For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.
Psalm 149:4 (NIV)
Delight
Any Canadian worth their salt will know what a butter tart is. It is basically a pastry shell filled with a custard of eggs, butter and maple syrup, the quintessential Canadian sweetener made by reducing the sap of the maple tree. This indigenous product, processed by the aboriginal people of North America long before the arrival of the Europeans, was quickly adopted by the settlers to sweeten a variety of confectionery due to the scarcity of other sugar sources in the New World. It is a true Canadian delight.
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The word “delight” is just one of those words that sounds like what it means. To my ears, it sounds delightful. The dictionary says the word delight means to please someone. Which makes Psalm 149:4 an incredible truth: “For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.” What King David is saying here is that God is pleased with His people. He genuinely likes you. We understand that the Lord loves us – it is His nature to love. But I’ve met many Christians who somehow feel that they can never live up to God’s high standards and they are constantly working to earn His favour, constantly wondering whether they are likeable to God. There are no strings attached here – God delights in those who are His through faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus. No wonder the next verse in Psalm 149 says “Let His faithful people rejoice in this honour.” God genuinely likes us. This brings us great joy, knowing that we don’t have to be a certain way for God to like us. He just does. God wants you to find great joy in knowing this to be so.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley