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Joel 2:21-23
Fear not, O land;
Be glad and rejoice,
For the LORD has done marvelous things!
Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field;
For the open pastures are springing up,
And the tree bears its fruit;
The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.
Be glad then, you children of Zion,
And rejoice in the LORD your God;
For He has given you the former rain faithfully,
And He will cause the rain to come down for you--
The former rain,
And the latter rain in the first month.
Be glad and rejoice,
For the LORD has done marvelous things!
Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field;
For the open pastures are springing up,
And the tree bears its fruit;
The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.
Be glad then, you children of Zion,
And rejoice in the LORD your God;
For He has given you the former rain faithfully,
And He will cause the rain to come down for you--
The former rain,
And the latter rain in the first month.
KILMARTIN SERIES 8
Joel 2 came up in last Tuesday’s gathering as we shared about the perilous nature of these present times, when the forces of the Evil One walk in our midst without let or hindrance — or so it would appear.
As has been mentioned before in these pages, our village of Kilmartin (the name means ‘Martainn’s cell, or church’) is at the heart of an area with more pre-Christian rock carvings, burial cists, standing stones and cup and ring markings than anywhere else in Scotland. Kilmartin is one of many spiritually significant places around the globe that The Lord has chosen as His battleground.
The prevalence of the current focus on ancient spiritual practices acts like a magnet to those swallowed up by New Age mysticism, witchcraft and a host of other unGodly beliefs. It is our belief — and that of many others before us in Kilmartin, stretching back to Martainn himself — that Kilmartin and the Glen needs the constant presence of God’s people, however small in number we may be, as watchmen on the walls.
None of us are immune to the spirits of the age in which we find ourselves, which is why it behoves those of us who seek The Lord’s Countenance, to press in to His Word and His Voice, following Paul’s exhortation in 2 Corinthians 6:17, where he quotes* Therefore, Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you." "I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty."
The results of this spiritual separation — looking to The Lord and not to man and the world — can be seen in Joel 2:21-23. As well as being a wonderful picture of God’s provision for His people, it presents us with the beauty and joy of The Holy Spirit’s outworking.
As has been mentioned before in these pages, our village of Kilmartin (the name means ‘Martainn’s cell, or church’) is at the heart of an area with more pre-Christian rock carvings, burial cists, standing stones and cup and ring markings than anywhere else in Scotland. Kilmartin is one of many spiritually significant places around the globe that The Lord has chosen as His battleground.
The prevalence of the current focus on ancient spiritual practices acts like a magnet to those swallowed up by New Age mysticism, witchcraft and a host of other unGodly beliefs. It is our belief — and that of many others before us in Kilmartin, stretching back to Martainn himself — that Kilmartin and the Glen needs the constant presence of God’s people, however small in number we may be, as watchmen on the walls.
None of us are immune to the spirits of the age in which we find ourselves, which is why it behoves those of us who seek The Lord’s Countenance, to press in to His Word and His Voice, following Paul’s exhortation in 2 Corinthians 6:17, where he quotes* Therefore, Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you." "I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty."
The results of this spiritual separation — looking to The Lord and not to man and the world — can be seen in Joel 2:21-23. As well as being a wonderful picture of God’s provision for His people, it presents us with the beauty and joy of The Holy Spirit’s outworking.
* See Numbers 33:51–56; Isaiah 52:11; Revelation 18:4
Meditate On These Things
JEREMIAH 51:11-12
Make the arrows bright!
Gather the shields!
The LORD has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes.
For His plan is against Babylon to destroy it,
Because it is the vengeance of the LORD,
The vengeance for His temple.
Set up the standard on the walls of Babylon;
Make the guard strong,
Set up the watchmen,
Prepare the ambushes.
For the LORD has both devised and done
What He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.
Make the arrows bright!
Gather the shields!
The LORD has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes.
For His plan is against Babylon to destroy it,
Because it is the vengeance of the LORD,
The vengeance for His temple.
Set up the standard on the walls of Babylon;
Make the guard strong,
Set up the watchmen,
Prepare the ambushes.
For the LORD has both devised and done
What He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.
FOR YOU ARE HIGH AND LIFTED UP — LaMar Boschman and Integrity’s Hosanna
A HOLY CONDITION: Oswald Chambers on JOY and PEACE
— JOY - Strength in the Spirit --
GOD DID NOT create Adam holy. He created him innocent, that is, without self-consciousness before God. Adam was conscious of himself only in relation to the Being whom he was to glorify and enjoy.
Consciousness of self was an impossibility in the Garden until the introduction of sin. Sin kills the child in us and creates in us the bitter sinner. That is why our Lord says we have to become children all over again. In other words, God's right to me is killed by the incoming of my self-conscious right to myself.
Sin is not a creation; it is a relationship set up between the devil (who is independent of God) and the being God made to have communion with Himself. Disobey God, separate yourself from Him, and you will be "as God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5 AV: see Genesis 3:22). The entrance of sin meant that the connection with God was gone and the disposition of self-realization had come in its place.
[from ‘Biblical Ethics’]
Consciousness of self was an impossibility in the Garden until the introduction of sin. Sin kills the child in us and creates in us the bitter sinner. That is why our Lord says we have to become children all over again. In other words, God's right to me is killed by the incoming of my self-conscious right to myself.
Sin is not a creation; it is a relationship set up between the devil (who is independent of God) and the being God made to have communion with Himself. Disobey God, separate yourself from Him, and you will be "as God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5 AV: see Genesis 3:22). The entrance of sin meant that the connection with God was gone and the disposition of self-realization had come in its place.
[from ‘Biblical Ethics’]
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