In that famous passage from the 2nd chapter of Acts, Peter quotes from the book of Joel....part of which is...."That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and your daughters will all prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions...." Many of us mistakenly took that as the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements of the past 100 years....as I did for a time.
Joel most likely prophesied during the latter part of the reign of Joash (Judah) and Jehu (Israel)....who many evangelicals today believe to be representative of Donald Trump. (this from Rabbi Jonathon Cahn's The Paradigm...but if this is so...the implications would not be what they expect) Joel writes about a great famine and drought that has just happened. This is a last days of the last days prophetic book that it meant as much for us today as it was for Judah and Israel.
There are some other verses that we might contemplate.....chapter 1 verse 13 for example...."Gird yourself with sackcloth, and lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the might in sackcloth, O ministers of my God." And....1:15...."Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty."
Our ministers of the gospel today....on the whole.....have failed us just as did these ministers of the altar. They missed all the signs.....they ignore the violence and the gods that we have set up as idols....and they prophesy peace and security....or at best ignore God's warnings of judgment.
Joel does not end with the destruction of the land....for "Then the LORD will be zealous for His land, And will have pity on His people,. And the LORD will answer and say to His people, 'Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine, and oil."
God is speaking to the world.....and to the church today......and to Israel today.....in this book. The world will know in retrospect that the judgments were from God......the church....us....should heed this warning on what is about to come.....and Israel.....also in retrospect......will finally see their Messiah.....in the return of Jesus Christ. These descriptions from Joel on the workings of God's Spirit....may surely be starting....but the key verses mentioned here are still ahead.....and probably not that far off.....all praise and honor and glory to God for His hand upon those who look to Him!
Joel most likely prophesied during the latter part of the reign of Joash (Judah) and Jehu (Israel)....who many evangelicals today believe to be representative of Donald Trump. (this from Rabbi Jonathon Cahn's The Paradigm...but if this is so...the implications would not be what they expect) Joel writes about a great famine and drought that has just happened. This is a last days of the last days prophetic book that it meant as much for us today as it was for Judah and Israel.
There are some other verses that we might contemplate.....chapter 1 verse 13 for example...."Gird yourself with sackcloth, and lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the might in sackcloth, O ministers of my God." And....1:15...."Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty."
Our ministers of the gospel today....on the whole.....have failed us just as did these ministers of the altar. They missed all the signs.....they ignore the violence and the gods that we have set up as idols....and they prophesy peace and security....or at best ignore God's warnings of judgment.
Joel does not end with the destruction of the land....for "Then the LORD will be zealous for His land, And will have pity on His people,. And the LORD will answer and say to His people, 'Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine, and oil."
God is speaking to the world.....and to the church today......and to Israel today.....in this book. The world will know in retrospect that the judgments were from God......the church....us....should heed this warning on what is about to come.....and Israel.....also in retrospect......will finally see their Messiah.....in the return of Jesus Christ. These descriptions from Joel on the workings of God's Spirit....may surely be starting....but the key verses mentioned here are still ahead.....and probably not that far off.....all praise and honor and glory to God for His hand upon those who look to Him!
