Skip to content Mercy Triumphs Over Judgment: God’s Desire to Restore Nov 7 · 18 min ...more
Mercy Triumphs Over Judgment: God’s Desire to Restore
November 7, 2026 · 18 min
Though holiness requires correction, God is gracious and slow to anger—repent and experience His steadfast love and renewed hope.
Series Stand on the Word - Video On Demand November 7, 2026 · 18 min · Stand on the Word - Video On Demand
Though holiness requires correction, God is gracious and slow to anger—repent and experience His steadfast love and renewed hope. ...more Show the full description Show less Though holiness requires correction, God is gracious and slow to anger—repent and experience His steadfast love and renewed hope.
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Return to the Lord with All Your Heart 0:10 Good morning. Welcome to stand on the word today. We're looking at Joel chapters two and three, timely word. What is the way forward for a nation that has0:22 departed from God? Verses twelve and thirteen of chapter two, yet even now declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, with mourning. Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return0:33 to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and he he relents over disaster. So the actual locust invasion in0:45 chapter one becomes... Really, it's a prophetic warning of an invading army that we read here in chapter two that's judgment by God. So there's this first wave of an actual0:57 literal locust invasion that then becomes the illustration, the prophetic warning of a coming army that would be the instrument of god's1:09 judgment. But, again, we see here it's accompanied with a plea, a plea by god himself to repent and return to him. Now understand,1:21 god's heart is for restoration. It always has been. That's the nature of God. As James wrote, mercy triumphs over judgment. It's really simple.1:33 God just wants us to turn back to him, and that mercy is there. But god's holiness, his sinless nature demands correction and punishment, but his grace1:45 extends forgiveness to all who will seek it, and we're gonna see that in this passage. Verses one through eleven are a prophetic warning of judgment that will be seen in the Assyrian siege and1:57 eventually the Babylonian invasion as well as tribulation. Again, we see these prophetic messages on multiple horizons. Verse one, chapter two, blow a trumpet in Zion, sound an alarm2:09 on my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is near. Sound the alarm. Why? The day of the Lord2:21 is coming. That is this... This is a finality. Okay? If Joel was calling for the priest and the watchmen to sound the alarm nearly three thousand years ago, what should2:33 the church be doing today? I believe it should be sounding the alarm because the day of the Lord is drawing near. Now look at the instructions. Talking about that,2:45 look at the instructions that Jesus provided in Luke chapter twenty one verse twenty eight says, now when these things begin to happen, what things? The the the the signs of the times. Look up2:56 and lift up your heads because your redemption draws nigh. Alright. Back to Joel chapter two verse two. A day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness like blackness,3:08 there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people. Like their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of3:20 all generations. 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 nothing3:33 escapes them. So here's this before and after picture that Joel is painting with these... With his words. Alright? Verse four, their appearance is like the appearance of3:45 horses and like... See, we see... We see the letters like. It is... These are painting vivid prophetic images. Like war horses, they run. Now, again,3:56 keep in keep in mind the prophetic nature of this description. Look at Revelation chapter nine verse seven. The shape of the locust was like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were crowns of4:08 something like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. Like like this imagery. Verse five, as with the rumbling of chariots, they4:20 leap on tops of the mountains like... Again, I just wanna encourage as you... As we read through these prophetic books, a lot of imagery. And and it's it's not necessarily4:32 literal. It is a picture of things to come, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. Before then, people are in anguish.4:44 All faces grow pale. Like warriors, they charge. Like soldiers, they scale the wall. They march each in his way. They do not swerve from their paths. Now drop down to verse4:56 eleven. 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 and5:07 very awesome. Who can endure it? The answer is no one unless they're covered by the blood. God raised up this army, and he... It was operating at his5:19 command. Why? Look down at verse twelve. Yet even now, declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. See,5:31 the purpose here, the purpose initially... I mean, it's like chastisement. It's pulling people back that god wants them to come back. You know, judgment is final. Chastisement is drawing5:43 us back to him. It's... And so the purpose for this is that they would turn to his mercy and be embraced by his grace. Verse thirteen,5:55 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. He relents over disaster. Now6:08 this reflects what he's talking about, what the nature and the character of the people. What he's calling them to is is humility, humbling themselves before him. You know, one of the consistent warnings that we'reSound the Alarm: The Day of the Lord Is Near 6:20 gonna see throughout the prophets was to stop the the religiosity. Stop playing religion. I'm not... He... God says, I'm not interested in your hollow rituals. I'm not interested in6:31 your sacrifices. I'm not interested in all these things. Don't tear your clothes and put on a show. Let your hearts be broken by the realization, not of the coming punishment, but6:43 of your willful sin against god. You know, a lot of people experience remorse for what they did because they got caught. God's not saying don't be remorseful. Be repentant, meaning turn from it.6:55 Turn around from it. Let your heart be broken because you have separated yourself from me. And here... Here's the hope that's based upon the character and the nature of God,7:07 verse fourteen. 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? The place was devastated.7:19 There was nothing left. He said, hey. Turn, repent, go to god, and and who knows? He'll leave a blessing behind him. He'll restore. We're gonna see here in a moment. So what's the process?7:31 Well, describe here verse fifteen, blow the trumpet in Zion, consecrate a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the people, consecrate the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the7:43 children, even nursing infants. Nobody's nobody's exempt from this. Everybody's needed. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber. There's no excuses. Verse7:55 seventeen, between the vestibule and the altar, let the priest, the ministers of the lord, weep and say, spare your people, oh lord, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword8:06 among the nations. Why should they say, among the peoples, where is their God? Couple of observations here. The spiritual leaders8:19 must lead, but they must first be changed. You can't effectively lead people to a place that you've not been. If you're gonna lead people into the presence of god, you have to be there. You have to8:31 know what the presence of god is like. The positioning here that's described is to have their backs to the altar in the courtyard because they had nothing to offer on the altar. Everything was8:43 gone. There was nothing there. So they were to weep for God's presence facing the temple, which was during that time was the presence of God, the Shekinah glory. Notice also the basis for the8:55 appeal here. This is... We've seen this over and over, and we're gonna continue to see it. And I just... I I plead with you to grab a hold of this because it should it should permeate even our prayers today, even for our9:05 nation. It was for the reputation of god. Look. He said, why should the nation say among the peoples, where is their God? They have a... They they were connected to9:17 Jehovah, to Yahweh, and they were appealing to his reputation. See, it's not about us. It's not about our comfort. It's it's it's not about our well-being.9:29 It is about the honor and the glory of God. It's always about him. Verse eighteen, then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. The lord answered and said to his people, behold,9:41 I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied. And I will no more make you a reproach among the nations. What's the... Just turn9:52 to him. Just take him up on his offer of forgiveness. You know what? And that same forgiveness is available to you and I today. I mean, yes, he's speaking here to a nation, but this applies to individuals.10:05 If you're... If if you're separated from God, if you not have that relationship with God, look, God wants to forgive. God does not want you to carry around the burden and the weight of sin and guilt. He10:17 doesn't want the chastisement to be upon the relationship, nor does he want those who are outside that relationship to suffer the ultimate punishment. He wants us to be in relationship with10:29 him. I will restore to you the years the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, the cutter, the great army which I sent among you. These things come from10:40 God. Okay? I know people like to explain them away as natural disasters and this and that. God. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praiseGod Promises Restoration to Those Who Repent 10:52 the name of the lord your god who has dwelt wondrously with you, and my people shall never again be put to shame. Again, multiple horizons. This is being fulfilled in multiple, and and, you11:04 know, we we saw this. Again, we... The the the initial locusts, real locusts, then the invasion, the Syrians in the northern kingdom, Babylonians in the southern kingdom.11:16 And, you know, there's going to be more in the final and the tribulation, the ultimate fulfillment. So look at that ultimate fulfillment in Revelation chapter twenty one verse five, and he who was11:28 seated on the throne, behold, I am making all things new. And he said write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true. That restoration, that final restoration that will be for11:39 all eternity is yet to come. Verse twenty seven, you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel and that I am the lord your God, and there is none else. And all my people shall never again be put to shame.11:52 Now this message now moves toward the period of the new covenant and beyond as the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which took place at Pentecost,12:04 is promised. Now in the Old Testament, we've talked about this before. The Holy Spirit was given to a position or to assignment. But at the establishment of the church in the new covenant, the Holy12:15 Spirit is given to us. That's the gift by Jesus Christ that I'm I'm sending my spirit. I go away, and I'm sending you the spirit. And that is the Holy Spirit that was poured out. Verse twenty eight, and it shall come to12:26 pass afterwards that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female12:38 servants in those days, I will pour out my spirit. No regard for status. The Lord, if you're a believer, if you have accepted Jesus Christ as your12:50 savior, you have the Holy Spirit. That is the gift of God, and he's pouring out his spirit. Now, of course, we'll get into this later, but Paul talks about we have to be filled with the spirit. We have to yield to13:02 the spirit if we wanna walk in the power of the spirit. Now this will precede the coming day of the Lord. Verse thirty, and I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood13:14 and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls in the name of the Lord shall13:26 be saved. For in Mount Zion, in Jerusalem, there shall be those who escape as the Lord has said among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.13:38 Look. I know there are some to say, well, there... Everybody's just gonna be saved in the end. I said, those that call upon the name of the lord shall be saved. Chapter three13:49 covers the, the entire prophetic landscape moving from the return from Babylon after the captivity to the first advent of Jesus Christ to the last days14:01 and to his return and millennial reign. A lot in one chapter. Verse one. For behold, in those days and at the time when I restored the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gatherThe Outpouring of the Holy Spirit 14:13 all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgment with them there on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel because they have scattered them among the14:25 nations and have divided up my land. Alright. Take note of this. It is really relevant right now. The Valley of Jehoshaphat means Yahweh judges. And this this14:37 refers to to the day of reckoning for the nations on how they treated Israel, and that's coming. Verses nineteen through seventeen speak of the battle of Armageddon.14:49 Revelation sixteen fourteen shows this for they are demonic spirits performing signs who go abroad to the kings of the whole earth to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the15:01 almighty. But verse sixteen, back in Joel three, the Lord roars from Zion, utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earthquake. But the Lord is a refuge to his people,15:13 a stronghold to the people of Israel. So you shall know that I am the Lord your God who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain, and Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass15:25 through it. Then we have the description of the millennial reign, verse eighteen. And in that day, the mountain shall drip sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the stream beds of Judah shall flow15:37 with water, and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord and water the valley of Shittim. Egypt shall become a desolate, and Edom a desolate wilderness15:49 for the violence done to the people of Judah because they have shed innocent blood in their land, but Judah shall be inhabited forever in Jerusalem to all generations. I will avengeJudgment on the Nations and the Millennial Reign 16:01 their blood. Blood I have not avenged for the Lord dwells in Zion. A lot in this small book of Joel, but it really sets the16:13 stage as we begin to look at the prophetic books of the Old Testament. Father, we thank you for your word, and we thank you for that holy spirit that even here in the book of Joel is promised to16:25 be poured out upon those who call upon your name, upon your people. So we thank you for that, and we pray for the holy spirit to lead us in this journey through your word, giving us16:36 an understanding of your word and how to apply it to our lives first and foremost. But then, Lord, learning how to apply it to the world around us. May we walk under the shadow16:48 of your wing. Lord, in your mercy and your grace, and I do pray, lord, that as a nation, we would repent and turn to you and be embraced17:01 by your grace and mercy. We thank you for it. In Jesus' name, amen. Thanks for joining me this morning. And until next time, keep standing on the word.17:14 Today's study comes from the stand on the word bible reading plan available for free at f r c dot o r g slash bible. By following along in just a few minutes a day,17:25 you can read through the entire Bible in just two years. Learn more and request the free reading guide at frc dot org slash bible.In this video 0:00 Return to the Lord with All Your Heart6:10 Sound the Alarm: The Day of the Lord Is Near10:50 God Promises Restoration to Those Who Repent14:10 The Outpouring of the Holy Spirit15:54 Judgment on the Nations and the Millennial ReignComments No comments yet. Start the conversation.
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