This is the Day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
I frequent the Safeway Supper Market on my way to work in the mornings to pick up necessities for work or for special occasions. There is a cashier, whose name I am not privy to enclose, who often tells her customers to "be grateful and be faithful." I echo these words because they are befitting for our scripture reading. Psalms 118: 24 - is the most quoted verse used to arouse our hearts to worship during our church services. I thought that it would be nice to know the reason why our hearts burst into joy upon hearing these words, so I ponder the thought about what it means to be glad.
IN CONTEXT
The Word of the Lord reminds us today that GOD has both settled all scores and has established His Kingdom through the redemptive work of His beloved Son (our blessed Redeemer). Jesus has become the cornerstone which is rejected not only by the people during his day, but also, he is rejected by people in our present time. Nevertheless, salvation has been established by the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Promise, the remedy for this sin sick world. Jesus is both the Author and Finisher of the Faith (Hebrews 12:2); therefore, no other foundation shall be laid except the LORD Himself.
BE GRATEFUL - BE FAITHFUL
After pondering the thought about what it means to be glad, I thought about the cashier's message to her customers: "Be grateful and be faithful." Being glad in this instance means being fully conscious of the occasion to which you are glad and being grateful. But, there is another side to being glad that Christians sometimes forget because we mistakenly take v.24 out of context. We display our gratefulness by being faithful. Shouting and dancing is fine; however, that is not how we demonstrate our gratefulness to God for all He has done for us. We must demonstrate our gratefulness by being faithful. Those who have believed upon the name of Jesus, should remember to remain grateful for his self-sacrificial offering to stand proxy in their place, and to be a faithful disciple and steward of His Word.
Rejoice & Be Glad!
Prayer
Gracious God - Eternal Father,
We give you thanks for this day: for life more abundantly; for peace and joy; for a reasonable portion of health and strength, and most importantly, we thank you for our salvation. There is none like you in the whole of creation - You ARE GOD alone! Look with kindness upon us on this day and teach us how to be glad in it. Help us to understand the reason for our gladness so that we might articulate/give witness to the world about our reason for being glad. Sweet Holy Spirit - infuse us with your strength so that we might exhibit our gratefulness to the Father and Son through our obedience to the word, and be faithful followers/disciples of Jesus. Amen.