DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- A MERCIFUL GOD

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – A MERCIFUL GOD

" 'Now, therefore,' " says the LORD, 'Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, and weeping, and with mourning.'  So rend your heart, and not your garment; return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm."  (Joel 2:12-13)

Joel was a prophet to the Southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin with their capitol in Jerusalem.  Joel's word from the Lord to Judah was a call to repentance because of their sin.  

In God's patience with Judah, the bad things were spread over a period of time to give the people a chance to turn to God.  In chapter 1, Joel reminds them of the progressive judgment of God.  It is like a symphony that starts fairly soft but gradually increases in a great crescendo.   First were the chewing locusts which were destroying their crops.  Then the swarming locusts ate what the chewing locusts had left.  Then came the crawling locusts which devoured what the swarming locusts had left.  Finally, the consuming locusts came to finish off the crop, eating whatever was left after the crawling locusts had not eaten.  The judgment seems to be incremental, giving time for the nation to repent between each swarm of locusts.  Whether this was a real destruction of crops or a metaphor of judgments, the truth is that God gives people opportunity to avert more judgment by turning to Him in repentance. 

Israel is an example.  God is merciful, gracious and longsuffering and sent prophets and natural plagues to warn people to forsake their sin and turn to Him.  He uses disasters that come our way to prod us to seek Him.   We can avoid much pain if we will respond to His call immediately rather than turning to God as a last resort.  If He was not gracious and merciful and of great kindness, He would destroy us immediately.  But He patiently woos us to seek Him.  The question is, will we listen.

Love, Dad