Lord
for the sake of his righteousness
to make his law great and glorious.
God is righteous, so he found pleasure in making his law great and glorious to reflect his character. And when his word goes out into the world, it accomplishes God’s purpose.
Isaiah 55:10-11: 10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
God Delights in His Works
God is the ruler of the universe, so he can do whatever he wants. The Bible phrases this as God “does whatever pleases him.”
Isaiah 46:10: I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.’
Psalm 135:6: The Lord does whatever pleases him,
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the seas and all their depths.
When humans do whatever pleases them, we often get into trouble. We are selfish and tend to stray into wickedness and sin when we do whatever we want. But with God, we can trust him fully when he does what pleases him. Why? Because God’s works are aligned with his character. These verses tell us what pleases God:
Jeremiah 9:23-24: 23 This is what the Lord says:
“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom
or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches,
24 but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me,
that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight,”
declares the Lord.
Micah 7:18: Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever
but delight to show mercy.
God’s works reflect kindness, justice, righteousness, and mercy because these are what bring him delight.
God uses his works to accomplish his will in us and in the world. What does the Bible say is in God’s will?
God’s will is to adopt us as sons through Jesus by redeeming us and forgiving our sins.
Ephesians 1:4-10: 4 For he [God] chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
God’s will is to give people life.
John 5:21: For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.
God’s will is to reveal his plan to those who will listen.
Matthew 11:25-26: 25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.”
Also see Ephesians 1:9 above.
God’s will is to equip his people to do his work.
Hebrews 13:20-21: 20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
God’s will is to give his kingdom to those who follow him.
Luke 12:32: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”
When the Bible tells us to not be afraid, this is why. God is in control, and the thing that delights him most is to redeem us and bring us into his kingdom that reflects his character of kindness, justice, righteousness, and mercy.
God Delights in His Creation
One of God’s greatest works is the creation of the world. When God saw his creation in Genesis 1, he said that it was good. God in his wisdom delights in his greatest creation—mankind.
Proverbs 8:30-31: 30 Then I [wisdom] was constantly at his [the LORD’s] side.
I was filled with delight day after day,
rejoicing always in his presence,
31 rejoicing in his whole world
and delighting in mankind.
God Delights in Israel
Although God delights in all mankind, he holds a special place in his heart for the nation of Israel.
Deuteronomy 30:9-10: 9 Then the Lord your God will make you [the Israelites] most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The Lord will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your ancestors, 10 if you obey the Lord your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Even though the Israelites often disappointed God by following after other gods, God still yearned for a relationship with them and was delighted when they turned to him.
Isaiah 5:7: The vineyard of the Lord Almighty
is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed;
for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.
Jeremiah 31:20: “Is not Ephraim my dear son,
the child in whom I delight?
Though I often speak against him,
I still remember him.
Therefore my heart yearns for him;
I have great compassion for him,”
declares the Lord.
Isaiah 56:4: 4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls
a memorial and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that will endure forever.”
God Delights in Jerusalem
Throughout the Bible, Jerusalem is the Holy City and God’s most favored place on earth. Jerusalem was where the temple was located where God’s people gathered to worship him. Jerusalem was the center of Jesus’ ministry while he was on earth. God takes delight in Jerusalem and desires to build it up.
Psalm 51:18: May it please you to prosper Zion,
to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
Isaiah 65:18-19: 18 But be glad and rejoice forever
in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight
and its people a joy.
19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem
and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying
will be heard in it no more.
When God sees the combination of Jerusalem and his people together, he finds great delight in them.
Conclusion
God delights in his works on this earth, especially his act to send his Son to redeem his people. He takes great delight in his people and in his holy city. But what we saw this week in his delight for his people is just scratching the surface. Come back next week as we dive into more detail about what exactly brings him delight when he looks at mankind.