The Old Testament prophet Joel gives an urgent message especially for our day. Like the three angels of Revelation 14 he makes three calls to judgment:
Joel 1:14,15: “Sanctify ye a fast, Rev. 14:7: “Fear God, and give
call a solemn assembly,… for the give glory to Him; for the hour day of the Lord is at hand….” of His judgment is come: and worship Him….”
Joel 2:1: “Blow ye the trumpet Rev 14:8: “Babylon is fallen,
in Zion, and sound an alarm in is fallen, that great city….”
my holy mountain….”
Joel 2:15-17: “Blow the trumpet Rev. 14:12: “Here is the patience
in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a of the saints: here are they that solemn assembly: Gather the peo- keep the commandments of God, ple, sanctify the congregation….” and the faith of Jesus.”
The three chapters of Joel can be better understood by following this outline:
JOEL (An applied outline)
- Conditions in the Church (Joel 1:1-14)
- No Wine (vs 5-7)
- No Meat (vs 8-10)
- No Oil (v 10)
- No Fruit (vs 11-12)
- First Call to the Sanctuary (Joel 1:14-20)
- Gather the Church for Judgment (vs 14, 15)
- People’s Response–recognize the problem of no meat nor wine, and cry to God (16-20)
III. Second Call to the Sanctuary (Joel 2:1-14)
- The Lord’s Strange Army (vs 2-11)
- Darkness & fire go before them (2-5)
- Unbroken ranks enter every house (6-9)
- Who can stand the shaking test? (10-11)
- The Desired Response (vs 12-14)
- Repent and confess sins (12, 13)
- God may repent and give His people meat and wine (14)
- Third Call to the Sanctuary (Joel 2:15-32)
- Call to Gather ALL God’s People (vs 15-17)
- God’s response (vs 18-31)
- Sends meat, wine, oil and fruit (18-22)
- Blots out sins & gives latter rain (23-31
- Conversions under the loud cry (vs 32)
V Earth’s Last Hour (Joel 3:1-21)
- Nations Gathered to Armageddon (vs 1-15)
- Deliverance of God’s People (vs 16-21)
Summary: The church is dying for lack of preaching about Christ’s atoning death and substitutionary life. Only this will bring the Holy Spirit and holy living among God’s people. Now God calls His people to gather by faith at heaven’s sanctuary where He sits to judge His people. Those who gather will be blessed with the blotting out of sins and the latter rain. Those who do not gather there by faith will be cut off eternally.
Conditions in the Church
Before the prophet makes his three calls to judgment he gives us a vivid picture of conditions in the church. Realizing that the first part of our outline looks like we are promoting the Weimar diet, we are quick to point out that the four elements listed are not to be taken literally. Wine, meat, oil and fruit are symbols:
WINE = blood = the substitutionary atonement of Jesus on the cross
MEAT = flesh or bread = the substitutionary obedience of Christ in His life on earth
OIL = God’s Spirit = the enabling working of the Holy Spirit in the lives of God’s people
FRUIT = Fruits of the Spirit = the good deeds and character of God’s people
The palmerworm, the locust, the cankerworm and the caterpillar have been robbing God’s people of these blessings. False teachings are stripping the church. The “Babylonian palmerworms” are flogging God’s people on to greater piety as a way to merit the latter rain. This takes away the meat offering. “Atheistic locusts” within the church tell us there is no standard to fall short of. This takes away the wine. “Spiritualistic cankerworms” among us suggest that we must relax and let the Spirit do our holy living for us. This takes away the oil. Will God again resort to “Chaldean caterpillars” to awaken His people? Joy has left because the “meat offering” and the “drink offering” are withheld from the church. (Joel 1:13).
The First Call
The church is in sad shape. Rather than giving up on her, God calls His church to gather at the Sanctuary:
“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, Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.” Joel 1:14.
We are called to gather at the heavenly sanctuary. It is a call for all the church to come to the solemn day of atonement. As ancient Israel gathered around the earthly tabernacle once a year afflicting their souls, so we are to come “to the general assembly,… and to God the judge of all” (Lev. 16:29-31; Heb. 12:23). Atonement day is judgment day. We have come to the judgment of the living. We have every reason to fear.
Although many that hear the call to judgment cry over conditions in the church, this is not enough. The situation is too serious to stop there. We not only are affected by these conditions but have aggravated them by buying in to the “wormy” ideas. Like Daniel we must confess our guilt for the terrible conditions in the church.
The Second Call
Joel’s second call adds a warning trumpet to the day of atonement summons:
“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; A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains….” Joel 2:1-2.
To the trumpet announcing the day of atonement is added the sound of alarm at an enemy’s approach. Apparently God uses Babylon’s army to purify His people. He warns that His great army is going throughout the land in scorching, shaking judgment leaving no life unentered, no soul untested.
While His army advances on earth God is in heaven judging the church. Who can abide the day of His coming in judgment? Who will be able to stand when He appears in heaven’s most holy place? None of His people on earth have characters so pure as to pass the judgment–they fall far short of perfect obedience. Only those who depend on the mercy of God are accepted. They recognize their need and pray for Christ’s intercession in their behalf. The “meat offering” and “drink offering” of Christ’s perfect life and atoning death are counted theirs and their sins are blotted out. (Joel 2:1-14; Mal. 3:1-6; Lev. 16:30; Rev. 3:5.)
The Third Call
A third and final time the call to heaven’s sanctuary is given:
“Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: Gather the people, sanctify the congregation….Let…the ministers…weep…and say, Spare thy people, O Lord….” Joel 2:15-17.
No one is to remain uncalled. The consequences of failing to come with faith and repentance to the judgment of the living are severe and eternal: “for whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people” (Lev. 23:29). If we wait till Jesus no longer stands as mediator our faith, our pleading, our prayers will bring no answer–they will go up “for ever and ever”. In this day of judgment our hope of eternal life centers on the application of Christ’s flesh and blood to our accounts in heaven. While Jesus ministers we may send all our sins beforehand to judgment where they will be blotted out of heaven’s record.
Apart from gathering to judgment, no other remedy exists for God’s church. When God’s people gather to heaven’s most holy place by faith “then will the Lord be jealous for His land, and pity His people. 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:” (Joel 2:18, 19).
The Lord will do great things. He will blot out the sins of His people (my people shall never be ashamed–Joel 2:27). Afterward He will pour out His Spirit in latter rain and His sealed saints will go forth to proclaim the gospel more fully. It will come to pass that whosoever hears and believes, calling on the name of Jesus, will be saved under this loud cry message. The righteousness of Christ in heaven is the secret hiding place. All who are hid in His righteousness will be delivered (Joel 2:28-32).
Earth’s Last Hour
At the time when God is restoring His people He will call all the heathen nations to gather round for sentencing. They come thinking to defeat God and His people in the battle of Armageddon; but God will then turn the tables on them and pay them back for all the evil they have done to His people (Joel 3:1-12). Next the thundering voice of God is heard from heaven and His people are glorified (“then shall Jerusalem be holy”). Their sinfulness is removed and shortly Christ comes to claim them as His own. He takes them to a land of milk and to the river of life. All accounts are settled and eternity begins. (Joel 3:13-21.)
