Pastor's Sermon Notes: It Shall Come to Pass (Joel 2:28-32)

Joel 2:28-32

It Shall Come to Pass:

Dreams Dreamt, the Day Darkened and Divine Deliverance

(Spirit, Smoke and Salvation)

²⁸ And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: ²⁹ And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. ³⁰ And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. ³¹ The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. 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.

Introduction:

This is the third of four planned sermons on the prophecy of Joel.  In the Hebrew Scriptures the last five verses of chapter two in the English Bibles are chapter three, and chapter three in the English Bibles are chapter four in the Hebrew Scriptures.  That is how we are going to approach the book.  In other words, we will consider chapter 1, followed by chapter 2:1-27, then chapter 2:28-32 (chapter 3 in the Heb.), and finally chapter 3 (chapter 4 in the Heb.).

Background material for the book of Joel may be found in 2 Kings 11-2 and 2 Chr. 24.

Joel prophesied during the reign of Joash, king of Judah, c. 820 B.C.

If you are ever going to use a Bible dictionary, a Bible encyclopedia, or a Bible handbook it will be in order to understand the Old Testament better.  For example, in Joel we will encounter locusts, Zion (2:1, 15; 3:16-17, 21), Mount Zion (2:32), Israel (2:27; 3:2, 16), Jerusalem (2:32; 3:1, 6, 16-17, 20), the Garden of Eden (2:3), Judah (3:1, 6, 8, 18-20), the Valley of Jeshoshaphat (3:2, 12), Tyre (3:4), Sidon (3:4), Philistia (3:4), Greeks (3:6), Sabeans (3:8), the Valley of Acacias (3:18), Egypt (3:19), and Edom (3:19).  Encountering these entities from the ancient world should drive us to our resources to learn as much about them as we possibly can in order to understand this little book of Joel from 29 centuries ago.

Joel 2:28-32 divides itself poetically into the following outline.

Outline:

I.  God's Outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His People (2:28-29)

- The Showers of God's Spirit

II.  God's Display of Cosmic Wonders before His Day (2:30-31)

- The Significance of God's Wonders

III.  God's Assurance of Sovereign Deliverance for His Called (2:32)

- The Security of God's People

I.  God's Outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His People (2:28-29)

- The Showers of God's Spirit

²⁸ And it shall come to pass afterward,

that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh;

and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

your old men shall dream dreams,

your young men shall see visions:

²⁹ And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids

in those days will I pour out my spirit.

Title: "It Shall Come To Pass" - the eschatological bread in this Scriptural sandwich - 2:28 and 32

This is a prophecy.  It speaks of the future.  The tenses of the verbs are in the future.  From Joel's perspective and the point of view of Israel in the 9th century B. C. this was referring to something that God would do in the future in fulfillment of this prophecy spoken by the prophet Joel.

            Notice the time words: 

o   "afterward" (2:28),

o   "in those days" (2:29), and

o   "before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come" (2:31)

            Notice the point of this part of Joel's prophecy found in the following phrases:

upon all flesh	I will pour out my spirit
your sons and your daughters	shall prophesy
your old men	shall dream dreams
your young men	shall see visions
upon the servants and upon the handmaids	will I pour out my spirit

  

Peter refers to this in the first sermon following the birth of the Church by the baptism of the Spirit on the first Pentecost following the ascension of Jesus Christ:

Acts 2:14-21 - ¹⁴ But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: ¹⁵ For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. ¹⁶ But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; ¹⁷ And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: ¹⁸ And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: ¹⁹ And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: ²⁰ The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: ²¹ And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Acts 2:33-36 - ³³ Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. ³⁴ For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, ³⁵ Until I make thy foes thy footstool. ³⁶ Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

  

II.  God's Display of Cosmic Wonders before His Day (2:30-31)

- The Significance of God's Wonders

³⁰ And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth,

blood,

and fire,

and pillars of smoke.

³¹ The sun shall be turned into darkness,

and the moon into blood,

before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

It shall come to pass!  It has not come to pass, but is shall!  It shall most certainly come to pass prior to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ to this earth in all His power and glory in that great and terrible day when He is revelealed from heaven.  It shall come to pass!

Rev. 6:12-14 - And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; ¹³ And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. ¹⁴ And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

Rev. 8:4-8 - ⁴ And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. ⁵ And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. ⁶ And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. ⁷  The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. ⁸ And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

Rev. 8:12 - And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

Rev. 9:1-2 - ¹ And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. ² And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

Rev. 9:17-18 - ¹⁷ And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. ¹⁸ By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

Rev. 10:1 - And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

Rev. 11:3-6 - ³ And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. ⁴ These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. ⁵ And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. ⁶ These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

Rev. 12:1 - And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

Rev. 13:13 - And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

Rev. 14:10-11 - ¹⁰ The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: ¹¹ And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Rev. 14:18-20 - 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. ¹⁹ And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. ²⁰ And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

Rev. 16:3-7 - ³ And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. ⁴ And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. ⁵ And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. ⁶ For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. ⁷ And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

Rev. 16:8-11 - ⁸ And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. ⁹ And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. ¹⁰ And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, ¹¹ And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

Rev. 18:8-10, 17b-18 - ⁸ Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. ⁹ And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, ¹⁰ Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.... And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, ¹⁸ And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!

Rev. 19:3 - And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.

Rev. 20:9 - And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

It shall come to pass!  It has not yet come to pass, but is shall!  It shall most certainly come to pass before the return of the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Lord Jesus Christ, to this earth in all of His power and glory in that great and terrible day when He is revealed from heaven.  It shall come to pass!

III.  God's Assurance of Sovereign Deliverance for His Called (2:32)

- The Security of God's People

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.

Obadiah 17 - But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.

Rom. 10:9-13 - ⁹ That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. ¹¹ For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. ¹² For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. ¹³ For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Conclusion:

God's Outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His People - The Showers of God's Spirit

God's Display of Cosmic Wonders before His Day - The Significance of God's Wonders

God's Assurance of Sovereign Deliverance for His Called - The Security of God's People

See also:

Timothy L. Decker, "A Fresh Look at Darrell Bock's Interpretation Concerning Peter's Use of Joel 2 in Acts 2 With Regard to Enactment Of The New Covenant", Journal of Dispensational Theology 14:42 (AUG 2010), pp. 63-79.

Daniel J. Treier, "The Fulfillment Of Joel 2:28–32: A Multiple-Lens Approach", Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 40:1 (Mar 1997), pp. 13-26.

"Typical of a dispensational approach is A. C. Gaebelein:

Careless and superficial expositors have often stated that Peter said that all this happened in fulfillment of what was spoken by Joel. He did not use the word fulfilled at all. Had he spoken of a fulfillment then of Joel’s prophecy, he would have uttered something which was not true, for the great prophecy of Joel was not fulfilled on that day. 1

In this understanding, Peter uses Joel 2 as an analogy or rhetorical device but as nothing more."

"¹A. C. Gaebelein, The Acts of the Apostles: An Exposition (New York: Our Hope, 1912) 53. For a more recent advancement of this position, which argues that Peter cited Joel 2 because of only one “point of similarity,” see T. D. Ice, “Dispensational Hermeneutics,” Issues in Dispensationalism (ed. W. R. Willis and J. R. Master; Chicago: Moody, 1994) 41."

Treier, op. cit., pg. 13.

[Sermon preached by Pastor John T. "Jack" Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA on Sunday, May 26, 2013.]

Pastor's Sermon Notes: He is There and He is not Silent! (Joel 2:1-27)

Joel 2:1-27

He is There and He is Not Silent!

¹ Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; ² A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. ³ A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. ⁴ The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. ⁵ Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. ⁶ Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. ⁷ They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: ⁸ Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. ⁹ They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. ¹⁰ The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: ¹¹ And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it? 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: 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. 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? ¹⁵ Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: 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. 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? ¹⁸ Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people. 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: 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. ²¹ Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the LORD will do great things. ²² Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. ²³ Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. ²⁴ And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. ²⁵ And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. ²⁶ And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. ²⁷ And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.

Introduction:

This is the second of four planned sermons on the prophecy of Joel.  In the Hebrew Scriptures the last five verses of chapter two in the English Bibles are chapter three, and chapter three in the English Bibles are chapter four in the Hebrew Scriptures.  That is how we are going to approach the book.  In other words, we will consider chapter 1, followed by chapter 2:1-27, then chapter 2:28-32 (chapter 3 in the Heb.), and finally chapter 3 (chapter 4 in the Heb.).

Background material for the book of Joel may be found in 2 Kings 11-2 and 2 Chr. 24.

Joel prophesied during the reign of Joash, king of Judah, c. 820 B.C.

If you are ever going to use a Bible dictionary, a Bible encyclopedia, or a Bible handbook it will be in order to understand the Old Testament better.  For example, in Joel we will encounter locusts, Zion (2:1, 15; 3:16-17, 21), Mount Zion (2:32), Israel (2:27; 3:2, 16), Jerusalem (2:32; 3:1, 6, 16-17, 20), the Garden of Eden (2:3), Judah (3:1, 6, 8, 18-20), the Valley of Jeshoshaphat (3:2, 12), Tyre (3:4), Sidon (3:4), Philistia (3:4), Greeks (3:6), Sabeans (3:8), the Valley of Acacias (3:18), Egypt (3:19), and Edom (3:19).  Encountering these entities from the ancient world should drive us to our resources to learn as much about them as we possibly can in order to understand this little book of Joel from 29 centuries ago.

Outline:

I.  Sound an alarm:  Who can survive the Day of the Lord?  (2:1-11)

II.  Tear Your Heart and Turn to God:  Where is your God?  (2:12-17)

III.  Be Glad and Rejoice in the Lord:  He Will Answer!  (2:18-27)

I.  Sound an alarm: Who can survive the Day of the Lord?  (2:1-11)

¹ Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; ² A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. ³ A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. ⁴ The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. ⁵ Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. ⁶ Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. ⁷ They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: ⁸ Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. ⁹ They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. ¹⁰ The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: ¹¹ And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

Blow the trumpet!  Sound an alarm!

Again we hear of the Day of the Lord! The Lord will have His Day, and it will not be a pretty picture!  It does not bode well for His enemies or for those who are disobedient to His Word!

Here the Day of the Lord is described as a dark and gloomy Day, and as a terrible Day.

Here also is part of the proof that this is not what many imagine it to be.  In these verses is strong evidence that this is not referring to a fulfillment in the future in some human military force.

They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war

The rhetorical question is asked, "Who can abide it?" At least one modern translation gets the idea correct in the word "abide" here by rendering it "survive".  The unexpressed answer is thus, "No one can survive the Day of the Lord!"

  

II.  Tear Your Heart and Turn to God: Where is your God?  (2:12-17)

 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: 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. 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? ¹⁵ Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: 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. 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?

What is required here?  A change of heart, yea, a new heart!

Ps. 34:18 - The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

Ps. 51:17 - The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

Is. 57:15 - For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Is. 66:2 - For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

This is impossible!  What is required here?  Circumcision of the heart!  And so it is commanded in the Law of God given through Moses:

Dt. 10:16 - Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.

Jer. 4:4 - Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

Jer. 9:26 - Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.

Ezek. 11:19-20 - ¹⁹ And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: ²⁰ That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

Dt. 30:6 - And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

Ezek. 36:26-27 - A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. ²⁷ And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Rom. 2:25-29 - ²⁵ For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. ²⁶ Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? ²⁷ And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law? ²⁸ For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: ²⁹ But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Col. 2:10-12 - ¹⁰ And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: ¹¹ In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: ¹² Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Why is this required?  What is the point?  What will be the result?

Where is God? 

Why would anyone question where our God is?

Where was God when...?

If there is a God, then why doesn't He...?

If there is a God, they why didn't He...?

III.  Be Glad and Rejoice in the Lord: He Will Answer!  (2:18-27)

 ¹⁸ Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people. 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: 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. ²¹ Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the LORD will do great things. ²² Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. ²³ Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. ²⁴ And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. ²⁵ And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. ²⁶ And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. ²⁷ And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.

The Lord will be jealous for his land.  He will pity His people. The Lord will answer His people.  He will speak to them.  He tells them what He is going to do for them:

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: 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.

This is the good news!  It is so good that it seems like it is impossible!

This seems impossible, but nothing is impossible for the Lord.

It is such good news that the land and the animals are commanded not to be afraid:

                ²¹ Fear not, O land....²² Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field

The land is also commanded to "be glad and rejoice", and not the land only, but also the children of Zion:

            Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God

In every case the reason is given, both negatively not to be afraid, and positively to be glad and to rejoice:

for the LORD will do great things. ²² Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. ²³ Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. ²⁴ And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. ²⁵ And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. ²⁶ And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you:

Is not the most amazing aspect of this what is found in verse 25?

And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

The restoration of the lost years, the restoring of that which was lost, is an amazing provision of God's grace.  This supernatural restorative power of God must be comprehended by faith.  When this is done it provides tremendous hope in the midst of the darkest days and greatest difficulties.

Conclusion:

Sound an alarm:  Who can survive the Day of the Lord?  

Tear Your Heart and Turn to God:  Where is your God?  

Be Glad and Rejoice in the Lord:  He Will Answer!

[Sermon preached by Pastor John T. "Jack" Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA on Sunday, May 12, 2013.]

Pastor's Sermon Notes: A Time to Weep (Joel 1)

Joel 1

A Time to Weep

¹ The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel. ² Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers? ³ Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. ⁴ That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten. ⁵ Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. ⁶ For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. ⁷ He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white. ⁸ Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth. ⁹ The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD’S ministers, mourn. ¹⁰ The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth. ¹¹ Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished. ¹² The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men. ¹³ Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God. ¹⁴ Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD, ¹⁵ Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come. ¹⁶ Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God? ¹⁷ The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered. ¹⁸ How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate. ¹⁹ O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field. ²⁰ The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Introduction:

This is the first of four planned sermons on the prophecy of Joel.  In the Hebrew Scriptures the last five verses of chapter two in the English Bibles are chapter three, and chapter three in the English Bibles are chapter four in the Hebrew Scriptures.  That is how we are going to approach the book.  In other words, we will consider chapter 1, followed by chapter 2:1-27, then chapter 2:28-32 (chapter 3 in the Heb.), and finally chapter 3 (chapter 4 in the Heb.).

Background material for the book of Joel may be found in 2 Kings 11-2 and 2 Chr. 24.

Joel prophesied during the reign of Joash, king of Judah, c. 820 B.C.

If you are ever going to use a Bible dictionary, a Bible encyclopedia, or a Bible handbook it will be in order to understand the Old Testament better.  For example, in Joel we will encounter locusts, Zion (2:1, 15; 3:16-17, 21), Mount Zion (2:32), Israel (2:27; 3:2, 16), Jerusalem (2:32; 3:1, 6, 16-17, 20), the Garden of Eden (2:3), Judah (3:1, 6, 8, 18-20), the Valley of Jeshoshaphat (3:2, 12), Tyre (3:4), Sidon (3:4), Philistia (3:4), Greeks (3:6), Sabeans (3:8), the Valley of Acacias (3:18), Egypt (3:19), and Edom (3:19).  Encountering these entities from the ancient world should drive us to our resources to learn as much about them as we possibly can in order to understand this little book of Joel from 29 centuries ago.

Outline:

I.  The Introductory Announcement of the Prophecy (1:1-4)

II.  The Commanded Responses to the Plague  (1:5-13)

III.  The Humble Repentance of the People (1:14-20)

I.  The Introductory Announcement of the Prophecy (1:1-4)

¹ The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel. ² Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers?  ³ Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. ⁴ That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

Here is an introduction to the prophet, and a call to listen to and hand down the prophecy.

1.  The General Summation of the Content of the Book (1:1)

2.  The Personal Responsibility for the Content of the Book (1:2)

3.  The Ancestral Responsibility for the Content of the Book (1:3-4)

1.  The General Summation of the Content of the Book (1:1)

¹ The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

This book is the inspired Word of God on the very face of it.  It may not be considered otherwise except to the damnation of the hearers.  This is the Word of God.  It came to Joel.  It is not presented as the Word of Joel.  Anyone who handles this book as merely a human composition is hereby warned that they are dealing with the Word of the Lord, and cannot plead ignorance.  This is the divine imprimatur, the copyright of God, and it must be respected as such.

This book is one of the two oldest prophetic books in the Old Testament of the Holy Scriptures.

Joel - "Yahweh is God"

Pethuel - "Vision of God"

What are we to do with Joel's prophecy?

  

2.  The Personal Responsibility for the Content of the Book (1:2)

² Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land.

This is the first of 16 commands in this chapter.  This should be considered along with the next command as distinct from those that follow.

Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers?

Has this ever happened before?  No.  This is a unique, and therefore, an attention grabbing event.

3.  The Ancestral Responsibility for the Content of the Book (1:3-4)

³ Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation.

This is the second of the two introductory commands.

⁴ That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

How should we respond to the plagues that God's judgments bring upon us for our sins?

  

II.  The Commanded Responses to the Plague  (1:5-13)

⁵ Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. ⁶ For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. ⁷ He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white. ⁸ Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth. ⁹ The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD’S ministers, mourn. ¹⁰ The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth. ¹¹ Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished. ¹² The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men. ¹³ Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.

In each of these three sections those addressed are commanded in howl (or, wail).  In the first and the last of these three sections there are four commands including one to lament.  In each of the three there is a distinctive command peculiar to those addressed.

1.  The Commanded Responses to the Drunkards (1:5-10)

2.  The Commanded Responses to the Farmers (1:11-12)

3.  The Commanded Responses to the Priests (1:13)

1.  The Commanded Responses to the Drunkards (1:5-10)

⁵ Awake, ye drunkards,

and weep;

and howl, all ye drinkers of wine,

Wake up, weep and wail!

            The command peculiar to the drunks is "Awake!"

The poetic structure of the prophecy is here interrupted, the parallelism in the first four commands is broken as this point, to interject the reason for the three previous commands.

What are they upset about?

because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. ⁶ For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. ⁷ He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.

⁸ Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.

We don't often hear emotional outbursts at funerals in our day.  Lamentations seem remote, and something foreign, more appropriate in the ancient near East than in modern America.  For the most part American culture has been heavily influenced by the staid, dispassionate British.  There is a time to lament.  One of those times is when God commands you to lament!  Is there not a cause?

⁹ The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD’S ministers, mourn. ¹⁰ The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.

You would think that the inability to get drunk was the least of their problems, and perhaps that is exactly the prophet's point!  All that they once cared about is now the least of their problems!!!

2.  The Commanded Responses to the Farmers (1:11-12)

¹¹ Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen;

howl, O ye vinedressers,

                        The distinctive command to the farmers is "Be ashamed!"

for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished. ¹² The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.

3.  The Commanded Responses to the Priests (1:13)

¹³ Gird yourselves,

and lament, ye priests:

howl, ye ministers of the altar:

come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God:

            Note the chiastic structure of these four commands.

for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.

How could God let this happen?  Better, how could God make this happen?

III.  The Humble Repentance of the People (1:14-20)

¹⁴ Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD, ¹⁵ Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come. ¹⁶ Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God? ¹⁷ The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered. ¹⁸ How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate. ¹⁹ O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field. ²⁰ The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

1.  The Repentance of the People Commanded (1:14)

2.  The Day of the Lord Revealed (1:15-18)

3.  The Prayer of Desperation Uttered (1:19-20)

1.  The Repentance of the People Commanded (1:14)

¹⁴ Sanctify ye a fast,

call a solemn assembly,

gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD,

See my file on "Repentance" at ..\..\Repentance.docx

2.  The Day of the Lord Revealed (1:15-18)

¹⁵ Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come. ¹⁶ Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God? ¹⁷ The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered. ¹⁸ How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14 -  1st 3 vs. Israel, last 2 vs. nations

Is. 2:12; 13:6, 9; Ezek. 13:5; 30:3; Am. 5:18, 20; Obad. 15; Zeph. 1:7, 14; Mal. 4:5; 2 Th. 2:2; and 2 Pet 3:10.

3.  The Prayer of Desperation Uttered (1:19-20)

¹⁹ O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field. ²⁰ The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

Conclusion:

What about us today?

What ever happened to sin?

Karl A. Menninger, Whatever Became of Sin? 2nd ed. (New York: Bantam Books, 1978; orig. Hawthorn Books, 1973).

Who is in control of the worst thing that ever happened to you?

Who then will you cry out to out of your desperation at such a time?

Why will you cry out to Him?  Because there is nothing to eat?  Or, because of your sin that brought this upon you?

There is an answer.  There is One we can turn to.  We must turn to Him in the best of times, and not just in the worst of times.  Cry to the Lord!

[Sermon preached by Pastor John T. "Jack" Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA on Sunday, May 5, 2013.]

2010 John Bunyan Conference Messages Available Online

Four audio files containing the two messages that Pastor John T. Jeffery delivered during the 2010 John Bunyan Conference in Lewisburg, PA and the subsequent question and answer session are now available online.  See the following on New Covenant Christian Fellowship (Greenville, SC) at http://www.nccfonline.com/Bunyan2010 [accessed 26 JUN 2013]:

Fallow Ground - Romans 2 part 1

Fallow Ground - Romans 2 part 2

Fallow Ground - Corinthians

Fallow Ground - Q and A

The title of the series that these two messages are part of is:

Seeing the New Testament through New Covenant eyes

Two Test Texts:  The Point of the Parentheses in  Romans 2:13-15 and 1 Corinthians 9:21

The full titles of the messages are:

The Case for New Covenant Gentiles in Romans 2:13-15

The Point of the Explanatory Parenthesis Following the First Mention of Law in the Pauline Diatribe - The Fulfillment of a New Covenant Promise  in the Gentiles in Romans 2:13-15

The Law and the New Covenant Believer in 1 Corinthians 9:21

The Point of the Parenthesis in 1 Corinthians 9:21 - The Focus of Law in the New Covenant

The messages by Fred Zaspel, A. Blake White, Steve J. Wellum and John G. Reisinger presented at this conference are also available from that link.

The audio of these messages has been made available with the kind permission of New Covenant Media.  Pastor Jeffery's messages are listed in their June 2011 Audio and Video Catalog (pg. 17) as follows:

John T. Jeffery

JB10-A01 Romans 2:13-15

JB10-A02 1 Corinthians 9:21 (includes Q&A for A01 & A02)

Source:  New Covenant Media Audio and Video June 2011 Catalog at http://www.sogncm.org/pages/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/New-Covenant-Media-Catalog.pdf [accessed 28 JUN 2013].

Audio and video products may be purchased with the information on page 26 of the catalog linked above.  Printed materials are available from the New Covenant Media store front at http://www.newcovenantmedia.com/home.php [accessed 28 JUN 2013].

11th Annual Wayside Weekend Bible Conference

Wayside Gospel Chapel is hosting its 11th Annual Weekend Bible Conference Saturday, June 1st, and Sunday, June 2nd, 2013. Two sessions are scheduled for Saturday evening beginning at 5:00 p.m. with a Fellowship Dinner between sessions. The closing session of the Conference will be the Sunday morning worship service beginning at 11:00 a.m.

David B. Morris will once again be expounding the Scriptures at Wayside. David is no stranger to Wayside Gospel Chapel as this is his tenth visit as our featured Bible Conference preacher.

Pastor John T. "Jack" Jeffery (left) with Pastor David Morris (right)

David studied Classics and Linguistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, following his conversion in 1973. After nearly twenty years of pastoral ministry, he entered an itinerant ministry of evangelism and conference speaking. He and Terri, his wife of 32 years, have six children.

David has ministered in the past at:
1) the John Bunyan Conference (New Ringgold, and Lewisburg, PA);
2) the International Baptist Conference (Toronto, Canada);
3) the Sovereign Grace Bible Conference founded by Elder D. J. Ward, Main Street Baptist Church (Lexington, KY); and most recently at, 
4) the Center for Pioneer Church Planting of To Every Tribe Ministries (Los Fresnos, TX).

Many of his sermons are available on SermonAudio.com at David Morris [accessed 18 MAR 2013].

Pastor David Morris (left) with Pastor John T. "Jack" Jeffery (right)

Don't miss this opportunity to gather at Wayside as we are ministered to by this gifted preacher and teacher of God's Word! Please contact Pastor Jeffery if you plan on attending Saturday evening to assist with planning the dinner at waysidegospelchapel (at) yahoo (dot) com.

Conference Manuscript Now Available

The link to the manuscript of the material delivered at the Conference is now available as a  PDF file at

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/13946111/Cessation%20of%20Tongues%20-%20Termination%20of%20Signs%20of%20Apostles%20-%20Continuation%20of%20Counterfeit%20Miracles%20-%20for%20publication.pdf [accessed 19 NOV 2019]. Anyone desiring the manuscript of the material that was presented at the Conference in other formats may request it by contacting Pastor Jeffery by email at waysidegospelchapel (at) yahoo (dot) com.

The two audio files of the conference sessions are linked on the Faith Baptist Fellowship Church (Lake Ariel, PA) page at  http://faithbaptistfellowshipch.com/index.php/bible-conference [accessed 19 NOV 2014], from Internet Archive at http://archive.org/details/TheCessationOfTongues [accessed 19 NOV 2014], and  http://archive.org/details/TheTerminationOftheSignsOfTheApostlesAndTheContinuationOfCounterfeitMiracles [accessed 19 NOV 2014].

The Cessation of Tongues, 
the Termination of "the Signs of the Apostles",

and the Continuation of Counterfeit Miracles

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John T. "Jack" Jeffery

Pastor, Wayside Gospel Chapel

Greentown, PA
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February 23, 2013

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Faith Baptist Fellowship

1397 Easton Turnpike

Lake Ariel, PA 18436