God’s Victory Over the Locusts

Introduction

Background:

The ministry of Joel is taking place in 2 Kings 11-12 and taking place in 2 Chronicles 22-24, during the reign of Joash.

Joash was 7 years old when he was made King, and so you won’t see Joel being too hard on this king, but instead, he addresses his message to the elders and to the priests of that land.

I think that this is an interesting point of view, and an interesting ministry that Joel has, because there is a new king, and one that is open to receiving the things of God, and reigns in Jerusalem 40 years…and did what was right until his mentor, Jehoida dies, and then he begins to worship the Baals.

2 Kings 12:1–3 NKJV

In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him. But the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

Now, there is another Joash in the Bible, he ruled over Israel for 16 years, and was wicked. This is not him…this young boy would do many great things for Judah, until he turns away later in life…if you’ll notice in 2 Kings 12:3, it says, “but the high places were not taken away.” This means that the pagan worship was not totally destroyed by this king, and that he fell into sin listening to these wicked royal advisors in his later years.

So, in the opening chapters, Joel is preaching repentance to a nation, and it is working…

Context:

Where we are today, here in chapter 2, is that call to repentance. Where we pick up, in v. 18, we begin to see the forgiveness of sin and God’s restoration of Jerusalem.

This is the great truth about God, that He stands ready to forgive anyone for anything if they come in real repentance. If they come acknowledging the sin that is present within them. He will show us our sinfulness in a variety of ways…but the most common way is by His word. That’s why He sends His prophets to “Declare the Word of the Lord.”

Because, we can justify sin in our mind…we can use language that downplays our sinfulness, but God has addressed our sin, and until we call our sin what He calls our sin, we cannot begin to grow spiritually.

So, the nation has done that…they have realized that they have relied on themselves as their sole supply, and they need to make a return to the Lord. What they are about to do is gain Victory over the Locusts and that’s the title of tonight’s message…let’s go back to v. 17 and see Joel’s final call to repentance.

Joel 2:17 NKJV

Let the priests, who minister to the Lord, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”

And now we begin here in Joel 2:18

I. God’s Faithfulness to His People

Joel 2:18 NKJV

Then the Lord will be zealous for His land, And pity His people.

It Doesn’t Depend on Us

This is not the best translation for this verse…it would be better to read this in the present tense and to read it as “The Lord is jealous for His land, and has compassion on His people.”

The reason that this is so much better is because God’s jealousy, God’s compassion, is not dependent on man. Because God is faithful. He doesn’t become faithful when we act right, He is faithful to us even when we aren’t faithful to Him.

Think of the imagery that was on display in the book of Hosea. Gomer wasn’t faithful…she was a harlot…and yet God sent His prophet to buy her back from her sin…He called His prophet to love her even when she walked away from Hosea.

The truth is that God’s faithfulness is not dependent on our behavior…God faithfulness exists because He is faithful…He doesn’t need our help.

If this wasn’t true, then God would have left this world to burn…but instead…as we read this morning, “God so loved…that He sent His Son.

The thing about grace is this…that God created this plan for redemption…and Jesus purchased redemption by His blood…and our redemption in Jesus Christ is not based on our behavior, but it is based on the unfailing and sufficient grace of God.

Therefore, the Lord is jealous for His people at all times…not only jealous when we are acting right.

It’s Carried out in Lamentation

And, while it is true that God’s love and faithfulness to us doesn’t depend on our behavior…but is solely dependent on Him, there is still the matter of personal repentance.

And, what is the nature of this true repentance that Jerusalem was experiencing?

One thing that we miss in our churches today is this lamenting over sin. The truth is that we are not often broken over the sins we commit.

That’s why churches have turned into barren wastelands…they might be filled with people but the hearts of those people are dry…their hearts aren’t with the tears of repentance.

That’s not to say repentance is a feeling…but it is to say that lamenting over sinfulness involves reflecting on brokenness.

What do people say today about churches, “I don’t want them to talk about my sin…I want to be encouraged when I leave!” But church, this type of worldly encouragement only lasts for so long. The only way to get lasting results is to lean into and acknowledge the effect of sin in our life.

That’s why, if a man or woman is so spiritual that they say you shouldn’t cry at calamity, that you shouldn’t cry at funerals, that you shouldn’t cry at natural disaster because they say, “God is in control”, has a serious lack of understanding when it comes to the nature of God and the nature of sin.

All these things…the death and destruction that we see on the face of this earth is all the product of sin…and it should cause us to mourn. It should cause us to lament the reality that we are broken by sin. Jesus wept when His friend Lazarus died…because the effect of sin is disastrous…and it is worthy to be lamented.

The reason that church is such a great time for lamentation and for sorrow is because we can come together and lament together over the broken condition of this world…and the greatest encouragement in our lives comes from the realization that we are not alone in our suffering, but that we share in suffering together as the family of God.

So, this national repentance that we see reveals God’s faithfulness, and it allowed the people to come face to face with their brokenness over sin.

There are so many today that live shrouded in darkness and cannot see that it is sin that is making them miserable. Instead of pushing the darkness aways and embracing the light of God’s goodness and clinging to His faithfulness to save…they push deeper and deeper into the dark.

They are afraid to confront themselves in the light of God’s glory…they are afraid to lament their sin and shame…but there is no other way to treat sin and shame than to embrace that it exists and allow God to eradicate that darkness by His glorious light.

The reason that there will be no more pain, no more sorrow, no more hurting in Heaven, is because we will be free from darkness, and we will bask in God’s glory forever…a place where darkness can never enter.

So then, I want you to remember, that in the Kingdom of God…as we understand the nature of God…that healing doesn’t come from evading accountability for sin…but that healing comes from embracing God’s light and lamenting over the reality of sin.

II. God’s Faithfulness to His Promises

I talk a lot about promises, don’t I? Well, that’s because our entire system of faith is based upon the promises of God.

It is based upon the reality that He is faithful, and that we can trust His promises.

Now, look in v. 19-20a.

This is a prophecy concerning Israel’s future in the end of times. This is something that will be pictured in the life and time of Joel, but it is not something that will come to a full reality until the day of the antiChrist.

What God is saying by predicting this so early is that His promises will stand forever…they won’t have to seek a new promise once Assyria has been dealt with.

Remember, there is an army coming to march against the land…they will wipe our 10 of the 12 tribes of the Jewish people…but God says that they will not have total victory…God will use the Assyrian army in the time of Joel to picture His ultimate victory of Satan and over sin.

This is God displaying that His promise to Israel will stand even when the antiChrist comes.

But, regardless whether you apply it to the day of Joel or to the end of times, there are some truths about God’s Promises I want you to see.

Promises for Physical Provision

Joel 2:19 NKJV

The Lord will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied by them.”

v. 19 says that He will restore what the Locusts have eaten in abundance, enough for the nation to be satisfied.

Jesus gives this same exact charge when it comes to the promises of God, that we don’t need to dwell on the physical provision, because God will be faithful to provide for us..

Mark it down

Matthew 6:25–34 NKJV

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

This doesn’t mean we have a license to be lazy and not to work…it doesn’t mean that we need to be financially irresponsible. I believe that we need to save for retirement, I believe that we need to manage our money well, I believe that people need to work and to be ambitious, and to seek promotions…

But what Jesus is trying to say is that our focus needs to be on the glory of God, not the glory of self. That contentment doesn’t come from those things…but contentment comes from trusting God to provide.

I have already mentioned this, but I don’t want you to overlook it, that worship through tithing is such a wonderful picture of what Jesus is teaching.

In my mind, in my worldly mind, it would make more financial sense for me to keep my tithe because I could save it for a rainy day, could invest it, or I could use it for a bigger house…maybe use it to bring my family on more trips and get more experiences…

but in my spirit, I understand that our jobs and income aren’t our safety net, but that God has promised that I will have more than enough if I trust Him…and when I begin to trust that…suddenly my tithe isn’t a burden, but its a joy as I get to see God’s work accomplished.

The truth is that God promises to take care of us physically…the lie is that we find contentment any other way.

If you were to be honest with yourself, and if some of you would remember how things were back in the day…you would see that we have so much more than we need to live a comfortable and content life.

It used to be that going to Nana’s house or going fishing with paw paw was enough for weekend entertainment…it used to be that having church on the lawn where people fellowshipped and loved on each other, sharing in God’s blessings was enough for the month…

but now, we have grown so discontent with what God has given us, that if we don’t have the trips and the fancy meals we feel worthless.

Sin has robbed our society of joy because we are all trying to do the next big thing…and we are mismanaging our money trying to finance a life that doesn’t make us happy.

I plan on taking Cash this year to hunt with my dad…we might not see a trophy buck but through the years, my son will discover that time with family and reflecting on God’s goodness is what brings real contentment…not a trophy buck.

That sitting down around the dinner table with his mom, dad, and sister, eating the meat from what he killed, sharing stories with neighbors and church members about his hunting trip…giving the meat away to friends and to relatives is how God’s goodness and physical provision shines through.

I pray that he will understand, and that my daughter will understand, and that you will understand, that an honest days work does glorify God…and the people that God places in our life are there to encourage us…but that real contentment in this world comes from recognizing that Jesus Christ is our source for purpose, and that He is the one that defines us…not our jobs…not our titles…and not our sin…but Christ and Christ alone.

So then, it’s not just that God provides for us physically…He provides for us psychologically too.

Promises for Psychological Provision

v. 19 and 20, God promises the nation of Judah, peace and security.

Joel 2:19–20 NKJV

I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations. “But I will remove far from you the northern army, And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, With his face toward the eastern sea And his back toward the western sea; His stench will come up, And his foul odor will rise, Because he has done monstrous things.”

There is some debate here whether the foul odor comes from a defeated Assyrian army, or the legion of dead locusts that have washed up on the shoreline…

There is also the reality that Joel is talking about the end of times…and using these modern day occurrences as a picture of the things to come…as a promise that God will restore this nation from the antiChrist.

But, regardless of the nuanced language…there is this reality…that we can trust God’s promise in a way that brings us absolute peace in our life.

Joel 2:21–24 NKJV

Fear not, O land; Be glad and rejoice, For the Lord has done marvelous things! Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field; For the open pastures are springing up, And the tree bears its fruit; The fig tree and the vine yield their strength. Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you— The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.

How many of you know there are more problems in this life than physical?

Worrying about the best clothes, the best experiences, the makeup, the rockin bodies is a young person’s game…

Once you get to the stage in life where you have graduated from those things…where you have finally come to the realization that there isn’t more to life that God’s goodness and the family that He’s given you…you begin to face a new challenge…

What you begin to face is fear….

What are some things people fear?

People fear being alone or unusable.

It’s a hard thing for a man or woman to give up their independence and allow their kids to take care of them. The reason that’s true is because it makes them feel like they are unable to produce. It makes them feel as though they have lost independence.

So, now the time has come in their life when they aren’t worried about the nicest things, but they are worried their worth.

But God, right here in Joel, says “fear not”. The reason He says fear not is because He is trying to communicate that He is providing something for you, and He providing things through you that you cannot do on your own.

People fear for their loved ones.

Maybe harder than losing independence is watching the people you love live contrary to the way you raised them.

It strikes you in your heart that they are going to come to harm or that they are missing the blessings that God wants to give them…but still…the Bible says, “fear not.”

Even the years that the locusts have eaten…if you will stay faithful to God…He has a way of restoring of the broken vessels and filling them with new wine.

Phil Waldrep wrote a book titled, Reaching Your Prodigal, in this book he writes:

[You can fixate on what [you] wanted for [yourself] and [your] children. Or, [you] can cling to the goodness and sovereignty of God, trusting that He understands. Even when [you] are confused in the darkness, [you] can pray, sing hymns, and praise God for His faithfulness.”

People fear they are forgotten.

We can be scared that the past has been forgotten…and all the blood, sweat, and tears are being disregarded.

But church, as God continues to move our church forward…I don’t want you to believe the lie that we are forgetting the past…I want you to remember the truth that we are building on the past.

From time to time my dad will say, “Son, I’m sorry I couldn’t get you a lot growing up. If you need anything, I am in a better place now, just let me know and I’ll do my best.”

My response was the same until he quit saying that…it was this…

“Dad, the only reason I am where I am is because of the sacrifice you made for me. You have already given me everything you need to give me.”

Church, it’s the same way in our life together…God is building His church and He is building His people…He is building them brick by brick through the generations. We won’t tear down the past, because if we tear down the past the future will fall. But we cannot let the past keep us from building the future, because then we will be complete.

So, not only have we see God’s faithfulness to His people, His faithfulness to His promises, now let’s look at His faithfulness to Restore

III. God’s Faithfulness in Restoration

Joel 2:25–27 NKJV

“So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame. Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel: I am the Lord your God And there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame.

Each time that God brings judgement, His plan to restore is already in motion. God knew that He would restore His nation before the locusts came.

The greatest way that truth is revealed is that right here in Joel, God is already making promises to Israel in the end of times…He knows judgement is coming…but He also know His victory is coming.

God is Working in Your Life

Wherever you are in your life…you have to know that God is working for your restoration. God promises us a new body…He promises us a new dwelling…He promises us a future and a hope.

What is that future and hope? That future and hope is that through Jesus Christ, we won’t stand condemned, but that we will stand justified before Him.

So, how is it that God is working in your life right now?

Is He restoring you from sin through lamentation?

Is He trying to make you understand that He is Jehova Jireh, your provider?

Is He trying to help you realize that you don’t have to live in fear, but you can trust Him with your future, with your family, and with your eternity?

In every case…God is faithful and is working to bring restoration into your life..for His word says, “I am the Lord God, My people shall never be put to shame.”

Conclusion