God's Promise of Happiness

Thou shalt make them drink of the river of Thy pleasures.** — Ps. XXXVI. 8.

God never keeps the best wine to Himself; He makes His people drink from the river of His own pleasures. It is a marvellous thought that a finite creature should be allowed to have infinite joy. What is infinite joy? It is not so much joy beyond bounds as joy beyond boundaries. It is the joy in everything that is outside of myself. The river of God’s pleasures is the happiness in others being happy. Its peculiarity is told in the book of Genesis; it went out of Eden, and from thence it was parted, and became four heads. That is ever its description. It will not remain in its own Eden. It goes out from its personal joy. It breaks its own unity. It insists on dividing itself, sharing itself. Often have I thought of these words: “When Thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hands.” One would think there was no prosperity about it. Was it not a God’s Promise of Happiness

sacrifice? Yes; but the pleasure of the Lord is sacrifice. It is the joy of giving joy, and therefore of giving up. It is the gladness of parting with a portion of the waters. It is the making of the wine of Cana by shedding the blood of Calvary.

My soul, do not say to thyself, “What is the good of being a Christian? “It is true those who are not have joy as well. But thy Lord never promised thee a monopoly of joy; He promised thee a monopoly of the river of His pleasures. It is not thy happiness that marks thee out; it is the kind of thy happiness. There are joys which belong to the world. They are not bad; yet one need not be a saint to have them. But this is a joy which saints alone can share. It is unique, it is peculiar, it is the stamp of Heaven. There are many ways of being blest; but it is a sreat thing to be the “blessed of the Fathy’ — to hear the words, “I was hungry and ye gave i>Ie meat; I was thirsty and ye gave Me drink; I was a stranger and ye took Me in.” Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord! Enter into the gladness of making glad! Enter into the rest of giving rest! Enter into the peace of shedding peace! Launch thy boat on the river that makes glad God’s city! Let the winter’s ice of thy

19 heart be melted, even though it be by fire, that thou mayst embark in that ship wherein thy Lord saileth! The river of God’s pleasure flovis into the ocean of His love.