Well, good morning, church. Turn with me to the book of Joel. If you have a Bible,
if you're here in the sanctuary, the reading will also be on the screens.
We are looking at Joel chapter 2, verses 18 to 27. If you're looking in a Bible,
the book of Joel is a little book, and it's at the beginning of what's called the Minor Prophets,
which is the 12 shorter prophetical books at the end of the Old Testament.
So it's after Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and then Daniel, and then Hosea and Joel.
So we are looking at this short little book over the next couple of weeks.
We'll be looking at the...we've come to the second half of the book.
We'll be looking at the second half of the book over the next couple of weeks.
So Joel, I'm going to read chapter 2, beginning at verse 18.
Then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.
The Lord answered and said to his people,
Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied.
And I will no more make you a reproach among the nations.
I will remove the northerner far from you and drive him into a parched and desolate land,
his vanguard into the eastern sea and his rear guard into the western sea.
The stench and foul smell of him will rise, for he has done great things.
Fear not, O land, be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things.
Fear not, you beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness are green.
The tree bears its fruit, the fig tree and vine give their full yield.
Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God,
for he has given the early rain for your vindication.
He has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain as before.
The threshing floor shall be full of grain, the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army which I sent among you.
You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the Lord your God who has dealt wondrously with you,
and my people shall never again be put to shame.
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I am the Lord your God, and there is none else,
and my people shall never again be put to shame.
So almost two weeks ago, my wife Jane came down with some sharp stomach pains.
We were driving home, and I said,
So how bad is it?
And she said,
Well, the only thing I can compare it to is childbirth.
Now, obviously, I don't really know what childbirth feels like,
but I've been there and seen it from the outside three times.
It's pretty intense.
And I don't think I've ever heard my wife compare any other pain to that.
So she went to the doctor.
Doctor said,
Well, let's do some blood work.
Maybe just a stomach, but it's maybe just a stomach virus.
We'll just wait and see if it passes.
Well, next day, the doctor calls back, says,
Your blood work came back.
You need to go to the hospital.
We think you have appendicitis.
Which was the case.
She had surgery that night.
They took it out.
She came home the next morning.
It all happened very quickly.
Jane's recovered very well.
She was here with my family last night at the outdoor service.
But we thank God for his provision and for his care for us
in a whole bunch of ways through that,
including many of you who prayed for us
and cared for us in some many practical ways.
You know, on a normal day,
none of us would choose to go under anesthesia,
get cut open,
have somebody we don't know
fiddling around with instruments inside our body,
and then have to recover afterwards.
Surgery can be scary and painful,
even, at times, dangerous.
But some things are even more dangerous,
including appendicitis.
When the appendix gets infected and inflamed,
if you don't do something quickly,
the infection will spread,
and it will get far more serious.
So in most cases,
surgery is the only way to health.
Back in 1535, Martin Luther wrote,
God wounds in order to heal.
He kills in order to make alive.
In other words,
God is like a skilled surgeon
who cuts us open in order to remove the infection,
but his ultimate purpose is not to destroy us,
but rather to heal us.
To put us back together again,
whole and complete
and fully alive
and functioning in him.
Now, Martin Luther wrote that
in his commentary on Galatians,
but he could have said the same thing
about the book of Joel.
God wounds in order to heal.
He kills in order to make alive.
Because the book of Joel,
as we've seen in the last two weeks,
began with a devastating loss,
a natural disaster,
a plague of locusts
who, like an invading army,
had laid waste the entire land.
And in the face of great loss,
we heard Joel's call to lament.
In other words,
to grieve in a direction,
to grieve toward the one true God.
And then last week,
Joel sounded the alarm
about a coming judgment of God
that would be even worse,
even more terrifying
than the locust invasion,
the day of the Lord,
a day of God's righteous
and final judgment.
And in the face of that coming judgment,
we heard Joel's call to repent,
to turn to the Lord
with all our hearts.
So far, the book of Joel
has been about present disaster
and future judgment,
a call to lament
and a call to repent.
But this week,
we come to the turning point
of the book.
And today,
we hear a message of joy
and hope
and restoration
and newness of life.
So this morning,
I want us to do three things
as we look at this passage.
First, I want us to see
God's heart
for restoration.
Second, I want us to hear
God's promise
of restoration.
And third,
I want us to consider
our response.
So first,
I want us to see
God's heart.
And we see God's heart
in verse 18.
Now, verse 18
marks the transition
between the first half of Joel
about the disaster
and lamenting
and repenting
and the second half of Joel
which is all about
restoration
and hope
and joy
and a glorious future
for the people of God.
Now, as with many
of the Old Testament prophets,
we don't know
whether,
exactly where and how
this message
was first delivered.
So we don't know
if the book of Joel
was one sermon
that Joel preached
all in one day,
all at one time,
or whether it was more
like a compilation
of messages
that he had given
throughout his lifetime.
Because in the book of Joel,
there's no narrator
that gives us
the historical context.
Right?
If you read the whole book
of Joel,
it's just Joel's speeches.
Except for this one verse.
Verse 18.
In verse 18,
it's not Joel speaking.
It's a narrator's voice
giving us a glimpse
into the very heart of God.
Then the Lord
was jealous
for his land
and had pity
on his people.
And this is the crucial
turning point of the book.
It's the bridge between
lamenting and repenting
and disaster
and judgment
and into joy
and hope
and restoration
and fulfillment.
You might say
verse 18 is the hinge
on which the whole book turns.
So I want to park here
and sort of sit on this bridge
for a little while.
What do we see in this verse?
Verse 18.
Well,
we see an indication
that the people
and their leaders
had taken
the first half of Joel
to heart.
They had heard
his call
to lament
and repent
and they had turned
to the Lord.
They had laid
everything else aside.
They had gathered together.
They had wept
and prayed
and cried out
to the Lord
for mercy.
And we'll see
in this passage
that God answers
the specific prayer
that Joel told them
to pray
in verse 17.
We'll see
as we go through
this passage.
He responds
directly
to that
exact
prayer.
But even more
in verse 18,
we see not just
an indication
of the people's response
but we see
God's heart
for his people.
The Lord's deep
feelings
for his people.
It says
the Lord became
jealous
for his land.
In other words,
we see
God's
zealous
love,
his passionate
concern,
his burning
dedication
to that
which is
his very own.
The Lord
saw his
land
overrun
by destructive
locusts.
Now on the one hand,
Joel says
very clearly
that God
sent
the locusts.
Verse 25,
the locusts
were my
great army
which I
sent among you.
The locust plague
was not an accident.
It didn't come
out of nowhere.
It wasn't a surprise
to God.
God had sent
the devastating
locusts
to discipline
his people
and to bring
them to repentance.
But on the other
hand,
God's desire
and God's plan
was never
to give
over his
land permanently
to the locusts.
God had sent
them for a time
but ultimately
the locusts
were trespassers
on God's land.
God had promised
his land
to his people,
to his children,
not to the locusts.
And the Lord
wanted his land
back.
He was jealous
for his land
and it says
he had pity
on his people.
Now this is
a direct answer
to the prayer
that was prayed
in verse 17.
If you look up
in verse 17,
the prayer
that Joel tells
him to pray
starts with
spare your people,
O Lord.
And this word
that's translated
have pity
can also be
translated
spare.
So Malachi 3.17
God says
they shall be mine.
He's referring
to his people.
They shall be mine
in the day
when I make up
my treasured
possession
and I will
spare them.
Same word
as a man
spares his son
who serves him.
You see,
the God of the Bible
is a God
of compassion
and mercy.
He is not
abstract and distant,
uninvolved
and uncaring.
He is not ruthless
and relentless
in his judgments.
No,
he has deep feelings
for his people.
The kind of feelings
that a good parent
has
for their very
own child.
And when we
turn back to him,
God spares us
from the punishment
that we rightly
deserve.
So brothers and
sisters,
do you see
God's heart
for you
and for us
as a church
in this verse?
Now Joel was
talking to the
ancient Israelites
who had experienced
the devastation
of a locust plague.
Our situation
is different
from theirs
in a whole bunch
of ways.
But whatever
the disappointment,
whatever the loss,
whatever the devastation
that you might
have experienced,
Joel's words
still speak to us
because the heart
of God
for his people
has not
changed.
God is still
jealous for all
that rightly
belongs to him.
In other words,
he wants us
to be his
and his alone.
Just like a husband
and wife rightly
desire each other's
exclusive loyalty
and affection.
So God does not
rejoice
when our lives
are overrun
by things
that are not
of him.
by sinful
addictions
or destructive
temptations
or habits.
God does not
rejoice
when disaster
befalls us
and when we
cry out in pain.
Even when he
sent hard
things into
our lives
to call us
back to him.
God does not
rejoice
at those things.
No, he's
passionately
concerned for
the well-being
of his own
people who
belong to him
and who are
called by his
name and he
loves us
with a jealous
and zealous
love.
He won't
let us
go.
And you know
what?
He's still
compassionate
and merciful.
He spares us
from the punishment
that we deserve
through Jesus Christ
our great high priest.
God hears
and answers
our prayers
when we
come before
his throne
of grace
and cry out
for grace
and mercy
and help
in our time
of need.
The New Testament
says Jesus
is a merciful
and faithful
high priest
on our behalf.
God
this is the
God we
serve
and we
can approach
him with
confidence
because we
know he
hears
because we
know he
cares.
So that's
the heart
of God
that we
see in
verse 18.
That's our
first point.
But then
starting in
verse 19
we come to
our second
point.
We hear
God's
promise.
Now what
did God
promise
to the
people of
Israel
back then?
Well he
promised that
everything they
had lost
in the
locust
plague
would now
be restored.
What are
some examples
of things
that they
had lost
that God
was promising
to restore?
Well he
promises to
restore their
food.
Chapter 1
verse 10
and 12
Joel laments
the grain
is destroyed
the wine
dries up
the oil
languishes
and gladness
dries up
from the
children of
man.
But now
chapter 2
verse 19
the Lord
speaks and
says behold
look I'm
sending to
you grain
wine and
oil and
you will be
satisfied.
The threshing
floors verse
24 will be
full of
grain.
The vats
will overflow
with wine
and oil.
Many of us
don't fully
appreciate the
promises of
abundant food
in the
Bible.
Because for
some of us
we've always
had plenty of
food on the
table.
We've always
been able to
go to the
supermarket.
The shelves
have never been
completely bare.
There's always
plenty of
things to
choose from.
But people
who have
experienced
hunger or
famine or
extreme poverty
if you've been
through any of
those things
if you've not
known where
your next
meal is
coming from
you know
that food
isn't just
something that
we can take
for granted.
Food is a
gift from
God.
It's a daily
reminder of
his provision
and kindness
toward his
creatures.
And for the
Israelites in
the Old
Testament food
was also a
sign of their
covenant
relationship with
God because
God had
promised them
in Deuteronomy
that if they
would obey
his commands
that he would
send the
early rain
and the
later rain
and it
specifically
says he
would give
so they
could harvest
their grain
and wine
and oil
the sort
of staple
foods that
sustain them
throughout the
year.
You know
in the New
Testament food
is also a sign
of our covenant
with God when
we share the
Lord's Supper
when we eat
the bread
and drink the
cup
those are signs
that God
continues to
sustain us
and nourish
us physically
and spiritually
by his
grace.
But it's not
only their food
that God
promises to
restore,
God also
promises to
restore their
honor.
Again,
in chapter 1
and 2
they were
full of
shame.
Chapter 1
verse 11
Be ashamed
O tillers
of the soil
because the
harvest of
the field
has perished.
All their
work had
amounted to
nothing.
You know
for many
people we
can feel a
deep sense
of shame
when our
work seems
to amount
to nothing.
We feel like
we've got
nothing to
show for
ourselves,
nothing to
take pride
in.
You know
if you
found yourself
unemployed
for an
extended period
of time
or stuck
in a job
where your
efforts go
unrewarded
and unrecognized
it's not
uncommon to
also feel
worthlessness,
rejection,
anger,
depression.
Those are
manifestations
of shame.
And in
chapter 2
verse 17
we see it
wasn't just
the workers
who were
feeling shame
because they
had nothing
to show
for themselves.
The whole
nation was
on the brink
of utter
shame,
utter embarrassment.
And so they
pray,
make not your
heritage a
reproach,
a laughingstock,
a byword among
the nations.
Why should they
say among the
peoples,
where's their
God?
They were
all feeling
completely
ashamed.
But look at
what God
says here.
Chapter 2
verse 19,
I will no
more make
you a
reproach
among the
nations.
Chapter 2
verse 26,
my people
shall never
again be
put to
shame.
He repeats
it again
at the end
of verse
27.
And this
is a promise
that the
New Testament
picks up
on.
Both Paul
and Peter
in their
letters to
early Christians
write this,
whoever trusts
in Jesus
will never
be put
to shame.
And why
is that
true?
It's because
everything that
belongs to
Jesus is
now ours.
And everything
that belongs
to us is
now his.
You see,
Jesus has
taken our
shame and
our regret,
our failure,
our futility,
glory.
And he
has included
us in his
accomplishment,
in his
victory,
in his
glory,
and in the
work of
his kingdom.
In Jesus,
we have
something to
rejoice and
be confident
in and
glory in
because of
our connection
to him.
So God
would restore
their food,
he would
restore their
honor,
he also
promises to
restore their
peace.
The locusts
were like an
enemy invasion.
In fact,
some people
wonder,
are the
locusts a
metaphor for
an enemy
invasion or
is an
enemy invasion
a metaphor
for the
locust plague?
Or is it
both?
Maybe they
were experiencing
some of
both.
Either way,
look at what
verse 20
says.
I will
remove the
northerner.
Perhaps the
locusts had
come from
the north.
Many of
Israel's enemies
came from
the north.
I will
remove the
northerner
far from
you and
drive him
into a
parched and
desolate land.
Most likely
that's a
reference to
the south
of Judah,
which is a
desert.
His vanguard
into the
eastern sea,
the dead sea,
and his rear
guard into
the western
sea.
In other
words,
God clears
out the
enemy,
sort of like
sweeping
something out
down east
west,
clears out
the land
from these
destructive
enemies.
The stench
and foul
smell of
him will
rise.
In the
ancient world
it was well
known that
when locusts
came to
the end
of their
devouring
and they
would all
die,
their corpses
would stank
horribly.
So ancient
writers talk
about this.
It sometimes
even poisoned
the water
supply or
contaminated it
when they
all died
at the
edge of
a sea or
something like
that.
God promises
to drive away
the hostile
locusts and
restore peace
to their
land.
And finally,
God promises
in verse 25
to restore
their lost
years.
I will
restore to
you.
Literally the
word is I
will pay
you back
or I will
make up
to you
the years
that the
swarming
locusts
has eaten,
the hopper,
the destroyer,
and the cutter.
And again,
this echoes
chapter 1,
verse 4,
where those
four kinds
of locusts
are mentioned
in succession.
You see,
all that we
see,
all these
promises
in verses
18 to 27
are gradually
reversing all
the destruction
that we
saw in
chapters 1
and the
beginning of
chapter 2.
Everything
the people
had lost,
food,
honor,
peace,
years of
their lives
would be
restored.
Now,
notice that
this restoration
Joel promises
does not
happen instantly
all in one
day.
Joel seems
to be speaking
at least partly
about things
that have not
yet happened.
That's why
most translations
translate most
of the verbs
in the future
tense.
I will do
this.
You shall
have this.
But there's
an interesting
feature of
the Hebrew
verbs in
this section.
Now,
this gets a
little technical,
but it's worth
digging into.
Most of the
verbs in
verses 19
to 27
are in
what is
called
the perfect
tense.
So,
normally in
Hebrew,
the perfect
tense
refers to
an action
that is
seen
or portrayed
as a
completed
whole.
So,
it's not
describing
an action
that might
happen in
the future
or might
not.
It's not
describing
something
that's still
in process
and still
unfolding
and still
a little
up in
the air.
No,
it's describing
an action
in its
completeness,
in its
wholeness.
That's why
it's called
the perfect
tense.
But here's
the thing.
The Old
Testament
prophets,
including
Joel here,
sometimes use
the perfect
tense
to refer
to events
that have
not yet
happened.
But God
promises
that they
will.
And why
do they
do this?
The point
they're making
is even
though these
events have
not yet
unfolded
in history,
God has
promised that
they will
happen and
so they
are as
sure and
certain and
complete as
if they had
already
happened.
you can
be as
sure and
certain that
these things
will come
to pass as
you can be
sure about
what happened
yesterday.
Joel never
lays out a
definite timeline,
but he
promises that
everything the
people had
lost would
one day be
restored.
Now, of
course, we
need to ask,
how does
this promise
apply to
us today?
Well, in
the New
Testament, the
main principle
still holds.
Because the
New Testament
tells us that
Jesus Christ
came into the
world to
restore everything
that had been
damaged and
destroyed by
sin.
And if you
have come and
placed your
faith and
trust in Jesus
as your
Savior and
Lord, every
part of your
life is
included in
that promise
of restoration.
every hunger
and thirst
you have
experienced,
every rejection
and defeat,
every attack
and betrayal,
all the
squandered
opportunities
and all the
devoured
years.
Jesus Christ
is big enough
to redeem
all those.
If you are
a Christian,
what Martin
Luther said
is true for
you.
God wounds
in order to
heal.
He kills
in order to
make alive.
on the
other side
of every
death and
every loss
that you
experience in
union with
Jesus is a
resurrection and
a renewal.
Now, some of
you have
experienced
devastating loss,
traumatic loss,
with long-term
consequences,
and you can't
see how you
could fully
recover.
Some of you
are in the
middle of loss.
You're reeling.
You're overwhelmed.
You're depressed.
You can't
see a way
forward,
or can
hardly see a
way forward,
much less a
way through.
That's
normal.
When you're
in the middle
of a loss,
you can't
see what
the resurrection
is going to
look like on
the other
side.
You know,
when Jesus
Christ died
on the cross
and his
followers took
his body
and wrapped
it up and
laid it in a
tomb,
they had no
idea what
to expect.
And all of
their expectations
would have
been wrong.
But three
days later,
Jesus rose up
from the
grave.
And if he
can do that,
he can restore
and heal
and renew
us in ways
that we
would never
have thought
possible.
You see,
when you're
in the middle
of loss
and pain
and hurt
and shame
and all
of this,
sometimes all
you can do
is hold
on to
Jesus one
day at a
time.
You must
not determine
in your own
mind how
and when
God must
fix things.
Because God
works in
his own
way and in
his own
time and
some of
our healing
and restoration
will come
in this
life and
some of
it will
be granted
in the
age to
come.
You know,
when you're
recovering from
surgery,
you have to
follow the
doctor's
instructions
and not
trust your
own feelings
and instincts.
Because when
you're recovering
from surgery,
some days you
feel horrible
and you want
to stay in
bed all day.
But the
doctor's orders
are do
physical therapy.
Get up,
move around,
exercise your
muscles because
that's the only
way you're
going to heal.
And other
days you
feel great
and the
doctor's
orders are
take it
slow,
don't lift
anything,
and don't
overdo it.
And in the
same way,
when we're
recovering from
loss, we
need to not
let our
feelings and
instincts be
in the
driver's seat.
Our feelings
and instincts
are always
going to be
in the car
with us.
You can't
throw them
out the
window,
right?
They're always
going to be
there.
But don't
let them
be in the
driver's seat.
Let God's
word be
in the
driver's
seat.
Trust his
commands.
Again, what
did Jesus'
followers do
when they
laid him
in the
grave?
When they
were grieving,
they thought
the whole
thing has
ended in
failure.
What did
they do?
They rested
on the
Sabbath day.
Because guess
what God had
told the
Israelites to
do in the
Old Testament?
Rest on
the Sabbath
day.
It was
clear.
That was the
only thing
they could
do.
So they
stopped.
They
didn't do
anything
for a
day.
They
observed
the
Sabbath
as they
normally
would have.
And then
after that,
they went
to the
tomb.
And then
Jesus was
resurrected.
And then
it was
crazy.
And it
was great.
And it
was amazing.
And all
the healing
and restoration
began.
But in
the meantime,
they just
had to
obey what
God had
told them,
even though
they didn't
understand.
Jesus
Christ has
blazed
away from
death and
loss and
devastation into
resurrection.
life and
power.
His
resurrection
from the
grave is
greater than
your most
devastating
losses.
His healing
hands are
more than
able to
mend your
deepest
fractures.
His voice
continues to
speak honor
and hope in
the place of
shame and
despair.
Even though
it hasn't yet
happened,
his promise is
as good as
if it already
had.
I am making
all things
new.
God is
speaking to
God's
promise.
That brings
us to our
third point.
We've seen
God's heart,
we've heard
God's promise,
and finally,
let's consider
our response.
Verses 21
to 23 call
us to
respond to
the Lord's
promise.
And
interestingly,
these verses
are sandwiched in
the middle of
God's promises.
So God is
speaking to
his people,
verse 19
through 20,
and verse 24
to 27,
God speaks to
his people,
and the first
person,
he says,
I will do
this for
you.
I will make
this happen
for you.
But then in
the middle of
verses 21
to 23,
there's a
call to
respond.
And it's
actually addressed
to the whole
creation,
to the land,
to the animals,
and finally to
the children of
Zion, to the
people of
God.
The fate of
all creation
ultimately hangs
together.
Right?
The land, the
animals, and
then the
central piece,
the people of
God, who
God's image
bearers.
But what's the
response that
Joel calls for?
He says two
things.
Fear not.
This is repeated
in verse 21
and verse 22.
And second,
rejoice.
Be glad.
Verse 21 and
verse 23.
Sometimes God
repeats things in
the scripture
because we need
to hear them
over and over.
And these
commands to
fear not and
to rejoice in
the Lord are
repeated over and
over to God's
people in the
Old Testament and
in the New
Testament.
On the night
that Jesus was
born, what was
the message the
angel brought to
the shepherds?
Fear not, for I
bring you good
news of great joy
that will be for
all the people.
Because unto you
this day in the
city of David is
born a Savior,
Christ the Lord.
And the
Apostle Paul in
his letter to the
Romans picks up
these same themes.
He says, fear not
if God is for us,
who can be against
us?
If God did not
spare his own
son for us, how
will he not also
graciously give us
all things?
And Paul says,
rejoice in the
Lord.
He says, we rejoice
in the hope of the
glory of God.
In other words,
Paul says, we
don't just rejoice
in what we already
have and what we
already experience in
full.
We've tasted the
goodness in Jesus
that we're going to
experience for all
eternity and there's
joy in the
anticipation.
Because God's
promises can be
counted on.
One Christian
writer said, in
earthly terms,
hope is certainty
of time and
uncertainty of
event.
So we say, I
hope it will be a
pleasant day tomorrow
and we can have a
picnic in the park.
Guess what?
Tomorrow's going to
come.
It might or might not
be a nice day.
Certainty of time,
uncertainty of event.
But he says in the
Bible, it's the
reverse.
Hope is uncertainty
of time,
certainty of event.
event.
I will make all
things new.
Right?
Certainty of event.
Jesus doesn't tell us
the time.
But we can be
confident in his
promise.
Finally, the book of
Hebrews echoes these
themes in chapter 12
when it says that God
disciplines those he
loves.
In other words, God
trains us even
through painful
trials.
He says,
discipline is always
painful in the
moment.
But on the other
side of it, there's a
harvest of righteousness
and peace for those
who have been trained
by it.
You know, some of you
have done these sort
of crazy workouts.
Maybe you've done
CrossFit or those
insanity workouts.
Maybe you've trained
for a 5K or a
half marathon.
Right?
It's hard.
It's painful in the
short term.
When you're in the
middle, especially when
you just start those
routines.
But there's satisfaction
on the other side.
There's joy on the
end of it.
And Hebrews is saying,
yes, there's pain in
the short term.
But on the other side,
there's a harvest of
righteousness and peace
that God works in us.
Even when he brings us
through hard seasons,
through loss,
pain,
and even devastation,
but he's bringing us
into hope and restoration
and a future with him.
Let me close by reading
the last two verses
and hear this promise
from God to us.
You shall eat in plenty
and be satisfied
and praise the name
of the Lord your God
who has dealt
wondrously with you.
And my people
shall never again
be put to shame.
You shall know
that I am in the midst
of you and that I
am the Lord your God
and there is no one else.
And my people
shall never again
be put to shame.
Let's pray.
Father God,
we thank you
for these promises
of restoration
and this call
to rejoice in you.
We thank you
for sending your son Jesus
to accomplish this work
of restoration
and healing
on our behalf
through his death,
taking on our sins
upon himself
and through his resurrection,
granting and bestowing
upon us his life
forevermore.
We pray that we would
take hold of these promises.
We pray that we would
be able to taste
the joy
and healing
and restoration
that you promised.
We pray that we would
experience that
more and more
even in our daily lives,
even in the present age,
even as we look forward
to the completion
of that
in the age to come
when you return.
We pray all these things
in Jesus' name.
Amen.