It is a Good Day to Repent.

Introduction

PRAY WITH ME PLEASE.

If you have your copy of the Scriptures with you, please return with me to the Prophecy of Joel. We will be looking at Joel 2:1-17 today.

As you’re turning there, I need to make a correction from last week, particularly about a statement that I made about how chapter 2 moves on from the locust plague and looks towards an army invasion, whether Babylon or Assyria. As I read Joel 2 I think you will understand why that was my assumption. However, after my study this week, I believe it is referring to the locust plague of chapter 1, as it is speaking in metaphor, using military-like language to vividly describe the ravaging of the locusts in their society rather than a military invasion.

This locust plague prefigures the day of the Lord in Joel 2 as well.

Lets read: Joel 2:1-17.

As we consider the Day of the Lord, and its importance, it should impact our lives. We saw last week, that even things like natural disasters point towards the greater reality of God’s judgment. Each of these natural disasters, wars, or any kind of suffering really, is a grace of God, calling us to turn to Him before the Day of the Lord comes. Therefore, how do do we live in reality of the Day of the Lord?

As we’ll see in today’s passage:

Purpose: The Day of the Lord is near, so be sure to repent and return to the Lord with your whole heart.

We’ll see this importance in two ways:

The Day of the Lord is Near.

Today is a Good Day to Repent.

The Day of the Lord is Near (Joel 2:1-11).

As we saw last week, the prophet Joel said “hear this,” or “shema,” to gather the people’s attention, to call them to contemplate what was going on around them. His purpose was to get them to respond rightly to what God was doing. Here, in Joel 2:1, he takes it one step further. He brings up the piercing sound of Ram’s Horn, or in Hebrew, a Shofar.

Does the Lord have your attention?

In Israel, the Shofar had several different uses.

A Call to Gather the People

Exodus 19:16–17 “On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning, a thick cloud on the mountain, and a very loud blast from a trumpet, so that all the people in the camp shuddered. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.”

Joel 2:15. In our passage today, we see in verse 15 that it was to gather the people for corporate repentance.

Signifies the Presence of God

We saw that in Exodus 19, where they were being gathered to meet God.

Exodus 20:18–21 “All the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet (rams horn), and the mountain surrounded by smoke. When the people saw it they trembled and stood at a distance. “You speak to us, and we will listen,” they said to Moses, “but don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.” Moses responded to the people, “Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, so that you will fear him and will not sin.” And the people remained standing at a distance as Moses approached the total darkness where God was.”

God’s presence is seen in the clouds and darkness.

Will be blown on the Coming Day of the Lord.

Isaiah 27:13 “On that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those lost in the land of Assyria will come, as well as those dispersed in the land of Egypt; and they will worship the Lord at Jerusalem on the holy mountain.”

Joel is calling the people to attention, that they would see what the Lord is doing, to see that the Lord is the One who is behind all the calamity that they are experiencing. If they would humble themselves and recognize what He was doing to them, and repent, maybe God would relent. Until they did, they would not escape His wrath.

The Invincibility of that Day.

God send’s out this locust plague against His people as an His military force.

A Mighty Army (vv. 2-10).

What we see here is a vivid description of: please notice is can be all three of these. That is on purpose.

A Locust invasion.

v. 2: the Locust swarm clouds out the sun.

v. 3: The land flowing with milk and honey is devastated.

v. 4-9: They are running in formation.

v. 10: the devastation is total, to the point that the ground is shaking.

The cataclysmic return of Christ.

v. 2: the signs in the heavens (Matthew 24:29-31).

vv. 4-9: Christ’s returning judgment cannot be thwarted (Revelation 19:11-16)

v. 10: the devastating birth pains (Matthew 24:7, 8).

The LORD’S Army (v. 11).

In order to catch the full gist of what Joel is saying here, we need to realize that The Day of the LORD is coming against God’s people.

We often interpret it to see that Christ is putting down the wickedness in the world, to come and set up His kingdom.

Yes, and AMEN.

17 explicit mentions of the Day of the Lord in the OT.

4 explicit mentions of the Day of the Lord in the NT.

Here, however, Joel brings this judgment upon his people in the first three mentions here.

Amos 5:18-22.

Imagine, the Day of the Lord is usually seen to be the judgment of the Lord against the enemies of Israel.

Isaiah 13:6-13.

But now, instead of God’s judgment of the nations, God’s wrath is poured out on His own people. Its almost as if to say, if you’re not careful oh Israel, if you are right with God, you may be caught up in the Day of the Lord as well. Check yourself.

Usually there is some sort of description of the nation of Israel’s sin, but there is none here Joel.

this brings it home for us. Often the call to repent goes unheeded among the Church these days, because when we got saved, we did our repentance.

In Matthew 3:2-12, John the Baptiser calls people to repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

In Matthew 4:17, Jesus begins public ministry by preaching the same message.

In 6 out of the 7 Churches of Revelation 2 and 3, King Jesus calls them to repent.

Let’s take care that we are not like those that the Apostle Peter spoke about:

2 Peter 3:3-4.

We need to be careful that we haven’t hardened our hearts to the Word of God, and ignorant of His jealousy for His Church, His Bride, of which all believers are a part. He is jealous for Her purity, and He is working towards that end.

cf Zeph. 1:12-16.

1 Peter 4:17-19.

When the fiery ordeal comes among true believers, they will be sanctified, and changed into the image of Christ.

That brings us to our next point:

Today is a Good Day to Repent (Joel 2:12-17).

In God’s discipline, or His judgment, in His people’s lives is graciously used by Him to bring His people to repentance and holiness.

Genuine repentance has an affect both internally and externally.

True repentance finds one convicted and brokenhearted over our sin with external actions that match the broken heart.

“tear your hearts, not just your clothes”.

OT display of humility, like the people of Nineveh.

Repentance defined:

OT it is a 180 degree turn. You are walking the other way.

NT word is a changing of the mind.

Dr. Austin Duncan, from the Master’s University, says this about the repentance in Joel, “Genuine repentance has a corresponding affect both internally on giving us a broken heart and externally on showing the fruits of that repentance that you actually have turned away from your sin, that you no longer want to do the things that you did before you were convicted of your sin.”

Repentance is useless if it only affects one.

Only internally, it is just superficial regret.

Only externally, it is like the Pharisaical whitewashed tomb.

turn to Matthew 3:1-12.

Relation to Abraham is not what saves.

Adherence to tradition and/or external forms of penance is not what saves, but an inner heart disposition of repentance that turns towards the Lord away from sin.

That is the type of repentance that bears fruit.

It probably goes without saying: Repentance is important (vv. 15-17).

There is that Shofar again, calling for the solemn, penitent assembly.

The Elderly were to come.

The children were to come.

Infants were to be removed from feeding to come.

The honeymoon was to be interrupted for this repentance.

The priests were to stop their priestly duties within the temple to repent.

They were stop the prescribed sacrifices, because repentance was more important.

Talk about Sli’chot if you have time.

Yom Teruah (day of blowing)

10 Days of Repentance/Awe

leading to Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement, which begins this evening.

Motivation for repentance.

God’s character (v. 13b).

Moses says this in Exodus 34:6–7 “The Lord passed in front of him and proclaimed: The Lord—the Lord is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth, maintaining faithful love to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But he will not leave the guilty unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers’ iniquity on the children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation.”

“Leave a blessing behind”. God would provide the means for them to restart the fellowship sacrifices, and to return to worshipping Him the way they were required in His Word, if their hearts matched it.

God has provided a way to be reconciled with Him: The Lord Jesus Christ. It is only by Christ that we may be saved.

To turn to Christ for forgiveness of sin, is to turn way from your sin and to turn to Him in faith.

Repentance and faith are two sides of the same coin.

God’s glory (v. 17b).

Conclusion

Many of you are going in the wrong direction. I know, because of the fallen world that we live in, because of the sinners that live around us, and because of the sin that is still in us.

I need to repent of my repentance as the Old puritan said. Sin affects all that we do, so our need is to continue bear fruit in keeping with repentance. To continue to return to the Lord and find his mercies new every morning.

So, right now, take the time to repent and return to the Lord. Don’t wait, for the Day of the Lord is near, and God is graciously calling you to Himself…even now.

It truly is a good day to repent.

Adapted Prayer: Continual Repentance from “A Valley of Vision”:

O God of Grace, You have imputed my sin to my substitute, and have imputed His righteousness to my soul, clothing me with a bridegroom’s robe, decking me with jewels of holiness.

But in my Christian walk I am still in rags; my best prayers are stained with sin; my penitential tears are so much impurity; my confessions of wrong are so many aggravations of sin; my receiving the Spirit is tinctured with selfishness.

I need to repent of my repentance; I need my tears washed; I have no robe to bring to cover my sins, no loom to weave my own righteousness;

I am always standing clothes in filthy garments, and by grace am always receiving change of raiment for you always justify the ungodly;

I am always going into the far country, and always returning home as a prodigal, always saying Father, forgive me, and you are always bringing forth the best robe.

Every morning let me wear it, every evening return in it, go out to the day’s work in it, stand before you in it, enter heaven in it shining as the sun.

Grant me never to lose sight of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, the exceeding righteousness of salvation, the exceeding glory of Christ, the exceeding beauty of holiness, the exceeding wonder of grace.

Amen.