JOEL: RETURN TO GOD
A. Is there anybody here who is AFRAID of INSECTS?
1. I am not too fond of SPIDERS, or anything that STINGS.
ILLUSTRATION:
My granddaughter Shalie, who is the oldest daughter of my oldest daughter, is terrified of most if not all INSECTS. She is getting married in July, so I have her and her fiancé Matt in pre-marital counseling on Tuesday afternoons. Last Tuesday as they were leaving my office a COCKROACH was walking across the floor and Shalie jumped behind her FIANCÉ for protection
and yelled, “Kill it, Papa! Kill it!”
She has always been this way. When she was 3 years-old, she and my other granddaughter Brianna were playing in the living room, and Shalie came running into the dining room where we adults were playing cards SCREAMING at the top of her lungs because a common HOUSEFLY was flying around her. Her dad went in with a flyswatter and when he came back to tell Shalie that he killed it, and she said, “Show me!” Her dad had to show her the CARCASS of a DEAD FLY before she would go back into the living room.
2. But how would you like to CONTEND with this? (bring up slides)
ILLUSTRATION:
This is a SWARM of LOCUSTS (We call them GRASSHOPPERS in Oklahoma) that occurred in Egypt just 3 years ago, in March of 2013. It was estimated that there were over 30 million LOCUSTS that swarmed the FIELDS and FARMS of Cairo and surrounding area consuming over 423 million pounds of VEGETATION in one day.
3. The prophet Joel writes about such a PLAGUE of LOCUSTS that invaded Palestine, and he uses that DEVASTATION as an object lesson of future JUDGEMENT against the Southern Kingdom of Judah, but this time by an INVADING ARMY, if they do not REPENT and RETURN to God.
B. As with Obadiah, we do not know anything about the PROPHET Joel beyond what the book says.
1. We know he was the son of Pethuel.
a. He was a resident of Judah, and many scholars believe that he was either a PRIEST or the son of
a PRIEST because of his many references to the PRIESTLY FUNCTION in the temple.
b. His prophecy is dated around 830 BC during the reign of Joash, known as the “BOY KING,”
“who became king of Judah when he was only 7 years old”- 2 Kings 12:1.
c. Joel’s name means: “Jehovah (Yahweh) is God.”
2. The two underlining themes that run through this book, as well as most of the MINOR PROPHETS,
is the NEED for REPENTANCE and the HOPE of RESTORATION.
COMMENT:
Because of their REBELLION against God and TURNING to IDOLS, the Israelites had lost their WAY. God wanted to RESTORE His people to the BLESSED life that he had PLANNED for them under His rule.
This book also reveals the ultimate GLORY of God’s PROMISE fulfilled through Christ in His CHURCH.
MESSAGE:
I. DEVASTATION (SIGN OF JUDGMENT)- Joel 1:1-2:11
A. God used the LOCUST PLAGUE to punish Judah- vv. 2-14
1. Joel asked the ELDERLY of Judah “if they could remember a LOCUST PLAGUE like this in
their LIFETIME, or even if their FOREFATHERS spoke of such a PLAGUE?”
a. Joel wanted them to understand that this was no FREAK of NATURE—this was God’s
JUDGMENT upon Judah because of their SIN and refusal to REPENT.
b. In fact, “Joel wanted this JUDGEMENT to serve as a WARNING for the next FOUR
GENERATIONS”- v. 3. “Children, grandchildren, great and great-great grandchildren.”
COMMENT:
God did not want this JUDGMENT to be soon FORGOTTEN. He wanted his people to remember the DEVASTATION—the WEEPING and SORROW, the HUNGER and THIRST,
the DESTRUCTION of LAND and LIVESTOCK.
He wanted them to remember that this CALAMITY was brought about by their SIN of REBELLION and IDOLATRY. God was PUNISHING them in order to bring about their REPENTANCE and SEEK His favor once again.
c. Could it be possible that God uses TRAGEDY, HARDSHIP, and DIFFICULTY as a means of
DISCIPLINING His people today? Hebrews 12:4-7a (READ)
COMMENT:
Even as PARENTS discipline their children to TEACH lessons and DISCOURAGE bad behavior, so does our Heavenly Father. God’s DISCIPLINE is out of LOVE for His children. He does not want to see THEM—to see US—GO DOWN a path of DESTRUCTION. So He
DISCIPLINES in hopes that we will REPENT and FOLLOW His teachings once again.
Now, not every time we undergo HARDSHIP are we being DISCIPLINED—the Bible makes that clear as well. However, when FACED with DIFFICULTY in our lives, it would be WISE to EXAMINE ourselves to see if indeed we are following a PATH that is not PLEASING to God. God may be trying to TELL us something.
2. Joel reminds them of the extent of the DEVASTATION the LOCUSTS caused- vv. 4-12
a. In v. 4 there are four Hebrew words used to DESCRIBE the LOCUSTS—and it is uncertain
as to the PRECISE MEANING of these words- v. 4 (READ)
ILLUSTRATION:
One commentator in describing such an INVASION of Palestine in 1915 said, “It appears that Joel may be describing various stages of the insect development, as one stage is followed by another.
First- Locust came and destroyed much of the vegetation.
Second- The females lay millions of eggs in the soil, and when the LARVAE appear it continues the devastation.
Third- They pass from the LARVAE stage into the PUPA stage, in which small wings appear. These hoppers destroy what they can eat surrounding them.
Fourth- These develop into full-fledged flying locusts that complete the destruction.”
If this is correct, when the Judeans thought the PLAGUE was over, another SWARM of
LOCUSTS appear. This CYCLE has been known to last up to SEVEN years.
b. The LOCUSTS destroyed the GRAPE VINES, FRUIT TREES, the WHEAT and BARLEY. Nothing was LEFT.
3. Not only did the PLAGUE leave the PEOPLE without FOOD and DRINK, the PRIESTS were in
mourning because the “GRAIN and DRINK offerings were cut off”- vv. 9, 13.
a. The “Grain and Drink offerings” were offered by the PRIESTS as a sign of FELLOWSHIP
with God.
COMMENT:
The FIRST-FRUITS of the HARVEST were brought to the PRIESTS by the WORSHIPPER as a token of his RECOGNITION of God’s supreme AUTHORITY and his
GRATITUDE toward God for His FAVOR and BLESSING.
b. When the GRAIN and DRINK OFFERINGS were cut off, so was God’s FELLOWSHIP
and BLESSING toward the people.
B. The LOCUST PLAGUE only served as a FORERUNNER to the true DESTRUCTION of God—
“The Day of the Lord”- Joel 1:15-2:11
1. Joel- “…The Day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty”- 1:15.
a. The LOCUST PLAGUE was terrible, but “The Day of the Lord” (God’s judgment upon the
WICKED) will be far WORSE.
b. Joel refers to the LOCUST PLAGUE to prove that God’s JUDGMENT is at hand- 1:16-20
COMMENT:
He said, “Your food is gone. You plant more seed, but they only rot beneath the clods. Your granaries and storehouses are in ruin. Your livestock suffers because there is no food to eat. Fire and drought have devoured everything that the locusts left. Even the wild animals suffer from thirst because the streams are dried up.”
2. Joel- “Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land
tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming”- Joel 2:1.
ILLUSTRATION:
Have you ever been home watching your favorite television show and heard this sound? (bring up slide) National Weather Emergency Alert System WARNING you about an
impending storm.
a. The prophet Joel is sounding the TRUMPET (The Judean Emergency Alert System) to WARN the Nation that unless they REPENT a STORM is COMING, and it will be “a day of
DARKNESS and GLOOM, a day of CLOUDS and BLACKNESS”- 2:2
b. As we learned last week in Obadiah, “The Day of the Lord” refers to JUDGMENT upon a particular NATION or NATIONS and ultimately upon the WORLD.
3. Joel uses the SWARM of LOCUSTS to describe an INVADING ARMY that God will use
against Judah on “The Day of the Lord”- Joel 2:3-11 (READ)
a. Historically we know that 130 years later Judah was INVADED by Assyria and then finally
CONQUERED by the Chaldeans (Babylonians) in 587 BC.
b. As it is even today, “The Day of the Lord” serves as a constant WARNING that God’s
JUDGMENT is COMING and we need to be READY.
COMMENT:
The cosmic description that Joel uses for The Day of the Lord in v. 10- “Earth shakes, sky trembles, sun and moon darkened, the stars no longer shine,” is used by others, including Jesus, to describe God’s DESTRUCTION in JUDGMENT. It is not used LITERALLY, but FIGURATIVELY to describe God’s JUDGMENT against a particular NATION.
II. SUPPLICATION (CALL TO REPENTANCE)- Joel 2:12-17
A. Listen to God’s plea, ‘“Even now,” declares the Lord. ‘Return to me with all your heart, with
fasting and weeping and mourning’”- Joel 2:12.
1. Anytime one turns AWAY from God for any reason, our Heavenly Father PLEADS for him or
her to RETURN.
COMMENT:
As I look over the sanctuary today I see EMPTY PEWS where once DEDICATED Christians sat—we KNOW them by NAME. Some are attending other churches, but the MAJORITY is not. There are those who just QUIT coming, for one reason or another. Some have gotten their FEELINGS hurt by the PREACHER or ELDERS or SOMEONE else and no longer COME. Some didn’t like the MUSIC the PRAISE BAND plays. Others have simply chosen a SINFUL LIFE over God.
Regardless of the REASON for leaving, God is pleading, “Will you come back? Will you LET GO of whatever it is that KEEPS YOU AWAY, and COME BACK TO ME?”
2. Even though God speaks of JUDGMENT against Judah, that’s not what He wants- v. 13 (READ
and COMMENT)
a. Isn’t this just like our Father?
COMMENT:
Here are a people TURNING AWAY from God and WORSHIPING IDOLS and yet God continues to be “GRACIOUS and COMPASSIONATE and abounding in LOVE.” God is ready to ACCEPT them back and RESTORE His BLESSINGS and FELLOWSHIP. He is giving them every CHANCE to REPENT and COME BACK to Him.
b. 2 Peter 3:9- “God doesn’t want anyone to PERISH, but all to come to REPENTANCE.”
B. Joel tells the PEOPLE what they must do in order the REGAIN God’s FAVOR- Joel 2:15-17
1. They were to bring everyone TOGETHER and declare a HOLY FAST.
a. No one was EXEMPT: The elderly, children, nursing infants, the newly married— bridegroom and bride (the honeymoon had to wait).
b. The PRIESTS were to come and WEEP, asking God “to SPARE His people.”
2. God is PATIENT with us—He is! But He also MEANS BUSINESS.
COMMENT:
If the Nation of Judah wanted to be SPARED from God’s JUDGMENT, then there had to be TRUE REPENTANCE and GODLY SORROW among the people.
III. RESTORATION (the vision of BLESSING)- Joel 2:18-3:21
A. Physical blessings promised- 2:18-27
1. Once the people genuinely REPENT and RETURN to God, the BLESSINGS will FOLLOW:
a. God will have PITY on them.
b. He will REPLENISH their CROPS.
c. He will DRIVE the LOCUSTS from them.
d. The ANIMALS will once again have plenty of FOOD and WATER.
2. God wants to BLESS His PEOPLE!
a. As you read through the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, God says over and over how much He wants to BLESS His children: to BLESS us with HEALTH, to bless us
FINANCIALLY, to bless us RELATIONALLY, to bless us SPIRITUALLY. Yet our POOR
CHOICES and our DISOBEDIENCE negate God’s BLESSINGS.
b. God says in His Word, “Listen up, because I will show you how you can be blessed.”
COMMENT:
His word speaks of MODERATION and condemns GLUTTONY and DRUNKENNESS, and yet many of us have HEALTH problems (myself included) because we consistently
OVEREAT (my problem) or DRINK too much (a problem others have).
Just take your Bible and randomly turn to any page, and you will read something on those PAGES as to how we are to RELATE to others—to your HUSBAND or WIFE, your CHILDREN and PARENTS, your FELLOW CHRISTIANS and FRIENDS, your CO-WORKERS and BOSS, and even your ENEMIES. Yet many of us (myself included), have had strained RELATIONSHIPS—MARITAL issues, problems with your KIDS or with a FELLOW Christian—all because we didn’t always FOLLOW God’s Word on how are to
RELATE to others and STRENGTHEN our RELATIONSHIPS.
God’s Word contains over 800 Scriptures about MONEY and how we are to HANDLE our MONEY, and yet the MAJORITY in this CHURCH (myself included . . . I’m beginning to see a pattern here) have FINANCIAL PROBLEMS because we didn’t LISTEN to what God says
about SPENDING, about DEBT, about SAVING, about GIVING.
And, obviously, many Christians are still WORLDLY because they are not STUDYING
GOD’S Word, they are not WORSHIPPING, they are not PRAYING, they are not SERVING.
c. Yes, God always wants to BLESS US and will if we only FOLLOW His WORD.
2. After God RESTORES the blessings upon Judah, they will know three things about Him- v. 27
a. “God is in Israel.” Once again He will be in FELLOWSHIP with His people.
b. “He is God, and there is no other.”
COMMENT:
Many had turned from the One and Only true God to Worship Idols. And, yet, these IDOLS couldn’t PROTECT them from the LOCUST PLAGUE and the DROUGHT. Only God
is in CONTROL of NATURE!
c. God will not FORSAKE them. God says, “Never again will my people be shamed.”
COMMENT:
As long as the people SERVE and FOLLOW God, there is no reason for them to ever be SHAMED. The apostle Paul writes, “Anyone who trust in God will never be put to shame”- Romans 10:11.
B. Spiritual blessings promised- Joel 2:28-32
1. Joel- “I will pour out my Spirit on all people…”
a. The fulfillment of this PROMISE was not immediate, but found its fulfillment some 900
years later on the Day of Pentecost when Christ’s church was established and the apostles received the OUTPOURING of God’s Spirit (Acts 2:16ff), and then again later when the GOSPEL was preached to the Gentiles and Cornelius and his family also received the OUTPOURING of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10).
b. When God said, “I will pour out my Spirit on ALL PEOPLE,” that included both JEWS and
GENTILES, and people from every WALK of LIFE.
- Joel 2:29- “Even on my servants, men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those
days.”
c. Again, this is fulfillment of God’s PROMISE to Abraham that “through His descendants
all nations will be blessed.” (By the way, the Greek word for “Gentiles” is nations.)
- Galatians 3:28-29- “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all One in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
2. You and I are included in the “All People” who have received the SPIRIT of God.
a. Acts 5:32- “The Holy Spirit is given to those (ALL PEOPLE) who OBEY God.”
b. After telling the people that they were witnessing the fulfillment of Joel’s PROPHECY on the Day of Pentecost, Peter told them how they, too, could be included in the “ALL PEOPLE” of Joel 2:29.
c. Acts 2:38- “REPENT and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
CONCLUSION:
A. God’s MESSAGE doesn’t change.
1. His MESSAGE has always been, “REPENT of your SINS and TURN to ME.”
a. That is what He wanted of the Judeans, and this is what He wants from YOU and ME today.
b. God’s FORGIVENESS and BLESSINGS are available only to those who TURN to Him.
2. The RESULT for those who refuse to REPENT and TURN to God has always been the SAME— “JUDGMENT and DEATH”. But that is not what God wants.
B. Our next study will be from the book of JONAH: “THE REBELLIOUS PROPHET”.
