God wants every thought and desire of our hearts. This is the effect of His coming down to us, and is very blessed. There is another thing, and even a better: that is His lifting us up to Him where He is. When God meets our thoughts, wants, and feelings, it is His answering according to the measure of our need; in the other He surpasses all the desires of our hearts and minds. See it in Psa. 132, where certain blessings are asked, and each desire is surpassed (see verses 8 and 13; ver. 9, answered in ver. 16; ver. 10 in ver. 17). There is trial of faith He suffers His people to hunger, &c., that they may know the value of being fed by Him, as He will. There is personal relationship between the saint and God. “Mine and Thine” in John 17 goes further, and connects itself with what He is, and we are made in Him.
To Abram God said (Gen. 15), “I am Thy shield,” because he wanted protection, “Thine exceeding great reward.” It did not go beyond Abram's want—he wished an heir. This is different from his delighting in God. What God is bringing us to is to delight in Himself. See Abraham in Gen. 17:11And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. (Genesis 17:1): “I am the Almighty God.” This is quite another thing. It was God's revelation of Himself to Abraham. True, all kinds of blessing are connected with it; but it is a higher thing, because it revealed God, and led him up to communion with Him, while the other threw him back on his own need and wishes, which God met.
It is a different thing to have the joy of the relationship, and to have the fruits of it. “O My God, early will I seek Thee.” There is activity of soul in thus seeking God. The soul athirst for God seeks. There is diligence in seeking God for Himself; the mouth is open for everything. The psalm does not speak of seeking for water: when a man is thirsty, he seeks for water; but here it is more thirsting for Him Who gives the water.
The conscious relationship was founded. “O God, thou art my God.” The more he enjoyed God, the more it was felt to be a dry and thirsty land—not dry because of the weariness of the way. What does it matter the dry and thirsty land, if I have the living water in my soul? I do not think about the dryness then. It is not being at home yet either. It is the wilderness in Rom. 8. If I know I am to be in the same glory with Christ, what will affect me here? What! people going to be with the Lord in glory; and yet the slightest thing can upset them now I feel the wretchedness because I have got the glory; I am not acquiring it, but seeking it because I have it. Think of a person who had seen it, and knew all the blessedness of it, going through such a world as this! This is what it was to Christ. What made Him feel it was “the joy?” “Because Thy loving-kindness is better than life,” this world is a wilderness.
“Thy loving-kindness is better than life “; but it brings death upon me. No matter: “in everything give thanks.” What in sorrow? Yes, to be sure, we have the King to our joy in having Himself. “Because thy loving-kindness is better than life, therefore will I praise thee while I live.” “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness.” What! in the desert? Yes, this is the very place, because God Himself is his portion. “My mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips.” Now we often praise when we are not very joyful [there is a certain pressure on the heart], and it is right to do it at all times; but here the heart is so full of the blessing that it burst forth out of him. We learn from Psa. 42 That “the health of my countenance” is the effect of “the light of Thy countenance.” The heart is lifted up above the sorrow because occupied with God Himself.
In Psa. 63 the soul is in the state in which Psa. 42, ends. It is not an oppressed heart looking out for what would make him joyful, but rejoicing because the spring is there. “Therefore I will bless thee while I live.” Help is in God (see ver. 7) for the difficulties of the way. It is not here the enjoyment of God Himself, but His protection. Do I look forward to my life to come? I defy anyone to know anything, but that this window is open. God, then, is the only certain thing. I have no certainty that there will be a to-morrow, but God is my God Because the heart is in heaven, we can rejoice in the truth itself we have got for all times. “Jehovah is my Shepherd: I shall not want.” It is not—, He has put me in certain circumstances, and I shall be happy there; but to know He is my Shepherd is something to depend on. Then there is earnestness of purpose in following after (ver. 8). So Paul (“I press toward the mark”) was following hard after Him in a “dry and thirsty land.” Paul in prison was pressing on toward Christ, and rejoicing in the Lord; he had nothing else to rejoice in. In nothing too should we be terrified by adversaries, which is to them an evident token of perdition (vers. 9, 10); as on the other hand Christ and they that are His shall alone be exalted forever (ver. 11).