Judgment

Examples for the Modern Church

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Admonitions from Israel’s History

Book of 1 Corinthians Chapter 10

Idolatry is the practice of paying divine honor to any object that is created.

There are three forms of idolatry:

1) Fetishism: the worship of trees, rivers, hills, stones, etc.
2) Nature worship: the worship of the sun, the moon, and the stars as the supposed powers of nature.
3) Hero worship, the worship of deceased ancestors or heroes.

During their long residence in Egypt, the Hebrews fell into idolatry.

Eze 20:7 Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

The world before the flood was a wicked and idolatrous world:

Jos 24:14 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.
Jos 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

What is the first commandment given to Israel after Jehovah freed them from Egypt? Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
Deu 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. Deu 6:13 Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.

Today, throughout the world, people worship everything but Jehovah God!

Those who worship themselves have made themselves to be God.

*1Co 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
1Co 10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
1Co 10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
1Co 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
1Co 10:5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

As Paul gets further into this epistle, he will eventually get to the security of the believer.

The security of the believer is one of the great doctrines of Scripture, but unfortunately, it is taught without much understanding and without the warnings that come from the Word of God.

We know that when the time of judgment comes, God will first judge the Church.

There are multitudes in the Church who are not truly converted to Jesus Christ, but they have a false security and are overconfident.

They say they are saved, but their lifestyle says different.

Saying and knowing are two different things.

Being baptized and belonging to a church does not mean we are saved.

Taking part in the Lord’s Supper does not mean we are saved.

Being greatly gifted and very active in the Church does not make a person safe and secure in Jesus Christ.

These things were problems in the Church in Corinth.

As Christians, we are in a race for an incorruptible Crown, but this crown is not given on a silver platter.

We must actually be in the race!

The nation of Israel was a prime example of a people who had been greatly privileged by Jehovah, and it led to a people who felt safe and secure, yet many of them perished in the wilderness after Jehovah had saved them from Egypt.

All of them shared the many blessings of God, but none of that group but a few entered into the Promised Land.

The Israelites were as much a people of God as we are today, yet most of them fell in the wilderness of sin.

In truth, the possession of great privileges does not secure us from the danger of falling from the “Grace” of God.

The worst sins of Israel were a direct result of idolatry!

Idolatry is not a light matter to Jehovah God!

Today, many in the Church are willing to be delivered from Hell but shy away from living life like Jesus Christ, which is the standard for being a Christian, and which is the standard for repentance.

What did Jesus teach the Jews?

Mrk_1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

What has Jesus taught the Church?

Rev_2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

The Israelites accepted the position as God’s people, but failed in the duties of being God’s people.

Is the Church doing the same thing today?

We love to say we are the children of God, but is the Church fulfilling the duties of the Church?

Many who say they are Christians were never truly converted and have never really repented of their sins before God!

Israel passed through the Red Sea as if on dry land.

Archaeologists have found the place of the crossing of Israel, even finding the chariot of that Pharaoh, but now Egypt will not allow any more research because it changes the narrative that they want remembered.

There are many other spots that certain governments have placed off limits because they would change the narrative of the world.

Many more like them do not want the Bible to prove itself to be the truth, but it proves itself every day.

Israel had the presence of Jesus Christ with them.

God gave His Son the Leader to lead them to the Promised Land. That Rock was Christ!

God took care of their day-to-day needs.

Jesus Christ was the source, the Energy and the Power, and the Person who caused water from the Rock, caused the Red Sea to part, who caused the cloud to guide Israel, and rained down the manna, and who gave Moses the promises of God.

Jesus Christ is the Jehovah of the Old Testament!

We should remember there were over six hundred thousand men alone who broke away from the bondage of Egypt.

This means we do not know the actual number of the children of Israel.

We know that only two families, the family of Caleb and the family of Joshua, stayed true to the Lord; the rest died and were replaced before they entered into the Promised Land.

So, we have proof that God will save people from one tragedy, but still not allow them into His Heaven.

We must know that we know we are saved according to the Word of God, or we could still end up in Hell.

These things are a warning to the Church!

*1Co 10:6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

These things were examples for the Church to learn from!

God has given us a Jewish history lesson for the Church to learn because we know that God never changes.

The things that happened to the Hebrews (Jews) are valuable lessons to Christians, and we must not ever forget this!

Heb 4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Eph 5:6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
Eph 5:7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

Then God gives us some of these examples.

*1Co 10:7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
1Co 10:8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
1Co 10:9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
1Co 10:10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

**Warning number one: While Moses was upon the Mountain with God, the children of Israel began lusting after the things of the flesh.
Many of them turned to idolatry. Aaron made that golden calf, and the people began dancing around it.

In typology, we know our Lord Jesus is now on Heaven’s Mountain, and the Church is lusting after the flesh and worshipping idols.

**Warning number two: Immorality took over the children of Israel.

And the Lord Jesus says to the Church, Rev 2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

**Warning number three: Neither let us tempt Jesus Christ. They tried the Lord’s patience.

You want to get to Hell! Go ahead and see how far you can go to test the patience of the Lord Jesus Christ. These children of Israel always felt that God expected too much from them. Many in the Church still feel this way today!

Many of them even longed for things they left behind in Egypt. Even onions. Who can believe that? Many people love onions, but I doubt they would choose slavery to get them.

Many Christians think they will be forgiven even if they take that second look.
If they just get a taste, or if they could just touch, or if they slip just a little, or if they hold back just a little, which is the sin of covetousness.

Heb 10:28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
Heb 10:29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
Heb 10:30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

**Warning number four: These people could not go a day without murmuring, complaining, and grumbling.

It is the same for the Church of today. So many today are not satisfied with the truth and seek to make their own truth. Much of the Church has moved away from the truth of solid preaching and seeks a church and a Bible that goes along with their own thoughts of Christianity, forgetting what being a Christian is all about.

Jud 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
Jud 1:15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
Jud 1:16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.

All these things are examples for the Church not to get caught up in!

Rom 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Rom 15:5 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
Rom 15:6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We must be sure of our salvation, and we must know what it is to be Christian!

To be Christian is to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This name was given to the followers of Jesus Christ by unbelievers.

Act 11:26 And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.

This name was given to the followers of Christ in sarcasm.

How many in the Church today would the world call Christian when the word I hear the most is hypocrites?

All these things that Paul has mentioned today should cause us to look at ourselves and just see what our standing is with God.

*1Co 10:12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

We must understand that was impossible for any Christian in Corinth to avoid coming in contact with idolatrous practices in its many forms.

We can also say this about America today!

We must understand this warning from the Holy Spirit.

Most every church acknowledges that we are in the last days of the Church Age.

The Church Age is the Age of Grace. There will be no other Age of Grace as Jehovah moves forward with His plans!

Grace is the way God deals with people today. We are a foolish church if we do not heed the warning Jehovah is showing us in the examples of how He dealt with Israel.

Rom 11:20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
Rom 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

Any person can fall, especially when we get to thinking we cannot fall.

As long as we are still in the Church Age, there is no way to escape temptation!

We can be encouraged that there will be no temptation that is not common to everyone else.

This means we can prepare for those temptations.

No temptation will be superhuman.
No temptation will be unique to the Church.
No temptation will be beyond our capacity to handle.
No temptation will be terrifying in any sense of the word.

Every temptation that attacks the believer is common to all humans!

Most every Christian has already overcome most of these temptations, and yes, some of us have fallen and caved in, but we have repented and asked for forgiveness, and we can still be overcome if we are not prepared for them.

We should also understand that the Lord limits every single temptation within our limits to overcome it.

We must have enough faith to believe this. God will provide a way out of that temptation!

2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

We of the Church have a greater responsibility to overcome temptation than the Jews because we can read of the mistakes they made and see how Jehovah dealt with them.

The modern Church has no excuse for sinking into sin!

*1Co 10:21 Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.
1Co 10:22 Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?
1Co 10:23 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.
1Co 10:24 Let no man seek his own, but every man another’s wealth.
1Co 10:25 Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake:
1Co 10:26 For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof.
1Co 10:27 If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.
1Co 10:28 But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof:

We must know that Satan is out to cut the heart of Jehovah and to destroy God’s purpose in saving mankind.

Satan smiles every time he turns a person away from the Lord Jesus Christ by enticing us to give our lives to the things and the false gods of this world.

When we become consumed by the things of this world, then we have fulfilled the will of Satan, the Devil.

We had better understand that God will not allow us to be a guest at His table and be a guest at the table of idolatrous devils.

This is being a hypocrite, and we will provoke the Lord’s wrath, and there will be no hypocrites in Heaven!

Even if we know that a certain thing is legal for us to do without it being a sin, should we do it?

There are limits to Christian freedom!

Should Christians attend social functions with our neighbors and fellow employees who are not saved?

We should ask ourselves:

1) Is it beneficial to me as a Christian?
2) Will it violate my conscience; will it grieve the Holy Spirit?
3) Will our actions affect our relationship with another Christian?
4) Are we just being courteous and kind to that unbeliever, who may just be seeing how far we are willing to go against his thoughts of God?
5) Does it hurt the conscience of another believer?

If the answer is yes to any of these questions, then we should not attend.

Even if our own conscience is not bothered, we are to act for the sake of others!

We are not to do anything that might offend another brother or sister in Christ!

Rom 15:1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
Rom 15:2 Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
Rom 15:3 For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.

*1Co 10:29 Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man’s conscience?
1Co 10:30 For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?
1Co 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

No man has a right to interfere with the liberty that is enjoyed by another if his own conscious, his own conduct, and his own convictions are not affected.

If I am doing no harm according to the Word of God, then why should I be judged by another Christian after I have asked God to bless my meal?

In fact, I do not have the right if it causes harm to another brother or sister who may think that I am worshipping idols when I should know better!

Bearing the criticism of another brother or sister in Christ will not be worth my attending such a social event.

We must keep in mind that everything we do outside the Church is to be for the glory of God!

Rom 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

We are not to be so concerned about our own rights that we have forgotten that all things we do are to be for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ!

The Lord tells us: Mat 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

We cannot allow our light to grow dim!

We are never to be stumbling blocks to the Jews, to unbelievers, nor believers!

We are to do absolutely nothing that will offend another person or cause them to stumble because this goes against the Lord’s rule of love!

We are God’s children, and again Jesus says: Mar 9:42 And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.

We are not to seek our own profit because we are left upon this earth to seek the profit of our Savior!

Again, our Lord Jesus says: Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Mat 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

The world might ignore our Savior, but our life outside the Church is to bring Him glory every day that God the Father gives us!

Amen

Judgment is Coming

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

From Judgment to the Presence of God

Book of Joel

Joel is another of God’s prophets that we know very little about and is called a Minor Prophet.

Joe 1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

We know that the message of the minor prophets is just as important as that of the Major prophets. They are called Minor Prophets because their message is shorter. We know that the Holy Spirit used Joel to give Israel and the Church a message good throughout all the Ages.

2Ti_3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

The purpose of the Book of Joel is just like the message of all the writers chosen by the Holy Spirit, to turn the hearts of God’s people back to the LORD.

LORD being Jehovah. Jehovah designates God’s nature as He stands with mankind as the only almighty, true, personal, Holy Being, a Spirit, and the Father of all Spirits.

Num 16:22 And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?

Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Joh 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Joh 4:26 “Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he”.

Our Lord Jesus says He is Jehovah in the flesh, the Father of all Spirits.

We will see that Joel may not mention Judah by name, but he begins with a description of God’s “judgment”.

Joel mentions the Day of the Lord more than any other Book in Scripture:

The Day of the Lord is the day of the Lord’s vengeance: Isa_34:8 For it is the day of the LORD’S vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.

From Joel: Joel 1:15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

From Joel: Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.

From Obadiah: Oba_1:15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.

There are other Scriptures by other Prophets as important as these.

Our lesson begins with repentance.

What is repentance?

Repentance is first a change of mind.
It is second, a change of purpose.
It is then a change of life, and these things come with the promise of a remission of sin.

Repentance is walking in the opposite direction from the way we walked as sinners.

Repentance is coming out of the darkness of the Devil and into the Light of Jesus Christ.

Luk_24:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

We can only do this if we have a true sense of our own guilt!

Psa 51:1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
Psa 51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Psa 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
Psa 51:4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.

We need to study all of Psalm 51 to learn how to truly ask for forgiveness.

What we know is that far too many who started with Jesus Christ are now forsaking Him!

This was readily seen during the time of Covid 19.

*Joe 2:12 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
Joe 2:13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

The Prophet Joel gives us much information on the coming “Day of the Lord,” but before God’s Day of wrath, He will first call for repentance.

There is more to repenting than just saying you are sorry!

Jas 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
Jas 4:9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
Jas 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

Joel is believed to be one of the prophets during the time of Joash who had Zechariah stoned between the courtyard and the altar on the Temple Mount.

How do we question our God, who pleads with His people to return to Him?

Anytime Jehovah calls for repentance then it is not too late to do so.

What we know is the Lord is patient, but His patience will one day run out.

2Pe_3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Rom 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

God is tired of seeing the tearing of garments and wants to see the tearing of the hearts.

We must reach that point in our life where we hate sin but not the sinner.

We might ask ourselves why we should turn to the Lord.

1) The Lord is full of “Grace and Mercy” and has pure love for us.
2) The Lord will repent of His promised wrath if we repent and turn to Him.
3) He will answer prayers. Which means He can restore our economies and our bodies.

We may not understand the true power of Jehovah, but over and over in the Scriptures, God tells us exactly what he is going to do, especially on the Day of the Lord.

Returning to the Lord also means returning to worship of Him.

Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Those who say we do not have to attend Church to be saved are one hundred percent correct, but after we are saved, we should do our best to obey all the Word of God, and it says not to forsake the assembling of the Church.

This passage says we should be assembling more and not less, for we know we are in those end times.

Every person who calls upon the Lord is to attend Church worship services and be sanctified, which means “set apart” for the Lord’s use.

In this day of Joel, the Lord told the priests and preachers to pray specifically that the Lord spare the people from the coming judgment on those who refuse to repent.

*Joe 2:14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?
Joe 2:15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly:
Joe 2:16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.
Joe 2:17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?

If we know anything about the Word of God, we know the Lord could return at any moment to get His Church, and His wrath will begin once the Church has been removed.

There may not be much time for anyone to repent, so now is the right time to repent, and it is certainly time to be sincere about it.

Sin is an inward thing that comes from a sinful heart, and repentance must come from the heart.

We must be sorrowful for any law of God that has been broken!

Until the Lord returns in “judgment” means we still have time to repent!

Repentance is essential to escape the “Day of the Lord” and the ‘Judgment” of God!

In the time of Jonah: Jon 3:9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
Jon 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

The Bible would not say these things if they were not true, but His judgment and His wrath are also true.

Things will get so bad in the “Day of the Lord” that there will be people who say, “Where is God?”, but they should have already considered what He said.

With repentance comes the Lord’s pity.

*Joe 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people.

If we truly repent, no matter what we have done, the Lord will pity us. This is His promise!

Will we still suffer for our sins? Yes, but we are now justified, and our name is written down in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Chastisement leads to repentance.

We should know that the Lord is always jealous of His land, and the Lord will provide well-being for His land.

All those who attack Israel will find this out soon enough, but the Lord is jealous for all His creation.

Maybe this is why we see so much turmoil in the lands today, which we call climate change.

It is a Holy God who controls all our climate: Mar 4:39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

Things could be so much better if God’s people would return to the Lamb of God!

We should know that compassion is what the LORD will show to repentant people!

It is also the Lord who provides all our needs and who can end wars.

*Joe 2:19 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:
Joe 2:20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.

The LORD promises mercy to all those who return to Him!

It is called the “Grace of God”.

Material prosperity can be restored.
Respect and honor can be restored.
Peace and national security can be restored.

These are just the little things that come to us when we love the Lord Jesus Christ.

Many of us see these words as the end of the War of Armageddon.

What had God said?

2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2Ch 7:15 Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.

In type, this happens in verse 17.

The LORD is still waiting for His people to repent and pray this prayer!

God the Father fulfilled His promise to send the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is in Jesus Christ that everyone can receive the gifts of God’s Mercy and God’s Grace.

It is in Jesus Christ that this world will be restored for one thousand years.

This is the reason Our Lord Jesus came to this earth to offer reconciliation, and He will return as King of kings and LORD of lords and all the promises that were made will be fulfilled.

*Joe 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.

Every denomination of the Church knows that “judgment” is coming, and once it has taken place according to the Word of God, it will be the end of human history!

The only thing that is left for all people to do is to repent!

Just before the Lord returns will be a time of unparalleled tribulations.

Those who are wise will not be victims of these tribulations because the LORD has given us a way out.

Those who love the LORD have the gift of the Holy Spirit.

We are not paying attention if we have not seen wonders happening in the heavens.
We are not paying attention if we have not seen wonders happening on this earth, no matter what scientists call them.
We should be waiting for something like an eclipse of the Sun and the Red Moon.

We of the Church know that our time is really short and we need to be working on our families with the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The Day of Salvation is now!!!!!!!

*Joe 3:1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
Joe 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

The Valley of Jehoshaphat is the valley between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives.

We should understand that the scattering of God’s people and the division of God’s land are an insult to the property of God.

Notice God says, “My people” and “My land” and He adds “My heritage”.

As I think upon this passage, I can recall the spot where the Lord Jesus will return.

Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

When the Lord returns, He will return to the Mount of Olives to the place where He had ascended.

Zec 14:1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
Zec 14:2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Zec 14:3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
Zec 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
Zec 14:5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

I believe that this is the day the LORD will judge all the nations that have gathered to destroy Israel.

And Joel continues:

*Joe 3:12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

Every nation that has opposed the Kingdom of God, as well as all those hostile nations that surround Jerusalem, are to be awakened.

Joe 3:9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:

Up until this time, the lord has been standing, but here, we see that He will sit on His seat of judgment.

Isa 50:8 He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.

The Lord says Bring them on, He is ready to meet them.

Joe 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

The Lord says it is far past the time to harvest the fruit of the earth because it is rotten.

Rev_14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

God has already condemned these nations.

Multitudes and multitudes are in the valley of decision.

The nations have made their decision, and Jehovah will pronounce His decision at that moment.

Once the LORD begins, He will not end until it is over for wickedness and evil.

*Joe 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
Joe 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

Multitudes in the Hebrew suggest the confused noise of a great multitude.

Isa 17:12 Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
Isa 17:13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.

On this day, there will be many cosmic disturbances. All the heavenly bodies will be darkened, and this does not mean an eclipse of the Sun or the Moon because it concerns all heavenly bodies.

Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.

Why? It is the Day God will punish this world for its evil.

Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
Isa 13:12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.

The entire Solar System will shake violently.

Hag 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
Hag 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.

Jer 25:31 A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD.

It certainly will not be a good day for the militaries of those evil nations.

There is much more that can be said about the Day of the Lord, but this would be a complete study in itself.

We can see that the Lord will certainly judge the nations of this world.

*Joe 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

Israel will finally wake up to the truth of Jehovah as they see the work of the Messiah, who is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Rev_5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

This will be the time for Israel to repent!

Mat 25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Mat 25:32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
Mat 25:33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Mat 25:34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

*Joe 3:20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
Joe 3:21 For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.

Israel will become the honcho nation in this world for one thousand years, and Our Lord Jesus will sit upon the Throne of David and rule this world with a rod of iron.

Zec 14:8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.
Zec 14:9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

Amen

The Devastation of Judgment

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Thunder Judgments

Book of Revelation Chapter 10

As we have gotten to this point in the Book of Revelation, the earth has been devastated with destruction. At least half of the world’s population has been destroyed. Those that remain are so full of pride and arrogance, that they refuse to repent of their evil ways and in fact still challenge the Lord.

Rev 9:20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:
Rev 9:21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

These are the same actions that Satan has taken since his episode in the Garden of Eden, when he received the curse of God.

Satan knows he will eventually loose his battle with the Lord, but deep inside his being he still retains that one thought of victory and he has instilled that into his followers.

Satan would rather they all go to Hell than to give up and this is where they are on this day. Losers but still rebellious!

1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

You see Satan devours those that follow him, yet they are too blind to see what he is!

He is a murderer on the loose with all his weapons loaded!

The sixth trumpet has sounded, and it is time for the sounding of the seventh trumpet, but just as there was a break between the sixth and seventh seal, there is now a break between the sixth and seventh trumpet.

There will be a gradual transition for the sixth and seventh trumpet and we will see this transition in Chapters 10 and Chapter 11.

So let us get started.

*Rev 10:1 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

When John last saw the Lord, He was as the Lamb of God and now John sees what he describes as a mighty angel, in fact he says another mighty angel.

John had seen the throngs of angels in Heaven and no doubt some appeared to be of higher rank than others, so who is this mighty angel?

This could very well be an angel and a mighty angel, but it could also be the Lord from what we already know.

In the Old Testament the Son of God was called the Angel of the Lord.

Exo 3:2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

Then we find that this is the great I AM of the Bible.

Exo 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

When God appears upon the earth, He is the Son of God or Jesus the Messiah.

Seven times in the Book of Revelation we see an angel clothed with a cloud and each time it is our Savior.

The cloud is a symbol of the Lord’s “Majesty”!

Exo 16:10 And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.

He had a rainbow upon His head which leads us to the throne room of God.

Rev 4:3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

His face was as the sun.

These words take us back to Revelation 1, which we know to be the Lord Jesus.

Rev 1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

His feet as pillars of fire also to Revelation.

Rev 1:15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

In Chapter 11 we see a curious Scripture.

Rev 11:3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

They could only be witnesses if they proclaim the Word of God, the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ!

As we go through the next two verses there should be little doubt that this must be the Lord Jesus Christ.

He is not an angel, because He is the Creator and the Creator of all the angels!

*Rev 10:2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
Rev 10:3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

If this is indeed the Lord Jesus Christ, then He has two books.

Notice His right foot is upon the Sea and His left foot is upon the earth. This is a visible sign of “ownership”!

Psa 24:1 The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

He is the Angel of the Lord.
He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
He is the Mighty Angel.
He is set apart from all the angels in Heaven.

He is “the One” who speaks, and this world speaks to Him, and to Him only!

This time the “Seven Thunders” uttered their voice.

When the Lion of the Tribe of Judah roars “His” Created world responds!

We met these thunders in Chapter 8.

Rev 8:5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

Here again, these seven Thunders are in full agreement to the destruction that is about to happen, but they speak in words that we cannot understand.

John heard what they said, and he was about to write those things down, but the Lord stopped him.

*Rev 10:4 And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

What was John told to do by the Lord?

Rev 1:19 Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

We do not know how much John heard from these seven Thunders, but we see he was told not to write these things down.

Are they secrets?

The Lord promised not to keep any secrets from the Church.

Luk_12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.

Amo_3:7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

We can only say that the words that John is not to reveal to us, these Seven Thunders will reveal themselves when that time comes.

These are things that cannot be understood at this time.

You know some things may just be too terrible for the Church to witness during the Great Tribulation.

Remember, if Jehovah had given Noah control of the door to the ark, Noah would have let those people who were drowning inside the ark because it was a terrible thing.

Some things will be much more terrible in the last days of the Great Tribulation and the Church does not need to see them!

*Rev 10:5 And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
Rev 10:6 And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:

We should clearly understand that this announcement is made toward the earth, as “time” has never existed in Heaven!

But this message also clearly states that “time has run out for the people of earth to repent”!

The One who made this decision is none other than the Creator and His decision is not to be questioned!

Our Lord Jesus Christ is announcing that He is taking possession of all His creation, all of this tiny spec of dirt in the middle of nowhere from a galactic view. This place He had first created as a Garden where mankind needed only to dress the Garden.

Gen 2:8 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
Gen 2:9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

It was sin that drove man out of the Garden!
It was sin that cause man to have to work to provide for his family.

Gen 3:17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
Gen 3:18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
Gen 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

It was sin that destroyed the Garden.

It was sin that would have destroyed man then if not for “Grace”.

It is sin that would have destroyed each of us without God’s “Grace” that comes by the Lord Jesus Christ!

Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
Gen 6:7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Gen 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

It was because of sin that God sent His Son, again to show His “Grace”.

Rom_3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
1Jn_2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
1Jn_4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Even this was not enough because much of mankind will always rebel against our Holy God no matter what He has done, because they have another father!

Joh 8:43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Joh 8:45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.
Joh 8:46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?
Joh 8:47 He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

This time, at the announcement of this Mighty Angel an age-old question will be answered!

2Pe 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
2Pe 3:4 And saying, “Where is the promise of his coming?” for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
2Pe 3:5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
2Pe 3:6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

This time, there will be an answer from Heaven that is so terrible that our Holy Father decided His Church did not need to know about it.

The Seven Thunders exists, but we do not need to know about those judgments!

*Rev 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

There will be no more delay in the coming of Jesus Christ to this earth!

There will be no more delay in removing Satan, who has convinced these who are left that it is he who owns the earth.

There has never been a war between God and the Devil!

There has never been a war between good and evil!

There has just been a time that God has allowed His created beings an opportunity to spend eternity with Him and even though God knew what we all would choose, He has given us this time to choose for ourselves as we watch all others choose for themselves.

This is time, that is the time, that is over, as this Mighty Angel proclaims to those upon the earth.

God has given us all these revelations throughout the Prophet Scriptures, and they have been ignored by so many.

Some say there is no God, but most have chosen in their own minds a god that they would serve.

When you choose to ignore the Living God, you have said that you are better than God!

There has never been but one acceptable choice in Heaven!

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Joh 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Joh 14:2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Joh 14:4 And whither I go ye know, “and the way ye know”.

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

These that are left have been told the way and they chose to reject this truth and have chosen their own way.

*Rev 10:8 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
Rev 10:9 And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.

John was given his instructions.

Don’t get too caught up in where these voices are coming from and forget the Triune God, the Holy Trinity.

We must never forget we have always had just one duty given to us by the Lord!

Ecc 12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
Ecc 12:14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

God’s Plan has been flawless right up to the time that John receives this little book, and His plan will remain flawless right up till the time the Lord says that it is “done”, near the end of this Book of Revelation.

All the Word of God is sweet, but when we read these judgments, we all wish it did not come to this.

When we are filled with the love of God the wonderful things we read about the Church, missing out on the wrath of God just make us aware of the benefits of giving our heart to the Lord Jesus Christ.

There are too many rewards for being Christian to ever complain that the Word of God is not sweet, because it is!

Col_3:24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

We must cling to the Lord Jesus all our days to be sure we do not lose rewards that we could have gotten.

2Jn_1:8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.

We also know that the Jews, the Hebrew people, will one day give all their heart to the Lord and all those will join us in Heaven to complete the gathering of the Church.

Rom_11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

We should be saddened that they go through the Tribulation years, but they will repent, and they have caused their own problems.

Jehovah has always been the solution to those problems, but the solution came in the form of the Lord Jesus Christ!

If there is any bitterness to the taste of the Word of God, it is for those who refuse to repent!

Many of those will be some of our family members and even some friends.

We should never feel good about anyone going to Hell!
We should never feel good about anyone standing before God at the White Throne of Judgment!

Rev 20:11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
Rev 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

We should never feel good about these people, because in many cases they may be emblems of our own failure to tell them about Jesus!

We cannot force feed anyone the Word of God, but we should at the least do everything we can to spread the “lifesaving” Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ!

We cannot even be good Christians, unless we take the Word of God and ingest it and digest it, until it becomes a part of our everyday lives!

2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

If we ever feel good about the death of any living soul, then we need to get on our knees and beg forgiveness!

It is a most terrible sin!

Our Heavenly Father hates the fact that there will be some who will always reject Him!

2Pe_3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

The most bitter words in the entire Word of God are these:

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity”.
Mat 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
Mat 7:25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
Mat 7:26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
Mat 7:27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

We should remember John had been sent to the Isle of Patmos to live out the remainder of his days.
John had already outlived all of the other Apostles.

In fact John had already lived longer than most all others in his day.

What did John learn from this encounter with this Mighty Angel, who I believe to be the Lord Jesus Christ, who is certainly no Angel but our Creator.

He learned his preaching days were not yet over!

*Rev 10:10 And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
Rev 10:11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

There are many thoughts about this little book.

Some believe that it could be the book Daniel was told to seal up:

Dan 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
Dan 12:5 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river.
Dan 12:6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
Dan 12:7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
Dan 12:8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?
Dan 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

John would go on to write all these words of the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

John would go on to preach the Word of God with even more emphasis upon the end times.

We must understand that we have this same responsibility!

We may think things are terrible right now, but it is not the end times and it is not the Tribulation years.

We may be in that time of sorrows, but it is not time to quit on the Lord no matter our situation!

The Word of God is a “two-edged” sword and both sides of the Word of God must be understood and then taught!

Heb 4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Heb 4:13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
Heb 4:14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

This “rest” for the Church, is the next thing on God’s time clock.

Then this same “rest” for the Children of Israel.

Then the “unrest” for all those who have rejected the Lord, and this is part of the message we are to share.

The main message still being that Jesus Saves!

Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Rom 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Rom 10:12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Let us all get busy about the work the Lord gave John to do and the work the Lord has given us to do.

That work has not changed!

Amen

The Prophet Joel

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Joel God’s Prophet Of Judgment

Book of Joel Chapters 2 and 3

Joel was a prophet to Judah of the Southern Kingdom and was one of the earliest of the writing prophets.

The name Joel means “Jehovah is God”.

Again nothing much is known about this prophet except that he lived in Jerusalem and his father’s name was Pethuel. The name Pethuel means “mouth of God”.

In other words Our Heavenly Father was also claimed by Joel, just as all those that know the Lord as our Heavenly Father.

Joel’s message speaks much of the soon coming “Day of the Lord” and with that, God’s judgment of all the nations that have rejected the Scriptures.

We know that the Book of Joel was recognized as the actual Word of God by the Apostle Peter when he quoted from the Book of Joel in his sermon on the Day of Pentecost just a few days after the Lord Jesus had returned to His throne in Heaven.

Peter said:

Act 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
Act 2:17 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:
Act 2:18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
Act 2:19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
Act 2:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Act 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Peter believed he was living in a part of fulfilled prophesy in that same day when 3000 people came to know the Lord Jesus as their personal Savior.

We are wrong if we do not have the same faith that Peter had!

The Holy Spirit was poured out on the Church that day and the New Testament Church had it’s beginning.

That phrase “the Day of the Lord” can be found 31 times in the Scriptures and there are even more references to this soon coming day, because we are closer than we have ever been to the Day of the Lord!

It is on this day that all sinners will be destroyed!

Isa 13:9 Behold, “the day of the LORD cometh”, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.

The Message of Joel:

*****Joe 2:12 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

Up until this point in the Book of Joel, he has described a terrible plague of locusts that had come into Judah.

An invasion of locusts is one of the heaviest calamities that can befall any nation.

The Jews said these pests could not be numbered.

The Arabs said there were so many that they could darken the Sun and locusts do not fly at night.

The Italians called them “the little horse”.

God said the locusts have no king but they could move as being directed by a supreme leader.

Pro 30:27 The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands;

And Joel says when they die their decaying bodies caused a stench that could taint the air for miles.

Joe 2:20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.

The result of such a plague of locusts is total devastation to the land!

Deu 28:42 All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.

And Joel says the on “the Day of the Lord” the circumstances will be the same. The land will be devastated and the armies that come against Israel will lay on the ground and their bodies will stench up the air.

Isa 66:23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

Our verse says the only way to avoid this “Day of the Lord” is to repent!

The most important word in this verse is “turn”!

True repentance consists of the “immediate” turning away from the things of this world and then a complete “turn” toward the face of God!

We should always seek the face of the Lord before we ever seek the arm of the Lord!

This turning must include a “sincere” deep “sorrow” for sin and that sorrow must come from “within” the heart!

Fasting in this verse is abstaining from the things of this world and seeking the nourishment of God.

God has provided a complete nourishment in the completed Word of God!

Weeping in this verse is the inward conversion of the heart after reviewing the sins of the past and to hate and forsake them!

Mourning here is the confessing of our faults knowing, no one on this Earth can repair that feeling of loneliness!

That repair can only come from above!

And must include the heart:

*****Joe 2:13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

The Jews would rip their garments into pieces as a sign of remorse but God says it will take more than an outward show of remorse, it must be an inward thing.

Psa 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

God will not accept anything less than these all things in true repentance!

True repentance of sin requires a deeper grief, because we must learn to hate sin while maintaining a love for the sinner!

These are the only things that will cause God to repent of the evil that is in store for each unrepentant sinner!

God hates to do evil but He must fulfill the Word of God as it is written!

Even Jonah knew this to be true of the Lord!

Jon 4:2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

We must never forget the wages of sin are still “DEATH”!

True repentance of Sin, brings “LIFE” but only by Jesus Christ!

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

*****Joe 2:14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?

In this day of Joel, God had visited His people and had left behind the curse of the locusts but upon repentance when the Lord returns, God will leave behind a blessing!

Those locust had devastated the land. These Jews were required by the Laws of Moses to offer up a meat offering to the Lord but that was now impossible.

Lev 2:1 And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:

These Jews were to offer up a drink offering to the Lord which was also now impossible because of those same locusts.

Lev 23:37 These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:

In that day there was no forgiveness of sin unless these offerings were made and unless they repented of their sins only then would God change a curse into a blessing. They could never be forgiven without such an offering and they clearly understood the outcome of these things.

Every individual sinner must realize these same things!

God simply says “I tell you these things that you may know” the truth!

1Jn 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
1Jn 5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
1Jn 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; “that ye may know” that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

It is true repentance that restores our relationship with the Lord!

*****Joe 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people.
Joe 2:19 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:

What is he truth of Scripture?

Once God sees true repentance, then and only then, will God be jealous for His land and pity His people!

This is the change in God that repentance brings!

This is best described as “Mercy”.

Mercy is best described as compassion for the miserable!

We are all miserable sinners, each and everyone!

In Christ Jesus “Mercy” and “Truth” come together in the only means of salvation for a lost and miserable people!

Jesus teaches us all to be compassionate and show mercy to all others as He has done to those that repent!

Mat 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?

We need to clearly understand that God has deep and strong emotions for those that place their trust and their faith in Him!

God becomes a Father to all those that call on His name and He will provide all the things we need and most important, protect us from the coming destruction of this world!

Repentance may not bring healing from the pain of sin.

Repentance may not erase the sad memories of our past.

Repentance may not restore the things we lost in our sinful life.

Repentance “does” restore us to a position of peace with the only One who can do all these things if He so chooses!

And it is God Himself who will take vengeance on all our enemies!

All these things are true for all those that repent and call on the name of the Lord!

*****Joe 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.

This prophesy of Joel spans the years this prophesy and was revealed on through the Church Age and on through the Second Coming of the Lord when He will also save that remnant of the Jews!

Paul wrote:

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

These words had not changed in the nearly 1000 years before Paul and these words will hold true until the return of Christ Jesus!

A call on the Messiah is a call on our Father in Heaven!

Deliverance is a release from captivity!

Deliverance is a release from the slavery to Satan!

Deliverance is a release from the oppression of a sinful life!

Deliverance is a release from the bondage of sin!

Jesus said of His first mission:

Luk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

We can see that by the Holy Spirit, it can only be Jesus Christ who can fulfill the prophesy of Joel!

After explaining the means of salvation Joel then takes us to the judgment on the nations and the foolish people who reject the Word of God.

*****Joe 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

The land promised to Abraham, from the Nile River to the Euphrates River has been “parted” by many nations in the more than 4000 years since Abraham.

In 1948 just part of this land was divided between Israel and Jordan by the United Nations.

In fact this passage could be read that God will judge those United Nations, who have done such a thing, all the way back to the Roman league of nations and on through those of Nebuchadnezzar.

All nations, each and everyone, that are united against the nation of Israel will be judged by the Lord!

The name Jehoshaphat means “whom Jehovah judges” and with this meaning this could simply mean the place of God’s final judgment on all the foes of Israel!

Isaiah writes these things:

Isa 66:5 Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name’s sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.
Isa 66:6 A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendereth recompence to his enemies.

God says He will just speak and it will happen, much like the first week of creation!

Zechariah writes these things:

Zec 14:1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
Zec 14:2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Zec 14:3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

And the Apostle John wrote these things:

Rev 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
Rev 19:12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
Rev 19:13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
Rev 19:14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
Rev 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
Rev 19:16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

These words are the truth as much as all the Word of God is true!

God will certainly judge all nations that have caused harm to Israel along with all those that reject the truth of the Word of God!

It is this battle that the Lord will end with the “Sword Of His Mouth” that will usher in the 1000 year Millennial Rule of the Lord.

Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

Even King Jehoshaphat knew this truth:

2Ch 20:20 And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; “Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper”.
2Ch 20:21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth for ever.

It should also be noted that this judgment is two-fold, those nations that have treated Israel poorly will see the wrath of God but those nations that have treated Israel good will earn God’s blessing and be a part of the Millennial Kingdom!

*****Joe 3:11 Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD.
Joe 3:12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

It should be very clear to this world that there is coming a judgment!

Because God is holy, He must judge all that is unholy or He would no longer be holy!

Judgment is a necessary expression of God’s character!

BUT, God’s judgment will be fair and according to the truth of Scripture!

Rom 2:2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.

Notice God will judge all the heathen!

We have already established that the heathen are all those that reject the Word of God!

At this time God will judge all the nations from all parts of the Earth and not just the nations that surround Israel!

Zec 12:9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Mal 4:1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
Mal 4:2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
Mal 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.

And though they hate His name, it is the Lord Jesus Christ who will cause this judgment to take place!

Joh 5:26 For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
Joh 5:27 And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.

Mat 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

These things were not written to be a threat. These things are simply the truth of the Word of God and not some fable from some old book that is rejected by most of this world!

*****Joe 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

When the judgment of God comes to this Earth it will be because wickedness has reached the point of it’s maturity.

An example is given in the Book of Genesis:

Gen 15:14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
Gen 15:15 And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
Gen 15:16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.

And the Amorites no longer exist!

It may surprise many to know but there have been at least 7 nations in the last 100 years that no longer exist as a nation!

We know from the Book of Revelation, that the world in the end times will be spiritually and physically as wicked Babylon!

Jeremiah prophesied of the end times:

Jer 51:33 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; The daughter of Babylon is like a threshingfloor, it is time to thresh her: yet a little while, and the time of her harvest shall come.

And the Apostle John wrote of this day:

Rev 14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
Rev 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
Rev 14:20 And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

God will have extended every opportunity for our world to change but the world will continue to hate the Lord and hate the the New Testament Church.

Joh 15:18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
Joh 15:19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

*****Joe 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.

Sin will have caused the conversion all the instruments of peace into implements of war on this day and most of the world will defy our holy Living God!

All evil will present itself ready for destruction, because sin will have reached the limit that God had placed upon it!

To become a Christian, a decision must be made before the end of our lifetime and the sooner the better!

Many will say they are just not ready to make that decision.

In fact the sadness and the gloom of our world are mainly due to the indecision of it’s people!

Abortion continues, because even though most of the world deplores this thing they remain silent and so it continues.

The gay lifestyle continues because even though most of the world deplores such immorality they remain silent and undecided, so it continues.

This is true for most every other immoral act that continues in our world today!

The world simply will not speak out against sin but remains tolerant to sin, saying people have rights to sin.

The Word of God says this is not true!

AND, On the “day of the Lord” no one will emerge until they have made a decision right or wrong!

There will be no indecision from anyone living that day!

As each branch of theology matures during the Church Age, which will end at the Rapture which will take place before the “Day of the Lord” we must come to a decision with regard to Jesus Christ and for those who cannot, they will see the “Day of the Lord” where all decisions are final!

1) It is Jesus Christ who revealed God to this world!

2) It is Jesus Christ who removed all barriers to the throne room of God!

3) It is Jesus Christ who provides the only means of salvation!

The world must accept these truths to find their way out of the valley of decision!

*****Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.

The biggest conversation in our world today has changed from global warming to climate change and nations are beginning to bring lawsuits against other nations who they deem responsible for these things.

Our own President says climate change is our greatest foe in the years to come.

This evil world will find that on and even nearer to the “Day of the Lord” all of nature and all the agencies of our universe will aid in the defeat of all immoral evil and wickedness and that day is closer than it has ever been!

Isa 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.

*****Joe 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.

Jesus Christ the innocent Lamb of God, will be the mighty Lion of the tribe of Judah and will defiantly roar on this day!

He will be heard far and near and He will strike fear and terror into the hearts of all His enemies!

Jer 25:30 Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The LORD shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.

But those of the nation of Israel will not see terror but only hope!

Because God is a refuge to all those that trust in Him!

There are three things that a Christian has, that most of the world does not have.

1Co 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Hope is an essential element of Christian life!

The little nation of Israel, on the “Day of the Lord” will realize this same hope that the Church has always had since the time of His resurrection!

Unbelievers live in a world of no hope and this is a very miserable place to be!

It is our hope that keeps us motivated to serve the Lord!

Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Rom 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
Rom 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

And where there is hope there is strength!

*****Joe 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

The truth is that when Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem, the glory of the Lord came down and filled that building.

Mount Zion, where Jerusalem was built, belongs to God and no one on this planet can claim ownership of this place because it is God’s!

Psa 87:2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
Psa 87:3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.

When the Temple was destroyed, the Scriptures have said that the Temple will be restored and God’s glory will return.

Psa 69:35 For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession.

The Nation of Israel has since been restored to that land in 1948 and in 1967 Jerusalem once again came back into the hands of God’s people!

Today the people of Israel battle daily just to walk on the Temple Mount but there is no Temple at this time, instead a mosque to a false god sits on the Temple Mount.

God has promised to restore Zion and to dwell there this time in all His glory!

Isa 51:3 For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

As the Church we know this time as the reign of God during the Millennial Kingdom!

Isa 33:20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
Isa 33:21 But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.

Jer 31:6 For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the LORD our God.

Mic 4:1 But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.

Zec 1:16 Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.

Many claim these Scriptures refer to the physical city of Jerusalem.

Many claim these Scriptures refer to the spiritual city of New Jerusalem.

The fact is that is both!

The Lord will restore the physical city of Jerusalem and Mount Zion and the throne of David and rule in that place for 1000 years.

It is only after this 1000 years that the New Jerusalem will be occupied by all the children of God!

Jerusalem is called the Holy City many times in the Bible and the word Holy means that Jerusalem belongs to God!

Isa 4:3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:
Isa 4:4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

It is only after this time that things become Spiritual!

*****Joe 3:20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.

The lessons from the Book of Joel are these:

1) There will be a time of judgment for this world and it is best known as “The Day Of The Lord”!

The calls for repentance will be over, at least temporarily, and retribution will commence!

2) As Peter stated along with Joel, God is very patient with a disobedient world because His “Mercy Endureth Forever”.

3) God’s blessings of the Holy Spirit. These blessings are for all people, in all ages. God may have selected one nation as a peculiar people to bring forth His message but “Whosoever Calleth On The Name Of The Lord Shall Be Saved”!

4) God’s people will have the final victory! “We Are On The Winning Side”!

It may seem that evil is going to triumph and Jerusalem is trodden down, but the promises of God are sure and a remnant of the Jews will eventually accept the Messiah for who He is!

Until that Day Of The Lord, it is the Church that is God’s tool of salvation and we must not remain lax in the work God has given us to do!

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen

Questions?

Let’s Pray!