Psalms 89:15 

“Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.” 

   The most joyful sound ever heard is “Jesus Saves”. The song says, “I have heard the joyful sound, JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!” Have you heard the joyful sound. Oh, you say I have heard it all of my life. But have you really heard it? Has it sunk into the depths of your very heart? Have you heard it and rejoiced? Has the Gospel brought eternal joy into your heart? The greatest sound ever heard is JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! There never has been, there never will be but one way of salvation and that way is by believing the Gospel message. Those who lived before Christ’s death were saved by looking forward to the cross and in the present age men are saved by looking back to Calvary. It’s all by faith and faith alone. In every past age, in the present age, and in all the ages to come the joyful sound has been, is, and will continue to always be JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!

    The joyful sound was heard before creation. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” I Peter 1:18-21 The portals of heaven first echoed with the joyful sound - JESUS SAVES JESUS SAVES! There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels when a sinner is saved. This event took place before the foundation of the world and before the creation of angels. But the One who does the rejoicing in the presence of the angels today was present in the counsel halls of eternity. Without doubt God rejoiced when the great plan of salvation was agreed upon in eternity past. He just couldn’t help it.

    Perhaps eons of time passed before man heard the joyful sound. Until there was a lost human there was no need of the Gospel. Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden of Eden thus becoming the first lost sinners. There are some who say I have never murdered, committed adultery, stolen, told an out right lie, been drunk, or put in jail. Adam and Eve didn’t seemingly do anything bad, but they broke God’s instructions. Thus, they became sinners and were condemned to hell. For the first time in history man needed the gospel. God not only preached the gospel to Abraham, but He preached it to Adam and Eve in picture form. When the fig leaf garments failed to cover their nakedness, God took the skins of animals and provided garments for them. God used this to illustrate how Christ would die in order that man’s sins might be covered. For the first time in human history Adam and Eve heard the joyful sound. JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! And Jesus has been in the saving business ever since!

    The Lord said to serpent, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15 Perhaps this is the greatest prophecy of Christ’s victory over Satan on the cross of Calvary. This is one of the first times if not the first time, the joyful sound was heard by human ears. It wasn’t joyful for the serpent and the devil, but it was certainly a thrill for the first couple. God said that the descendent of the woman, not Adam’s descendant, (not the seed or descendant of the man but the seed or descendant of the woman) would be victorious over Satan. The virgin born child that was to come would destroy the devil! What great news this must have been. In essence the message to the world was JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!

    The Book of Job is said to be the oldest book in the Bible. In his misery Job made this statement, “I know that my redeemer liveth…” Even in the oldest book in the world the joyful sound rang out loud and clear. In essence Job was saying, “I have heard the joyful sound, JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!

    The Bible says that Noah preached for a century before the flood. Only Noah’s immediate family accepted the gospel. Many who heard the joyful sound from Noah refused to rejoice in it and be saved from their sins. But for one hundred years the joyful sound rang out in the world. JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!

    Abraham lived 450 years before the law of Moses. God personally preached the gospel to an individual in idolatrous circumstances. Jesus said that Abraham saw my day and rejoiced. How could someone who lived hundreds of years before Jesus was incarnate see that far into the future? Abraham looked ahead in time by faith and believed God’s promise of a savior. His faith was so strong that it caused him to rejoice in something that would take place years after his death. Abraham’s faith carried him into the future and he believed the Gospel even before Jesus’ time on earth. What a faith! What a cause for rejoicing! Abraham heard the joyful sound, JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! Have you heard it today? Have you rejoiced?

    It echoed through out the patriarch period and on into the law age. This was the age of thunder and lightening. It was a time of fear. But out of the most strict period of all the joyful sound was heard. For Joshua (Yeshua, the Hebrew name for Jesus) led the people who had broken the law to the promised land. Even during that time they heard the joyful sound and that sound was YESHUA SAVES! YESHUA SAVES!

    Perhaps the joyful sound was clearest during the time of Isaiah. The fifty third chapter of the book of Isaiah which was written mostly in past tense while it spoke of the future sufferings and death of Christ. In the gospel according to Isaiah is found one of the most vivid descriptions of the death of Christ. In Isaiah’s day the joyful sound was heard by all who would listen. Centuries before His incarnation or death the message was JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!

    Then came the church age. The command to the church is to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. “Spread the tidings all around. JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES! Bear the news to every land. Climb the steeps and cross the waves; Onward! ‘tis our Lord’s command; JESUS SAVES! JESUS SAVES!”

    Today the very same joyful sound is heard clearly above the toil of this modern age. It’s the very same sound heard by Adam and Eve, by Job, by those before the flood, and those during the law age. Today, it is heard from individuals, it’s heard from churches, it’s read in publications, it’s heard on the radio and TV. Jesus personally started the joyful sound at the very beginning of this age when He came to “to seek and to save that which was lost”.