#DailyDevotion Turn Back To The LORD Jesus Christ Right Now!
Joel 2:12–19 12“Right now,” says the LORD, “return to Me with all your hearts, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.” 13Tear your hearts and not your clothes, and turn to the LORD your God because He is gracious, merciful, slow to. get angry, full of kindness, and relents from disaster. Who knows – 14He may relent and leave behind Him a blessing -gifts of food and drink for the LORD your. God?… 17Then the LORD was zealous for His country and took pity on His people. 19The LORD answered His people: “Now I’m sending you fresh grain, new wine, and olive oil, until you are, satisfied. And I will no longer let you be a disgrace among the nations.
Joel appears to be a prophet in the southern kingdom of Judah. The verses before these foretell an army coming to devastate the land at the bequest of the LORD God Almighty, Israel’s and Judah’s God. Why would their God threaten them with such destruction? They were not faithful to the LORD their God. They worshipped other gods besides him. They gave credit to these other gods for their good fortune instead of the LORD. To top that off, the people did not offer their sacrifices at the place designated by the LORD. They did not offer the LORD their best when they did offer sacrifices.
Because their hearts were not set on the LORD in their worship their hearts were cold to their fellow man as well. The widow, the orphan, the poor, the foreigner and the Levite were not provided for as the LORD had directed in the Torah, the Law. Worse! They were taken advantage of by the LORD’s people. They murdered for money, prostituted their daughters and sons, sold their fellow Israelites into slavery to make a buck. While our country is not a theocracy nor is it Church, how are we as Church, as God’s people in this place having mercy on those around us, the widow, the orphan, the poor, the foreigner and our pastors? What does James say? 127“Your way of worshiping is pure and stainless before God the Father if you look after orphans and widows in their troubles and keep yourself unspotted by the world.”
To Judah and to us the prophet Joel speaks, 12“’Right now,’ says the LORD, ‘return to Me with all your hearts, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. 13Tear your hearts and not your clothes, and turn to the LORD your God because He is gracious, merciful, slow to. get angry, full of kindness, and relents from disaster.’” We should examine ourselves daily according to the Word of God. Where have we failed or fallen short? Where have we rebelled? There is a chance, right now to repent. Right now, today! Turn to the LORD Jesus Christ and believe the word of the prophet Joel. He is gracious, merciful, slow to get angry, full of kindness and relents from disaster. This is the name the LORD gave us in Exodus 34. It is the reason we should repent, turn from our selfish, self-centered ways and start looking after those in need in front of us. Maybe we can even search for people needing our help. That is what God in Christ Jesus has done for us, for you. It’s what he’s doing right now as you are reading this. Let him change your hearts of stone into hearts of flesh that love even your enemy and do good to him. You were once God’s enemy and he sacrificed Jesus for you. If you believe this, you will do likewise.
Heavenly Father, give us repentant hearts that turn away from our selfish ways and turn to you for mercy, kindness, love and forgiveness so as we receive these things from the hand of Jesus we may give them freely to those we meet along the way. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.