Joel writes of successive swarms of locusts in his day....one kind after another....voracious and unstoppable....and that is what has happened to us in America....and it is all judgment from God. The prophet makes it very clear that judgment comes first to the people of God who had rebelled.....and that also is what happened. We have marches and all kinds of prayer days....but very few of those efforts actually acknowledge that we are the culprits. You see we want the others to repent....for abortion and same-sex marriage and things like that....but it doesn't work that way....as God will deal with them later.....but He is dealing with us first....for our worship services that must entertain....and our Lord's Days that are no longer a hedge of protection....and our sacrifices of praise....which are neither a sacrifice....nor of a truly humble or broken spirit for praise.
First the locust ate away at our faith....as we entered politics.....the Moral Majority.....and the Christian Coalition....strong in number....and had seen numerous successes....which gained for us nothing of real lasting value....and it only led to new locusts swarms eating away at our hope.....as that hope was no longer in Christ.....but in a vain and proud and arrogant prince.....but yet another locust came and devoured our love.....as now we say in effect....let the infirmed aged die....you will not stop us from meeting and singing our Christmas carols....which we somehow consider persecution....and we shall retain our freedom to wear a mask or not wear a mask.....which is not.....give us liberty or give us death....as we think it to be.....but give us liberty to choose our own death.
Yes Joel writes words such as...."Wake up you drunkards; weep and wail...".....but he also wrote...."Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people....fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the LORD will do great things"....but these locusts sent by God are not through with their foraging....and we have not as of yet repented....nor rent our hearts.
"Yet even now," declares the LORD,
Return to me....
And rend your hearts
and not your garments." (Joel 2:12-13)
The best commentary on Joel that I've come across is from O. Palmer Robertson. The book is short and easy to read and an inexpensive paperback. If you are not familiar with the author....you might want to Google some of his sermons. Anyway....in his book he comments on 'repentance' as a key element from the book of Joel....and he made this comment....in 1995....and we are infinitely worse today than we were back then...."Who today would think that Christianity has as one of its basic goals the bringing of a whole congregation to the point of weeping repentance?" Indeed....repentance in the church has gone the way of the Hula Hoop. We are into rejoicing today....but rejoicing without repentance is like not competing in anything....but taking a victory lap anyway.
Addendum: Is this too hard of a post? Well....we in the church think we are just fine....and it is almost the opposite.....almost the opposite! Sports alone....just sports alone is idolatry in spades in America....and in the church....as no matter what day of the year it is....whatever the season....we follow it more than we read the very Word of God.....and if our kids are into sports in school....well forget it....as that in itself dominates....and add to this....we think we are great parents because we allocate so much time to their sports....while many if not most of these same kids do not even understand the gospel beyond going forward at a Christian rock concert....and if they do have a Christian faith....it is quite possibly mired in youth group activities. This is but one reason....(they are many many more)....that a genuine biblical false prophet.....(Donald Trump.....there are many more!)....came in to the church and ravaged it....and in the process takes away so many of our young people....leading them on to think that they are.....young patriots. Folks...it is this bad and worse....that is my estimation. No one is going to buy this....but as the days go on and this country continues to sink lower and lower....sooner or later the pastors are going to start preaching a warning to the sheep.
