Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Misunderstanding "The Day the Lord Has Made"

Many Christians wake up each day saying, "This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it." This quote from Psalm 118:24 often helps us understand that the day itself is a gift of God, and that it should be received as a gift, with joy.  

This saying, however, also represents a classic case of the right theology taken from the wrong verse. When reading the verse in its immediate context, it becomes obvious that we commonly misuse it - and in so doing, we neglect the main point of encouragement it seeks to provide. 

The demonstrative pronoun "this" at the beginning of the verse should inform us that, rather than speaking of a general point of theology concerning the Lord's creative power for each day, this verse is speaking about a particular day in redemptive history concerning the Lord's saving power. 

In other words, instead of saying "Today is the day that the Lord has made," we should say, "That day was the Day the Lord made." While it is right to say that the Lord made today, it is not the main point of this verse.

When we read the entire Psalm, we notice that that day was the Day when the "gates of righteousness" were opened (v.19). It was the Day when the Lord answered prayer and became salvation for his people (v.21). It was the day when the cornerstone was rejected (v.22) - a Day that was the Lord's doing, and a day that should be marvelous in the eyes of his own (v.23). 

It was the day that when the people of God cried out, "Save us!" (v.25) And it was the day when God's people called him who came in the name of the Lord, "blessed" (v.26). It was the day when his redeeming light shone and the Sacrifice was made (v.27). It was the day for which we extol him and give him thanks for being our God whose steadfast love endures forever. (v.28-29).

While the Lord did make today, in Psalm 118 he is calling us to focus on another day that he made. It was the Day that the Lord brought salvation to his people. It was the Day Christ was rejected and crucified. It was the Day that he provided the sacrifice for our sins and showed his steadfast love. 

And just so we don't get it twisted, he wants us to know, that it was he who made that day. It was his doing. It was him saving. If he did not see fit to make that day, we would not have this day at all. It is because he made that day, that we can rejoice and be glad.


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