Beacon Hill Church

Joel compares the devastating plague of locust with an invading army - An army, which sweeps through the nation destroying everything in its path.


In ancient times there was little they could do to combat these plagues of locust. Their only hope was to light large fires and hope that the locust would be suffocated by the smoke and drop into the flames and die.


These fires, however, would also destroy the pastures where their herds grazed and the fields where they planted.

When confronted by the devastation and loss, the Prophet Joel calls on the people to repent:

He tells the people to “Rend your heart and not your garments” But God doesn’t want torn clothing.


He desires us to “rend” our hearts in repentance. To acknowledge our brokenness and need for God’s forgiveness and restoration.

In this context, the word "jealous" signifies God's passionate commitment to His people and the land He has chosen for them. The idea conveyed here is not one of petty jealousy, but rather a profound love for His creation, from which springs a desire to restore what has been damaged through disobedience and sin.


Verse 18 is the turning point of the book. This is the point at which marks a transition from the repercussions of sin to restoration. Where the grace and compassion of the Lord overrides the consequences of sin.



Joel 2:13b Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.(NIV)

The restoration will be abundant in nature: The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil (v. 24)

The loss experienced by the Israelites extended beyond one harvest or one year. The impact lasted multiple years.


The results of this restoration would be more than just physical; it would also be a restoration of the Spirit and their relationship with their creator.

· Physically: “You will have plenty to eat, until you are full”

· Spiritually: “You will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you”


The conclusion of this section of Joel summarizes God’s intention for the restoration: Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other; never again will my people be shamed (v. 27)


God must deal with sin, but when His people repent, they find abundant grace and blessing that more than compensates for what was lost in the years prior.

· This was a wonderful promise for the people. It meant that years of abundant harvests would follow the years of desolation brought about by the locusts.


But God has put it in the Bible for us. What do “lost years” look like for us?

· How can God restore the years that the locusts have eaten in our lives?

· Years that you can’t get back.


LOST YEARS:
Fruitless years, Painful years, Rebellious years, Selfish years


THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT GOD RESTORES THE YEARS THE LOCUST HAVE EATEN. HOW?

· God promises to send the rain, the autumn and spring showers, and give them an abundant harvest.

· A bumper crop so great that it will restore the years that the locust had eaten.


See the Parable of the Sower in Matthew, chapter 13.

God promises not just replication or an addition, but a multiplication of the seed that is sown in faith.

God can do more in one day or one year then we can accomplish in a lifetime


If you grieve for the “lost years”, repent, pray and ask God to restore – to multiply fruitfulness in your life. Regardless of the loss, regardless of the obstacles, regardless of life’s circumstances.


Then trust God to send the “rain” of the Spirit – that which softens the earth and nurtures the seed causing it to break forth into new life – watch and observe what the Lord will do.