From Judgment to the Presence of God
Book of Joel
Joel is another of God's prophets that we know very little about and is called a Minor Prophet.
Joe 1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
We know that the message of the minor prophets is just as important as that of the Major prophets. They are called Minor Prophets because their message is shorter. We know that the Holy Spirit used Joel to give Israel and the Church a message good throughout all the Ages.
2Ti_3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
The purpose of the Book of Joel is just like the message of all the writers chosen by the Holy Spirit, to turn the hearts of God's people back to the LORD.
LORD being Jehovah. Jehovah designates God's nature as He stands with mankind as the only almighty, true, personal, Holy Being, a Spirit, and the Father of all Spirits.
Num 16:22 And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?
Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Joh 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Joh 4:26 "Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he".
Our Lord Jesus says He is Jehovah in the flesh, the Father of all Spirits.
We will see that Joel may not mention Judah by name, but he begins with a description of God's "judgment".
Joel mentions the Day of the Lord more than any other Book in Scripture:
The Day of the Lord is the day of the Lord's vengeance: Isa_34:8 For it is the day of the LORD'S vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.
From Joel: Joel 1:15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
From Joel: Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
From Obadiah: Oba_1:15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
There are other Scriptures by other Prophets as important as these.
Our lesson begins with repentance.
What is repentance?
Repentance is first a change of mind.
It is second, a change of purpose.
It is then a change of life, and these things come with the promise of a remission of sin.
Repentance is walking in the opposite direction from the way we walked as sinners.
Repentance is coming out of the darkness of the Devil and into the Light of Jesus Christ.
Luk_24:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
We can only do this if we have a true sense of our own guilt!
Psa 51:1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
Psa 51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Psa 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
Psa 51:4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
We need to study all of Psalm 51 to learn how to truly ask for forgiveness.
What we know is that far too many who started with Jesus Christ are now forsaking Him!
This was readily seen during the time of Covid 19.
*****Joe 2:12 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
Joe 2:13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
The Prophet Joel gives us much information on the coming "Day of the Lord," but before God’s Day of wrath, He will first call for repentance.
There is more to repenting than just saying you are sorry!
Jas 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
Jas 4:9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
Jas 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
Joel is believed to be one of the prophets during the time of Joash who had Zechariah stoned between the courtyard and the altar on the Temple Mount.
How do we question our God, who pleads with His people to return to Him?
Anytime Jehovah calls for repentance then it is not too late to do so.
What we know is the Lord is patient, but His patience will one day run out.
2Pe_3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Rom 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
God is tired of seeing the tearing of garments and wants to see the tearing of the hearts.
We must reach that point in our life where we hate sin but not the sinner.
We might ask ourselves why we should turn to the Lord.
1) The Lord is full of "Grace and Mercy" and has pure love for us.
2) The Lord will repent of His promised wrath if we repent and turn to Him.
3) He will answer prayers. Which means He can restore our economies and our bodies.
We may not understand the true power of Jehovah, but over and over in the Scriptures, God tells us exactly what he is going to do, especially on the Day of the Lord.
Returning to the Lord also means returning to worship of Him.
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
Those who say we do not have to attend Church to be saved are one hundred percent correct, but after we are saved, we should do our best to obey all the Word of God, and it says not to forsake the assembling of the Church.
This passage says we should be assembling more and not less, for we know we are in those end times.
Every person who calls upon the Lord is to attend Church worship services and be sanctified, which means "set apart" for the Lord's use.
In this day of Joel, the Lord told the priests and preachers to pray specifically that the Lord spare the people from the coming judgment on those who refuse to repent.
*****Joe 2:14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?
Joe 2:15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly:
Joe 2:16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.
Joe 2:17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?
If we know anything about the Word of God, we know the Lord could return at any moment to get His Church, and His wrath will begin once the Church has been removed.
There may not be much time for anyone to repent, so now is the right time to repent, and it is certainly time to be sincere about it.
Sin is an inward thing that comes from a sinful heart, and repentance must come from the heart.
We must be sorrowful for any law of God that has been broken!
Until the Lord returns in "judgment" means we still have time to repent!
Repentance is essential to escape the "Day of the Lord" and the 'Judgment" of God!
In the time of Jonah: Jon 3:9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Jon 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.
The Bible would not say these things if they were not true, but His judgment and His wrath are also true.
Things will get so bad in the "Day of the Lord" that there will be people who say, "Where is God?", but they should have already considered what He said.
With repentance comes the Lord's pity.
*****Joe 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people.
If we truly repent, no matter what we have done, the Lord will pity us. This is His promise!
Will we still suffer for our sins? Yes, but we are now justified, and our name is written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.
Chastisement leads to repentance.
We should know that the Lord is always jealous of His land, and the Lord will provide well-being for His land.
All those who attack Israel will find this out soon enough, but the Lord is jealous for all His creation.
Maybe this is why we see so much turmoil in the lands today, which we call climate change.
It is a Holy God who controls all our climate: Mar 4:39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
Things could be so much better if God's people would return to the Lamb of God!
We should know that compassion is what the LORD will show to repentant people!
It is also the Lord who provides all our needs and who can end wars.
*****Joe 2:19 Yea, the LORD will answer and say unto his people, Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen:
Joe 2:20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.
The LORD promises mercy to all those who return to Him!
It is called the "Grace of God".
Material prosperity can be restored.
Respect and honor can be restored.
Peace and national security can be restored.
These are just the little things that come to us when we love the Lord Jesus Christ.
Many of us see these words as the end of the War of Armageddon.
What had God said?
2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2Ch 7:15 Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.
In type, this happens in verse 17.
The LORD is still waiting for His people to repent and pray this prayer!
God the Father fulfilled His promise to send the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is in Jesus Christ that everyone can receive the gifts of God's Mercy and God's Grace.
It is in Jesus Christ that this world will be restored for one thousand years.
This is the reason Our Lord Jesus came to this earth to offer reconciliation, and He will return as King of kings and LORD of lords and all the promises that were made will be fulfilled.
*****Joe 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Every denomination of the Church knows that "judgment" is coming, and once it has taken place according to the Word of God, it will be the end of human history!
The only thing that is left for all people to do is to repent!
Just before the Lord returns will be a time of unparalleled tribulations.
Those who are wise will not be victims of these tribulations because the LORD has given us a way out.
Those who love the LORD have the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We are not paying attention if we have not seen wonders happening in the heavens.
We are not paying attention if we have not seen wonders happening on this earth, no matter what scientists call them.
We should be waiting for something like an eclipse of the Sun and the Red Moon.
We of the Church know that our time is really short and we need to be working on our families with the testimony of Jesus Christ.
The Day of Salvation is now!!!!!!!
*****Joe 3:1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
Joe 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
The Valley of Jehoshaphat is the valley between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives.
We should understand that the scattering of God's people and the division of God's land are an insult to the property of God.
Notice God says, "My people" and "My land" and He adds "My heritage".
As I think upon this passage, I can recall the spot where the Lord Jesus will return.
Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
When the Lord returns, He will return to the Mount of Olives to the place where He had ascended.
Zec 14:1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
Zec 14:2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Zec 14:3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
Zec 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
Zec 14:5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
I believe that this is the day the LORD will judge all the nations that have gathered to destroy Israel.
And Joel continues:
*****Joe 3:12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.
Every nation that has opposed the Kingdom of God, as well as all those hostile nations that surround Jerusalem, are to be awakened.
Joe 3:9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:
Up until this time, the lord has been standing, but here, we see that He will sit on His seat of judgment.
Isa 50:8 He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.
The Lord says Bring them on, He is ready to meet them.
Joe 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.
The Lord says it is far past the time to harvest the fruit of the earth because it is rotten.
Rev_14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
God has already condemned these nations.
Multitudes and multitudes are in the valley of decision.
The nations have made their decision, and Jehovah will pronounce His decision at that moment.
Once the LORD begins, He will not end until it is over for wickedness and evil.
*****Joe 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
Joe 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
Multitudes in the Hebrew suggest the confused noise of a great multitude.
Isa 17:12 Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
Isa 17:13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
On this day, there will be many cosmic disturbances. All the heavenly bodies will be darkened, and this does not mean an eclipse of the Sun or the Moon because it concerns all heavenly bodies.
Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
Why? It is the Day God will punish this world for its evil.
Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
Isa 13:12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
The entire Solar System will shake violently.
Hag 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
Hag 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
Jer 25:31 A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD.
It certainly will not be a good day for the militaries of those evil nations.
There is much more that can be said about the Day of the Lord, but this would be a complete study in itself.
We can see that the Lord will certainly judge the nations of this world.
*****Joe 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.
Israel will finally wake up to the truth of Jehovah as they see the work of the Messiah, who is the Lord Jesus Christ.
Rev_5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
This will be the time for Israel to repent!
Mat 25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Mat 25:32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
Mat 25:33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Mat 25:34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
*****Joe 3:20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
Joe 3:21 For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.
Israel will become the honcho nation in this world for one thousand years, and Our Lord Jesus will sit upon the Throne of David and rule this world with a rod of iron.
Zec 14:8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.
Zec 14:9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
Amen
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