1. -- '80807 Oxford, 24 May, '74. 2. -- 3. -- "For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people." Ps. 149:4. The Divine Nature is elevated so far above human conception, that we can in no wise conceive, much less represent its various operations. We have to be sure, that the Great God is not "altogether such as one as ourselves;" and yet in other parts of the Scriptures He is set forth as a Being possessed of a varied class of powers and qualities such as correspond to the same qualities in human Beings. The emotional part of our constitution, for example, is spoken of as belonging to God, when He is said to possess the passions of Love and hatred; grief & joy; anger and complacency. "God is Love" "do not this abominable thing that I hate;" God is grieved when men sin, he rejoices when they turn to Him, "God is angry with the wicked every day;" He "rests in His love," and is "pacified toward us when we come to Him in humble penitence, "Fury is not in Him;" and His "anger endureth but for a moment." We may not pause here to demonstrate what you all doubtless fully understand -- that these are figurative representations of an immutable Being -- and designed merely to aid us in forming some faint conception of a nature which is otherwise incomprehensible. But the correct view of God is that these apparent changes in His manifestations arise from changes in us; that God is always eternally the same, and that He "abideth ever." Provision is made in His nature for that peculiar effect to be wrought upon us, His creatures, which is wrought whenever we change our relative position towards Him in a moral point of view; if we are righteous & holy, & obedient & affectionate, and devoted to God we are always passing under the light of His countenance of favor, and love; if we rebel and violate His law, and walk in the way of iniquity, we have passed [under] away from the [dark] bright side of His nature; no such [conduct] manifestations on our heart ever conduct[s] us to the brighter regions of His loving Kindness, but so dark and dismal is the atmosphere engendered and enveloping such creatures that we can neither see God ourselves, nor will He shine upon us from His Holy habitation. I may best illustrate this position by a reference to an arrangement of God; material world. We say that the Sun gives us light at one time by rising and [pu???ing] His radiant way across the heavens, and that He causes darkness by sitting and passing out of sight. These expressions are sufficiently accurate for all practical uses, but they are scientifically incorrect, since the Sun does not rise, nor does it set; but this really seems to us to be the case, because our earth revolving upon its own axis daily, and constantly changing its position relative to the Sun is for half the time and in half of its surface in Light, and for the other half in darkness. The Central Orb however so far as its daily relation to us is concerned, remains in its place unchanged & unmoved. As The Sun then in Light always -- so God is Love; and as we are in darkness because we pass out of the light, so when we say God loves us at one time and frowns upon us at another time we should bear in mind that in the first case we are by our virtuous conduct dwelling in the light of His nature, and in the second, it is because by our sinful thoughts and wicked ways we have passed away from God's Light & love which is shining on forever & forever. "God is light and in Him is no darkness at all." But man loving darkness is often made to feel the sad consequences by passing into the dark & frozen regions of sorrow & suffering where God's changeless light & warmth never come. But here let us guard against an error which may be indulged;-- that men have the native power unaided to bring themselves into such favor with God as is thus represented. On the contrary, there is but one thing they have full power to do, and that is to keep themselves forever in the darkness of His displeasure; and as the Earth but for that mysterious power of attraction which is inherent in the Sun, called gravitation would rush far away to a returnless distance from the Sun, and perish with all its inhabitants and all its glories, in the [dark] chill [and] & frozen regions of darkness, [and] so man, but for the incomprehensible attraction of God's Infinite love, would wander away forever from his place, and never return again to light and life. So also it is that he has the power & the tendency naturally to go away, but whensoever he is at all the object of God's love it is from no power or inclination of his that he becomes so, but because of the powerful drawing of God's Holy Spirit, whereby the natural tendency of the human heart to depart from the living God is overcome, and the soul is thus made to gravitate towards the great approximate Center of its rectified affections. I do not see then, how any inference can be justly drawn from all this, except this one great and fundamental truth, that for all the good that we receive we are indebted solely to the [???] grace and rich mercy of God alone; -- that whatever of evil there is to be found in our lot in life comes from our own native tendency to depart from God, and, combined with that, the resistance we are constantly offering to the powerful attractions of God's infinite Love." This being the case there must be some extraordinary reason for the declaration of the text:- "The Lord taketh pleasure in His people." --- It is to the wonderful fact itself which is here asserted, and to an investigation of the grounds upon which it rests, that our attention will be this morning invited. 1. The fact "The Lord taketh pleasure in His People." -- " In nothing but His own Infinite nature does God take such pleasure as in His people." -- All through His word you find utterances of this much: -- It is expressed 1. In His Providential care of them. "The very hairs of yr. head are always numbered;" - 'Give and this day," tc. Accordingly (Is. 33:15-16) 457 P.s. "No evil tc." He keepeth them so that none of their bones shall be broken" "Health and Life very precious "His eyes are upon them for good;" - "His ears are open to their cry;" "Shield - Rock - Pavilion' - Strong [rock] tower where unto JC. "He is a munition of rocks;"-- "Hollow of hand"-- "under shadow of wing;" "Where luncheth them apple" tc. "[???] & Shield Grace & Glory -- no good thing etc." 2. In His plan for their salvation;- calls them applies Xt's blood; saves them from guilt of Sin. none of which things can they do for themselves --- Justification -- 3. In His method of dealing with them for their sanctification;-- brings them into His family, bestows on them all the privileges -- throws around them all the restraints -- Keeps them by His mighty power;- sends His chastisements for the purpose of weaning them from world;- all His people share in this;-- "no cross no crown;" 4. In his ceaseless and everlasting union with 10 His people. It begins with Eternity itself -- a purpose -- a part of his nature to bring them into this union -- their lives are his with Xt in Him;-- it is a secret mystical union;-- it never wavers in its reality tho clouds sometimes shut out -- "as the father hath loved me;--" said Xt,: "even so I have loved you;"--