THE PROPHETIC OUTLOOK

JOEL 2:2

A. "AND IT SHALL COME TO PASS AFTERWARD, THAT I WILL POUR OUT OF MY SPIRIT UPON ALL FLESH"
  1. This "afterward" is interpreted by Peter:
    1. The experience on the day of Pentecost as "the last days" - Acts 2:17
    2. This word "afterward" sees to embrace this whole dispensation - the Christian age Acts 3:19-21
  2. Of great significance is:
    1. That these words come from the great Jehovah Himself, as the "wills"
    2. It is a divine preview of the glorious experience of God's people in the last days; it is the triumph of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord
B. THE PROPHETIC OUTLOOK
  1. A wonderful promise:
    1. "I will pour out of my spirit" - v. 28
    2. The holy Spirit, the third person of the Godhead is the mysterious personal energy of God that brings life and quickening power into the life of the believer; Examples: A promise from Jesus - Acts 1:8; the experience on the day of Pentecost - Acts 2; the twelve disciples - Acts 19:1-9
  2. The extent of this gift:
    1. Upon all flesh - all types of humanity, white, black, brown, red and yellow
    2. For God is no respecter of persons - Acts 10:34-35; Rom. 2:11; Job 34;19
    3. Said Peter, "This promise is to you and to your children, and as many as the Lord our God shall call" - Acts 2:39
    4. That includes our children - our sons and our daughters
    5. "Have you received the Holy Ghost since you have believed? - Acts 19:1-6
  3. The results predicted:
    1. "Your sons and your daughters shall prophecy"; whatever the implications of this predictions may include, it is a wonderful experience of praying and believing parents
    2. Modern youth are in great need of such an experience because Satan is seeking to lead our young people to destruction
    3. "Your old men shall dream dreams." While we cannot and do not rely upon dreams as such, we cannot keep the Lord from giving dreams to some people to carry a message to His people - Num. 12:1-12; Examples: Joseph had dreams in his youth so that his brothers called him "dreamer" - Gen. 37:19; yet his dreams came to pass. Jacob had dreams - Gen. 27:12; even Pharaoh had dreams given him by the Lord - Gen. 41:1; Nebuchadnezzar had a dream - Dan. 2:4
C. A SOLEMN WARNING AND A PRECIOUS OPPORTUNITY
  1. A solemn warning:
    1. "I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth...before the great and terrible day of the Lord come"
    2. Here we have a clear reference to the closing events in earth's history
    3. Our Saviour points to the heavenly phenomena preceding His return - Luke 21:25-26; Matt. 24:1-28
    4. The second coming of Jesus Christ is the one great event toward which all other historic events point - 2 Pet. 1:19-21
  2. A precious promise:
    1. "It shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call in the name of the Lord shall be delivered" - v. 32
    2. What is so important is that God has a people in these times who are to be made ready for the coming of the Lord
    3. They need the outpouring of the Spirit of the Lord to perfect holiness in their lives and to enable them to finish the work the Lord has given them to do before probation closes
  3. While we believe that Joel 2:28-32 had its primary fulfillment in the early history of the church, we do believe also that its prophetic application covers the end of time too:
    1. The sealing work spoken of in Revelation 7: can be accomplished only through the power of the Holy Spirit
    2. The perfection of character for translation at the coming of the Lord Jesus, too, is the work of the Holy Spirit
    3. It seems clear, therefore, that the prophecy of Joel 2:28-30 has specific reference to the closing work of the third angel - Rev. 14:6-12


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