Sermon on 27 March 2022 by Pastor Justin
Joel 2:10-11 - “The earth quakes as they advance, and the heavens tremble. The sun and moon grow dark, and the stars no longer shine. The Lord is at the head of the column. He leads them with a shout. This is his mighty army, and they follow his orders. The day of the Lord is an awesome, terrible thing. Who can possibly survive?”
The Day of the Lord is a major theme in the book of Joel. When you approach the books of the minor prophets, it is important to know the emphasis and the four fundamentals that the prophets ministered to the nations of Israel. The key messages talked about judgement, instruction and hope for salvation. If you repent, blessings will come. If you continue to be hardened, judgement will come. The hope of salvation is an opportunity for us to come and receive his blessings. The key emphasis is about sin. In the 12 minor prophets, the first six of them talked heavily about sin. The second emphasis is judgement. The next three books talked about judgement. The last emphasis is on restoration in the last 3 books. When you approach the 12 books, you must have these in mind. The predictive prophecies will fall in place especially when you read the New Testament. The Old Testament contains the New Testament. The New Testament explains the Old Testament. You will easily understand the 4 fundamentals. The first fundamental is the holiness of God. The second is the sinfulness of man. The third fundamental is the righteousness of God. The last is the sovereignty of God over the nation.
Joel 2:10 - “The earth quakes as they advance, and the heavens tremble. The sun and moon grow dark, and the stars no longer shine.”
This is a prophetic event that is coming. The mentioning of the earth, heaven, sun, moon and star is a picture of the coming wrath of God. It is a very vivid and graphic description by Prophet Joel.
Joel 2:11 - “The Lord is at the head of the column. He leads them with a shout. This is his mighty army, and they follow his orders. The day of the Lord is an awesome, terrible thing. Who can possibly survive?”
For the strong and mighty, wealth is not what is important. In God's eyes, the strong are the one who executes His word. The day of the Lord is near. It is coming and it is great and very terrible.
Joel is a prophet in the southern kingdom of Judah. The name Joel means Jehovah is God. Yahweh is God. The key in the book of Joel is the day of the Lord. The second key is repentance. A prophecy of the Pentecostal outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The general outline in these 3 chapters is summarised into judgement (Joel 1:1-2:11) and blessings (Joel 2:12-3:21). The book of Joel was written as a warning for us. It is a warning that the world is moving in a way that there are dark forces around and people must repent. Joel has a vision of a plate of locusts attacking an army of locusts destroying the whole land. It all comes back to humility. Jesus is our humility and holiness. Turn your heart towards God. God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble. To receive more grace, be humble. Otherwise, judgement will come. It will not run away. It is something that will happen to those who walk in sin or break the covenant of God. The day of the Lord is not a one time event in the land of Israel.
Joel is a reminder and a rebuke to Judah. It is a reminder that our God is merciful and is slow to anger. It is a rebuke to those who are unfaithful and with a hardened heart. These are the people who will be judged. The day of the Lord is a time of judgement. It is greater than the description of the locusts. It is a time for blessing and hope also. It is also a time for deliverance for those who walk in love. The only way for you to handle challenges is through faith, hope and love. Approach anything with love. You will handle the problem according to His will. The day of the Lord was mentioned 6 times.
Joel 1:15 - “The day of the Lord is near, the day when destruction comes from the Almighty. How terrible that day will be!”
Joel 2:1 - “Sound the trumpet in Jerusalem! Raise the alarm on my holy mountain! Let everyone tremble in fear because the day of the Lord is upon us.”
Joel 2:11 - “The Lord is at the head of the column. He leads them with a shout. This is his mighty army, and they follow his orders. The day of the Lord is an awesome, terrible thing. Who can possibly survive?”
Joel 2:31 - “The sun will become dark, and the moon will turn blood red before that great and terrible day of the Lord arrives.”
Joel 3:14 - “Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision. There the day of the Lord will soon arrive.”
Joel 3:18 - “In that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk. Water will fill the streambeds of Judah, and a fountain will burst forth from the Lord’s Temple, watering the arid valley of acacias.”
This topic has been covered by at least 13 out of 16 prophets. It is important to understand the divine wrath of God. You are sober. You can understand what is preached to you. The day of the Lord will come as a thief. You must always put on the breastplate of faith and love. You will not be caught by surprise.
Romans 2:5 - “But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.”
1 Peter 2:12 - “Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.”
John 6:54 - “But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day.”
Revelation 16:14 - “They are demonic spirits who work miracles and go out to all the rulers of the world to gather them for battle against the Lord on that great judgment day of God the Almighty.”
Most false prophets have this unclean spirit like demons. Many fall into their schemes. We need to be sober and careful. Read His words for yourself if not you won’t be able to discern people's words. Don’t compare yourself with other Christian but compare with the word.
1 Thessalonians 5:2 - “For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.”
Zephaniah 1:14-15 - ““That terrible day of the Lord is near. Swiftly it comes— a day of bitter tears, a day when even strong men will cry out. It will be a day when the Lord’s anger is poured out— a day of terrible distress and anguish, a day of ruin and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness,”
Isaiah 60:1-2 - ““Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you. Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over you.”
You need to decide if you want to walk the path of punishment or choose life. The whole purpose is for us to repent and return so that God will relent. It is not God's usual task to judge. He wants us to come back to Him.
Joel 2:13 - “Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish.”
When you want to be transformed, renew your mind everyday and repent. It is a behavioural change. These 3 chapters contain repentance, restoration, renewal and revival. Those who are in need of restoration, you will realise restoration comes after repentance. Restoration in the heart of God is to make you useful to Him once again. Many people want restoration but they’re not ready to give their hearts to God. As there’s no restoration, there will be no renewal. They will seek the blessing and not the face of God. After renewal, you can have true revival. Revival is about a change of heart. This is a true disciple of Christ.
2 Chronicles 7:14 - “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.”
1. Repentance
Joel 1:4 - “After the cutting locusts finished eating the crops, the swarming locusts took what was left! After them came the hopping locusts, and then the stripping locusts, too!”
The book of Joel started with a big calamity. The disaster of the locust plague was very bad. The whole land was destroyed. This is an army of judgement. This event is a prophetic event in Revelations 9. Divine judgement on the land. It is all about obedience.
Deuteronomy 28:1-14 - ““If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God: Your towns and your fields will be blessed. Your children and your crops will be blessed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed.”
2 Corinthians 1:20 - “For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.”
Proverbs 30:27 - “Locusts—they have no king, but they march in formation.”
Call for repentance and awakening.
Joel 2:12-13 - “That is why the Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish.”
2. Restoration
God will regain your confidence and you will rejoice in Him.
Joel 2:19-20 - “The Lord will reply, “Look! I am sending you grain and new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy your needs. You will no longer be an object of mockery among the surrounding nations. I will drive away these armies from the north. I will send them into the parched wastelands. Those in the front will be driven into the Dead Sea, and those at the rear into the Mediterranean. The stench of their rotting bodies will rise over the land.” Surely the Lord has done great things!”
Joel 2:25 - “The Lord says, “I will give you back what you lost to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts. It was I who sent this great destroying army against you.”
The purpose of restoration is to be fruitful unto Him. When God restores us, we become an effective vessel for Him.
3. Renewal
Joel 2:28-29 - ““Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike.”
Those days are talking about the future Messiah age.
4. Revival
Joel 3:14 - “Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision. There the day of the Lord will soon arrive.”
Revival is not about numbers, though it is a mark of a revival. Imagery of revival in the messianic age. A true revival is always in the presence of God. A true revival will have a few conditions. You will forgive everything. You will confess every sin. You will obey every commandment. These are the 3 essential conditions for revival. We need to be sober and understand by building our salvation that we can escape His wrath on the day of the lord.
Joel 3:18-21 - “In that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk. Water will fill the streambeds of Judah, and a fountain will burst forth from the Lord’s Temple, watering the arid valley of acacias. But Egypt will become a wasteland and Edom will become a wilderness, because they attacked the people of Judah and killed innocent people in their land. “But Judah will be filled with people forever, and Jerusalem will endure through all generations. I will pardon my people’s crimes, which I have not yet pardoned; and I, the Lord, will make my home in Jerusalem with my people.””
Isaiah 55:6-7 - “Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously.”
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