Objection 34: The psalmist prophesied that there would he a new day of worship. (See Psalm 118:22-24) The “day” mentioned in Psalms 118:24 can refer only to Sunday, the day on which Christ became the headstone of the corner.
Psalms 118:22-24 reads as follows:
"The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
The objector's reasoning is this:
(1) Christ became "the head stone of the corner" by the act of rising from the grave
(2) He rose on Sunday.
(3) The statement, "This is the day which the Lord bath made," applies to a twenty-four-hour day, and the day referred to is Sunday.
(4) Therefore, "we will rejoice and be glad" on Sunday by keeping it as God's holy day.
But nowhere does the Bible say that Christ became the chief cornerstone by the act of rising from the dead. In the New Testament, Christ is frequently referred to as “the chief corner stone" (Eph. 2:20; 1 Peter 2:6) and as "the head of the body, the church" (Col. 1:18), but these references do not narrow down to any one act of Christ's life, or to any moment of time, His acquiring of this title of headship.
The context of Colossians 1:18 would indicate that if any one act is focused upon, it is the death of Christ, which occurred on the sixth day of the week.
It is true that the reference to Christ as “the head over all things to the church,” in Ephesians 1:22, is found in a context that mentions the resurrection of Christ. But a reading of the context of verses 18 through 23 shows that Paul is discussing a whole series of important events in connection with Christ, events which are given in sequence, with no warrant for concluding that they are to be understood as having occurred on the same day. We read that God (a) "raised him from the dead," (b) "set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places," (c) "put all things under his feet," and (d) "gave him to be the head over all things to the church."
An examination of Paul's further writings indicates clearly that Christ's sitting at God's right hand is in His capacity as our High Priest: “We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.” Heb. 8:1-2. Certainly Christ did not enter on His work of ministry that Sunday morning He rose. He was with His disciples on earth for forty days after His resurrection.
Further, the phrase, "put all things under his feet,'' brings to our mind another passage of Paul's, in which he says of Christ: "But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God. From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." Heb. 10:12-13.
Without taking the matter further, it is evident that Paul's statement in Ephesians 1:22 concerning Christ's headship of the church does not warrant the conclusion that the acquiring of His headship took place on the Sunday of the resurrection. On the contrary, the related passages in Hebrews would rather indicate it involved a sequence of events over a period of time.
Sometimes another text is quoted by the advocates of this Sunday theory who seek to prove that Christ became the chief cornerstone precisely on the first day of the week, the resurrection Sunday. That text reads, "Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." Rom. 1:1-4. That passage parallels the one in Ephesians that we have just analyzed, particularly Ephesians 1:19-20. Hence it gives no further proof in support of the theory.
Any theory that depends for its strength on focusing everything on one act of Christ's life, to the exclusion of all other acts, should be viewed with suspicion. The salvation of man depends on a whole series of momentous events. The incarnation was an event of vast significance; had God the Son, who was with God the Father in heaven, not agreed to become a lowly mortal man, the plan of salvation could not have been put into effect.
The crucifixion holds the central position; without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins. The substitutionary atonement, the mystery whereby Christ died for our sins, and we are saved by His perfect righteousness is at the center of the plan of salvation. The resurrection is also of great importance; for if Christ is not raised, then we who die in Christ must perish; our hope is in vain.
Finally, the Second Advent is the culmination of the plan of salvation; for it is then that the promise becomes reality, and we go to live with our Saviour in a paradise free of sin and death. (Heb. 9:28; John 14:3) It is then that He becomes King of kings and Lord of lords and sees all His enemies put under His feet.
Only the need to load the first day of the week with sufficient sanctity to command reverence for it can explain the theological reasoning of those who seek to convey the impression that everything of significance for the salvation of man occurred on the resurrection morning.
But that simply is not biblical. True, the Scriptures give profound meaning to the opened tomb, but they also give similar meaning to Bethlehem's manger, Calvary's cross, and the rolling back of the heavens at the last day to reveal the face of our Lord.
So much for the part of the argument that would narrow down the fulfillment of Psalms 118:22 to a certain twenty-four-hour day, the resurrection day. Let us now inquire as to what the Psalmist meant when he said, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
An examination of the verses that immediately precede and follow the passage under consideration reveals that the psalmist is treating the broad subject of salvation. Verse 21 reads thus, “I will praise thee: for thou has heard me, and art become my salvation.” Verse 25 reads, “Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity.”
Compare with this the New Testament comment by Peter: "This is the stone which was set at naught of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other." Acts 4:11-12.
The natural conclusion is that, “This is the day which the Lord hath made” is referring to the day of salvation that would be ushered in by the Advent of our Lord as the Savior of men. The Bible frequently uses the word “day” to describe an indefinite period of time. For example, we read of the “day of the Lord,” the “day of judgment.” We know these cover very much more than a twenty-four-hour period.
Likewise, the Bible speaks of the “day of salvation.” In Isaiah's prophetic writings we read, “Thus says the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee.” Isa. 49:8.
Note, now, Paul's comment on this prophetic declaration as he addresses the church at Corinth. After quoting a portion of Isaiah 49:8, the apostle affirms, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." 2 Cor. 6:2. According to the apostle Paul, the "day of salvation," of which the prophets had written, was "now," when he was writing to the church at Corinth, many years after the day of the resurrection. It is evident that he understood the "day" to refer to the whole period of God's grace, which was to continue on until the close of man's probation.
In a discussion with the unbelieving Jews, Christ spoke of those who were the servants of sin, and of how they could be saved from sin: “If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. The Jews did not understand this divine plan of salvation, and scornfully declared that they were Abraham's children and were never in bondage to anyone. Then Christ replied, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad." Verse 56.
Abraham, with prophetic eye, looked forward to the very time when Christ would stand before men to offer salvation to them, and Abraham "rejoiced." Quite evidently the "day of salvation" began before the resurrection.
Now let us view together the statement by the psalmist and the statement concerning Abraham, remembering that they both looked forward to the coming of the Messiah: “This is the day which the Lord bath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24. "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad." John 8:56.
The parallel is perfect. We need not search further to discover the meaning of the psalmist's words. As stated in the opening paragraph, some earnest Sunday advocates, hard pressed for a Bible command to keep holy the first day of the week, fasten on this passage in the Psalms, and declare that the Bible commands us to "rejoice and be glad" on Sunday.
The Bible reveals that Abraham rejoiced and was glad in the "day" of which the psalmist spoke. Is there any Sunday advocate so foolish as to assert that Abraham kept Sunday?