Opening illustration: A British newspaper reported that a woman had hidden $20,000 worth of jewelry in a plastic bag, hoping to prevent burglars from finding it. Later, having forgotten about it, she accidentally threw the bag out with her garbage. Several workmen searched for 9 hours in a landfill before finding her treasure and restoring it to her.
Some people throw away God's abundant and gracious blessings in their lives through blatant sin. There was a time in my life when I wasn't experiencing the blessing of God because of anger and bitterness. When I finally realized that I couldn't help myself, I turned to God, repentant and broken. Gradually, as He taught me through His Word to rely on Him for all things, I experienced a full restoration of His hand of blessing.
In Joel 2, an invasion of locusts had stripped God's people of everything. What those swarming locusts did to them, our persistent sins will do to us. Our only hope is to heed God's call: "Turn to Me with all your heart" (Joel 2:12). To those who turn to the Lord in repentance, regardless of the sins that plague them, He promised, "I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten" (Joel 2:25). Do you need “renewal” in your life? (Joanie Yoder)
Shall we turn to Joel 2 in God’s Word and catch up with the renewal process of Israel …?
Introduction: The land that suffered under God's judgment would be blessed. There is a "now, but not yet" flavor to this passage. Ultimately, in the new heavens and the new earth, in the consummation of all things, the Church will see the total fulfillment of God's promises here. Restoration is the work of the Lord alone; "Surely the LORD has done great things." Joel maintains a “prophetic liturgy” forming part of the New Year festival ritual.
How will God renew us in 2015?
1. No Fear (vs. 21-22)
Fear is an immediate and intense internal alarm system that alerts us to the presence of danger. It prepares us either to flee from or fight against the perceived danger. The Bible uses words like fear, afraid, terror, dread, anxious, tremble, shake and quake over 850 times to portray this core human emotion. For our purposes we use fears and anxiety interchangeably.
We are fragile mortals, given to fears of every sort. We have a built-in insecurity that no amount of whistling in the dark can mollify. We seek assurance concerning the things that frighten us the most. What are you afraid of? Fears attack the most precious parts of our life and keep us from living the life meant for us. God wants to help us overcome our darkest fears as we learn to Fear Not. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).
With everything that is going on in the world today, the spirit of fear seems to be working overtime. We have every reason to fear, but the spirit of fear does not come from God. It can be crippling to anyone who holds on to it. Satan wants us to be so overwhelmed that we cannot accomplish the things we need to do. Remember, if God is for us, no one can be against us. We are to hold fast to God and stand strong.
The prophet Joel individualizes the earth, the beasts of the field, and the sons of Zion. The land had suffered severely from the drought connected with the locusts; but is now summoned to joy and gladness. The prophet assigns for this an appropriate reason: the locusts had done great things in damaging it; Jehovah now does great things in their destruction. When the earth clothes itself with verdure, and brings forth its fruits and flowers and various products, it is said, by a bold but beautiful personification, to rejoice and even exult. Things are now reversed. Instead of mourning, is exultation; instead of mourning and its visible emblem in girding with sadness, there is joy and gladness; instead of the day of the Lord: very great and terrible or fearful, is "Fear not."
We can conquer our fears. To admit that we are afraid is to admit that we are human. But to admit being afraid and then trusting the Lord and going forward will take the fear out of fear.
2. First month of Former/Latter Rain (vs. 23-24)
Israel has low rainfall and its soil is mainly composed of limestone and sandstone, so it is not easy to even find water underground. This is why the historical sites of Israel include many reservoirs which were used to collect rainwater for drinking, and Bible history also shows that the patriarchs like Abraham had to dig wells wherever they went and there were quarrels over water. Thus, rain was directly correlated with the livelihood of the people in Israel; their survival was threatened when it did not rain.
The former rain should fall enough to yield a good harvest for the year. Since there is no rain during the dry season and the land is in an extremely arid condition, it is impossible to cultivate farmland unless it rains. That is why farmers earnestly wait for the former rain while getting ready to farm for the year. Looking at the land which is parched with the burning heat of the sun, they anxiously wait for the rain (Jas 5:7).
The former and latter rain, which comes at the right time for farming in Israel, is a blessing from God. So most of the rain recorded in the Bible figuratively represents God’s grace and blessings. Physical farming in Israel, which was controlled by rain, represents the gospel work of God spiritually (Mt 13:24-30; 36-40). The two special rains in the farming season―the former rain and the latter rain―represent the Holy Spirit that God gives His people for spiritual farming.
The prophecy of the former rain was fulfilled by Jesus 2,000 years ago; on the day of Pentecost, Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit upon His disciples who had all joined together in Jerusalem constantly in prayer for ten days, after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. Then the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit occurred in the early Church; 3,000 people repented in a day, and from then on even more souls were saved.
The prophecy of the latter rain coming down at the harvest time is to be fulfilled through the great work of the Holy Spirit which God pours out on us for the gospel work of gathering God’s people, who are represented as the wheat, from the ends of the earth, in this spiritual harvest time. The Holy Spirit of the latter rain, which is granted at the time of spiritual harvest, is poured out upon those who come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.
Now is the age of the Feast of Tabernacles―the spiritual fruiting season―when we should diligently ask Elohim, who rule and manage all things, to give us the Holy Spirit of the latter rain. Those who come to Jerusalem and ask for Her grace will be clothed with the power of the Holy Spirit of the latter rain, which is seven times more powerful than the former rain given at the time of Jesus’ first coming (Isaiah 30:26). As gospel workers, we should accomplish the amazing work of the Holy Spirit by preaching the gospel boldly, being clothed with the abundant grace of the Holy Spirit that our Heavenly Father pours out on us.
This is what we need in our day! We need the Lord to open the windows of Heaven and erase this spiritual drought we have been living under. We need Him to send the heavenly rains upon us one more time. We need Him to give us back everything the enemy has tried to take away from us. We need a revival of His manifest presence among His people. We need a revival of His power in our services. We need a revival of the conviction of God on the hearts of the lost. We need a revival of holiness in the church. We need a revival! Oh that God’s people would seek His face and ask Him for the move of God we so desperately need in these days. Oh that we would see how far we have fallen and that we would desire to get back to where He would have us to be. We need a revival! It’s our only hope! It’s the only hope for our families, our communities, our churches and our nation.
3. Restoration (vs. 25-26a)
Whatever the enemy has tried to take away from you, God wants to restore it. God wants to make it better than before. That’s the kind of Father He is. Every day we have choices put before us. We can be tempted to get hurt, wounded, or depressed. We can complain and remain in the same awful condition. Or we can praise God and be raised up.
Israel’s crops had been destroyed by a locust invasion (Joel 1:4), and the impact lasted more than one year. This could indicate that locusts invaded in consecutive years. However, it is more likely that the damage of one invasion had a multi-year impact. When locusts destroyed a crop, they wiped out the seed saved from the previous year, the harvest of the current year, and the seed that would be used the next year. Locust devastation of grape vines and fruit trees would take years to redevelop (Joel 1:12). Joel 2:25 complements the preceding verse, which says, “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.” The restoring of the years the locust had eaten would include an abundant harvest of grain, grapes, and olives.
Joel had used the locust invasion as an illustration of God’s judgment. In His promise to “restore” the years lost to the locust, God is pledging to restore His repentant people to a place of blessing after judgment. The context describes many other positive things that would take place during this restoration:
• Green pasture for livestock: “the pastures of the wilderness are green” (Joel 2:22).
• Trees and vines that bear fruit: “the tree bears its fruit; the fig tree and vine give their full yield” (Joel 2:22).
• The spring and summer rains would come as needed for a good crop: “he has given the early rain” (Joel 2:23).
The results of this restoration would be both physical and spiritual. Physically, “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied.” Spiritually, they would “praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you” (Joel 2:26).
Illustration: In the magazine Today’s Christian Woman, Linore Burkhard wrote of the time she went for a walk with her two-year-old daughter. Suddenly the toddler let go of her mother’s hand and began to run ahead, with her frantic mother chasing close behind. The little girl was just about to step into a busy street when she lost her balance and fell. As Burkhard stooped to pick her up, she shuddered to think about what might have happened. She recognized a surprising blessing and a valuable spiritual lesson in her daughter’s bruises that she now attempted to soothe. “What we don’t see while we’re feeling pain is God’s hidden purpose” Burkhard explained. “Sometimes, the very incident we see as hurtful is God’s way of protecting us from worse harm.”
God’s ultimate desire was not to punish His people but to restore them. He promised to send new wine, grain, and oil, He promised never to make them an object of scorn among the nations. In addition, He promised to drive the “army.”
4. No Disgrace (vs. 26b-27)
The prophet Joel is talking about the future spiritual prosperity of the church. There is going to be abundance of spiritual food that the church will not be in shame or sorrow. But when much is given to us then much is also required from us. There is an expectation from God. All these plentiful provisions are going to testify that there is only one God and that is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who is also the ‘Great I AM.’ In no way or form will the body of Christ be disgraced.
Today we see many nations out there trying to disgrace Israel … eventually they get to a point of almost disgracing the present Israel but not entirely. Their negligence of God by cutting Him off from their lives has escalated them to this position. Our nation is walking the same road that Israel took centuries ago and lost all their blessings. Therefore it is imperative that the church rises up and takes hold of their responsibility to lead the people in a godly way and direction so that we are renewed.
The promise of no shame to God’s people comes up twice in this passage thus solidifying the seriousness of God to impart this upon His people. As children of God, we cannot take this lightly but embrace this assurance and allow God to renew us. The road to get there may be treacherous and we may be deceived by the enemy that we will not be imparted with this blessing but when God is with us, we will surely get there.
Application: This morning I want to encourage and strengthen the body of Christ by articulating that the year 2015 will surely bring renewal in our lives. For that first and foremost we must –
• Fear Not!
• Enjoy the blessings of the latter and former rain
• Accept God’s restoration plan
• You shall not be put to shame and know that He alone is God and there is no other
2015 is surely going to be a year of renewal for the body of Christ. Just put on your seat belts and hold …
