Join Us Online for Worship
Sermon Notes
This Is the Day: Psalm 118 and the Coming King
Psalm 118:1–29 (especially vv. 1–4, 5–9, 10–18, 19–23, 24–27)
Supporting: Matthew 21:1–11, 42; Acts 4:11–12; Romans 8:31
1. GOD’S UNCHANGING LOVE IS THE FOUNDATION (vv. 1–4)
- We begin where the psalm begins:
- Ps 118:1-4
- Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!
- Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
- Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
- Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
- Psalm 118:29
- Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!
- THIS FRAMES EVERYTHING:
- HIS STEADFAST LOVE ENDURES FOREVER
- Before the king appears, before the crowd shouts, before the parade begins, the psalm anchors us in who God is:
- He is GOOD—not just occasionally kind, but eternally good.
- His steadfast love endures forever
- HESED: covenant love that clings, faithful, loyal love even when we don't deserve it.
2. GOD’S SHOWS UP (vv. 5–9)
- Then the psalmist shifts from corporate praise to personal declaration:
- Psalm 118:5-9
- Out of my distress I called on the Lord;
- the Lord answered me and set me free.
- The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
- What can man do to me?
- The Lord is on my side as my helper;
- I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.
- It is better to take REFUGE in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take REFUGE in the Lord than to trust in princes.
- The Israelites would quote this reflecting on when they were in trouble and who God is.
- He answered
- He set them free
- He was on their side, therefore there is no fee
- Man can do nothing to them
- He is their helper
- And He gives them victory
- THEY TOOK REFUGE IN THE LORD
- On Palm Sunday, Jesus is not riding into a safe, orderly celebration. HE KNOWS WHAT LIES AHEAD IN JERUSALEM
- He is entering distress—betrayal, rejection, and the cross. Yet, like the psalmist, He can say,
- Psalm 118:6
- The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
- Jesus enters in through the COVENANT OF GOD THAT HE WILL KEEP
- Palm Sunday is a call to walk with the King who is not afraid of the cross, AND ALSO TRUST IN THE COVENANT GOD ESTABLISHED
- THIS IS THE GOD WE CAN TRUST
- When everything around us is unstable and crumbling, WE CAN TRUST OUR GOD!
3. GOD’S VICTORY AND OUR SALVATION (vv. 10–18)
- The psalmist looks back from a place of deliverance and says:
- Psalm 118:10-16
- All nations surrounded me;
- IN THE NAME OF THE LORD I CUT THEM OFF!
- They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;
- IN THE NAME OF THE LORD I CUT THEM OFF!
- They surrounded me like bees; they went out like a fire among thorns
- IN THE NAME OF THE LORD I CUT THEM OFF!
- I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,
- but the Lord helped me.
- The Lord is my STRENGTH and my SONG;
- HE has become my SALVATION (Yeshua - My Jesus).
- Glad songs of SALVATION are in the tents of the righteous:
- “The right hand of the Lord does valiantly,
- The right hand of the Lord exalts,
- The right hand of the Lord does valiantly!”
- The Palm Sunday crowd is singing about their enemies,
- Mt. 21:9 BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD
- They are declaring that it is through the NAME OF GOD
- His CHARACTER, AUTHORITY, POWER AND PRESENCE - EVERYTHING GOD IS, compressed into a single invocation.
- THE PEOPLE GET THIS RIGHT…….AND WRONG
- It is true that Jesus comes in the NAME OF THE LORD but they think the enemy is ROME.
- They expect a king to come and overthrow Rome
- BUT from the vantage point of the resurrection, we know that the true enemies are sin, death, and the grave.
- They declare that God is their strength and their song.
- BUT THEN THE PSALMIST SAYS SOMETHING AMAZING
- HE SAYS “GOD AS BECOME MY SALVATION”
- HIS YESHUA - HIS JESUS
- Jesus is the One who comes IN THE NAME OF THE LORD to defeat sin, death and the grave for us.
4. THE REJECTED STONE AND THE RETURNING KING (vv. 19–23)
- Then comes the pivot:
- Psalm 118:19–23
- Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
- This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it.
- I thank you that you have answered me and have become my SALVATION.
- The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
- Jesus quotes this verse in Matthew 21:42 (ESV) and says to the religious leaders:
- Matthew 21:42
- Matthew is saying to them:
- You are the builders, and you are about to reject Me.
- But God is about to make Me the center of His whole redemptive plan.
- Acts 4:11–12 drives the nail in:
- This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
- So as we wave our palms, we must remember:
- Palm Sunday begins with hosannas and ends with nails.
5. "This Is the Day" – Hosanna to Hallelujah (vv. 24–27)
- Now return to the verse we all know:
- Psalm 118:24
- This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
- On Palm Sunday, the day the Lord has made is the day the King enters Jerusalem.
- On Easter Sunday, the day the Lord has made is the day the King rises from the dead.
- Psalm 118 stitches them together. The "day" the Lord has made is not just today; it is the whole arc of redemption—from the triumphal entry to the empty tomb.
Reflection/Application Questions
- How does Psalm 118:1 challenge your default response to life—do you begin with thanks or complaint?
- In light of Psalm 118:5–6, what "narrow place" are you walking through right now, and how can you trust that God is on your side?
- How does Jesus' ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday deepen your understanding of "the LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation" (Psalm 118:14, ESV)?
- Where have you felt "rejected" by others, and how does Psalm 118:22–23 reshape how you see that rejection?
- How does knowing that Jesus is the "rejected stone made the cornerstone" (Psalm 118:22; Acts 4:11–12, ESV) change the way you approach your own failures or disappointments?
- How can your group turn Psalm 118:24 ("let us rejoice and be glad in it") into a daily practice of rejoicing, even in the midst of Lent's somber reflection?
- What does it mean for you personally to cry "Save us, we pray, O LORD!" (Psalm 118:25, ESV) in your current season?
- How will Palm Sunday shape your commitment to follow Jesus not just to the celebration, but all the way to the cross and beyond?
Time of Response
Take a few minutes of silence. Allow your own thoughts to quiet and be still. Where does the Holy Spirit want you to decrease so that Christ could increase in your life? What part of your life, if reduced, would make more room for you to thrive spiritually?
QUESTIONS TO ASK WHILE READING SCRIPTURE
What does this reveal about God?
What does this reveal about you in relation to God?
What do you need to do about it?
The Covenant Prayer from John Wesley's Covenant Service, 1780 (adapted)
I am no longer my own,
but Yours.
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will.
Put me to doing,
put me to suffering.
Let me be employed for You or laid aside for You,
exalted for You or brought low for You.
Let me be full,
let me be empty.
Let me have all things,
let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to Your pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
You are mine,
and I am Yours.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.
I HAVE A QUESTION
SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS:
On this website's homepage.
Click on the card that says "Let's Talk."
https://newsongcommunity.church/lets-talk
QUESTIONS ANSWERED:
Wednesdays FaceBook Live stream 11:55am - 12:30pm
(On occasion, questions answered following Sunday.)
How Can I Be Intentional When Reading Scripture?
One Method To Use When Reading Scripture:
The S.O.A.P.S. Method
S.cripture: Write down the Bible passage you will be studying.
O.bservations: Examine the text and write down what you notice and see. Start with the obvious and move to the deeper.
A.pplication: Apply God’s Word to your life in a practical way. What is God saying about Himself, about you and about what He is calling you to?
P.rayer: Respond to God’s Word with your own words.
S.hare: Commit to share what God is showing you with someone else.
- Inductive Bible Study:
- Observation (what does the passage say?)
- What is happening in the passage?
- Who is involved in the passage?
- What happened before and after the passage.
- Where are they located and how is that influencing the passage.
- Interpretation (what does it mean?)
- What is the passage saying considering everything I have observed and what I know from the rest of Scripture
- What does the scripture say within context of the entirety of Scripture?
- Application (how does it apply to my life?)
- What does the passage say about God?
- What does the passage say about me and to me?
- What am I being called to DO because of the passage of Scripture?
How do I talk with God?
WAYS TO PRAY
One Way to talk with God is to:
Pause.
Rejoice.
Ask.
Yield.
ANOTHER OPTION
Adoration
Confession
Thanksgiving
Supplication: Requests
