Jon Kim, “God for Us”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QQLAE8_kXY
TEXT: Joel 2:1-17
[1] Blow a trumpet in Zion;
sound an alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near,
[2] a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains
a great and powerful people;
their like has never been before,
nor will be again after them
through the years of all generations.
[3] Fire devours before them,
and behind them a flame burns.
The land is like the garden of Eden before them,
but behind them a desolate wilderness,
and nothing escapes them.
[4] Their appearance is like the appearance of horses,
and like war horses they run.
[5] As with the rumbling of chariots,
they leap on the tops of the mountains,
like the crackling of a flame of fire
devouring the stubble,
like a powerful army
drawn up for battle.
[6] Before them peoples are in anguish;
all faces grow pale.
[7] Like warriors they charge;
like soldiers they scale the wall.
They march each on his way;
they do not swerve from their paths.
[8] They do not jostle one another;
each marches in his path;
they burst through the weapons
and are not halted.
[9] They leap upon the city,
they run upon the walls,
they climb up into the houses,
they enter through the windows like a thief.
[10] The earth quakes before them;
the heavens tremble.
The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
[11] The LORD utters his voice
before his army,
for his camp is exceedingly great;
he who executes his word is powerful.
For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome;
who can endure it?
[12] “Yet even now,” declares the LORD,
“return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
[13] and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.
[14] Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering
for the LORD your God?
[15] Blow the trumpet in Zion;
consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
[16] gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
assemble the elders;
gather the children,
even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
[17] Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O LORD,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
SERMON: God for Us
Main Point: Go live with full confidence today, for God is a God who is for you.
And you know that God is a God who is for you because of his Son Jesus. Or in other words, through Jesus’ death, life, and resurrection, you know God is not against you. And if this is the case, what is there to fear.
The Life of Fear
The Life of Being Assured
The Life of Assurance
Point 1: The Life of Fear
Last time we met, we talked about how Joel is Apocalyptic Literature…. And this is because throughout the book, the phrase, “The Day of the Lord” is repeated over and over again. And you see this phrase throughout our passage in verse 1 and verse 11. And “The Day of the LORD” refers to this future day where there will be great judgment and destruction for the people of God. And in Joel 1, the destruction on the Day of the LORD is described as a locust plague. A plague that would destroy all the natural resources of the land.
But today in our passage, the destruction on the Day of the Lord is described in a different way. According to verse 1-11, the destruction comes in the form of an army. And this army that is unlike any other. This army that destroys EVERYTHING in its path. Verse 3, “The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them. This army cannot be stopped. Even the walls of your city can’t protect you. Verse 9: They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls. This army is focused and has one singular purpose. Verse 7: They march each on his own way, they do not swerve from their paths. And what is the sole purpose of this army? It’s this… the complete destruction of God’s people. And this is terrifying. It’s the worst possible thing that could happen to you in the ancient world. Yet at the same time, the most puzzling and difficult part of this passage is not really about the destruction this army is going to bring. If we’re talking about the toughest pill to swallow, the toughest pill is not the destruction.
There’s something more difficult. And you find this puzzling and difficult part in verse 11. If you can imagine verses 1-10 as a crescendo of destruction, verse 11 is the climax. And in verse 11, what you find is shocking. This is what it says.
The Lord utters his voice
before his army,
for his camp is exceedingly great;
he who executes the Lord’s word is powerful.
For the day of the Lord is great and very awesome;
who can endure it?
What you find out from this verse is basically this…. It isn’t the enemies of God or Satan that are attacking God’s people, like you might expect. But rather, God is the one who is commanding the army of destruction against his own people. It is our God against his own people. And I think immediately the question that comes to mind is this… “Is God good if he would destroy his people?” And we’ll try to answer this question a bit later, but before we do, I want to spend some time reflecting on this problem in front of us. Because this problem of God being against his own people, this feeling of betrayal, hits home to all of you in this room, myself included. This feeling where you wonder to yourself.. Is God for me or is he against me…. Is God for me or is he against me…. And I believe this is a feeling that every Christian consciously or subconsciously wrestles with. If you have put your faith in Jesus, right… you’ve devoted yourself to the almighty God who says he loves you. But when life doesn’t go the way you wanted or expected… When your worst fears do come true. It’s natural for you to wonder if God is really for you. I mean this is how Adam and Eve were tempted to commit the first sin in all of history. Satan says to Eve… Did God really say you will die if you eat from this fruit? Or in other words… “Are you sure God isn’t withholding something good from you? Is he really for you if he’s hiding something from you?”
For those of you who have received the diagnosis of cancer, chronic illness, pain and suffering that hasn’t gone away or healed… It can feel like you’ve been cursed by God…. For those of you who have lost a loved one in a tragic way…. You may question his goodness and sovereignty and ask, “Why? Why would you let this happen?” For those you who have really wanted a promotion or to be able to start a family with a newborn baby, but your prayers have gone unanswered. You may wonder. God do you even care about what I care about? For those of you who struggle with addiction, whether with alcohol, drugs, or pornography… sins that come with deep shame. You may think. I’m sure God’s patience has run out for me. He won’t keep forgiving me and he will punish me soon. Everybody wonders is God for me or against me. And this feeling doesn’t even have to be as serious as the examples I gave just now. For those of you who are always worried that the worst possible thing will always happen to you and that’s why you check if you turned off the iron 8 times or that’s why you pack 10 pairs of underwear on your 2 day trip, it may be because you believe that the worst is destined for you and that God isn’t for you. For those of you who try to control everything, make sure your child goes to the right school, with the right education, so they turn out the way you expected them to, it may be because you don’t think God will do that for you. We are constantly questioning whether or not God is for us or against us. And how could you not after reading our passage today. God says that he is leading the charge against his own people in Joel. Why would it be any different for you and me? And so why should any of us in this room be confident that God is for us… And what I would like to get across to you today, through this passage believe or not, is simply this… You have the best reason to believe that our God that we worship today, the same God of the book of Joel, is a God who is for You….
And this leads me to my second point. The Life of Being Assured
How do you know God is for you and not against you? How do you know that God will forgive your sins no matter how many times you committed the same one? How do you know you’ll get into heaven even when at the end of your life it feels like the bad things you did outweighed the good? How do you know that God is for you when your worst fears do come true? And God answers this question to the readers of Joel… How do you know God is for you even though he is sending an army of destruction towards you? Because it says this in verses 12-13… “Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he is one who relents over disaster.” In response to what you may think of God. In moments of doubt. In moments where you wonder whether or not God is for you or against you. God does two things to remind you that HE is for you. The first thing he does is that he reminds you that it is never too late, you are never too far gone in your sin, and you will never be in too much doubt of him…
For you can always return to him. In verse 12, I love how God begins his call back towards his people… “Yet even now.” This is a powerful phrase that you can quickly overlook if you’re not paying attention. “Yet even now.” No matter how much you have doubted God and his goodness. No matter how many times you may have failed with the same sins over and over again. Yet even now… The door is open for you. You have a Father who is running to you with open arms. There is no mountain or valley can separate you from Himself. When you are in doubt, the first thing that God does to assure you that he is for you is that he reminds you that you are never too far gone.
The second thing God does is that he declares to you who he is through his Word. When your heart convinces you that God does not love you, that God’s very angry with you, that he is punishing you for something you’ve done. What God does is that he declares to you, who he is. “I am gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and I relent over disaster.” No matter what you may say or believe or think about God, it’s the best news that your thoughts or words don’t get to define who God really is. But rather God gets the final say. If the God who spoke the world into creation out of nothing, declares with his same mouth that he is gracious and ABOUNDING in love for you, then surely you can trust that he is for you. So the second thing he does is that he reminds you through his Word who he is to you.
Now you may say to me… so what? So what if God says he’s gracious and merciful. His actions don’t show that he’s gracious and merciful. And this brings me back to the question we asked in the 1st point… So the question remains. Is God good if he would bring judgment on his people. What I’ve realized about God’s judgment is this…. God’s judgment feels unjust or wrong or evil when you think you’re the good guy in the story. When you watch movies like Lord of the Rings or Chronicles of Narnia, my guess is that you don’t feel a deep connection with the orcs of Mordor, the minions of the White Witch. My guess is that you feel a deep connection with the fellowship of the ring or Aslan’s followers. But I hate to break the news to you, but in the story of the Bible, you are considered the bad guy. In Romans 5:10, what you find is this… you were enemies of God. Standing opposed to him, loving your trespasses. Following the commands of Satan, the prince of the power of the air as it says in Ephesians…..When God stands opposed to you, what you find out is that he has every right to be….. He has every right. But even though he has EVERY right to bring judgment… he says this… Yet even now… Return to me,… For I am merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and I don’t want to destroy you because I am a God who relents from disaster. And if you don’t believe my words, then I will give you something more… The word incarnate. For Romans 5:10 actually says this… For while we were actively enemies of God, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more now… because you have been reconciled through Jesus, shall you be saved in this life.
I want to take some time to look at verse 14. It says, “Who knows… who knows whether God will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him.” “Who knows…”And the tone of this phrase “who knows” is often the tone of our repentance. I’ll repent, but… Who knows… maybe God will forgive me…. But maybe he won’t.. This phrase “who knows…” is used four times in the Old Testament. It’s used often when talking about repentance. Will God forgive and turn his anger away from us? Will he relent from the disaster that he said would come? And what’s interesting to me is this… This phrase “who knows…” never appears again in the Bible after the Old Testament. It’s never again said in the New Testament? Rather, in the New Testament, you are not given any reason to doubt whether or not God is for me or against me. Instead in the New Testament, you get passages of full assurance that God is for you, such as Romans 8:35-39, which says… “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or EVEN a sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors in this life through Jesus who loved us. For I am sure and confident that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD.”
Why is there no more “who knows” whether God if for me or against me. Because God sent His Son Jesus, Our Lord to save us. Because God sent his Son, Jesus to die on the cross to take the punishment of God’s judgment and wrath that you see in our passage today, so that you would never have to face this judgment in this life or in the life to come. Which mean, no matter what may happen in your life. No matter how much you may even hate life right now. It does not mean that God has abandoned his love for you… It does not mean that God is against you. For you have God’s Word, incarnate displayed to you. To show you that he is exactly who he says he is. In Jesus, God’s grace and mercy became incarnate. In Jesus, God’s patience and slowness to anger became incarnate.. In Jesus, God’s abounding steadfast love became incarnate. When Jesus died on the cross for you, he gives you the full assurance that “Yet even now.” No matter what position you may be in. Whatever you may feel or believe about yourself or about God. God’s truth stands over your beliefs and doubts, for you have been sealed to him by his love and Holy Spirit. For Jesus showed you this through the life he lived. That through his perfect life and rejecting sin and temptation he can now intercede for you and be compassionate towards you. For Jesus showed you through his death. That no matter how much you may have sinned or failed.. Your sins cannot overcome His mercy. Fo your sins have been paid in full. For Jesus showed you through his resurrection. That even though you may suffer and get ill in this life, there is a new body that awaits you. Jesus is God’s proof to you that he is for you. And that is why, this phrase, “who knows” is never used again.
But rather you get promises like this one… “If we confess our sins, (it doesn’t say who knows, maybe Jesus will be faithful, rather it says…) if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Mothers and Fathers, sisters and brothers, you are more than conquerors in this life… You are more than your failures. You are more than your suffering. Because God our Father is for you and no one can take that away from you. And so how does this assurance work in real life? How does this practically change anything. And this leads me to my last point…
THE LIFE OF ASSURANCE.
You are being assured, so that you can live a life of assurance. And how do you get a life of assurance…Verse 12 makes it clear to you what the first step looks like. Return to God. Show your need for him. Nothing else matters in the moment. If you look at verse 16, it says this… “Consecrate the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, even the nursing infants (who don’t know anything or can’t even understand anything). And I think this is the best part. “Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.” And what this room and chamber that is being talked about is the room and chamber where couples would consummate their marriage after the ceremony. The Bible is saying, consummating your marriage is great and all, but there’s something so important that you need to do. And that thing that is more important than anything else, is returning to God.
And so what does returning to God look lie? Returning to God may look like putting your faith in Christ for your salvation if you haven’t already. It may look like confessing that you need him. It may look like trusting that God is truly for you. It may look like repenting to him even though this may be your thousandth time repenting to him for the same sin. I want to show you today, returning to God isn’t a perfect or cookie cutter formula. Returning to God for some of you may look like arguing and wrestling with God. And I really want to make this clear to you. Because for some of you today… you feel like the rug has been pulled from under you. As much as you would like to put your full faith and trust in God and be excited about Jesus…, you may still be doubting whether or not God is for you. Rather it feels like God has sent a holy army to destroy you into bits and pieces. And if that’s you today… how I would encourage you today is this… Sometimes returning to God looks like arguing with him. I think Job had it right when he said this in Job 13:15 - “Though he slay me, I will hope in him (that’s the famous part of this verse that everybody likes to quote, but I think the next part is even more important for most people).” Though he slay me, I will hope in him…. YET I will argue my ways to his face.” Argue your ways to his face. And this may sound heretical, but when you look at the biblical authors, this is what they did. Just look at these passages.
In Job 7, Job says “Why have you made me your target?” (Job 7:20)
In Psalm 73 it says: “Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure.”
Jeremiah, says this in Jeremiah 20. “You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived” (Jer. 20:7)
In Psalm 38 it says – “Your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down on me.”
Returning to God doesn’t mean you have it all together. Sometimes it means to argue to God’s face. And why should we return to God. Because when you return to God, what he will do is bring you back to the foot of the cross, where he shows you that he is exactly who he says he is….. Through his Son, Jesus… And when you are confronted by God’s love for you through his Son, Jesus, you cannot but help to live a life of courage and confidence. How could you not, when you know that the God of this ever expansive universe is for you. And what does a life full of confidence and courage practically look like. It means that you can pray boldly because you trust that God hears you. And whether or not, he says yes or no to your prayers, you know that he is doing all things for your good. It means that you can speak the truth with grace to those who have wronged you, even when you’re afraid what they might think of you when you confront them. It means that you don’t have to apologize to others about your faith. It means you can stand firm in your identity with God, and you can let go of the identity that you get from your friends, your work, your peers. It means that you don’t have to live up to man-made expectations. It means you can live with joy and peace without having to be anxious all the time. You can enjoy the moment and not be so worried about the next thing. It means you can serve without feeling the need to get credit from others. You can own your mistakes and repent even if you feel shame about what you’ve done. It means you can step into hard things you’ve never done before even if you feel unqualified or have fear of hardship or failure. The list goes on…. Knowing that God is truly for you can change the smallest of things in our life. Return to God, because when you do, he will fill you with all the assurance he can give you. Through his son, Jesus, his word incarnate. Would you join with me in prayer.
