Rend Your Hearts…Not Your Garments

Joel 2:13

I started reading Joel yesterday.  In it the Prophet pleads with Judah to turn back to God before the Day of the Lord arrives.  In the last chapter (4:19) Joel pronounces judgment on Egypt and Edom because of the violence perpetrated against Judah.  Lo and behold as I scanned the headlines of today’s news I saw a Jihadist group named Mujahedeen Shoura Council claimed a rocket attack in southern Israel today from you guessed it.  Egypt.  (Click Here For CBSNews Article)

Isn’t it interesting that scriptures written centuries before the time of Christ are still being played out in the news today?  With all that being said, my question is: “How does Joel apply to us today?”

In Joel Chapter 1 , God warns Judah of impending judgment, and there are five actions the people of Judah are told to take:

 

1.)        Wake Up  (v.5)

 

2.)        Lament  (v.8)

3.)        Be Ashamed (v.11)

4.)        Put on Sackcloth  (v.13)

5.)        Consecrate a Fast & Call a Solemn Assembly  (v.14)

The message for Christians today is the same message the people in Joel’s day heard:  Wake Up, Weep, Repent, and Seek the Lord!  Basically, Joel was pleading with the religious leaders, the ‘elders’, to be honest about their sin, and do whatever it took to be in a right relationship with God.  Wouldn’t it be smart for us to do the same.  The Day of the Lord is drawing near.

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