Thomas Goodwin wrote, "[Christ's] own joy, comfort, happiness, and glory are increased and enlarged by his showing grace and mercy, in pardoning, releiving, and comforting his members here on earth." What Goodwin is pointing out is that Jesus takes pleasure in accomplishing the Father's will to save those who the Father has given Him (John 6:37-40) by showing mercy to sinners and saving them (Matt 9:13; Mark 2:17).

Dane Ortlund captures what this looks like in our lives: "When you come to Christ for mercy and love and help in your anguish and perplexity and sinfulness, you are going with the flow of his own deepest wishes, not against them." Jesus takes joy in us coming to Him to be shown grace and joy in showing us His grace.

Hebrews 12:2 tells us that it was "the joy set before Him" that compelled Christ to endure the cross. That joy was the accomplishing of the Father's will for Jesus to be the great high priest who, as the the founder and perfecter of our faith, was the the perfect atoning sacrifice for our sin (Heb 1:3; 8:1; 10:12). Jesus' joy was saving His people from their sin so that they could be in relationship with the Father. That is, Jesus' joy was not merely in the forgiving of our sin but in the restoring of our communion with God.