When Did Happiness Begin?

When did happiness begin?

This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.

Matthew 3:17

There is a concurrence of all the persons of the Holy Trinity in the happiness of heaven: the Father, Son and Holy Ghost are equally the fountain of that eternal blessedness the saints enjoy. WILLIAM BATES

“TEAM HOYT,” a father-son duo, was inducted into the Ironman Hall of Fame. Dick Hoyt and his son Rick, who was born with cerebral palsy, started competing together in marathons and triathlons in 1977, when Rick was fifteen. They participated in more than 1,100 events spanning four decades. In triathlons, Dick swam, pulling Rick in a special boat; he bicycled with Rick attached to a custom-made seat; and he ran, pushing Rick in a wheelchair. They participated in seventy-two marathons and six Ironman triathlons together. They biked and ran across the United States, completing 3,735 miles in forty-five days.

The Hoyts continued to compete until 2014, when Dick was in his midseventies and Rick was in his midfifties.^a They inspired millions of people who watched them race. The bond this father and son experienced in a sport known for its individualism was a source of great joy for both of them, and for those who witnessed their beautiful relationship and achievements.

The most ancient team in the universe consists of three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In his book Delighting in the Trinity, Michael Reeves writes, “The Trinity is the governing center of all Christian belief, the truth that shapes and beautifies all others. The Trinity is the cockpit of all Christian thinking.”^b Yet strangely, the Trinity is rarely discussed in the many Christian books on joy I’ve read.

The only way God’s happiness or love could be without beginning is if there exists within God himself a reason for and object of his happiness and love. Baptist pastor and theologian Augustus Strong (1836–1921) said, “Love is an impossible exercise to a solitary being.”^c

God is one, but he is not solitary. Since God is loving and happy within himself, he didn’t create the world out of need. It’s easy to imagine that a God full of love and happiness might wish to express those emotions in the form of a universe, angels, people, and animals. They could enjoy his happiness, and he could enjoy them. But God does not need his creation in order for his happiness to be complete.

The doctrine of the Trinity beautifully resolves the apparent problem of God’s love preexisting any object of his love. Likewise, his happiness has always been fully satisfied within his triune being.

Twice in Matthew’s Gospel—at Jesus’ baptism and at the Transfiguration—we see extraordinary exhibitions of the triune God’s happiness:

When Jesus was baptized . . . behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Matthew 3:16-17

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all participate here, expressing pleasure and happiness in the Son.

At the Transfiguration, the Father’s statement is repeated: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matthew 17:5). The Father says, “Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights” (Isaiah 42:1). For the Father to be well pleased and delighted with his Son means he finds great happiness in him.

Likewise, the Son and the Holy Spirit had every reason for total delight in one another and with the Father from before the dawn of time (see John 17:24; 1 Peter 1:20).

Steve DeWitt writes, “Before you ever had a happy moment, or your great-grandparents had a happy moment, or Adam and Eve had a happy moment—before the universe was even created—God the Father and God the Son and God the Spirit were enjoying a perfect and robust relational delight in one another.”^d

God’s communal happiness has significant implications for our own happiness. It means happiness didn’t begin with the first human who experienced it. It also explains how God could be displeased with his creatures and their sin without disrupting his innate happiness.

Dick and Rick Hoyt, as father and son, delight in each other not just in triathlons but also in life. They are a beautiful reflection of God the Father and his Son. We are also called God’s children, and just as Dick provides the strength Rick lacks, our Father provides the strength we lack. His happy love for us fuels our happy love for him.

Father, given our vast limitations, it’s comforting to know that you don’t depend on us—our actions, our affection, or our attitudes—for your happiness. You have your Son and your Spirit, and you have always enjoyed them. And, by a miracle of grace, you invite us to be your children and enter into your triune happiness. What could be a greater privilege?