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240 "Thou wilt make them joyful in Thy house of prayer." Christ's joy is to be in us. He is a rejoicing Christ now. Christ rejoices in the glory of the Father, which was manifested in the work of salvation. Christ rejoices in the glory given to Him after His obedience. Christ rejoices in the love of God towards the lost and saved sheep. Christ rejoices in His union with His believers. Christ rejoices in every manifestation of spiritual life, of love, of patience, of self-denial which He beholds in His people. Christ rejoices in the prospect of receiving us to Himself. Christ rejoices even when he is afflicted in our afflictions, for He knows why He has commanded us to glory in tribulation also. Do we seek the greatest, the highest joy, to have Christ's joy fulfilled in us?

Perfect love of God, perfect peace of God, perfect joy of God, such are royal thoughts and petitions. I have placed these first, because they are the perfect gifts of God to every believer. These spiritual blessings are yours in heavenly places in Christ. God expects you to ask them in faith. These petitions are nothing else but the creed converted into prayer: I believe in God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. But let us look now at the same blessings in another light—their effects on us. Do we take a royal view of the power, transforming and elevating, of the love of God, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ? We are to be light in the Lord. Have we any lofty conceptions of the light which we may possess? Children in malice, we are