Rejoice and Be Glad Today

Psalm 118:24 was made into a song we used to sing at church often:  "This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."  It is a song fitting for every day because it is true, yet the immediate context of verse 24 speaks of a very specific day--a momentous day in the history of the world when Jesus provided atonement for lost sinners on Calvary.  The psalmist sung of God's enduring mercy and waxed prophetic as the song advanced, each of the latter verses loaded with Messianic prophecies fulfilled by Jesus.

To those who are born again and know Jesus Christ as the Messiah, the allusions are difficult to miss.  The LORD is our strength and song, and Jesus has become our salvation   I encourage you to read the  entire song, but for the sake of providing the context of verse 24 consider Psalm 118 from verse 19 to the end:

¹⁹  Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, and I will praise the LORD.

²⁰  This is the gate of the LORD, through which the righteous shall enter.

²¹  I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation.

²²  The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.

²³  This was the LORD'S doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.

²⁴  This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

²⁵  Save now, I pray, O LORD; O LORD, I pray, send now prosperity.

²⁶  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We have blessed you from the house of the LORD.

²⁷  God is the LORD, and He has given us light; bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.

²⁸  You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You.

²⁹  Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

Jesus revealed Himself to be the Door (John 10:7, 9), the only Way to God through whom sinners are made righteous by faith in Him.  Verse 21 connects with Psalm 22, a song Jesus uttered the opening line as He was crucified to reveal Himself as the suffering Saviour God heard and answered.  The apostle Peter identified Jesus as the stone which the builders rejected which God made the chief cornerstone, the anointed One sent by God to seek and save the lost.  When Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey and fulfilled scripture, the people shouted:  "Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!"  Jesus is the Light of the World provided by God as an acceptable sacrifice for sin and shed His own blood once and for all.  The day the LORD has made is one that provided salvation, forgiveness and eternal life for all who trust in Jesus by the Gospel.

This day the LORD planned from before the foundation of the earth was when the hour of Jesus on earth came, the moment atonement would be made to redeem and reconcile lost sinners to God.  For the joy that was set before Jesus He endured the cross, despised the shame and now sits alive and exalted in eternal glory.  Let us rejoice and be glad in our Saviour Jesus Christ and all He has accomplished, giving thanks to the LORD for He is good.  Today is the day of salvation; today is the day to rejoice and be glad with praise and thanksgiving to the KING OF KINGS, our righteous LORD.