This is the Day

I did a search at biblegateway.com for the phrase: “This is the day which the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” I hear it so often in Christian circles that I expected it to be scattered throughout scripture. But unless I did something wrong in my word search, I only found it listed once: Psalm 118:24.
I started searching for this phrase because I hear it frequently enough in Christian circles as an admonishment to rejoice in each and every day. But I see a lot of suffering going on around me, and I can’t honestly say I rejoice in each day. Let me give you a few sound bytes from my past week:
  • A friend’s nephew, a young adult, is in a coma
  • other friends of mine are close to being evicted from their home
  • I hear a phrase repeated in the workplace “Pick your ‘O’… overtime or out-of-work!”
So I did this search to get some context for what it means to rejoice and be glad in “this day”, thinking that it’s probably found in multiple places. I wanted context to understand where and how often it’s used, but like I said, all I found was one verse in Psalm 118.
I remember reading an email once that asserted Psalm 118 is the very center chapter of the Bible, wedged between the shortest chapter (117) and the longest chapter (119). To be honest, I never bothered to see if that was true until now. Bible trivia is not important to me. I value the wisdom of Scripture because I value truth and I want to apply truth to how I live my life. But there’s also this part of me that just doesn’t want to be “wrong”, so I had to see if Psalm 118 is in fact the center chapter of the Bible. So… (drum roll please)
Nope. Close, though… Psalm 117 has 594 chapters both before and after it, putting the shortest chapter right in the middle. So why does it matter?

I don’t know if it does… but it emphasizes the reason why I started the word search in the first place. There are so many things that we accept as true without ever questioning it. We call it “faith” when we blindly accept what men have said what we should believe, but the faith that really matters comes from a belief in what God says is true. If we hold in faith to concepts that come from men and not from God, we represent religion. But if we are willing to let go of religion and hold true to what God says is true, we represent the Kingdom of God.

Religion, I would argue, is counter-kingdom. When we forward silly emails that demand compliance with man’s rules, asserting “truths” that aren’t true and mores that enslave, all the while keeping a real relationship with God at arm’s length, we misrepresent the Kingdom of God. Whether it’s an email, or a doctrine or some set of behavior that’s considered appropriate for Christian circles, ambassadors of the Kingdom need to be disciplined in asking “how does this line up with God’s truth?”

I believe that all truth is God’s truth, but not everything people convey as “true” is based in fact. Opinions, agendas, and misperceptions limit our ability to understand truth, but regardless of our limitations, I believe that the truth is still out there to discern. I believe that God has created an order to this universe with an expectation that we will seek to understand. Proverbs 25:2 reads: “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” The scientific method is founded on the beliefs that 1) reality is based on truth and that 2) truths about reality can be proven.

As followers of Christ, we are called to be ambassadors of the Kingdom. Christ’s only harsh words were reserved for the religious hypocrites of the day. He blatantly refused to follow the man-made, religious constraints, but He unswervingly adhered to the ways of God as provided in Scripture. For this, the religious authorities sought to have Him killed. But the reality of God is greater than the perceptions of man, and so by His death and resurrection, a greater understanding of truth can be understood by those who are open to the truth. And so, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.” (Psalm 118 ).

So we can rejoice in the Lord (Phil 4:4), knowing He is greater than our limited perception of reality in this day -- greater than the momentary trials of this day -- and that He will be faithful to bring forth that day of our reward (Luke 6:23).
So in context, Psalm 118 reads (in part):
17 I shall not die, but live,
         And declare the works of the LORD.
 18 The LORD has chastened me severely,
         But He has not given me over to death.
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.
 
We can expect suffering in this life, but for those who persevere in the truth, there is great reward. We are pressed with suffering but not crushed into oblivion; we have not been abandoned by our God. (2 Cor 4:8-9) And we can expect that our God will bring us through the suffering into a deeper knowledge of how great and how loving He is, not allowing us to stay in our place of comfort as He leads us into a greater reward.

copyright ©2011 Mitchell Malloy (http://mitchellmalloyblogspot.com/)

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