[0:00] Joel chapter 2 and verse 1. Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain.
[0:15] Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.
[0:26] Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.
[0:48] We don't usually hear much about this prophet Joel. It seems that he was a contemporary of some of the other prophets that we find in this section of the Bible, particularly a man like Hosea.
[1:08] And so often these men had to preach, and their messages were very sharp.
[1:23] Not the kind of preaching that we would like to hear nowadays. I think if we were to call a minister like Amor, we would have difficulties in listening to him.
[1:41] For his message was such that people tremble under the word of God.
[1:52] I am not too sure whether we would like to listen to those kind of messages today or not. But we find something very similar here.
[2:07] And what we have before us is really a message of judgment in the first place. a message of judgment.
[2:18] A message of judgment. And then we have a message of really a call to repentance to a call to be reconciled with God to return to the Lord the message of salvation.
[2:39] And the prophet here brings this message the message of the Lord the word of the Lord unto his people. And it is really a message to backsliding Israel.
[2:59] And he does that in a very victorious way. He preaches first to the leaders of the people. And he urges them to blow the trumpet in Zion.
[3:19] To sound the trumpet and call the people together bring them together for this an important message from the Lord which they all need to hear.
[3:37] to hear. The message to backsliding Israel and the the condition that the people were we find that in chapter 1 that is why I read chapter 1 because chapter 1 describes to us the sort of conditions in which the people were where they had where they were spiritually at that time and an urgent call for them to consider to reconsider their ways to turn back to the Lord and he impresses that upon them with this message of judgment that the day of the Lord is at hand it is around the corner for it cometh it is nigh at hand not only that but it is a message to all the inhabitants of the land not only to backsliding Israel but to the surrounding nations to people who were in the midst amongst them who were not
[5:12] Israelites to their neighbors as well as well Lord ye the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in my holy mountain let all the inhabitants of the land tremble Are you aware of this kind of thing happening today?
[5:40] May I ask you when was the last time that you as a Christian trampled as the word of the Lord was being preached?
[5:58] as the word of the Lord was being preached? Or when you as someone here sitting this morning who is not a Christian who is aware that God, he is not in contact he is not aware of any personal encounter with God, any personal relationship with Him when did you when were you last confronted with God who is angry with your sin?
[6:39] Look at our nation today Look at Glasgow the city of Glasgow forget the nation for a moment How many times have you and I sat here and have wondered why are all these pews empty?
[6:51] Is it because that there is nobody else living in Glasgow?
[7:04] Is it because that there is nobody else living in Glasgow? But you would say no, that is not true there are many people, many people living in Glasgow but they are not here today It is for this reason that they are no longer aware, they are no longer conscious of this thing that the day of the Lord is at hand that God is angry with sinners The Bible tells us He is angry with the wicked every day And I assure you, I am sure you know that yourselves if they were aware of this they would all be here That's what happens in revival doesn't it?
[8:02] Because the Holy Spirit when He comes when He comes in His power upon the Church of Jesus Christ people are convicted of their sin righteousness judgment to come and they hasten to hear where they can find relief where they can be relieved where they can find refuge from this great day of the Lord from this great day of the Lord Now I want to develop this this message of judgment and the message of a call to repentance a call for the people to return to the Lord to the Lord and be reconciled with Him Every time the phrase occurs in the Bible as the day of the Lord the Lord it has a direct implication to judgment so often in the Old Testament when this phrase is used the day of the Lord it refers and on many occasions to judgment that had already come upon the people in the way that God had dealt with them their enemies had come and plundered them they had lost some of their privileges these were judgments they were them in that context the day of the Lord and it is something similar that
[9:58] Joel is trying to bring before them the day of the Lord is at hand he is going to judge us he is going to punish us if we continue in our rebellious condition so not only that in the Bible there is this great message before you and before me of the great day of the Lord the final day the day of judgment the day of judgment the day of judgment now then let us ask ourselves why why is there such a thing in the Bible you see many times when people read the Old Testament they don't like it because they are confronted time and time with this message the message of judgment the message of judgment that God is angry that God is going to punish you know and no one is going to get away from it and they read the Old Testament and this is what they find well you see
[11:14] I don't like this I don't like this I don't like this God who punishes the wicked so instead they turn to the New Testament to the New Testament and mistakenly they try to think that the God of the New Testament is different from the God of the Old Testament because they only like to read passages like John 3 16 for God so loved the world they like to only believe that God is God of love he cannot punish the wicked he will not judge us he can't do this surely he is the God of love so is it something new?
[12:11] new you see even in the New Testament we can't get away from this in fact in the New Testament the picture of judgment is ever so clear it is far clearer than the picture that we find in the Old Testament because there we have the Lord himself preaching we have him telling us but the fire that is burning the flames that will never be quenched the worm that will never die Peter, James, John, the Apostle Paul every one of them from John the Baptist they have this to tell us first that God is angry that God will punish sin and no one will escape that and I think we need to to be aware of this we need to consider this in the light of ourselves in the light of our own situation in the light of people outside for this is an impending time it is waiting for them this is where it will all one day culminate to this is all this is where we are all heading to myself and you and the people outside this is where we are all going we are going to one day one day be there on the day of judgment when we will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ wherever you are minister, elder, DP ordinary person sitting in the queue you now then
[14:24] I want to show you that judgment is really that power is to be found in the character of God I want to suggest to you that that if God did not punish the wicked if God did not judge the wicked he would be imperfect he would be imperfect and why do I say that?
[15:08] for this reason because of his justice the God of the Bible he is just he is righteous if he is just, if he is righteous unrighteousness unrighteousness unrighteousness can never come near him sin sin has nothing to do with him sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin he will react against sin sin sin it follows that he will be angry with sin he will be angry with unrighteousness he will be angry with sin because of his justice he will judge he will punish sin judgment
[16:33] Judgment is to be found in the counsels of God. Even before he created the world.
[16:53] Have you ever thought of that? Sin, it follows that salvation.
[17:12] Redemption, the plan of salvation is to be found in the counsels of the Godhead, is to be found in eternity with the Father and with the Son and the Holy Spirit.
[17:33] When we read in the Bible about the covenant of redemption, when we read in the Bible that the Lord Jesus in eternity puts himself forward, volunteered to come to humble himself, to take the form of a servant.
[17:53] Because there is a day of salvation, it follows that there is a day of judgment, that there is a day of his fierce anger, the day of his growth.
[18:09] And whenever we find anyone preaching in the Bible, this is what they have to tell us first.
[18:22] That God is angry, that God is going to punish the sin. That is why we need salvation. That is why we need salvation. That is why we need shelter, we need refuge.
[18:35] That is why we need to be converted, we need to be saved, because there is a day of judgment. Listen to John the Baptist's preaching.
[18:46] He doesn't tell people first of all about salvation. He doesn't tell them, you must be born again. But what he tells them is this, repent.
[19:01] Repent. Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. And the way John the Baptist understood the kingdom of God was this, that God was going to come and judge.
[19:19] Please. Flee. Flee from your wicked ways. Flee from your hypocrisy. Flee from your nominal religion.
[19:38] And you know what happened? All those religious men, the Pharisees and the scribes, they came running to him. Why? Because they were suddenly conscious that God, repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.
[19:54] God is going to judge us. Listen to a man like Jonah. Then eventually he went to deliver the message to the people to whom he was called.
[20:14] The Lord sent him to go and preach to Nineveh. And what was he to tell to the people of Nineveh?
[20:25] It was this, yet forty days, says the Lord, I will destroy you. I will wipe you from the earth.
[20:43] It was received well. It was received well. For they realized the truth of what Jonah was preaching. And they repented. They turned from their wicked ways. They sought the Lord, that he would have mercy upon them.
[20:57] He did. But if they hadn't, Nineveh was going to be destroyed. Now what am I trying to do? I am trying to bring before you this, that the gospel, the gospel that you and I are to preach, that you and I are to sit under, and listen to, is first of all, a message of judgment.
[21:35] The Puritans understood this very well. I hope you read the Puritans. Young people. They teach us this, don't they?
[21:50] that the gospel was first of all, you had to go and you had to preach the law, you had to preach about God who was just, God who was holy, God who was righteous, who was the judge of the whole earth.
[22:08] And then they were to preach grace. That's the gospel. God who was holy, God who had to preach.
[22:19] He was holy. And then they came to pray. Because if you want to know, Why should I seek the Lord? Why should I be converted? Why should I be born again?
[22:31] It is because there is the day of the Lord. your Lord. He is angry with sin.
[22:44] He is angry with my sin. He is angry with your sin. And if he were to come and hold us accountable, my dear friends, none of us, whatever we think of ourselves, none of us will be able to stand.
[23:07] So this is what the Prophet did. Sound an alarm. Lower the trumpet in Zion.
[23:19] Bring the people together. A message from the Lord. I'm reminded of a story I heard a little while ago.
[23:31] One of my Korean friends who was with me in Bible college was telling us this. That in Korea, where he came from, there was a revival, a great movement of God, several years ago.
[23:50] And in the little village where this man lived, they used to have a man there who used to dress, you would not believe it, like John the Baptist.
[24:06] He did. People thought him to be a fool. And there was something he used to do in the middle of the night.
[24:21] He would run through the village and the streets of the village and he would be ringing the bell. They were ringing the bell and shouting, fire, fire is burning.
[24:36] People will wake up. Get up from their beds. Fire is burning. Run, flee. Fire is burning. Fire is burning. Fire is burning. Fire is burning. And they would all come out.
[24:47] Where is the fire? Where is the fire burning? And there was no smoke. There were no flames to be seen. And then he came again.
[24:59] And he's running and he's ringing the bell and he's shouting, fire, run! Fire is burning! Fire is burning. So they began to follow him. Let us see. Let us go. And see where this fire is burning.
[25:14] And then he stopped. When they were all out, this great crowd standing before him, he turned to them and started ringing the bell. Fire is burning!
[25:26] In hell. Fire is burning in hell. Fire is burning.
[25:38] It may be time for us to preach like that. To our people. To the city of Blasco.
[25:56] It is time for us maybe to stop beating about the bush. And tell the people the truth. This is the truth, isn't it?
[26:11] Let us face it, this is the truth. There is the day of the Lord. There is the day of His judgment. The Apostle Paul told the Corinthians, knowing therefore the terror of the Lord.
[26:27] Do you know the terror of the Lord? Christians. He is writing to Christians, he is writing to a church in Corinth and he is telling them, knowing therefore the terror of the Lord.
[26:41] We persuade man. It may be that you and I will have to learn about this, fall on our knees, Lord, show me what hell is like.
[26:57] Maybe then we will be better preachers, better Christians, better witnesses. Secondly, the gospel, you see, yes it is a message of judgment and we must preach that.
[27:16] But it is also a message of salvation, a message of hope.
[27:27] he spoke more carefully, and it comes from himself. And it comes from himself, it comes from himself.
[27:44] Listen to these words. Therefore also now says the Lord. Turn ye even to me with all your heart. ye even to me with all your heart." You know what? Our God is good.
[28:02] He tells us the truth. He tells us what is the score. But he tells us that there is a way of escape. There is a way for us to find shelter, to find refuge.
[28:19] And it is his way, it comes from him. He is telling us about it. Therefore also now says the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping and mourning, and rend your heart. You know what that means? Rend your heart.
[28:44] And not your garments. And turn unto the Lord your God. Come back to him.
[28:56] Maybe there is someone here who professes himself to be a Christian. And you are following the Lord at a distance.
[29:11] And you have fallen into some kind of sin. Maybe there is someone here who is not outwardly sinned against God.
[29:24] But you know backsliding is quite amazing. It doesn't begin when we actually fall. It begins a long time before that in our own hearts.
[29:38] Maybe it is there. And the Lord is calling us. Turn ye now even to me with all your heart.
[29:55] Turn around. Repent. Weep for your sins. Morrn for your sins. Grieve that you have sinned against the Holy One.
[30:09] Rend your heart and not your garments. Turn unto the Lord your God. Why? Will he help us?
[30:21] For he is gracious. He is gracious.
[30:33] He is merciful. If you will turn, he will have mercy. He is slow to anger.
[30:48] When he pronounces judgment, he tells us that he will save sinners if they will turn to him.
[31:01] He pleads with people before he wipes them off from the face of the earth. The Old Testament is full of them. Full of incidents where he sent his messengers, lead with the people.
[31:18] But they would not listen. He is gracious. He is slow to anger. He is of great kindness.
[31:32] Who knows if he will return and repent. Not repentance in the way that we understand repentance.
[31:43] Not repentance in the way that we understand repentance. Not repentance in the way that we understand repentance.
[31:55] You are the one who is a good person. You are the one who is a good person. You are the one who is a good person. we also need to hear that there is a message of hope, a message of salvation.
[32:08] Why is that? It is because of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[32:19] It is because of the death of Christ. And I think if we were to see this, we would see this very clearly when we consider the death of Christ.
[32:36] Because it is there that we find that God is angry. It is there we find that God, He is wrathful, that He judges, that He punishes sin, that He does not let the wicked go.
[33:02] We see that in the death of Christ. Because it is there when He is nailed to the tree, that God is propitious unto us.
[33:21] And don't be afraid of that word. For it is there that when Christ has died, that He quenches, that He receives what belongs to us.
[33:40] For He quenches the fierce anger of God His Father, upon sin and upon unrighteousness.
[33:51] It is He that receives it. It is He that quenches it, that satisfies the judgment of God against sin. It is He that turns it away.
[34:04] It is He that turns it away. Judgment and salvation in the death of Christ.
[34:18] For it is when He turns away the wrath of God. It is when He turns away the judgment of God against His own people.
[34:31] That there is salvation to be found. There is hope to be found for all who come to Him.
[34:42] May I in closing just speak to those who are not Christians.
[34:54] My dear friend, if you are not a Christian, have you heard the alarm?
[35:07] Have you heard about the fire that is burning? That is your lot.
[35:19] Make no mistake about it. Fire is burning. Jesus Himself tells us.
[35:32] And that is where you are going, if you are not a Christian. It is written on your forehead.
[35:46] It is written on your heart. No one has written that. You have written that upon yourself, because of your sin and your rebellion against God.
[36:02] Your next appointment is this. You have two. For it is appointed unto men once to die, and after that the judgment.
[36:22] That's where you are going. And you need to hear that. You need to know that. And it is no use saying that, Ah, I have heard this before.
[36:40] Here is another hell fire preacher, you know. But if tomorrow you were to face God, if you die tonight in your sins, you will be lost.
[37:01] And what will you say to God Almighty, when He will tell you, you heard the preacher. You heard about my son.
[37:13] You heard about the Savior, who is willing to save all who turn to Him. And you didn't turn.
[37:24] And you put it off. And you went away from this place, thinking you have time. No, my dear friend, the message this morning is, Time is up!
[37:36] That's when the alarm bell rings, doesn't it? In the morning. I don't know when you set your alarm bell. Time is up!
[37:47] Get up! Wake up! Wake up! The fire is burning.
[38:00] Fire is burning in heaven. Now is the day of salvation. The Holy Spirit tells us.
[38:15] The words are very carefully written. Now is the day of salvation. Then, day of judgment. Now is the day of salvation.
[38:30] Now is, my dear friend, the time for you to turn. The Lord Himself pleads with you. Turn. Come back. Forsake your sins.
[38:41] Seek Him. He is ready to save you. He is ready to deliver you from the past to come.
[38:55] I pray that you will. Let us pray. Lord our God, we do pray that thy word shall surely come home to us all.
[39:12] O that we will repent of our backsliding and come and seek the Lord and be reconciled with Him again.
[39:27] That He may show us His favor. But O that the ungodly, the wicked will turn and seek the Saviour today.
[39:42] We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.