Ensign: The Great And Terrible Day

All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3


AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 19 October 2012


"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: . . . And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Peter's words explaining why the disciples began speaking in tongues at Pentecost (from Acts 2:17-21) comes from a prophecy given hundreds of years before by Joel, the second of the minor prophets. Christians probably know that Joel said this better than they know anything about Joel himself, and that's understandable. The Old Testament book of Joel is rather lacking in biographical details save identifying him as "the son of Pethuel" (Joel 1:1) and it's likely he was active in the Southern Kingdom of Judah (3:1 and eight other mentions in the book), we're just not sure when.


Just as with Hosea and the other prophets called "minor", it's not who they were in man's eyes but who they were in God's eyes that matters. What God said through them and says through us is what counts. The book of Joel begins with the description of a plague of locusts; to an agrarian society like Judah was and in many parts of the world that rely on vast amounts of farmland (which if you think about it is everybody -- where do you think that food in the supermarket comes from?), the destruction of crops wasn't a prelude to disaster; it was disaster. And the consequences of such devastation affects all those who are living through it. (See the descriptions of beasts groaning in 1:18, a desolate wilderness in 2:3, people's faces in 2:6, and the world seeming to end in 2:10.)


"For the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?" (2:11) If our faith is not firmly grounded in Christ when times are good, when there's enough to eat and we share our abundance with those who don't have, we will become "grabbier" and cling to little when we have little. Paul's statement in Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me," is preceded by his knowing what it is to be full and to be hungry and to be content either way. Even when we are weak in spirit, God still wants us to fellowship with Him. In Joel 2:12-13 we read, "Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: . . . and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil."


When we don't wait until we're at the ends of our rope to turn to God, how much more we can be blessed! Keep reading and you'll find that the book of Joel ends with the people of Judah and Jerusalem, after they're scattered among the nations, being returned by God to Israel. In 3:16 we see, "the LORD shall be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel." This doesn't refer to just those people who are ethnically Israelites (e.g. Jews), but anyone who comes to God. Jerusalem "shall be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more." (3:17) When we pass through the blood of Christ, we are no more strangers to God than we were when He first created us. The closing verse, "For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion." (3:21) is not bloodthirstiness but righteousness, what we need to be seeking as "the great and terrible day" (2:31) approaches us. Even when the world is falling apart around us, when the sacredness of life is under attack on every side, we don't have to be afraid for the future. Even when our lives are out of control, God is in control.

 Sincerely yours,


David

P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with all of you in my address book, and I hope to be an encourager to action too! If you find that I'm not or you want me to get lost, just let me know -- thank you!

Thank You, Lord, that we can come to you in prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even when we don't know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.

Thank You, Lord, for everyone in leadership and service, both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new life through You. I pray that we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.