“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” ( John 15:11 11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and `that' your joy may be made full. )

God is absolutely sovereign.

“Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases” ( Psalms 115:3 3 But our God is in the heavens: He hath done whatsoever he pleased. ).

Therefore he is not frustrated. He rejoices in all his works when he contemplates them as colors of the magnificent mosaic of redemptive history. He is an unshakably happy God.

His happiness is the delight he has in himself. Before creation, he rejoiced in the image of his glory in the person of his Son. Then the joy of God “went public” in the works of creation and redemption.

These works delight the heart of God because they reflect his glory. He does everything he does to preserve and display that glory, for in this his soul rejoices.

All the works of God culminate in the praises of his redeemed people. The climax of his happiness is the delight he takes in the echoes of his excellence in the praises of the saints. This praise is the consummation of our own joy in God.

Therefore, God’s pursuit of praise from us and our pursuit of pleasure in him are the same pursuit. This is the great gospel!