Delighting God
Our obedience to His word gives God delight. God wants our hearts to be soft and
pliable, ready to obey His commands; not because of any thing more than that He
wants the best for us (Psalms 1:1-3) “blessed is the man that walks not in the
counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, not sits in the seat of the
scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord Yahweh, and in His law does he
meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that brings forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever
he does shall prosper”.
Psalms 119:9-16 says “wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking
heed thereto according to Your word. With my whole heart have I sought You; O
let me not wander from Your commandments. Your word have I hid in my heart
that I might not sin against You. Blessed are You, O Lord Yahweh; teach me Your
statutes. With my lips have I declared all the judgments of Your mouth. I have
rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate in
Your precepts, and have respect to Your ways. I will delight myself in Your
statutes; I will not forget Your word”. This is great advice for us.
Jehoshaphat was a delight to the Lord Yahweh; he took away the high places from
Judah (II Chronicles 17:3-6) which says “And the Lord Yahweh was with
Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought
not to Baalim. But sought to the Lord God of his father; and walked in His
commandments, and not after the doings of Israel. Therefore the Lord Yahweh
established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshphat
presents; and he had riches and honor in abundance. And his heart was lifted up
in the ways of the Lord Yahweh; moreover he took away the high places and
groves out of Judah”. Jehoshaphat also sent prophets and Levites to teach Judah
His law (II Chronicles 17:9-10) “and they taught in Judah, and had the book of the
law of the Lord Yahweh with them, and went about throughout all the cities of
Judah, and taught the people. And the fear (reverence ) of the Lord Yahweh fell
upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made
no war against Jehoshaphat”.
Peace comes from our delighting in God; Job writes in Job 22:21-28 “acquaint now
yourself with Him, and be at peace; thereby good shall come to you. Receive, I
pray you, the law from His mouth, and lay up His words in your heart. If you return
to the Almighty, you shall be built up, you shall put away iniquity far from your
tabernacles. Then shall you lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the
stones of the brooks. Yea, the Almighty shall be your defense, and you shall have
plenty of silver. For then shall you have your delight in the Almighty, and shall lift
up your face to God. you shall make your prayer to Him, and He shall hear you,
and you shall pay your vows. You shall also decree a thing, and it shall be
established to you; and the light shall shine upon your ways”.
God delights when we do His will (Psalms 82:3-4) “defend the poor and fatherless;
do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; rid them out of
the hand of the wicked”.
We are told in Isaiah 58 to cry out for the helpless (verse 1-2) “cry aloud, spare
not, lift up your voice like a trumpet, and show My people their transgression, and
the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek Me daily, and delight to know My
ways, as a nation that did righteousness; and forsook not the ordinance of their
God; they ask of Me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to
God”, in verses 12-14 it says “and they that shall be of you shall build the old
waste places, you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you
shall be called, the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in. If you
turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day;
and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord Yahweh, honorable; and shall
honor Him, not doing your own ways, not finding your own pleasure, nor speaking
your own words. Then shall you delight yourself in the Lord Yahweh; and I will
cause you to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed you with the heritage
of Jacob your father; for the mouth of the Lord Yahweh has spoken it”.
David expressed his desire to delight God (Psalms 40:1-8) “I waited patiently for
the Lord Yahweh; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He brought me up
also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and
established my goings. And He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise to
our God; many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord Yahweh. Blessed
is that man that makes the Lord Yahweh his trust, and respects not the proud, nor
such as turn aside to lies. Many, O Lord Yahweh my God, are Your wonderful
works which you have done; and Your thoughts which are to us-ward; they cannot
be reckoned up in order to You; if I would declare and speak of them, they are
more than can be numbered. Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; my ears
have You opened; burned offering and sin offering have You not required. Then
said I, Lo, I come in the volume of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your
will, O my God; yea, Your law is within my heart”.
In Psalms 37:3-7,23 David writes “trust in the Lord Yahweh, and do good, so shall
you dwell in the land, and verily you shall be fed. Delight yourself also in the Lord
Yahweh, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the
Lord Yahweh; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring
forth your righteousness as the light, and your judgment as the noonday. Rest in
the Lord Yahweh, and wait patiently for him; fret not your self because of him who
prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass. The
steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord Yahweh; and He delights in his way”.
The Benefits are overwhelming (Psalms 112:1-6) “Praise you the Lord Yahweh,
blessed is the man that fears the Lord Yahweh, that delights greatly in His
commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon earth; the generation of the
upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in His house, and His
righteousness endures for ever. To the upright there arises light in the darkness;
He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. A good man shows favor,
and lends; he will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved for
ever; the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance”.
Jesus says in Matthew 6:33 “but seek you first the kingdom of God, and His
righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”.
The apostle Paul says “for I delight in the law of the God after the inward man”. It
is the born again man that can delight in the Lord.
If our obedience brings God delight, watch out that you don’t disobey. Take King
Saul as an example: King Saul was told by the prophet Samuel what God wanted
him to do. Let’s look at I Samuel 15:1-3, 7-11, 17-23 which says “Samuel also said
to Saul; the Lord Yahweh sent me to anoint you to be king over His people, over
Israel; now therefore hearken you to the voice of the words of the Lord Yahweh.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he
laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go and smite
Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not, but slay both
man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. And Saul
smote the Amalekits from Havilah until you come to Shur, that is opposite Egypt.
And he took Agag the king of the Amalikes alive, and utterly destroyed all the
people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the
best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that
was good, and would not utterly destroy them; but everything that was vile and
refuse, that they destroyed utterly. Then came the word of the Lord Yahweh to
Samuel, saying. It repents Me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned
back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments. And it grieved
Samuel, and he cried to the Lord Yahweh all night. And Samuel said, when you
were little in your own sight, were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and
the Lord Yahweh anointed you king over Israel? And the Lord Yahweh sent you
on a journey, and said, go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight
against them until they be consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the
Lord Yahweh, but did fly upon the spoil, and did evil in the sight of the Lord
Yahweh. And Saul said to Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord
Yahweh, and have gone the way which the Lord Yahweh sent me, and have
brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But
the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should
have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord Yahweh your God in Gilgal.
And Samuel said, has the Lord Yahweh as great delight in burned offerings and
sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord Yahweh? Behold, to obey is better
than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of
witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have
rejected the word of the Lord Yahweh, He has also rejected you from being king”.
Just like obedience brought forth blessing, disobedience brought forth rejection.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: August 27, 2010
Our obedience to His word gives God delight. God wants our hearts to be soft and
pliable, ready to obey His commands; not because of any thing more than that He
wants the best for us (Psalms 1:1-3) “blessed is the man that walks not in the
counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, not sits in the seat of the
scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord Yahweh, and in His law does he
meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that brings forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever
he does shall prosper”.
Psalms 119:9-16 says “wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking
heed thereto according to Your word. With my whole heart have I sought You; O
let me not wander from Your commandments. Your word have I hid in my heart
that I might not sin against You. Blessed are You, O Lord Yahweh; teach me Your
statutes. With my lips have I declared all the judgments of Your mouth. I have
rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate in
Your precepts, and have respect to Your ways. I will delight myself in Your
statutes; I will not forget Your word”. This is great advice for us.
Jehoshaphat was a delight to the Lord Yahweh; he took away the high places from
Judah (II Chronicles 17:3-6) which says “And the Lord Yahweh was with
Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought
not to Baalim. But sought to the Lord God of his father; and walked in His
commandments, and not after the doings of Israel. Therefore the Lord Yahweh
established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshphat
presents; and he had riches and honor in abundance. And his heart was lifted up
in the ways of the Lord Yahweh; moreover he took away the high places and
groves out of Judah”. Jehoshaphat also sent prophets and Levites to teach Judah
His law (II Chronicles 17:9-10) “and they taught in Judah, and had the book of the
law of the Lord Yahweh with them, and went about throughout all the cities of
Judah, and taught the people. And the fear (reverence ) of the Lord Yahweh fell
upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made
no war against Jehoshaphat”.
Peace comes from our delighting in God; Job writes in Job 22:21-28 “acquaint now
yourself with Him, and be at peace; thereby good shall come to you. Receive, I
pray you, the law from His mouth, and lay up His words in your heart. If you return
to the Almighty, you shall be built up, you shall put away iniquity far from your
tabernacles. Then shall you lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the
stones of the brooks. Yea, the Almighty shall be your defense, and you shall have
plenty of silver. For then shall you have your delight in the Almighty, and shall lift
up your face to God. you shall make your prayer to Him, and He shall hear you,
and you shall pay your vows. You shall also decree a thing, and it shall be
established to you; and the light shall shine upon your ways”.
God delights when we do His will (Psalms 82:3-4) “defend the poor and fatherless;
do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; rid them out of
the hand of the wicked”.
We are told in Isaiah 58 to cry out for the helpless (verse 1-2) “cry aloud, spare
not, lift up your voice like a trumpet, and show My people their transgression, and
the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek Me daily, and delight to know My
ways, as a nation that did righteousness; and forsook not the ordinance of their
God; they ask of Me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to
God”, in verses 12-14 it says “and they that shall be of you shall build the old
waste places, you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you
shall be called, the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in. If you
turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day;
and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord Yahweh, honorable; and shall
honor Him, not doing your own ways, not finding your own pleasure, nor speaking
your own words. Then shall you delight yourself in the Lord Yahweh; and I will
cause you to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed you with the heritage
of Jacob your father; for the mouth of the Lord Yahweh has spoken it”.
David expressed his desire to delight God (Psalms 40:1-8) “I waited patiently for
the Lord Yahweh; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He brought me up
also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and
established my goings. And He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise to
our God; many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord Yahweh. Blessed
is that man that makes the Lord Yahweh his trust, and respects not the proud, nor
such as turn aside to lies. Many, O Lord Yahweh my God, are Your wonderful
works which you have done; and Your thoughts which are to us-ward; they cannot
be reckoned up in order to You; if I would declare and speak of them, they are
more than can be numbered. Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; my ears
have You opened; burned offering and sin offering have You not required. Then
said I, Lo, I come in the volume of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your
will, O my God; yea, Your law is within my heart”.
In Psalms 37:3-7,23 David writes “trust in the Lord Yahweh, and do good, so shall
you dwell in the land, and verily you shall be fed. Delight yourself also in the Lord
Yahweh, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the
Lord Yahweh; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring
forth your righteousness as the light, and your judgment as the noonday. Rest in
the Lord Yahweh, and wait patiently for him; fret not your self because of him who
prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass. The
steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord Yahweh; and He delights in his way”.
The Benefits are overwhelming (Psalms 112:1-6) “Praise you the Lord Yahweh,
blessed is the man that fears the Lord Yahweh, that delights greatly in His
commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon earth; the generation of the
upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in His house, and His
righteousness endures for ever. To the upright there arises light in the darkness;
He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. A good man shows favor,
and lends; he will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved for
ever; the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance”.
Jesus says in Matthew 6:33 “but seek you first the kingdom of God, and His
righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”.
The apostle Paul says “for I delight in the law of the God after the inward man”. It
is the born again man that can delight in the Lord.
If our obedience brings God delight, watch out that you don’t disobey. Take King
Saul as an example: King Saul was told by the prophet Samuel what God wanted
him to do. Let’s look at I Samuel 15:1-3, 7-11, 17-23 which says “Samuel also said
to Saul; the Lord Yahweh sent me to anoint you to be king over His people, over
Israel; now therefore hearken you to the voice of the words of the Lord Yahweh.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he
laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go and smite
Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not, but slay both
man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. And Saul
smote the Amalekits from Havilah until you come to Shur, that is opposite Egypt.
And he took Agag the king of the Amalikes alive, and utterly destroyed all the
people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the
best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that
was good, and would not utterly destroy them; but everything that was vile and
refuse, that they destroyed utterly. Then came the word of the Lord Yahweh to
Samuel, saying. It repents Me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned
back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments. And it grieved
Samuel, and he cried to the Lord Yahweh all night. And Samuel said, when you
were little in your own sight, were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and
the Lord Yahweh anointed you king over Israel? And the Lord Yahweh sent you
on a journey, and said, go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight
against them until they be consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the
Lord Yahweh, but did fly upon the spoil, and did evil in the sight of the Lord
Yahweh. And Saul said to Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord
Yahweh, and have gone the way which the Lord Yahweh sent me, and have
brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But
the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should
have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord Yahweh your God in Gilgal.
And Samuel said, has the Lord Yahweh as great delight in burned offerings and
sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord Yahweh? Behold, to obey is better
than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of
witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have
rejected the word of the Lord Yahweh, He has also rejected you from being king”.
Just like obedience brought forth blessing, disobedience brought forth rejection.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: August 27, 2010
