Sun – Praying Pint

53.a. Joshua 1:1-8

Jos 1:1-8 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

God made a covenant with Abraham, which was passed on to Isaac, which passed on to Jacob. Jacob had 12 sons and Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt. Joseph was blessed by God and became very promenade and important in Egypt. A famine in the land of Jacob orchestrated a move of the family to Egypt where the family found favor and prosperity. Over time they went from prominence to slaves and remained in this status for 400 years.

God heard their cries and brought forth Moses who after 40 years of age fled Egypt and for another 40 years remind away. At 80 years of age, he was called to lead his people out of slavery. God performed signs and wonders that set the Israelites free from the bondage of the Egyptians.

In the wilderness, God made His covenant with Israel, the Law, the system of sacrifice, and the choice of blessing or cursing for Israel. There were many signs and wonders performed by God to display His awesome power, unlimited might and all-knowing unlimited abilities. His Holiness was demonstrated as well as His justice, grace, mercy, and love.

After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, God spoke to Joshua and initiated the move from the wilderness to the promised land.

The Land of Promise

The confidence of God’s power

The confidence of God’s promise (I will never leave you or forsake you)

The encouragement – Be strong and courageous

Meditate on the Book of the Law

Do not let the Book of the Law depart from your mouth

Be careful to follow the Book of the Law – All of it

I will make you prosperous and you will have success

And so we start the journey of the Israelites into the promised land.

40.y. “I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction”

Exodus 3:15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations. Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.

Psalms 72:17     May his name endure forever, his fame continue as long as the sun! May people be blessed in him, all nations call him blessed!

Psalms 72:19    Blessed be his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and Amen!

Psalms 135:13    Your name, O LORD, endures forever, your renown, O LORD, throughout all ages.

Psalms 102:12     But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations.

Micah 4:5    For all the peoples walk each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever.

“I AM WHO I AM.” “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” “This is my name forever”

After four hundred years in Egypt, Moses had the job of announcing that now was the time for the children of Israel to go back to Canaan, and to take the land God promised to their fathers. This was probably totally contrary to what the elders and people of Israel desired. In four hundred years, you set down roots. They probably had no desire to return to the Promised Land; all they wanted was to be made more comfortable in Egypt.

We don’t come close to understanding the purposes and plans of God. We like to think that we will be provided a land flowing with milk and honey, peace, trial, and trouble-free. Faith in God would be much easier and certainly more shallow if this were the case. Think about when your faith grew. Wasn’t it after you had walked in the valley of trials and troubles? Wasn’t it during a time when your situation was without answers? Wasn’t it during a time when you realized that self-reliance was not even close to being adequate? Wasn’t it a time when you realized your only hope of refuge, strength, and courage to face another day was in God – I Am?

Some of our paths in life will be less burdensome than others who will live in almost constant trials and troubles. It is the same God over all of us. We do not know God’s plans and purposes other than the promises given to us in His Word. I will never leave you or forsake you. I will give you peace and rest. I will be your refuge and strength. I will guide and lead you. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

We may think we have been forgotten or our trials and troubles are unseen by God. Cast these thoughts from your heart and mind. Lay these in the hands of Him who is able to do more than we ask and much more than we can imagine. By faith, we can trust and rejoice in our Heavenly Father no matter what situation we find ourselves in. It is hard to release our burdens and trust God. It is not natural for us to rely on God when we desperately want to rely on ourselves.

Our purpose in life is to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all we think, say, and do. By faith, we think, say, and do that which honors and glorifies Him. When we intentionally choose and commit to this every moment of every day, we will find reasons for hope and rejoice in Him alone.

35.n. “So that the whole world may be held accountable to God.”

Genesis 3:17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Romans 3:19   Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

Jeremiah 7:23-24   But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’  But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward.

Isaiah 24:5-6    The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.  Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few men are left.

Ecclesiastes 1:2-3   Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.  What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 1:13-14   And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with.  I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.

Romans 8:20-22   For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope  that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

Job 1:21   And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Eve was deceived but Adam was not. He chose to willingly disobey God’s command. Such is life. We either are deceived like Eve or we willingly, like Adam, choose to disobey God. Being given the free will to choose does not remove the consequences of choosing paths apart from God’s desire and purpose for our lives. Our single purpose is to honor and glorify Jesus Christ. Anything short of this by deception or willingly disobedience is sin against God, our Creator. Neglect, complacency, or flat-out rejection and denial of God is no excuse. If we neglect, become complacent, reject, or deny God’s Word, if we do not see it as food for our soul and water for our hearts and minds, if we find little to no time for His word in our lives, if we allow the busyness of life to consume our minds and time, if we desire more of what this world has to offer rather than honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ we deceive ourselves into a false sense of security willingly in disobedience to God our Creator. We choose every day that which does or does not honor and glorify Jesus Christ. It was in paradise Adam and Eve chose to sin. How much easier is it to sin in this world full of deception and lies. Satan still tries to deceive by claiming that the things of this world are much sweeter and gratifying than the things of God. Lusts of the flesh, lusts of the eyes, and ears are all deceptive temptations placed before each person every second of their lives. These deceptively lead people to conclude self-worth, self-reliance, self-gratification, self-grandeur, self-pleasing, self-satisfaction, self-justification, self…………….. is more worthy and satisfying than following after God.

Do we think for a second that half-hearted head nods toward things of God honor and glorify Jesus Christ? Do we think Godly words from our lips that never reach our hearts and minds honor and glorify Jesus Christ? Do we think being lukewarm is better than cold to things of God? It is safe to say that your life will reflect that which fills it. Do we think for a moment that God does not see through and know our neglect and complacency toward Him in our thoughts, words, and actions? Do we think we can bluff God with our lack of commitment or half-hearted commitment? When our hearts desire and seeking is to honor and glorify Jesus Christ, it is then the deceptions of this world will not only become apparent but more importantly, they will have less and less influence in our lives.

34.h. “A day of wrath is that day, a day of distress and anguish”

Matthew 24:29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Isaiah 13:10   For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light.

Jeremiah 4:23-28    I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.  I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro.  I looked, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the air had fled.  I looked, and behold, the fruitful land was a desert, and all its cities were laid in ruins before the LORD, before his fierce anger.  For thus says the LORD, “The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end.  “For this the earth shall mourn, and the heavens above be dark; for I have spoken; I have purposed; I have not relented, nor will I turn back.”

Ezekiel 32:7-8   When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens and make their stars dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give its light.  All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over you, and put darkness on your land, declares the Lord GOD.

Joel 2:10    The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.

Joel 2:30-31   “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood 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.

Amos 5:20     Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?

Zephaniah 1:14-15    The great day of the LORD is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter; the mighty man cries aloud there.  A day of wrath is that day, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

Acts 2:19-20    And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;  the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.

Revelation 6:12-17    When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood,  and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale.  The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.  Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains,  calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb,  for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

Several prophetic passages describe the cosmic disturbances that will precede and surround the glorious return of Jesus. All these signs are figures of great and terrible calamities. The roaring of the waves of the sea denotes great tumult and affliction among the people. “Perplexity” means doubt, anxiety; not knowing what to do to escape. “Men’s hearts should fail them for fear,” or by reason of fear. Their fears would be so great as to take away their courage and strength. Barnes)

But I am more inclinable to interpret them of the last judgment, and to think that our Saviour is now passed to satisfy the disciples about their other question, concerning the end of the world; for although Christ’s coming may sometimes signify that remarkable act of his providence in the destruction of his enemies, yet the next verses speaking of his coming with great power and glory, and of his coming with his angels, and with the sound of a trumpet, and gathering his elect from the four winds, the phrases are so like the phrases by which the Scripture expresses Christ’s coming to the last judgment, and Christ speaking to his disciples asking of him as well about that as the destruction of Jerusalem, I should rather interpret this verse with reference to the last judgment, than the destruction of Jerusalem before spoken of, or at least that these signs should be understood common both to the one and the other, as divers of the other signs mentioned in this chapter are. Some think that the darkening of the sun and the moon here, the falling of the stars, and the shaking of the powers of heaven, are to be taken metaphorically, as signifying the great change there should be in the ecclesiastical and civil state of the Jews; and it is true that such kind of expressions do often in Scripture so signify. But without doubt the literal sense is not to be excluded, whether we understand the text of the destruction of Jerusalem, or of his coming to his last judgment; for as historians tell of great prodigies seen before the former, so the apostle confirms us that there will be such things seen before the day of judgment. (Poole)

There is no valid reason why the physical phenomena mentioned in this verso are not to be taken literally, even if we see also in them a spiritual significance. It is only reasonable to expect that the end of this world should be accompanied by stupendous changes in the realm of nature. The sun was miraculously darkened when Jesus hung on the cross. What wonder if similar catastrophes signal his coming to judgment? (unknown)

Men of the world scheme and plan for generation upon generation here, but they plan not with reference to the overwhelming, approaching, and most certain event of Christ’s second coming, which shall do away every human scheme, and set aside for ever all that God forbids. Christ here shows the state of the old world when the deluge came. They were secure and careless; they knew not, until the flood came; and they believed not. Did we know aright that all earthly things must shortly pass away, we should not set our eyes and hearts so much upon them as we do. The evil day is not the further off for men’s putting it far from them. What words can more strongly describe the suddenness of our Saviour’s coming! Men will be at their respective businesses, and suddenly the Lord of glory will appear. Women will be in their house employments, but in that moment every other work will be laid aside, and every heart will turn inward and say, It is the Lord! Am I prepared to meet him? Can I stand before him? And what, in fact, is the day of judgment to the whole world, but the day of death to every one who is not prepared for the return of Jesus Christ? (Henry)

18.i. “His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

John 14:1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Revelation 21:22-23     And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb.  And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

Hebrews 12:12-13   Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees,  and make straight paths for your feet,

Lamentations 3:17-23    my soul is bereft of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is;  so I say, “My endurance has perished; so has my hope from the LORD.”  Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall!  My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me.  But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:  The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;  they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

1 Thessalonians 5:9   For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Jesus said, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled.” Believe in God; believe also in Me”. It is not as though He is telling them they won’t have trouble if they believe, but rather that when they are surrounded by troubles they are to cast these cares, worries, fears out of their hearts and place their faith in Him. This is not your home. “In My Father’s house are many rooms.” This is not your final resting place. Your home is with Me and My Father in heaven and I’m preparing a place for you. Do you ever wonder how much time we have lost during our lives with worries, fears, and various cares that are caused in this world? We have to admit that too often we keep our focus on troubles we face in this world rather than on our home eternally in heaven with Jesus Christ.

“Lift up your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees”, “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Though the battle in this world seems to rage on, we are victorious in Jesus Christ. Our God is in control and knows that our time on this earth is but for a moment when compared to eternity. Whatever we are facing, God is in control. Whatever trouble comes at us, God is in control. Whatever heart stabbing, brain-numbing, and soul-wrenching thunderous blow come our way, God is in Control.

Don’t let your hearts be troubled!!!!!

12.d. “but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.”

Zechariah 2:3 While the angel who was speaking to me was leaving, another angel came to meet him and said to him: “Run, tell that young man, ‘Jerusalem will be a city without walls because of the great number of people and animals in it. And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will be its glory within.’

Psalms 46:7-11   The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah  Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth.  He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.  “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”  The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Isaiah 60:18-19   Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.  The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.

Revelation 21:23   And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

This world can give no peace and therefore can not take it away. Peace the world offers is tied to that which cannot satisfy the heart and soul. Searching for peace outside of God is like chasing the wind – (never caught – only a temporary sensory feeling – always changing direction). “Peace” that comes from God, “Peace” that passes all understanding, is comforting and encouraging to the soul. It strengthens us against the trials and troubles faced this side of eternity. It gives us the courage to face each day with hope, trust, faith, and reliance in our Heavenly Father.

Oh that we would choose to live in the presence of the Glory of God and find our strength each day in the fortress of His grace, mercy, and love found in and through Jesus Christ. Our days would be filled with the light of His glory and the things of this world would become less and less and He would become more and more.

12.e. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.

Habakkuk 2:5 “Moreover, wine is a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest. His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death he has never enough. He gathers for himself all nations and collects as his own all peoples.”

Proverbs 27:20     Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man.

Ecclesiastes 2:10-  And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil.  Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

1 John 2:16    For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.

I was intrigued by the verse: “His greed is wide as hell, and like death, he never has enough” Two things are said to be never satisfied, death and sin. The appetites of the carnal mind for profit or pleasure are always desiring more. Hell and destruction are never full; the grave devours all the bodies which are put into it, and is always ready to receive and devour more and more without end. The eyes of man are never satisfied – As the grave can never be filled up with bodies, nor hell with souls; so the restless desire, the lust of power, riches, and splendor, is never satisfied. Out of this ever unsatisfied desire spring all the changing fashions, the varied amusements, and the endless lusts for money and things of this world, prevalent in every age, and in every country.

Those whose eyes are ever toward the Lord, are satisfied in Him. And yet, while we know this, attractions and temptations of this world still try to get us to glance away. Satan knows if he can get us to take our eyes off Jesus Christ his battle is won. It won’t be long before our sinful nature takes hold and rationalizes what we are doing and convinces us that it is ok. The change is very subtle and slow but rest assured it’s end is never satisfying and leaves us wanting more and more. It is a dangerous path to take in life. The moment the Word of God is neglected something else will fill that void. We become complacent, careless, and content in things of this world. Look around at what is happening in the US right now. What is driving the actions of government officials? What is driving the protesting? Will any of them be happy if they got what they were trying to acquire? Maybe for a short period but then there would always be something more. More power, more money, more and more, yet never satisfied. People are grabbing onto the hand of Satan and he is leading them straight to hell. It is not as though they are unaware of Jesus Christ and the gift of God, but they choose to deny what He has to offer in eternity for something temporal here and now. The Word of God is the bread of life and the Holy Spirit is the living water indwelling us to feed and water our lives on earth until we are reunited with our Lord, Redeemer, Savior, King of Kings, Jesus Christ. Let us hunger for this bread and thirst for this living water like never before and live and speak in such a way that Jesus Christ is honored and glorified and praised, and worshiped.

11.f. “To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God”

Micah 7:8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication. Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the Lord your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets.

Isaiah 60:19-20    The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.  Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.

Psalms 97:11    Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.

Psalms 112:4     Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

Psalms 27:1   The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Malachi 4:2   But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.

John 8:12    Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Acts 26:18    to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Revelation 21:23    And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.

Talk about faith and power through Jesus Christ – “when I fall, I shall rise, when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me”!! How many times have you been in darkness? Not the light associated with light and dark but darkness in your soul. I am sure you can relate to this type of darkness when your heartaches, your mind can’t seem to get out of the rut of some rejecting or negative thought, and no matter how hard your try the light of resolve for the darkness seems out of reach. Days seem to drag on and you hope tomorrow is better somehow. this is how it goes when we are looking from within our own self-reliance to overcome the darkness that is robbing light from our days. Maybe we could learn to trust Jesus Christ more. Maybe we could rely on Him more. Maybe we could call out to Him more. Maybe we could believe in Him more. Maybe we could claim His promises more. I am confident that if we did we too could say, “when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.”

9.m. “For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.”

Joel 3:9 Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war; stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O Lord. Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow, for their evil is great. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. The Lord roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the Lord is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel.

The valley of decision grabbed ahold of my attention. It is not as though these people are making a decision to seek God, repent, and turn to Him. They have made their decision to reject Jesus Christ. they have made their decision to do battle against Jesus Christ. Their decision is what warrants God’s decision of judgment, wrath, and anger. It is their decision just like it is for each of us. We can come to Him but have we made a decision with all of our hearts, mind, soul, and strength to rely upon, trust, honor, follow, and obey Him? Have we made a decision to listen to Him through how the Holy Spirit speaks to us through His Word? Have we made a decision to deny self and self-reliance? Have we made a decision to be humble? Have w made a decision to seek how we might honor Him in all we say, think, and do? This is a bit out of context but, it is time for us to come up out of the valley of decision and clearly put this behind us by making the decision for how we serve, honor, trust, obey and follow Jesus Christ.

9.k. Among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.

Joel 2:28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, 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 female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood 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 on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.

There is so much here that relates to Jesus Christ, salvation, and end times. I think what Peter was led to say in Acts captures the fullness of Joel today. Act 2:17-37 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. For David says concerning him, “‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’ “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”