JOEL’S CALL FOR REPENTANCE
#675 JOEL’S CALL FOR REPENTANCE
Scripture Joel 2:12-18, NIV
Orig. 9/7/1977
Passage: 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.
It is close at hand—2a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes,
such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.
3 Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste—nothing escapes them. 4 They have the appearance of horses; they gallop along like cavalry.
5 With a noise like that of chariots they leap over the mountaintops, like a crackling fire consuming stubble,
like a mighty army drawn up for battle. 6 At the sight of them, nations are in anguish; every face turns pale. 7 They charge like warriors; they scale walls like soldiers.
They all march in line, not swerving from their course.
8 They do not jostle each other; each marches straight ahead. They plunge through defenses without breaking ranks. 9 They rush upon the city; they run along the wall.
They climb into the houses; like thieves they enter through the windows. 10 Before them the earth shakes, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine. 11 The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command. The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?
Rend Your Heart
12 “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” 13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. 14 Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing—grain offerings and drink offerings for the Lord your God.
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. 16 Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the portico and the altar. Let them say, “Spare your people, Lord. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”
The Lord’s Answer
18 Then the Lord was jealous for his land
and took pity on his people.
Introduction
Joel, like Elijah and Elisha before him, enters the scene of history and destiny with no letters of credit. They lived in the two generations just prior to him, and served in Israel while Joel’s ministry was undoubtedly to Judah. Other dates besides the 8th Century are offered for him, but only that date satisfies all of the internal evidence. He is called Jo’el, meaning “Jehovah is God,” and is identified as the “son of Pethu’el.”
He was doubtless a deeply spiritual man. His knowledge of Jerusalem and the Temple mark him as a man who knew what was going on around him and who was gravely concerned about what this was doing to the people. The contemporary enemies are identified. They are the nations of Phoenicia, Philistia, Edom, and Egypt. After establishing what is happening, and the part Israel’s sin has in this, Joel gives a spiritual object lesson using the invasion of locusts as a metaphor of what their enemies are doing.
Finally, he calls attention to the ultimate judgment the peoples of the earth must face in the will of God, and that it is now His purpose for them to be delivered through repentance to the abundant blessing which He has ever been holding out to His people.
I. The Plague of Locusts. 1:1-2:27.
There are successive plagues and droughts that bring some unparalleled devastation. Some say the vastness of locusts prove that this is apocalyptic.
· “Locust” burner of the land.
· Reported to have caused the death of 80,000 in North Africa. W.M. Thomson1, “The Land and the Book”—“took four days to pass . . . consuming every green thing in their path.”
The debilitating effect will be to all kinds and classes of people. V5, The drunkard without his drink; v8, the new bride bereft of her husband; v9, the priest denied the offerings of ministry and livelihood; v11, the farmer watching crops wither.
The prophet calls upon the people in their dark hour to repent. Vv 12-14. (The event seems to be II Chronicles 2/II Kings 8.) Under Jehoram, Edom revolted.
Next come spiritual application of literal events, 2:1-27. The “day of the Lord” is no longer imminent, it is there. 2:1 and 2:11. The “day of the Lord” is expressed in terms of the locust invasion. The people are called to repent. “Rend your heart and not your garments, and turn to the Lord your God.”
The effect of change in them will have the appearance of God changing. God will work to bless rather than to bring to repentance. Then will be seen God’s ability to redeem and restore. 2:18-27.
· Material blessing—v19, I am sending you; v20, I will remove; v23, and He will cause to come down for you the rain; v25, I will restore the years; v27, I am the Lord your God.
· Spiritual blessing.
II. The Blessing and Judgment of God, 2:28-3:21.
· Sidelight from the Hebrew, 2:28-32 seen as 3:1-5.
· The Messianic Prophecy, read 2:28-32.
· Fulfillment in Acts, read 2:16f.
· Joel tells what is yet to be, 3:1-21. Judah and Jerusalem will be avenged, vv1-8; v2, in the valley of Jehosaphat, II Chronicles 20:26; v3, cast lots for my people; v8, what you did will be done to you.
· War and Judgment upon the Nations, vv9-16; we supply our best, v9; God will supply the rest, v11.
· God’s everlasting Blessing upon His people, vv8-21.
References
________________________
1Thomson, W.M. (2019, January 30). The Land and the Book. https://archive.org/details/39020001828188-thelandandthebo
PETER’S PENTECOSTAL APOLOGY
#838 PETER’S PENTECOSTAL APOLOGY
Scripture Acts 2:14-40, NIV Orig. Date 11/20/1985
Passage: 14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 “‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’[a]
22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men,[b] put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him:
“‘I saw the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest in hope,
27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
you will not let your holy one see decay.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.’[c]
29 “Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
35 until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet.”’[d]
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”
Purpose: Continuing a study in Acts, to help my people to get a deeper feel for the early church and her commitment to Christ
Keywords: Lordship of Christ Prophecy Resurrection Decision
Timeline/Series: Acts
Introduction
Although this is the first occasion of a sermon in which Christ is proclaimed, we cannot in any sense perceive of Peter as the one who began the tradition. We know that Jesus preached both to His disciples and to the assembled multitudes, and that He commanded His followers to do so. Unquestionably, preaching as a vehicle for the conveyance of ideas, probably dates to man in pre-history.
Peter was, however, the first Christian apologist. As far as records indicate, he was the first to use preaching as a means to defend what he had learned from another: of course, Jesus. The term, apologist, as used here, is not the idea of making excuses for, but rather, defending. His interest is not in the formulation of his own ideas, but to set down in exacting terms what has been taught by another, and why it is right,
In light of this, preaching has not changed much in these 1900-plus years. If it is true preaching, it is not the formulation of one’s own ideas, but the setting forth of Christological truth. As in Peter’s day, its influence and its power rests on the empathy of the hearer. The one who listens, or hears, must be tuned in.
Rollo May, Christian psychologist, in The Art of Counseling, suggests: “It is in this profound and somewhat mysterious process of empathy that understanding1, influence, and the other significant relations between persons takes place.”
The example of the Old Testament prophets (Numbers 27:18) is clear. When they preached, it was as if God, Himself, were on the podium. Visualize Isaiah, as he proclaimed, “Come now and let us reason together . . . . Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall become as wool.”
We feel some of this same sympathy here in Jerusalem as Peter begins to preach, not from believers only, but from all who are tuned in to this new spiritual dynamism.
I. First Are Incidentals Relative to the Spoken Word. V14, “But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them.”
“Said,” v14, (spoke out) is the same word as “utterance” in v4: It is the Spirit’s work:
· 24 speeches in Acts
· Luke depended on others for texts
· Peter is spokesman for the eleven
· This proclamation as much as “tongues” is the work of the Holy Spirit
· To a totally Jewish audience.
II. Then, There is the Announcement of the “Day of the Lord.” V16f, “But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy . . . .’”
There is a defense of Pentecostal integrity. Believers are wrongly accused. “They are full of new wine.” The Spirit gives “utterance” to Peter.
Take a moment to imagine the scene at Jerusalem. Hardly 9:00 in the a.m., people were just beginning to stir, then the Word begins to spread in excitement at the Temple. People were hungry then as now for excitement. Some were late arriving. Others were not empathetic. Thus, the charge of “drunkenness.”
Peter cites the Joel prophecy to impact this event with scripture. Joel 2:28-32. It expresses a time when God will pour out His Spirit on His people. Not on a few exceptional individuals. See Numbers 14:25. Gideon—Judges 6:34. Saul—I Samuel 10:10. But on all His people. Pentecost was for all. Verses 19-21 speak of cosmic disturbances and seem to have no direct link to Pentecost. But Joel affirms this as an end-time event. Peter substituted “in the last days” for Joel’s “afterward.”
The early church would live out its mission in the arena of expectation of Christ’s return. Circumstance of end time are apparent. The Kingdom of God already exists. The victorious Christ rules. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Victorious faith in this 20th Century, as well, must exploit this expectation of return.
III. Next, Peter’s Sermon Contains Affirmations of the Basic Facts of Jesus Life. V22f, “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves know.”
His Hebrew connection is clearly established. A worker of miracles. By His birth linked to miraculous. Jesus’ ministry not only declared the work of God, but became the newsworthy event in the land. In the “determined counsel” of God, He was born, lived, died.
Now to deal with the “scandal” of the cross. V23, “by lawless hands have crucified.” His death was clearly the will of God. It was death by crucifixion (a disgrace). Plate with 3-year old in corner with forlorn puppy looking back. Disgraced. (Rockwell?)
The agent for that death was the stubborn resistance of God’s own people. They who had suffered for their sins under the hands of others, looked for a Messiah to deliver from suffering. A suffering Messiah was unacceptable. Recount the disciples when Jesus foretold of His death. Matthew 16:21-23.
The crucifixion demoralized them. Psalm 2 was their text. V6, “I have set my king on my holy hill of Zion.” But Isaiah 52/53 (53:3) and Zechariah 9: “He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, And we hid, as it were, our faces from him.”
Peter goes on to make it very clear that this Jesus, whom they have killed, is not dead, but alive. Alive at the direct intervention of God. Alive because death could not control His destiny. Alive because it was not possible for Jesus to be other than as God’s sovereignty had planned.
Let no doubt persist, the early church looked upon the crucifixion, not as the cruel, unjust judicious matter that it was, but as a part of the plan of God. They had heard Jesus on this very subject: “You are so foolish, so slow of heart to believe. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to have entered his glory?” Luke 24:25-27.
IV. Again, the Sermon Authenticates the Superiority of Christ Over the Law. V29, “Men and Brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.” Review his declaration to them. V14, “Men of Judea,” of the nation. V22, “Men of Israel,” of the chosen people.
With the link to prophets (Joel), now is a link to their illustrious King David. V25/28. There is the superiority of living hope over dead tradition. Christ lives. David does not. Psalm 16 is a breakthrough of faith, but David is not its fulfillment.
V10, “Nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption.” Till David’s time, the people believed in a shadowy, half-life in a place known as “Sheol.” “Hades” is the Greek form (2:27), this is not Hell. David was convinced that he would not be “abandoned.”
Jesus is the One through whom such deliverance to life is made possible.
The resurrection, then, is that which proves Jesus to be the Messiah. Up to now, He was “Jesus,” and “Jesus of Nazareth.” He now begins to be called, “The Christ.” Not a title. Greek or Hebrew for Messiah. Peter used in Mark 8:29 without understanding.
Up to now, Jesus had forbade the use of the term. In Mark 8, Jesus healed a blind man at Bethsaida, “Instructs him not to tell” (v26). V29 Peter “’Thou art the Christ.’ He charged them to tell no one.” (Mark 9:9) Transfiguration. “Tell no man till the son of man were risen.” All Rome had to do to stay the hand of believers in Christ, all the Sanhedrin had to do to silence the voice of Christian witness, was to produce the body of Jesus. A day, a week, a month, a year later they could not. Jesus is alive.
V. One Thing More Remained for this Keynote Message of the Christian Era: To Call People to Decision. V21, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” V35, “Let all the house Israel know . . . [he is] both Lord and Christ.” V38, “Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
Let all people know the vitality and the integrity of the preached word, standing unchanged but not unchallenged. The initial burden is on the preacher. But the hearer had best not toy around with a faithful spokesman of the Word.
To jeopardize the ministry of one who preaches the wholeness of the word is to be guilty.
When one usurps his place with words of rebuke or offense, be prepared to assume his burden. Your concerned counsel he covets. Your love and prayer he requires. Your support he treasures.
Every born again Christian has a responsibility to work with their pastor to encourage responses to the invitation to faith.
Closing
Many remember news reports out of Germany during World War II. There were thronged multitudes. We heard fanatical “Sieg Heil!” And the response came in menacing unison, “Sieg Heil!”
But let us remember that there is a louder chorus to be heard; and no words from time immemorial are more menacing to the powers of darkness in the world. It is the call to faith, the mandate of the church, “Christ is Risen!” And the response “He is risen, indeed, Hallelujah!”
Links and references
1May, R. (1967). The Art of Counseling. Abingdon Press.
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Counseling-Rollo-May/dp/0898761565
Illustration filed with sermon #838, source unknown.
(1) The Spirit indwelled some of God’s people, but not all of them. This was a selective indwelling. The Spirit especially indwelled those who were religious leaders. For instance, the Spirit came upon Gideon (Judges 6:34) and David (I Samuel 16:13).
(2) The Spirit came to give special powers to these selected leaders. These powers were seen in the natural realm, but they were supernatural in the sense that they were gifts of God. The Spirit came upon Gideon (Judges 6:34), and he led a protest against idolatry. Following that, he led the Israelites to a great victory over the Midianites (Judges 11:29-33). Samson received extraordinary human strength because of the coming of the Spirit of God. Bezaleel, Aholiab, and others were given wisdom by the Spirit to design and work on the tabernacle (Exodus 31:1-6). Some have seen significance in the fact that different words are used in the Old Testament to describe the relationship of the Holy Spirit to individuals. For instance, in some places it is said that the Holy Spirit came upon individuals such as Gideon (Judges 6:34). In other places it is said that the Spirit dwelt in some persons such as Joshua (Numbers 27:18) and Daniel (Daniel 5:11-14). In Exodus 31:3 Bezaleel is described as one who is filled with the Spirit. A comparison of these passages and the powers given to the individuals makes it seem unlikely that any sharp distinction is to be drawn between the use of these terms.
(3) The Spirit often was given to persons for limited periods of time. He could be withdrawn if persons acted in a way unworthy of the Spirit of God. Saul sinned against God, and the Spirit of the Lord departed from him (I Samuel 16:14). David sinned against God and then pleaded with God not to take the Holy Spirit from him (Psalm 51:11).