A Call to Repentance

The Prophet Joel  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  17:42
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Scenes in Passage
1/ The Army of Destruction 2:1-11
2/ The Hope of Deliverance 2:12-17
3/ Restoration of the Plague Damage 2:18-27
4/ Outpouring of the Holy Spirit 2:28-32
Main Theme of Passage
The Day of the Lord is coming just like the Locust Plague, repent and turn to the Lord for he has great things planned for those who call upon his name.
Main Preaching Theme
Even in the midst of terrible calamity, the Lord is still looking to the future and the incredible things that he will do in and through those who truly call upon him.
Main Preaching Intention
I believe that the congregation wil see that true devotion to the Lord will bring his blessing even through calamity
Scenes in Sermon
1/ It is bad, it is very very bad, sound the alarm. Joel 2:1-2
Have you ever been in a small country town when the town fire station alarm goes off?
It is like an air raid siren.
And as a visitor you wonder what is going on.
Is there a tornado, are we under attack, do I run for the hills or take shelter?
Problem is when you are a visitor you don’t know that on a set time, on a set day of each week, the alarm is tested and you just happen to be in town at that time.
The alarm is designed to be heard across the entire district, as many small communities do not have permanent fire fighters at the station.
They rely on auxilary firefighters who live in town and will literally drop everything when that alarm goes off.
In some communities the rural fire brigade use the same system.
Everyone knows what it means, except the visitor, or the new resident.
In the middle ages towns and cities would sound the bells on the church to raise the alarm.
In ancient cities in Israel they used a rams horn blown as a trumpet.
The alarm would be raised by guards on the watch towers on the city walls.
A threat had been detected, get ready.
In Joel 2:1 however the rams horn is not sounded by the guards on the city walls but from Zion, the temple mount itself.
This isn’t a warning from the guards.
This is an announcement from Yahweh.
As I said last week, many of the prophets in the Old Testament had messages of doom.
Terrible things are going to befall the people because they have turned their back on God.
Joel has already spoken of the incredible destruction of a locust plague in chapter 1.
The utter ruin of the entire food supply of the nation.
The famine and death that would surely follow.
Now he turns to something worse.
Something far far worse.
The Day of the Lord is coming.
2/ The Army of the Lord will bring great calamity, the likes of which has never been seen before. Joel 2:3-11
The locusts of chapter 1 have transformed into the Army of chapter 2.
Similar language is used for like may prophets Joel is mixing the two images together.
The plague locust has many similar characteristics to the great armies of ancient times.
To numerous to count.
Marching across the land bringing devastation to everything in their path.
Turning the sun to darkness.
For the locust literally blocking out the sun with their shear numbers.
For the invading army, blocking out the sun with the smoke from the towns and villages they had burned as they approached the capital city and also by the dust of their chariots, horses and infantry.
A land that as verse 3 says is fertile and productive is left barren and desolate.
Locusts literally stripped every plant bear, including the bark off the trees.
Many plants would never recover.
Invading armies literally took everything as they traveled.
In many cases they would take rocks from the roadways and buildings and throw them into the fields so that it was now impossible to plow the ground.
Locusts plagues are very noises, the constant drumming of the wings makes a terrifying sound.
The rumble of chariots, horses, troops marching.
Ancient times were quiet, just the sounds of nature.
An invading army shattered the peace.
Joel 2:6 speaks of fear of faces going pale with terror.
The image of the locust and the Army of the Lord are fused into this image of absolute devastation in verses 7 to 10.
And we see in Joel 2:11 this clear declaration.
Joel 2:11 NLT
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?
Duane Garrett in the New American Commentary makes this a very important point.
“Joel’s concern is not with locusts, or enemy soldiers, or even with the last judgement.
Joel’s real focus is the Day of the Lord.
No one can stand on that day because there is nothing left to stand on.”
3/ But with God there is the offer of Grace for those who repent. Joel 2:12-17
Joel is right, we have nothing to stand on, except for the grace of God.
Over and over again the message of the prophets to the nation of Israel was to turn wholeheartedly to God.
Not to rely on the walls of a city, for walls can be torn down.
Instead the people were asked to tear down the walls in their heart.
Not to rely on their wealth, for wealth can vanish in an instant.
Instead the people were asked to invest in their relationship with God.
Nor to rely on their status as the chosen people of Yahweh, for status means nothing if it is in name only.
Hasn’t it been the same throughout the ages?
God’s desire is that our hearts be open before him.
He desires relationship, not religion.
As Joel 2:13 says
Joel 2:13 NLT
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.
Repentance for the people of Israel as for us requires action.
It is one thing to say I repent.
It is another to actually change.
We read in Joel 2:15-17 of individual and corporate action.
Using the ram’s horn, not as a sound of warning but as a call to worship.
To gather together before the Lord and to pour out their hearts in confession.
To own the fact that the judgement they were facing was their responsibility.
The pagan nations mocked them, held them in contempt for their claims that Yahwah is the one true God.
They needed to own the responsibility for bringing disgrace upon the name of the Lord.
Because of their sin as a nation Yahweh was held in contempt by the pagan nations.
Lest we be to harsh on the people of Israel in Joel’s time.
Let us ask, do people reject God today because of his actions or because of the actions and attitudes of those who claim to follow him?
Do we bring glory to God’s name in our conduct, or scorn?
The prophet Joel called the people of Israel to repentance.
Just as his message makes the same call upon the church today.
4/ The promise of future restoration is an important part of the hope we have. Joel 2:18-27
Just as it was for the people of Israel in Joel’s time.
Here in verses 18 onwards we have a promise.
God will restore you if you are genuine in your repentance and return to him.
Two calamities have been presented by the Prophet Joel.
The devastation of a locust plague and the coming Day of the Lord.
God will act and he will deal with the devastation by removing the locusts.
They are driven from the land.
Israel’s historic foes commonly came from the north.
Here the locusts are identified both with those armies from the north that had terrorized Israel in the past and as a foretaste of apocalyptic judgment.
If the “parched and barren land” is to the south, verse 20 mentions all four points of the compass.
Three categories had been affected by the locusts, and all three are mentioned in the healing of the land:
Now land, animals, and mankind can rejoice.
Plants, rain, and food will be restored.
Joy and gladness return where they had been wiped away.
Then the impending disaster is mentioned in Joel 2:28–3:21.
The locust plague had portended a greater disaster that loomed on the horizon.
The prophet describes how the Day of the Lord will affect Israel and the nations.
Dillard, R. B. (1995). Joel. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, p. 623). Baker Book House.
As Joel looks to the future Day of the Lord we see as a part of his account of those days something which in our time has already happened.
5/ The Gift of the Holy Spirit is a precursor to what is to come. Joel 2:28-32
When the Apostle Peter stood before the crowd in Jersualsem on the Day of Pentecost, he quoted this very passage from Joel.
He was in effect declaring that “Those Days” had arrived.
Joel was saying to the people that the Lord has something greater installed for those who truly follow him.
In claiming this passage for the coming of the Hoiy Spirit the Apostle Peter is saying this day is here.
The first part is the arrival of the Holy Spirit.
The rest of the Day of the Lord, well we haven’t seen it yet.
But it is coming.
The question for us today is very much the same as for the people in Joel’s time.
Will we truly follow the Lord?
Will we come before him in humility and repentance?
Even in the midst of terrible calamity, the Lord is still looking to the future and the incredible things that he will do in and through those who truly call upon him.
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