Joel 1:15
Alas for the day!
For the day of the Lord is near,
And it will come as destruction from the Almighty.
The prophet looks further.
He sees behind that great drought and that locust plague.
In the distance he sees the day of the Lord approaching.
The prophet speaks of this terrible, devastating plague as a judgment from God.
It heralds the day of the Lord, which will come as the day of judgment.
The day of the Lord.
That is with the prophets always the time of the redemption of His people, and of the destruction from the enemies.
But a sinful people can only face that day with horror.
Who would not tremble when the Judge of heaven and earth comes to judge?
The day of the Lord.
Ever since Jesus showed us, we know what that day means.
First of all, the day of salvation and of redemption.
Today is still the day of grace. Now it is still the time of grace.
But there will be another day.
A day when He comes to judge the earth.
And when Jesus returns tomorrow, does He find you ready?
It would not be so strange if someone said: “We have so far heard nothing but gloomy things in this book, only judgment and shock.
Do not be mistaken.
Until now it has been about the day of the Lord, and that day will be a day when God will do justice. He will judge His enemies and deliver His people.
- But what if that people don’t expect Him?
- But what if that nation, over which His Name has been proclaimed, is now sunk in a thousand sins.
- But what if that people focus only on the things of this world?
- But what if that people focus only on material blessings?
Then for that people the day of the Lord will not be a day of redemption, but of judgment, and some of the dismay about it, now echoes in this text.
No, don’t be mistaken:
The Lord proclaims grace in Christ.
But He never ignores sin.
Not then and not now.
There are questions for many today about the judgments of God.
▪︎ Is swine flu a judgment from Him?
▪︎ A contagious disease like now Corona?
▪︎ And a war that breaks out?
One thing is clear in the midst of many questions: all those events are harbingers of judgment day. They are signs of the times.
And they therefore call us to repentance to the Lord.
In addition to the Bible, let’s keep an eye on the news and notice how the Lord is calling us to repentance every day today.
× 0 ×
Internet: http://harryschoemaker.nl
Website: https://devotionals.harryschoemaker.nl
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/worldwide.ekklesia/
