by By Erick Muriithi
It is a matter of grave concern that we often think of God as the great strict frowning headmaster up there. The kind of God that many Christians conceive of is miserable, ever ready to beat and clobber — a terrifying monster to reckon with, inspecting your life for sin for which he cannot wait to send you to hell. But the God who was, who is and who is to come is the God who is infinitely happy and joyful. Zephaniah wrote: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” Zeph 3:17 (ESV)
This verse is staggering. I long for heaven at the thought of it. I desire to hear the voice of God singing! Imagine God has created the beautiful voices we hear in praise and worship teams and in secular music. He created Lucifer who had a wonderful voice. Now, if creatures can produce such beautiful music, imagine what the perfect sweetness of God’s voice must be like!
We write songs and poems. And we say, these are gifts that the good Lord has bestowed upon us. Think of John Newton and that sweet melody, “Amazing Grace”. God gave him the gift and the mind to write that glorious hymn. Now imagine the kind of hymns that God blesses holy heaven with for all eternity. Absolutely staggering. I long to hear them.
This glorious verse says something else — He will save. And then he will rejoice over those he has saved. And he will rejoice with loud singing over them. And all of creation must cry, ‘glory!’ What great hymns the pure perfect composer has prepared for his saints!
We can conclude from this that God Almighty in heaven is a perfectly happy God. Micah 7:18 says: “Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.”
God delights in steadfast love. God delights in showing love. Not just any kind of love — he shows steadfast love. Think about David saying, “Is there a man of the house of Saul still alive that I might show him steadfast love?” If that is the creature, and we see such excellent love shown by David to Mephibosheth, now imagine the creator of David. Or think about the father of the prodigal son, how he ran after the son. This was a parable, and the father a mere image. Now imagine now the real God.
God is a God who delights to show steadfast love. He is a happy God. It is for this reason that heaven is so sweet. Think again about the delightfulness of God’s creation. The beautiful morning sun that gladdens us. The wine that gladdens the heart of man. The gentle breeze that blows on us and relaxes us. The amazing and beautiful horizons that we see. The joy that we get in relationships. Think of these things and meditate on the fact that they are made. Now, would a sad and frowning God blow such a beautiful breeze upon us? Would a frowning God create such wonderful wine that gladdens us? Would an unhappy God create such gloriously beautiful sun?
Think about the beautiful faces we see. I know of ladies I have seen, and their beauty has almost killed me! God made those. Oh, how much more glorious and marvelously beautiful is their creator! Beauty cannot stem from a frowning begrudging God.
I like to meditate on my meals too. And I think about the chefs that have invented such glorious techniques; they were created by God. The spices have been created by him. They are discovered through his sovereign providence. Would a frowning God make curry powder and icing sugar to put on a cake? Oh, if only we would see this God! If only we would behold his glory!
We should look forward to meet him. It is a grand excellency we shall have when we meet God. And all we will do is bow down in worship.
God is infinitely happy, infinitely joyful. If you are not in Christ, you will have no privilege to enjoy God and all his excellencies.
