A Reason to Rejoice and Be Glad Psalm 118:24

Good morning, Sunshine! This is the day the Lord has made. And God can take a seemingly ordinary day and turn it into A Reason to Rejoice and Be Glad!

In this Psalm 118 devotion, we’ll look at our reason to wake up and rejoice today.

So, let’s read this beautiful reminder of God’s goodness together…

 

This is the day the Lord has made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

                           Psalm 118:24 NKJV

This is the Day the Lord Has Made

Do you ever feel like you don’t know what day it is? Like you think it’s Tuesday but really it’s Wednesday?

Me too!

That’s because we do the same things over and over every day.

So much so, the days blend into each other.

And when we get caught in this trap, it’s easy to think today won’t be any different. We’ll have the same hum-drum day we always do.

But God has a plan for today. And He has a knack for turning each day into a reason to rejoice and be glad.

In a single moment, God can change the course of our lives or someone else’s through a chance meeting at the right time. He’s the Master of creating these “chance” encounters and they’re never just a coincidence.

Or by touching our hearts in an unexpected way, God can use our ordinary day to show us His amazing grace and mercy on display.

We can be sure, no matter what happens today, this is the day the Lord has made! And He will give us a reason to rejoice and be glad in it.

What is the meaning behind Psalms 118:24?

We’ve been talking a lot about context in church lately and looking at how it pertains to some of the most quoted Bible verses.

Our verse for today, Psalm 118:24 is one of these scriptures. It talks about the day the Lord has made and rejoicing in it.

But to get to the true meaning of Psalm 118:24, we should also read the verses just before and just after it.

There are a couple of things to examine within the context of this passage of scripture.

What is the chief cornerstone?

 The verses just before ours give meaning to our day…

 

 The stone which the builders rejected

Has become the chief cornerstone.

This was the Lord’s doing;

It is marvelous in our eyes.

                        Psalm 118:22-23

You probably already know this scripture because it is also a Bible quote used as a popular memory verse.

The chief cornerstone talked about here is Jesus. He quoted this verse Himself in Matthew 21:42 while speaking with the Jewish leaders of His day.

During the time of David, the people were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the promised Messiah and the sacrifice that He would provide for their sins.

This was a day they were looking forward to. It would be a perfect day. And a day of celebration and rejoicing.

But when Jesus arrived on the scene, the Jewish leaders rejected Him. They refused to believe He was the promised Messiah. And that their perfect day had finally arrived.

Even though the chief cornerstone was rejected by these Jewish leaders, it was God’s hand at work. Through the rejection and crucifixion of Jesus, this Old Testament prophesy was fulfilled.

It was a day to rejoice in, then and now!

With this context in mind, we can begin to understand why today “is a day the Lord has made”. And see our reason to rejoice and be glad in it.

Simply put, it’s Jesus! He’s our reason to rejoice.

Read More: Jesus is Our Firm Foundation Matthew 7:24-27

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord Verse

 In the verses just after ours, we see the promise of another day of great rejoicing.

 

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.
                                              

                         Psalm 118:26 NIV

These are the words the crowd shouted as Jesus entered Jerusalem in Matthew 21:9.

Because they saw Jesus for who He truly is, they praised God and rejoiced in the fulfillment of His promise.

Jesus spoke these same words again in Matthew 23:39 referring to His ascension into heaven. And in doing so, He gave us another beautiful day look forward to, His second coming.

This is the day we are eagerly awaiting now!

The day when it will be our turn to shout “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

What a glorious day it will be when Jesus takes His rightful place and rules over this earth!

It will be a day to rejoice and be glad as we praise our Savior forever!

Read More: How to Rejoice in the Lord Always Habakkuk 3:17-19

What does it mean to rejoice and be exceedingly glad?

In this next Bible verse, Jesus spoke words of encouragement into our hearts as we wait for His return…

 

Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

                                               Matthew 5:12 NKJV

 

As Christians, we have a great reward waiting for us in heaven. It isn’t a gold crown (although we’ll have that too), or a treasure chest full of jewels.

Our reward is Jesus!

His glory and grace belong to us because we belong to Him. And we will spend eternity in paradise praising our Savior with joy and gladness.

So, whatever today looks like, even if it’s another ordinary day, we have Jesus. And He is more than enough reason to be glad!

We can look back on the day Jesus died on the cross for our sins. And we can look forward to the day when Jesus comes again, knowing both are a reason to rejoice and be glad!

But more importantly, we have a reason to rejoice and be glad today. Because it is another day the Lord has made for us to sing His praises.

Will you join me as we rejoice in the day the Lord has made?

I hope so.

And I pray you’ll see, through the words of Psalm 118, a reason to rejoice no matter what today brings!

Please leave a comment below and let me know how you’re claiming… this is the day the Lord has made I will rejoice and be glad in it.

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