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Joel 2:14-16

Lesson # Joel 2:14-16 Study Material - Joel 2:14-16 You must be in fellowship prior to your Bible study, so that the spiritual information you receive can become a source, of blessing to your soul and produce spiritual growth. Joel 2:14-16 14 Who knoweth [yada] if he will return [shuwb] and repent [nacham] , and leave [sha'ar] a blessing [Barakah] behind [achar] him; even a meat offering [minchah] and a drink offering [necek] unto the LORD [Yahovah] your God [elohiym] ? 15 Blow [taqa] the trumpet [showphar] in Zion [Tsiyown] , sanctify [qadash] a fast [tsowm] , call [qara] a solemn assembly [atsarah] : 16 Gather [acaph] the people [am] , sanctify [qadash] the congregation [qahal] , assemble [qabats] the elders [zaqen] , gather [acaph] the children [owlel] , and those that suck [yanaq] the breasts [shad] : let the bridegroom [chathan] go forth [yatsa] of his chamber [cheder] , and the bride [kallah] out of her closet [chuppah] . KJV-Interlinear 14 Who knows whether He will not turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him, Even a grain offering and a libation For the LORD your God? 15 Blow a trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly, 16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and the nursing infants. Let the bridegroom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber. NASB So now the really big question is posed. Will God change His mind and terminate or reduce the judgment when people have repented, or will He allow the judgment to continue? Zeph. 2:3 3 Seek the LORD, All you humble of the earth Who have carried out His ordinances; Seek righteousness, seek humility. Perhaps you will be hidden In the day of the Lord's anger. NASB God is the sovereign of this universe and heaven. His will is what is accomplished not our will, not our wishes. God does everything that is recorded in the Divine Decrees (you recall), therefore God is dependable for the actions He takes, or does not take with respect to history. Just prior to the Cross (which we have just recently studied), Jesus Christ underwent a horrendous beating. God allowed it. Despite the prayers of Jesus to the Father, the task was not removed. It was necessary because there was a greater purpose (the salvation of mankind) more so than the simple request of Christ. Jesus did not pray in order to escape the Cross, but prayed in order to teach us all a lesson. History will run its course. It is not for us to say what is to happen and what is not to happen. As growing believers we should know that God has our best interest in mind. And God has the best interest and outcome possible in mind for humanity. God does not do things arbitrarily. David prayed for the life of his infant child, he said, 'Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me in this matter likewise?' 2 Sam. 12:22. We know the outcome of that event. The child died. It was not for David to have life his way, but to have life as God wills it. All things come from heaven. Every blessing which ever existed in history comes out of heaven. Mankind never originates any blessing ever, for himself. All things depend entirely on God. Isa. 45:8 8 'Drip down, O heavens, from above, And let the clouds pour down righteousness; Let the earth open up and salvation bear fruit, And righteousness spring up with it. I, the LORD, have created it. NASB One more example from history. Back in 1940, there had been a decade of appeasement with respect to Hitler. There was also a decade or more of anti-military liberal political views. Most of Europe had very little if any military force. Even the United States was at its record lows in military strength. In May of 1940, Hitler attacked France, taking everyone by surprise. The British and French armies were thrown in to a tailspin retreat and headed for the coast, just in front of the German advance. At Dunkirk, nearly 400,000 men (all of the British army, and most of the French army) were trapped on the beaches there. They were hammered day and night by German air power. Men died by the hundreds every hour for ten days, during what was to become the greatest retreat and escape in human history. The harbor was full of sunken and disabled and burning ships, so the harbor was unusable. The call went out for every small craft available and thousands of small boats manned by civilians went off to rescue the entire army of England and the bulk of the French force. Churchill held days of prayer during that time. Hitler could have rolled his tanks onto the beach and annihilated the entire British army, leaving Great Britain totally helpless. But Hitler stopped for two days to let his troops refuel and rest. Likewise the weather for the otherwise violent waters between Dover and Dunkirk, were at an all time calm. What could have been a disaster turned out to be a victory for the Allies as 330,000 men were rescued. Many died, but the course of history was set from that day forward. If the entire army had been destroyed, then Great Britain might have removed Churchill from office and the appeasers might have bargained with Hitler, and we would have seen a very different Europe. But that was not to be. You know the rest of that story. God answered lots of prayers and the tide was turned, but not right away. It would take another five years before Europe would have its peace back. When God restores blessing, then He expects worship consistent with His teaching in the Bible. That is what is meant by the question of the restoration of, 'Even a grain offering and a libation.' First comes a change of heart, a genuine change of heart. Then comes blessing from God, then comes mans response to those blessings. We are expected to give back to God a little of what it is He initially gave us. This is where many folks stumble. We all have an obligation to support the teaching of Gods Word, but too often people become greedy, rationalize that someone else will do the giving, or otherwise just ignore their obligation to give. Lots of excuses can be invented to justify not giving. Then guess what happens. Another judgment comes along. Another reminder of why people are here in the first place and from where they get their blessings. The call goes out, 'blow the trumpet.' What is that this time. More warning? No. This is now a call to worship. And what does that mean? Fast - to separate yourself from that which is not good for you - your carnal nature. This is not just a dietary thing, but one of a spiritual separation. How do we do this? We confess our sins to God the Father, and get ourselves back into fellowship and stay there. Next we 'proclaim a sacred assembly.' What is that? That is our daily study of Gods word. We assemble ourselves individually, in fellowship, and we study and learn and grow up spiritually. And we continue to do this daily for the rest of our lives. This applies to all peoples, the young (babes nursing) to the old folks, from the very rich to the very poor, from those who have power to those who have no say in anything in life. This applies to everyone in the nation. Were it not for a change of heart, then the nation (not learning anything) will again be subjected to another judgment from God (ie. God allows nature to take its course against the nation). When blessing is restored, the weddings again take place, 'Let the bridegroom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber,' and life resumes its normal course. But these things resume at Gods leisure, not on mans timetable. When God stands in our place and fights off man and nature, then our life is far better off than it would be if God were not there for us. Your life might be undergoing difficulties. So what. Get your act together and pursue God. Then your difficulties, if they continue, will transformed into blessings sooner or later. But if your problems turn you against God and you rebel out of frustration and anger and so forth, then who will come to your aid? No one. Why shoot more holes in your boat? Know this. God is perfect. God knows more than we do. God does everything for our benefit. So listen, learn, become obedient to His will, and 'wait' on the Lord. 'Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things.' End of lesson. Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.

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