BY KENNETH E. HAGIN
In Second Peter 3:1, Peter, writing to the Church, talks about “stirring up our pure minds by way of remembrance.” In other words, he’s saying: “I just want to stir up your thinking in a particular area so you will remember to do some things.”
Well, I want to stir up your thinking concerning rejoicing in the Lord. I believe we could all stand to rejoice more in the Lord – especially since we’re living in such a great day.
PSALM 118:21-2421 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.
22 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.
23 This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
There is a little chorus taken from Psalm 118:24 that states: “This is the day that the lord hath made.” Well, if you didn’t know any better, you’d think that verse is talking about a day of the week, such as Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. But it’s not talking about that at all.
That word “day” in Psalm 118:24 means a specified period of time. We use the word day in that sense when we talk about things of the past. For example, we might say, “Back in Grandpa’s day…” or “In So-and so’s day…… Well, that’s what the psalmist was talking about: “This is the day (or the period of time) that the Lord has made.”
Now let’s back up just a moment and look at the verses right before verse 24. Notice the psalmist is referring to salvation and Jesus, the Stone which the builders refused. But then he turns around and says, “This is the day which the Lord hath made”!
Well, what day is it that the Lord has made? It is the day in which Jesus has become our salvation – the day in which the Stone that the builders refused has become the Head Stone of the corner!
ACTS 4:11,12
11 This is the stone [talking about Jesus] which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Notice, too, what the Apostle Paul said in Ephesians, talking about the Church.
EPHESIANS 2:19,20
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF BEING THE CHIEF CORNER STONE.
Then turn to First Peter and look at what Peter said in chapter 2.
1 PETER 2:3-7
3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,
5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner.
So the psalmist was not talking about some day of the week when he said, “This is the day which the Lord hath made.” He was talking about a particular day or time period. And you can readily see from these scriptures that he’s talking about the Day of Salvation.
Psalm 118:21 says, “I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my SALVATION.’ And we just read in Acts 4:11 and 12 that the writer made mention of Jesus being the Stone that the builders rejected, saying, ‘Neither is there SALVATION in any other….”
This is the day which the Lord hath made – the Day of Salvation. And we’re still living in that day!
Now when we think about salvation, we think about remission of sins. We think about being born again and becoming new creatures in Christ. And, thank God, that’s all included, but there’s more to the Day of Salvation than that.
For example, Paul said in writing to the saints at Rome, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth…” (Rom. 1:16).
The Scofield Reference Bible has a little footnote for the word “salvation” in that verse, which says: “The Hebrew and Greek words for salvation imply the ideas of deliverance, safety, preservation,
healing, and soundness.”
No wonder we’re to rejoice and be glad; we’re living in that day, the Day of Salvation! And since everything that goes along with salvation is available to us, that means this is also the Day of Deliverance, Safety, Preservation, Healing, and Soundness! Glory to God!
So, first of all, Psalm 118:24 is talking about the Day of Salvation. But this is also the Day of Dominion.
ROMANS 6:14
14 For sin shall not have DOMINION over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
In Romans 1:7 we see that Paul addressed this letter “… to all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints….’ But it applies to us as well because we’re also beloved of God and called to be saints!
Now sin and Satan are practically synonymous terms. So it would not do injustice to the Scripture to read Romans 6:14 like this: “For Satan shall not have dominion over you…… After all, we are the Body of Christ. Does Satan have any dominion at all over the Body of Christ? No! We have dominion over him.
Satan did at one time have dominion over each of us when we were still in the kingdom of darkness, for he is the king of the kingdom of darkness. But God has delivered us from the power of darkness, which is the power of Satan and his kingdom (Col. 1:12,13). Therefore, Satan no longer has dominion over us. Through Christ, we now have dominion over him!
Let’s look at this further in the Word because the Scriptures bear out that this is the Day of Dominion.
COLOSSIANS 2:13-15
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened [made alive] together with him [Jesus], having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
15 And having SPOILED principalities and powers, HE MADE A SHEW OF THEM OPENLY, triumphing over them in it.
Now the King James Version was translated almost four hundred years ago, and people used different expressions back then. For example, to get I the full meaning of verse 15, you need to understand that in those days, most of the nations or countries were headed up by kings. When a king and his army went out to battle against another king and they defeated him, it was said that they “spoiled” the other king. Then upon returning home, they’d have a parade of victory making a “shew” (or show) of the captured king openly. In other words, the victors put the defeated king on parade and made a public display of him, triumphing in his defeat!
Well, that’s what Jesus did to the principalities and powers of this world when on the Cross, He defeated Satan and his kingdom. Notice in particular how The Amplified Bible reads.
COLOSSIANS 2:15 (Amplified)
15 [God] disarmed the principalities and powers that were ranged against us and made a bold display and public example of them, in triumphing over them in Him and in it [the cross].
These are the same principalities and powers that we have to deal with today. But they’ve been disarmed, and we have dominion over them! You see, Satan and his cohorts still rule in this world (2 Cor. 4:4). But Jesus has already defeated them!
Now take a look at First Corinthians 2:6. 1 believe it will help you see more clearly what I’m talking about.
I CORINTHIANS 2:6
6 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect [mature]: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of THE PRINCES OF THIS WORLD, THAT COME TO NOUGHT [nothing].
I like how this verse reads in the Moffatt translation: It says, “… the dethroned Powers who rule this world.” Well, they may be ruling this world, but they’re not ruling us, because Jesus dethroned them and reduced them to nothing!
Yes, the devil at one time was our master. Yes, sin, sickness and disease, spiritual death, poverty, and everything else that’s of the devil once ruled us. But now, bless God, we rule them for this is the Day of Dominion!
Now go back to Psalm 118 and notice a third point.
PSALM 118:24
24 This is the day which the Lord bath made; we will REJOICE and be GLAD in it.
This “day which the Lord bath made” is a Day of Salvation and a Day of dominion. But, third, notice that this day is also a Day of Gladness and Rejoicing!
PHILIPPIANS 4:4
4 REJOICE in the Lord ALWAY: and again I say, REJOICE.
This verse in Philippians 4:4 applies to the Church today. Why? Because this is the Day of Gladness and Rejoicing.
Then First Thessalonians 5:16 says, “Rejoice evermore.” That means always!
Someone said, “But I don’t feel like it.” Well, start rejoicing anyway and you’ll begin to feel like it.
Actually, once you get a revelation of this day that the Lord has made this day of your salvation and of your dominion – you can’t help but rejoice. You can’t help but be glad!
Many times when I’m impressed to minister along the lines of joy and gladness, the Lord will have me preach from Psalm 126.
PSALM 126:1,2
1 When the Lord TURNED again THE CAPTIVITY OF ZION, we were like them that dream.
2 THEN WAS OUR MOUTH FILLED WITH LAUGHTER, AND OUR TONGUE WITH SINGING: then said they among the heathen, The Lord bath done great things for them.
Now the psalmist most likely wrote this psalm when the Lord turned the captivity of Zion, delivering Israel from Babylonian captivity. But I want to call our attention to something that was written to us in the Book of Hebrews.
HEBREWS 12:22,23
22 But ye are come unto mount SION [Zion], and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
23 TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AND CHURCH OF THE FIRSTBORN, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made PERFECT.
Here the writer of Hebrews calls the Church Mount Zion. Notice he said, “To the GENERAL ASSEMBLY AND CHURCH OF THE FIRSTBORN, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the SPIRITS OF JUST MEN MADE PERFECT” (v. 23). That’s talking about the Church.
Look at the phrase “… to the spirits of just men made perfect” in verse 23. If you think about it, that’s not talking about being perfect in the flesh. You’ll never be made perfect in the flesh until
you get a new body – a glorified body. But notice it says “the spirits of just men made perfect.” That’s talking about the spirits of men who have been born again – who have become new creatures in Christ Jesus!
So we know that Zion not only refers to Israel, but here in the New Testament, it refers to the Church (Heb. 12:22,23).
Remember we said that there was a time when we were in captivity. Satan ruled over us. Sin ruled over us. Sickness and poverty ruled over and dominated us. But thanks be unto God, the Lord turned our captivity!
Let’s look at Psalm 126 again. But this time, let’s read through to verse 3.
PSALM 126:1-3
1 When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.
2 THEN was our mouth filled with LAUGHTER, and our tongue with SINGING: then said they among the heathen, The Lord bath done great things for them.
3 The Lord bath done great things for us; whereof WE ARE GLAD.
The psalmist said, “When the Lord turned our captivity, then was our mouth filled with laughter and our tongue with singing. The Lord has done great things for us, whereof we are glad!”
You can’t be glad without your mouth being filled with laughter. You can’t be glad without your tongue being filled with singing. Whether you can sing or not, you’ll take a try at it. You just can’t help it – because you’ve got a song in your heart!
Now why were the people of Zion so glad in the Old Testament? Why were their mouths filled with laughter and their tongues with singing? Because their captivity had been turned!
Well, our captivity has been turned! We’ve been delivered! This is the Day of Salvation. This is the Day of Dominion. This is the Day of Gladness and Rejoicing. Hallelujah!
That’s the reason Paul said to the Church at Philippi, “Rejoice always, and again, I say, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). That’s the reason Paul said to
the Thessalonians, “Rejoice evermore” (1 Thess. 5:16).
Friend, you need to know that this is the day which the Lord hath made a day of salvation a day of dominion; and a day of gladness and rejoicing. So when the devil comes with thoughts of doubt and unbelief, you need to just start laughing and rejoicing.
Laugh right in the face of contradictory circumstances. Laugh when everything’s going wrong. Laugh when the devil tells you, “This is one time you’re not going to make it.” Just laugh and say, “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” Why? Because this is the day which the Lord hath made. Rejoice and be glad in it!
I held a meeting in a church in the state of Texas a number of years ago and stayed in the parsonage with the pastor and his wife. One night after going to sleep, I was awakened with some of the most alarming heart symptoms I’d ever experienced – ones like I’d suffered years before. (In my youth, the Lord raised me up off my deathbed and healed me of a heart condition.)
The devil spoke to my mind, saying, “Boy, this is one time you’re not going to get your healing.”
Well, it was 1:30 in the morning, and I didn’t want to disturb the pastor and his wife whose bedroom was just down the other end of the hall. So I pulled the bed covers up over my head and started laughing.
Now a person doesn’t feel like laughing when he’s experiencing severe heart symptoms. But I just made myself laugh. I said over and over again, “Ha, ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha, ha… ”
Finally the devil said, “What are you laughing about?”
I said, “I’m laughing at you.”
“What are you laughing at me about?”
“Well, you said to me, ‘This is one time you’re not going to get your healing.”‘
“Yeah, that’s right. This is one time you’re not going to get your healing!”
So I said, “Ha, ha, ha, ha…” I just made myself laugh.
The devil asked again, “What are you laughing about?”
I said, “I’m laughing at you. You said, ‘This is one time you’re not going to get healed.'”
He said, “That’s right. This is one time you’re not going to get healed. You know the doctors can’t help you; they’ve told you before that there’s nothing they can do. So you’re going to die!”
I took the bed covers off of my head, reached over, and turned on the light by the bed. I grabbed hold of my Bible and said, “Mr. Devil, I don’t know whether you can read or not, but in case you can’t, I’m going to read this to you.”
Then I turned over to First Peter 2:24 and read out loud: “Who [Jesus] his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes YE WERE HEALED.
I said, “Mr. Devil, I’m not trying to get my healing. I don’t even expect to get my healing. Jesus already got it for me – all I have to do is accept it! So you might as well get your little symptoms and clear out! Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”
And, thank God, he gathered up all of his heart symptoms and just took off!
Hallelujah! This is the day which the Lord hath made: the Day of Salvation – Deliverance, Safety, Preservation, Healing, and Soundness; the Day of Dominion; the Day of Gladness and Rejoicing – of laughter and singing. We’re still living in that day!
So rejoice always! Rejoice evermore! This is the day which the Lord hath made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!
==================================================================
THE ABOVE MATERIAL WAS PUBLISHED BY THE WORD OF FAITH, JULY 1996, PAGES 14-17. THIS MATERIAL IS COPYRIGHTED AND MAY BE USED FOR STUDY & RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY.
