You will open your Bibles with
me tonight to Psalm 118. And I would encourage you, if
you have some way to mark this part of the Bible, that you do
so. We'll read here and then we'll
turn to several other places as we go through the message
this evening. And I trust you'll turn with
me. But I want us to read Psalm 118 and verse 24. This is the day which the Lord
hath made. We will rejoice and be glad in
it. The title of my message is The
Day of Rejoicing. And I want us to think about
the day which the Lord hath made in which we are to rejoice and
be glad in it. I begin my message tonight reminding
us that every day is a day which the Lord makes There would never
have been any day apart from the Lord. I know it's difficult,
probably impossible for our minds to grasp, but there was a point,
there was a point when there were no days, there was nothing,
only God. God alone existed in the trinity
of his persons. That is, God the Father, God
the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They are eternal. There's one
God, and he exists in a trinity of persons, and he is eternal. Everything else, all matter,
he has created. There was a time when there was
no days. There was nothing but God. In John chapter 1 and verse 3,
speaking of the eternal word, the eternal son of God, we read,
all things were made by him, and without him was not anything
made that was made. And then in Romans chapter 11
and verse 36, the apostle said, for of him, that is creation
is of him, and through him his providence and to Him all things
be glory forever." We have creation, we have providence, and we have
all these things for His glory. In Revelation chapter 4, we have
the 24 elders there who represent, I believe, all of God's elect,
His church from both dispensations, the old dispensation and this
dispensation, and they bow before the throne, cast their crowns
before the throne, and they worship and say, Thou art worthy, O Lord,
to receive glory and honor and power, for Thou hast created
all things, and for Thy pleasure They are and were created. So I just remind us in beginning,
this verse of Scripture tells us, this is the day which the
Lord hath made. We will rejoice and be glad in
it, that every day is a day that God makes. There would have been
no days without God making and beginning time. Now there are
five days I'm going to call our attention to this evening in
this message. I trust you'll turn with me.
Five days, and all of these days are days of rejoicing. The first day is the first day
of creation. And I want to read from Genesis
chapter 1, and the first five verses here, Genesis chapter
1. The first day of creation is a day in which there is to
be rejoicing, or there was rejoicing. In the beginning, Genesis 1 and
verse 1, in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form
and void. And darkness was upon the face
of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon
the face of the waters. And God said, let there be light. And there was light. And God
saw the light, that it was good. And God divided the light from
the darkness. And God called the light day. and the darkness he called night,
and the evening and the morning were the first day." Man had
not been created. Man was created on the sixth
day. So was there none? Was there
none on that first day to rejoice and be glad in it? Well, the
scriptures teach that there was. There was those on that first
day The first day that God made, there were those to rejoice and
be glad in it. I want you to look in chapter
two of Genesis and the first verse. Here in chapter one, we
read, in the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. But notice in chapter two in
verse one, we read, thus the heavens and the earth were finished
and all the host of them. Now, all the host of them refer
to the armies of heaven, that is, the angels. They were created
on that first day. And if you notice with me in
Job chapter 38, what am I saying? I'm saying that the first day
of creation was also a day of rejoicing. And while there were
no men here to rejoice, There were angels on that first day. And in Job chapter 38 and verse
1, this is the Lord speaking with Job. Then the Lord answered Job out
of the whirlwind and said, who is this that darkeneth counsel
by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a
man. For I will demand of thee, and
answer thou me. Where was thou when I laid the
foundations of the earth? In other words, man, where were
you on this first day of creation when I, that is God, when I laid
the foundations of the earth? Declare if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof? What man has measured the earth?
The universe, who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who hath stretched the line
upon it? Whereupon are the foundations
thereof fastened? You know, when you look at those
pictures of the planets and it looks like the earth is just
out there by itself. Not by itself, but all alone. It's just hanging out there.
Who put it there? That's what God is asking Job,
isn't it? Where were you when I laid the
foundations of the earth? Where were you? Whereupon are
the foundations thereof fastened? Where are the foundations upon
which the earth is fastened? We know that God is the foundation
of this earth. He's the foundation of the universe.
He's the foundation of His creation. By Him, all things, not most
things, By Him all things consist, that is the Lord Jesus Christ. But notice now in verse 7, when
the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted
for joy. Who was that? The angels of God. This is the day which the Lord
hath made, and while there were no men to rejoice, that's true,
but there were angels, that here referred to as the sons of God,
they all shouted, rejoiced for joy in God's blessed and holy
and beautiful creation. What a day of rejoicing that
was. You know, God has one son by
eternal generation. That is his eternal son of God. He has other sons like angels. They're called sons of God by
creation. But thank God he has sons by
adoption. And those are men and women like
you and I who know Christ as our Lord and Savior. Therefore,
we call him our father, our father. We're made sons of God. All right? Here's a second day.
I want you to look with me, if you will, in Leviticus chapter
25. Leviticus chapter 25. And this day is the day of the
atonement in the year of Jubilee. That's the day I'm speaking of
now. A day in which to rejoice Be
glad in it, the day of the atonement in the jubilee year. Here in
Leviticus chapter 25 in verse 9, God giving His law said, then
shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound. Now
notice, on the tenth day of the seventh month in the day of atonement
shall you make the trumpet sound throughout all your land. You remember in the law there
was a day every year had one day of atonement. Every year
had one day of atonement. And that was the only day in
which the high priest went into the most holy place and not without
blood. The writer of Hebrews points
that out to us, doesn't he? Not without blood. Not dare. Man would not dare approach unto
the holy Lord God without a sacrifice. Now that blood was only typical,
I understand that. But he went in there and he sprinkled
that blood on the mercy seat. He sprinkled that blood before
the mercy seat. That was every year on the day
of atonement. But every 50th year, Every 50th
year was a year of jubilee. And on this day of atonement,
then as we read here in our text, the trumpets were blown. The
trumpets were sounded and liberty, liberty was proclaimed
throughout the land. And that meant that all debts
were canceled. All debts were canceled on that
day. This had to be a day of rejoicing
when debts were canceled and when servants, actually slaves,
when servants were set free. And what a reminder to us, to
you and I, is this about our great high priest. In the letter
of Hebrews, we read this, Christ is not entered into the holy
place made with hands. That high priest there, and he
went into that holy place, the holy of holies. It was a tabernacle
or tent that had been fashioned, that had been made by the hands
of men. But our high priest, Christ,
has entered into the holy place, has not entered into the holy
place made with hands, which are figures of the true. See,
that was just typical. That was just a type, a picture
of the true. our high priest into heaven itself
now to appear in the presence of God for us. The gospel message
is a message of jubilee, not just one day out of the year,
not just one day every 50 years, but no, the gospel is a message
that is proclaimed every day that the sin debt has been paid. It's been canceled. And we, who
by nature are servants of sin. See, back then a person would
become a servant, a slave, if he was poor. He would sell himself
into servitude for so many years, but he would be set free in that
50th year, the year of Jubilee, and the debts would be canceled.
But you and I, we come into this world, children of Adam, fallen
Adam, children of fallen Adam, and we are servants of sin. And the Lord Jesus Christ said
this in John chapter 8. In John 8, He said, Verily, verily,
I say unto you, Whosoever, that's a big word. That's a big word,
isn't it? Whosoever. Nobody's excluded
here. Whosoever committeth sin is a
servant of sin. Have you ever committed a sin?
I know you have. We all have sinned and come short
of the glory of God. That's what the Lord Jesus Christ
said. Whosoever committeth sin is a
servant, is a slave of sin. But thank God, he also said,
if the Son therefore shall make you free. The Son, the Son of
God, the Lord Jesus Christ. If He shall make you free, you
shall be free indeed. Now that had to be a day of rejoicing,
that jubilee year, on the day of atonement, when the trumpet
sounded throughout all the land of Israel, and those who were
in debt, their debt was canceled, and those who were slaves, they
were set free. Yes, my friends, the son, when
he makes a person free, we are free from the guilt of sin. Sin, is an offense against God. It is a transgression of the
law of God, the scripture says. But when God the Holy Spirit
begins to work in the heart of one of his children, sin, guilt,
becomes a burden. It becomes a burden. And if you've
never been convinced of sin, you don't know what I'm talking
about. You don't understand what I'm saying here. But I tell you,
if you're a child of God, you know exactly what I'm saying.
That sin became a burden to you, the guilt of sin. You knew you
were guilty before God. And there's only one way that
that guilt can ever be removed, and that is if the Son, the Lord
Jesus Christ, if He shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. What a day of rejoicing that
is, my friends. This is the day which the Lord
hath made. We will rejoice and be glad in
it. And here's a third day. A third
day, the day of the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. Again,
we have the heavenly host rejoicing. In Luke chapter two, verses 13
and 14, we read, suddenly there was with the angel a multitude
of the heavenly hosts praising God and saying, glory to God
in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. The angels
rejoiced at the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was their
creator as the Son of God, and they rejoiced at His appearing
in the flesh. In fact, in Hebrews chapter one,
we read this, when He brought in the first begotten into the
world, He saith, that is God, when He brought His Son into
the world, the first begotten into the world, He saith, let
all the angels of God worship Him. Think about this, my friends. God provided a Savior for men
and women. For the angels that fell, there
is no Savior. The Scripture says that He took
upon Him the form of a man. That is, He did not take upon
Him the nature of angels. And we read in Psalm chapter
8 that man Man is made a little lower than the angels. In other
words, in the order of creation, angels are a higher created being
than man. They're pure spirits. And yet,
for those who fail, God provided no savior, no substitute for
them. Well, this is certainly a day
that causes great joy and rejoicing to everyone who is made to know
their need of a Savior. If you've been made to know your
need of a Savior because of the guilt of sin, then this is a
day of rejoicing, that day that Christ was born into this world. The angels rejoiced, even though
He was not made a Savior for the angels, but yet they rejoiced. in Him coming into this world. And the fourth day that I want
to mention, and I would have you turn back now to our text
in Psalm 118, if you will. But the fourth day is the day
of His resurrection. And I believe that this is the
day that is spoken of here in our text. And I say this because
I want you to notice what it follows. In Psalm 118 and verse
22, we read, the stone which the builders refused is become
the head stone of the corner. Now, who is this stone that the
builders refused? And when did the builders refuse
this stone? Well, we know that this stone
is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is that stone that God laid
in Zion. It is the Lord Jesus Christ.
And I think of the words of Peter when the scripture here says,
the stone which the builders refused, the builders, that is
the religious rulers, the leaders of the nation of Israel, they
refused the stone. They did. And as far as man is concerned,
and notice it said the next verse, this is the Lord's doing. And
it's marvelous in our eyes. His death was according to God's
determinate counsel and foreknowledge. In other words, he's spoken of
as a lamb slain from the foundation of the world. When he came into
this world, yes, he is the stone that God laid. And these men
refused him. And they did by wicked hands,
Peter said, crucify him. But yet they were doing exactly
what God had determined to be done from before the foundation
of the world. This was God's purpose in sending
his son into this world. But this is a day of resurrection. And this is the day that the
Lord has made, and we will rejoice and be glad in it. You know,
on the day of his resurrection, you read this in John chapter
20, on the day of his resurrection, his disciples, they were gathered
in a room, the doors were closed, and they were fearful, and they
were dejected, they were despondent, And the Lord appeared, and the
Lord appeared there, and He said, Peace unto you. Now listen, and
when He had so said, He showed them His hands and His feet. Then, don't miss that, then,
when He showed them His hands and His feet, then were the disciples
glad. when they saw the Lord. This
is the day which the Lord hath made. We will rejoice and be
glad in it. The day of his resurrection.
You know, I stopped last week and just tried to ask myself
and meditate on this. What does the resurrection of
the Lord Jesus Christ mean to me? Well, I can't give you everything
that I thought of, but I want to mention these two things quickly.
The resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is a day which
the Lord hath made, and we will rejoice and be glad in it, because
His resurrection tells me that the payment of my sin debt has
been made. It's been made, the debt has
been canceled, And if there was a list, it's paid in full, paid
in full. That's what it means to me, his
resurrection. And now I can enter into the
words of the apostle Paul in Romans chapter eight, when he
said, who, who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died. Who can
condemn someone for whom Christ died? No one. Yea, brethren, that is risen
again, who is even at the right hand of God, who maketh intercession
for us. Yes, this is the day. The day
of his resurrection is a day that we rejoice and we are glad
in it because this tells us, reminds us, shows us, convinces
us, our sin debt is paid. It's canceled. They'll never
be remembered again. And number two, it tells us the
resurrection of our body is secured. There's no question about it.
In 1 Corinthians 15, you know that chapter where Paul speaks
about the resurrection? It connects the resurrection
of Christ and the resurrection of believers together in such
a way that if you deny one, you deny the other. In other words,
if you deny the resurrection of Christ, then there's not going
to be a resurrection of believers. And if you deny the resurrection
of believers, then Christ was not raised from the dead. There's
a union, you see, between Christ and His people. Yes. But here's the fifth day, hurriedly.
Here's the fifth day, the day of eternity. The day of eternity. When a child of God leaves this
world, either by death or by the Lord's second coming, we
enter that eternal day. We enter that eternal day. And what a day is this, a day
of rejoicing. Think about this. This is the
day that we leave this tabernacle of clay. And we have a building
made of God. A building eternal in the heavens. What a change, right? This eternal
day. Leaving this tabernacle, this
tent, you know a tent, you go camping or something like that,
you set up your tent, you can take it down quickly, usually.
This body can be taken down very quickly. But all the body that
we enter into, that eternal body I can't explain that. I just
know what it says in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 1. I know
that we have a body eternal in the heavens. And number two,
this is the day that we see the Lord Jesus Christ. This eternal
day. This is the day that we look
upon the face of him who loved us and gave himself for us. The
Apostle Peter, when he was writing his first letter, he said this
unto those he was writing to, whom having not seen. In other
words, he's writing to people and he says, you never saw him. They had never seen Christ in
the flesh. Whom having not seen, you loved. They had not seen him, but they
loved him. In whom, though now you see him
not, yet believing, you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full
of glory. If we rejoice now, if we rejoice
now in believing, what will our rejoicing be when we see him? You know, a person told me today
that he was in a meeting And if I understood it right, it
was kind of an informal meeting where he worked and the supervisor
had a soccer ball. And you know how a soccer ball
is divided into different little spots. And on those various spots,
there was a question written. And the supervisor would pitch
that out to this worker. And whatever your thumb landed
on, that was the question for you. And he said he was the last
one. that they pitched the ball to,
and the question was, who do you love the most? And he said, I don't know why,
but he said there was some fear I felt, but I confessed. I love
Christ the most, and my wife I love second. And he said several
weeks after that, someone who was in that meeting, came to
him and asked him a question. And he was able to point this
person to where she could hear the gospel. And he asked her
later why she came to him. And she said, because of your
answer, you confess that you love Christ the most, the best. And we as believers, we do love
him. And I understand what he meant,
why we would be Somewhat timid and fearful to confess Christ,
but I think most all of us are. That old flesh, that old nature.
But we should not be ashamed or show any shame. If there's
any shame on our part, it should be of our shame of him. Because
he loved us. And we love him because he first
loved us. But then the third, and this
is the last thing, this is the day that we experience joy forevermore. This eternal day, fullness of
joy. While in this world we experience
joy, we really do. Over the years I've experienced
joy, but I know this, it's not constant. It's not constant. No wonder the Apostle Paul wrote,
Exhorting believers, rejoice in the Lord. Again, I say unto
you, rejoice in the Lord. If our rejoicing was constant,
we would not need to be reminded of this. But you know, sometimes
God hides his face from his people and that joy is just not there
as it has been. But my friends, this eternal
day, we'll never experience that ever again. It will be joy forevermore. At thy right hand is fullness
of joy, are pleasures forevermore. This is the day which the Lord
hath made. God help us to rejoice and be
glad in it. I pray that the Lord would bless
these thoughts to those of us here this evening. And Bill is
going to come and he's going to sing the hymn It's 224 in
our hymn books. It is a hymn that most of us
know and believe. I know whom I have believed.
I know whom I have believed. Number 224.