Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit · Sermon No. 2421
“For the LORD takes pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation. Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouths and a two-edged sword in their hands.” Psalm 149:4-6.
I THINK I have read that, once, when the seraphic Samuel Rutherford was preaching, he came, before long, to speak on the high praises of the Lord Jesus Christ. That was a theme upon which he was at home, and when he reached that point, and had spoken a little upon it, the Duke of Argyle, who was in the congregation, cried out, “Now you are on the right strain, man; hold on to that!” I thought that, this morning, we, also, struck the right key. [See sermon #1968, Volume 38—Jubilee Joy—Or, Believers Joyful in Their King] We were trying to extol our God, our King, and to magnify His holy name and something seemed to say to me, “Hold on to that strain! Let us have the same note, again, tonight, and let us continue to laud and praise and magnify the name of the Most High.”
So, without further preface, I remark, first, that our text contains some reasons for praise. We had a great many this morning, but here are some more—“For the Lord takes pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation.” Then our text gives special phases of praise. It shows us how, in a peculiar manner, we may praise the Lord—“Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouths and a two-edged sword in their hands.” There is plenty of sea room for a preacher here, but as we have not much time, we will make for the nearest port and our words shall be as few as possible.
I. First, here are SOME REASONS FOR PRAISE.
The first of these reasons is the delight of God in His people—“The Lord takes pleasure in His people.” Therefore let us praise Him! It is delightful that God takes pleasure in us who are His people. We feel that this is a great stoop of condescending Grace. What is there in us in which the Lord can take pleasure? Nothing, unless He has put it there! If He sees any beauty in us, it must be the reflection of His own face. Yet, the text says so and, therefore, it must be true—“The Lord takes pleasure in His people.” In the 147th Psalm we read, “The Lord takes pleasure in them that fear Him.” You who tremble at His Word, you who stand in awe of Him, you who trust Him and seek to obey Him—you are those that fear Him and He takes pleasure in you! He that is infinitely blessed—can He take pleasure in us? He that has the harps of angels to make music for Him, He that has the host of cherubim and seraphim to be His attendants, He that can make a world with a wish—does He deign to take pleasure in us?
I am sure this is true, not only because it is stated, here, that the Lord takes pleasure in His people, but because we see this Truth of God in action! The Lord takes pleasure in His people’s prayers. What poor imperfect things they are! Yet He opens His ear to hear them. He would sooner miss the song of a cherub than miss the prayer of a broken heart. He is charmed with the prayers of His people—they hold Him, they prevail with Him—He will do anything for those who know how to pray. “Prayer moves the arm that moves the world.” He must take great delight in His people, or else He would not listen to their prayers! And He is pleased with their praises, too. There is never a hymn that is sung by a true heart but God accepts it. No one may hear it on earth—it may not be worth the hearing, for the sound may be discordant. But when a true heart seeks to praise God, He cares not for the vocal sounds—He has regard to the voice of the spirit’s thanksgiving. Must He not take great pleasure in us to notice our praises and our prayers? Yet He does so.
This will be still clearer to us, dear Friends, if we remember that while He delights to hear us praise and pray, He also speaks to us. The Lord has a wonderful way of revealing Himself to His people. You who are spiritually blind can go through this world and never see Him, but there are others who have had their eyes opened and they have seen the King in His beauty! You who are spiritually deaf can go through the world and never hear His voice, but they whose ears have been unstopped have heard Him say to them, “Seek you My face,” and many a blessed word of promise has He spoken home to their hearts, making them glad. Jehovah does not shut Himself up within His palaces. The Lord Jesus comes forth out of the ivory palaces wherein they make Him glad, for His delights are with the sons of men—and He loves to commune with His own people as He does not with the world! Does not this show what pleasure He must take in us— first to hear us speak, and then to speak to us, Himself?
Beloved, you who know the Lord must feel that He never would have dealt with you as He has done if He had not taken great pleasure in you. Why, you are His children! I saw just now, from the window, a man playing with a child, and he seemed so happy as he tossed the little one about. It was but a baby, but I suppose the charm to him was that it was his own, and it seemed to give the father great delight. When I see a father playing and toying, thus, with his child, and finding joy in his offspring, I understand, a little, how it is that the Lord takes pleasure in His people. Are we not born of Him? Has He not carried and nursed us many a day? And does He not daily feed and supply us with all necessary things? Therefore, we marvel not that He takes pleasure in us.