WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.780 Well, good morning, church. Turn with me, if you have a Bible, to the book of Joel, chapter 2. 00:00:07.240 --> 00:00:09.939 If you're in the sanctuary, the text will also be on the screens. 00:00:11.240 --> 00:00:15.439 As Pastor Matt mentioned, Pastor Nick wasn't able to be here this morning, 00:00:15.820 --> 00:00:20.800 but he wrote a great sermon, and so I'm going to preach it. Now, you might never have seen 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:26.179 this happen before. I happened to be at a church this summer where they were meeting in several 00:00:26.179 --> 00:00:30.559 different locations, and the pastor would rotate around, and in the other locations, they were all 00:00:30.559 --> 00:00:35.359 meeting in backyards, somebody else would read the pastor's sermon, and it was very edifying. 00:00:36.019 --> 00:00:43.320 Or you can imagine yourself in the early church, and the Apostle Paul, who perhaps planted your church, 00:00:43.820 --> 00:00:47.159 is under house arrest, and he can't come in person, but he writes a letter, 00:00:47.840 --> 00:00:54.159 and someone stands up in the church and reads Paul's sermon to you, right? So this has happened 00:00:54.159 --> 00:01:03.339 before in the history of the church. We're just going with it today. So, Joel 2, 28 to 32, 00:01:03.519 --> 00:01:08.819 is our sermon text this morning. We've been going through the book of Joel, and we come here to a 00:01:08.819 --> 00:01:15.620 great promise that Joel gave his people. Joel 2, beginning at verse 28. 00:01:15.620 --> 00:01:26.740 And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your 00:01:26.740 --> 00:01:32.760 daughters shall prophesy. Your old men shall dream dreams. Your young men shall see visions, 00:01:33.180 --> 00:01:40.480 even on the male and female servants in those days. I will pour out my spirit, and I will show wonders 00:01:40.480 --> 00:01:46.460 in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to 00:01:46.460 --> 00:01:52.460 darkness and the moon to blood before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And it shall come 00:01:52.460 --> 00:02:01.060 to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in 00:02:01.060 --> 00:02:07.140 Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those 00:02:07.140 --> 00:02:17.500 whom the Lord calls. Let's pray. God, we have heard your word. Now we humbly ask that by your spirit, 00:02:17.639 --> 00:02:23.759 you would help us to understand it, and not just understand it, but to take it in and to live it out. 00:02:24.240 --> 00:02:32.879 We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. One of the great longings of the human heart is for intimacy. 00:02:32.879 --> 00:02:42.740 What is intimacy? Well, we might say it's knowing and being known. But it's not just being known, 00:02:43.099 --> 00:02:53.340 it's also being welcomed, received, loved. That's intimacy. Knowing and being known, loving and being 00:02:53.340 --> 00:03:00.460 loved. And it's one of the great desires or longings of our hearts. Now it's easy to see that on the 00:03:00.460 --> 00:03:06.719 horizontal level in our human relationships. We long for friendship, or perhaps for marriage, 00:03:07.360 --> 00:03:12.600 or perhaps for a deeper connection with our children, or with our parents. We long for intimacy, 00:03:12.780 --> 00:03:21.200 but we also know this longing on the vertical plane toward God. The human heart was made for eternity, 00:03:21.980 --> 00:03:27.800 for transcendence, for intimacy with God. Now how do we know that? Well, just think, 00:03:27.800 --> 00:03:37.200 why is true satisfaction so hard to find? Even, and maybe especially when we're in the best of times, 00:03:37.800 --> 00:03:43.040 surrounded by friends and success, why doesn't that satisfaction seem to last? 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:51.360 And why, despite many people's predictions that religion in the modern world would gradually fade, 00:03:51.360 --> 00:03:57.580 and eventually become obsolete, why are religions and spiritualities flourishing and multiplying today, 00:03:57.620 --> 00:04:04.980 like never before all across the globe? The human heart longs for intimacy with God. 00:04:06.040 --> 00:04:09.260 Nothing else will satisfy, nothing else will do. 00:04:11.500 --> 00:04:13.140 C.S. Lewis wrote a long time ago, 00:04:13.139 --> 00:04:19.199 If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, 00:04:19.680 --> 00:04:24.240 the most probable explanation is that we were made for something more. 00:04:25.419 --> 00:04:28.139 In fact, long before C.S. Lewis, Augustine wrote, 00:04:29.219 --> 00:04:31.000 God, you have made us for yourself, 00:04:31.259 --> 00:04:35.360 and our hearts are restless until they find rest in you. 00:04:36.500 --> 00:04:37.979 But here's the heart of the matter. 00:04:37.980 --> 00:04:41.819 Is intimacy with God possible? 00:04:42.800 --> 00:04:45.980 Is it possible for my finite heart to touch eternity, 00:04:46.780 --> 00:04:52.180 for my created being to have real intimacy with the creator of the universe? 00:04:53.140 --> 00:04:55.180 Is that really possible? 00:04:56.720 --> 00:04:59.540 Well, that's a question that Joel's audience might have been asking. 00:05:00.340 --> 00:05:05.680 Remember, the message of Joel came to a people who had lost everything in a locust plague. 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:09.879 And after the call in the beginning of the book to lament and repent, 00:05:10.360 --> 00:05:13.800 Joel begins in the middle of chapter 2 to bring a message of hope. 00:05:14.780 --> 00:05:17.720 The message of hope began, as we saw last week, 00:05:17.759 --> 00:05:19.939 with the promise of physical restoration. 00:05:20.180 --> 00:05:25.500 Some of my favorite verses in the whole book are verses 24 and 25 of chapter 2. 00:05:26.500 --> 00:05:29.160 The threshing floor shall be full of grain. 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:33.000 The vat shall overflow with wine and oil. 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:40.180 I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten. 00:05:40.600 --> 00:05:43.579 I will restore to you the years that the locusts have devoured. 00:05:43.720 --> 00:05:45.000 What a rich promise! 00:05:45.300 --> 00:05:48.259 It's a promise that stretches through the entire Bible. 00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:52.459 That God will undo the effects of sin on his creation 00:05:52.459 --> 00:05:58.220 and make all things new, a new creation where death, dying, and decay are no more. 00:05:58.220 --> 00:06:02.880 But Jesus once asked this question. 00:06:04.320 --> 00:06:05.000 He said, 00:06:05.100 --> 00:06:10.980 What does it profit to gain the whole world if you lose your soul? 00:06:12.200 --> 00:06:15.160 What if you could have threshing floors full of grain 00:06:15.160 --> 00:06:19.680 and vats overflowing with wine and oil, all the joys of this world? 00:06:20.360 --> 00:06:24.020 What if you could have the new creation at your fingertips and not have God? 00:06:24.019 --> 00:06:27.120 What good would that do? 00:06:28.120 --> 00:06:32.459 What if we had all the gifts that this world can give but not the giver? 00:06:34.680 --> 00:06:39.180 You know, any of us who have lost a parent or a spouse 00:06:39.180 --> 00:06:41.939 or someone very close to us 00:06:41.939 --> 00:06:47.839 would trade in a heartbeat every gift that person had ever given us 00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:54.479 for one more day in their presence with them? 00:06:57.179 --> 00:06:59.639 The giver is more important than all the gifts. 00:06:59.719 --> 00:07:02.359 And how much more is that true of God? 00:07:02.560 --> 00:07:05.199 So is it possible to have intimacy with God? 00:07:05.239 --> 00:07:07.539 And if so, how do we get it? 00:07:08.939 --> 00:07:11.759 That's the question Joel's audience may have been asking 00:07:11.759 --> 00:07:14.319 and it's the question that we may be asking too. 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:19.560 And at the end of this chapter 2 of Joel, we see the answer. 00:07:19.740 --> 00:07:22.699 Joel shows us first how intimacy with God is possible 00:07:22.699 --> 00:07:25.480 and second how we can get it. 00:07:26.240 --> 00:07:30.259 So first we'll look at how intimacy with God is possible. 00:07:31.219 --> 00:07:33.560 Look at verses 28 and 29. 00:07:35.139 --> 00:07:37.560 These verses tell us that intimacy with God is possible 00:07:37.560 --> 00:07:41.500 because God has promised to pour out his spirit. 00:07:41.500 --> 00:07:46.939 It shall come to pass afterward, I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. 00:07:47.600 --> 00:07:49.579 Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, 00:07:49.720 --> 00:07:51.079 your old men shall dream dreams, 00:07:51.160 --> 00:07:52.579 and your young men shall see visions. 00:07:53.420 --> 00:07:55.819 Even on the male and female servants in those days, 00:07:55.879 --> 00:07:57.939 I will pour out my spirit. 00:07:58.839 --> 00:08:01.639 Now the spirit of God in the Old Testament 00:08:01.639 --> 00:08:04.899 is God's personal powerful presence. 00:08:05.800 --> 00:08:08.699 And in the New Testament, we know that the Holy Spirit 00:08:08.699 --> 00:08:12.039 is none other than the third person of the Trinity. 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:14.159 God himself. 00:08:15.979 --> 00:08:21.860 Now these verses highlight three things about this gift of God's spirit. 00:08:23.139 --> 00:08:27.159 It's lavish, it's universal, and it's fruitful. 00:08:28.019 --> 00:08:30.219 Consider how lavish it is. 00:08:30.319 --> 00:08:32.580 God says, I will pour out my spirit. 00:08:33.080 --> 00:08:36.519 He says it at the beginning of verse 28 and at the end of verse 29. 00:08:36.519 --> 00:08:39.600 It's not a trickle, it's not a drop, 00:08:39.799 --> 00:08:42.899 it's a lavish pouring out of the spirit. 00:08:43.720 --> 00:08:47.419 A few years ago, I was at a water park with my family, 00:08:47.779 --> 00:08:49.639 and at one spot near the splash pad, 00:08:49.720 --> 00:08:52.659 they had this giant bucket suspended in the air. 00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:55.919 And water would slowly pour into the bucket 00:08:55.919 --> 00:08:58.500 until it got so full that it would suddenly tip over 00:08:58.500 --> 00:09:00.879 and deluge all the kids standing underneath. 00:09:00.879 --> 00:09:05.120 And it would happen again and again and again. 00:09:06.559 --> 00:09:07.860 That's the image here. 00:09:08.299 --> 00:09:11.740 God's spirit poured out, nothing held in reserve. 00:09:13.340 --> 00:09:18.439 Not just once, but on an ongoing, overflowing basis. 00:09:19.879 --> 00:09:21.240 You know, in the Old Testament, 00:09:22.360 --> 00:09:25.679 the spirit of God would come and go on certain people. 00:09:25.679 --> 00:09:28.500 But Joel looks forward to a day 00:09:28.500 --> 00:09:32.539 when the spirit would be a lavish, permanent presence. 00:09:33.659 --> 00:09:34.739 Nothing held back. 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:37.279 But it won't just be lavish, it will be universal. 00:09:37.439 --> 00:09:40.259 That is for all kinds of people. 00:09:41.120 --> 00:09:44.339 I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. 00:09:45.279 --> 00:09:47.279 On young and old, Joel says. 00:09:47.359 --> 00:09:48.659 On male and female. 00:09:48.859 --> 00:09:50.039 On the upper class, 00:09:50.120 --> 00:09:52.679 all the way down to the male and female servants. 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:58.279 The spirit will come and make intimacy with God possible. 00:09:58.859 --> 00:09:59.479 For everyone. 00:10:00.279 --> 00:10:02.139 For all kinds of people without exception. 00:10:02.479 --> 00:10:03.620 Age won't be a barrier. 00:10:04.039 --> 00:10:05.079 Gender won't be a barrier. 00:10:05.239 --> 00:10:06.719 Social status won't be a barrier. 00:10:08.120 --> 00:10:09.259 Now back in chapter 1, 00:10:09.319 --> 00:10:11.279 when Joel was talking about the locust plague, 00:10:11.939 --> 00:10:14.620 everyone was affected by the devastation. 00:10:14.759 --> 00:10:15.479 Young and old. 00:10:15.620 --> 00:10:16.439 Male and female. 00:10:16.639 --> 00:10:17.519 Priests and farmers. 00:10:18.079 --> 00:10:20.659 But now we see that intimacy with God will come. 00:10:20.659 --> 00:10:23.480 For all of those groups of people. 00:10:24.559 --> 00:10:26.500 As the great Christmas hymn puts it, 00:10:26.799 --> 00:10:29.600 he has come to make his blessings known 00:10:29.600 --> 00:10:32.179 as far as the curse is found. 00:10:34.179 --> 00:10:37.120 But it's not just lavish and universal, it's fruitful. 00:10:37.740 --> 00:10:38.559 Verse 28 says, 00:10:38.679 --> 00:10:40.539 your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. 00:10:41.019 --> 00:10:42.819 Your old men shall dream dreams. 00:10:42.919 --> 00:10:44.319 Your young men shall see visions. 00:10:44.439 --> 00:10:46.079 When the spirit is poured out, 00:10:46.259 --> 00:10:48.100 it's going to make a difference. 00:10:48.100 --> 00:10:52.300 And Joel talks about the effect of the spirit's fullness 00:10:52.300 --> 00:10:53.899 in terms of prophecy. 00:10:55.240 --> 00:10:56.340 Now on the one hand, 00:10:56.420 --> 00:10:57.600 we know from the New Testament 00:10:57.600 --> 00:11:00.259 that the indwelling spirit of God 00:11:00.259 --> 00:11:01.259 is given, 00:11:02.379 --> 00:11:04.500 gives a variety of gifts 00:11:04.500 --> 00:11:07.220 to believers to build up the church. 00:11:07.759 --> 00:11:09.720 To help and serve and love one another. 00:11:10.680 --> 00:11:12.340 And these gifts are given freely, 00:11:12.480 --> 00:11:13.220 without distinction, 00:11:13.220 --> 00:11:15.399 so we can build one another up in love. 00:11:15.399 --> 00:11:19.919 You can read more about that in 1 Corinthians 12, 13, and 14. 00:11:21.199 --> 00:11:22.600 But to Joel's audience, 00:11:22.740 --> 00:11:25.079 they would have heard something even more than that 00:11:25.079 --> 00:11:25.899 in this promise. 00:11:26.740 --> 00:11:27.879 You see, in the Old Testament, 00:11:28.039 --> 00:11:30.279 to prophesy or to be a prophet 00:11:30.279 --> 00:11:33.519 was to be someone who had received the word of God 00:11:33.519 --> 00:11:35.699 in a special and powerful way, 00:11:36.120 --> 00:11:38.699 to have the knowledge of God wash over you 00:11:38.699 --> 00:11:41.079 so powerfully and so specifically 00:11:41.079 --> 00:11:43.100 that you had to share it with others. 00:11:43.460 --> 00:11:45.039 You couldn't hold it to yourself. 00:11:45.860 --> 00:11:46.659 In the Old Testament, 00:11:46.819 --> 00:11:48.579 God would sometimes communicate to prophets 00:11:48.579 --> 00:11:50.059 through dreams or visions, 00:11:50.219 --> 00:11:51.659 as verse 28 mentions, 00:11:51.759 --> 00:11:54.039 or sometimes just by speaking to them. 00:11:54.919 --> 00:11:56.860 But the point is that to prophesy 00:11:56.860 --> 00:11:59.879 was to know God and God's word intimately 00:11:59.879 --> 00:12:04.539 and to be an instrument of sharing that word with others. 00:12:05.259 --> 00:12:06.179 So when Joel says, 00:12:06.339 --> 00:12:07.559 the spirit will be poured out 00:12:07.559 --> 00:12:08.939 and everyone will prophesy, 00:12:09.099 --> 00:12:11.240 yes, he means we'll have gifts to serve one another, 00:12:11.240 --> 00:12:13.899 but deeper down, 00:12:14.019 --> 00:12:15.779 he means that intimacy with God, 00:12:16.340 --> 00:12:17.740 knowing and being known, 00:12:18.139 --> 00:12:19.460 loving and being loved 00:12:19.460 --> 00:12:21.960 by the creator of the universe himself, 00:12:22.759 --> 00:12:26.060 will not be the privileged possession 00:12:26.060 --> 00:12:27.539 of a select few, 00:12:27.820 --> 00:12:30.139 but intimacy with God and his word 00:12:30.139 --> 00:12:31.820 will flow like a river 00:12:31.820 --> 00:12:34.680 over all the people of God, 00:12:35.019 --> 00:12:36.299 young and old, 00:12:36.299 --> 00:12:37.779 rich and poor, 00:12:38.120 --> 00:12:39.339 male and female. 00:12:41.019 --> 00:12:42.419 What Joel sees here 00:12:42.419 --> 00:12:44.639 is the fulfillment of Moses' longing 00:12:44.639 --> 00:12:46.799 in Exodus or Numbers 11. 00:12:47.759 --> 00:12:48.199 Moses said, 00:12:48.439 --> 00:12:50.719 I wish that all the Lord's people 00:12:50.719 --> 00:12:51.819 were prophets, 00:12:52.199 --> 00:12:54.740 that the Lord would put his spirit on them. 00:12:56.479 --> 00:12:59.419 Jeremiah spoke of a similar thing 00:12:59.419 --> 00:13:00.439 in Jeremiah 31 00:13:00.439 --> 00:13:01.599 when God said, 00:13:01.600 --> 00:13:03.259 I'm going to make a new covenant 00:13:03.259 --> 00:13:05.259 with my people. 00:13:05.420 --> 00:13:05.759 He says, 00:13:05.820 --> 00:13:07.460 I'll put my law within them 00:13:07.460 --> 00:13:08.860 and I'll write it on their hearts 00:13:08.860 --> 00:13:10.040 and I will be their God 00:13:10.040 --> 00:13:11.440 and they shall be my people. 00:13:12.620 --> 00:13:14.200 And no longer shall each one 00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:14.940 teach his neighbor 00:13:14.940 --> 00:13:16.060 and each his brother saying, 00:13:16.420 --> 00:13:17.019 know the Lord, 00:13:17.519 --> 00:13:21.460 for they shall all know me. 00:13:22.040 --> 00:13:23.100 From the least of them 00:13:23.100 --> 00:13:24.120 to the greatest, 00:13:24.480 --> 00:13:25.340 declares the Lord. 00:13:25.940 --> 00:13:27.519 Intimacy with God is possible 00:13:27.519 --> 00:13:28.460 according to Joel 00:13:28.460 --> 00:13:29.900 because God has promised 00:13:29.900 --> 00:13:31.740 to pour out his spirit. 00:13:33.780 --> 00:13:34.240 And you know, 00:13:34.320 --> 00:13:35.259 that's one of the things 00:13:35.259 --> 00:13:36.500 that makes Christianity 00:13:36.500 --> 00:13:38.639 or biblical spirituality 00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:40.840 different from other religions. 00:13:42.100 --> 00:13:42.320 You know, 00:13:42.379 --> 00:13:44.200 most other spiritual approaches 00:13:44.200 --> 00:13:46.940 will give you a program to follow 00:13:46.940 --> 00:13:49.220 in order to break through 00:13:49.220 --> 00:13:50.500 to intimacy with God. 00:13:51.500 --> 00:13:53.300 But the Bible turns all of that 00:13:53.300 --> 00:13:53.820 on its head. 00:13:54.780 --> 00:13:55.620 According to the Bible, 00:13:55.860 --> 00:13:57.980 God breaks through to us. 00:13:58.460 --> 00:14:00.280 He forges the intimacy. 00:14:00.700 --> 00:14:02.019 He pours out his spirit. 00:14:02.300 --> 00:14:03.480 And doesn't that make sense 00:14:03.480 --> 00:14:04.940 when you think about it? 00:14:06.060 --> 00:14:06.500 You know, 00:14:06.580 --> 00:14:07.960 intimacy is not something 00:14:07.960 --> 00:14:09.100 that can be forced. 00:14:09.200 --> 00:14:10.320 If I'm trying to get to know 00:14:10.320 --> 00:14:11.120 another person, 00:14:11.940 --> 00:14:14.000 they have to open up 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:16.740 for a real friendship 00:14:16.740 --> 00:14:18.139 to develop. 00:14:19.340 --> 00:14:20.980 They have to pour out 00:14:20.980 --> 00:14:22.460 their spirit as it were. 00:14:23.400 --> 00:14:24.660 And if that's true 00:14:24.660 --> 00:14:25.320 with one another, 00:14:25.320 --> 00:14:27.280 how much more is that true 00:14:27.280 --> 00:14:28.720 when we approach 00:14:28.720 --> 00:14:29.520 an infinite, 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:30.280 holy, 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:32.020 and perfect God? 00:14:33.500 --> 00:14:34.980 We can't create, 00:14:35.320 --> 00:14:36.500 we can't break through 00:14:36.500 --> 00:14:38.020 to intimacy with this God. 00:14:38.280 --> 00:14:39.980 God must break through 00:14:39.980 --> 00:14:42.900 to intimacy with us. 00:14:44.060 --> 00:14:45.360 There's no other way. 00:14:47.760 --> 00:14:49.140 Maybe one of the reasons 00:14:49.140 --> 00:14:50.980 if you found intimacy with God 00:14:50.980 --> 00:14:51.760 to be fleeting 00:14:51.759 --> 00:14:53.460 or hard to come by, 00:14:54.379 --> 00:14:55.679 perhaps you've been looking 00:14:55.679 --> 00:14:56.580 in the wrong place. 00:14:57.879 --> 00:14:58.819 Perhaps you've been 00:14:58.819 --> 00:15:00.620 peeking through the back window 00:15:00.620 --> 00:15:01.620 trying to get a glimpse 00:15:01.620 --> 00:15:02.899 when God has flung open 00:15:02.899 --> 00:15:03.580 the front door 00:15:03.580 --> 00:15:03.899 and said, 00:15:04.000 --> 00:15:04.860 come inside. 00:15:06.319 --> 00:15:08.840 But here's the good news. 00:15:09.580 --> 00:15:11.600 What in Joel's day 00:15:11.600 --> 00:15:13.279 was a future promise, 00:15:14.179 --> 00:15:15.360 Joel said afterwards, 00:15:15.759 --> 00:15:16.679 Joel was looking forward 00:15:16.679 --> 00:15:17.600 to a point in the future 00:15:17.600 --> 00:15:18.419 when this would happen. 00:15:18.419 --> 00:15:19.360 For us, 00:15:19.559 --> 00:15:21.059 it's a present reality. 00:15:22.360 --> 00:15:23.939 And we heard earlier 00:15:23.939 --> 00:15:26.259 from the reading 00:15:26.259 --> 00:15:27.319 from Acts chapter 2 00:15:27.319 --> 00:15:28.699 about the day of Pentecost. 00:15:29.399 --> 00:15:30.759 One of the most significant 00:15:30.759 --> 00:15:31.740 moments 00:15:31.740 --> 00:15:34.379 in all of redemptive history, 00:15:34.479 --> 00:15:36.319 in all of the biblical story. 00:15:37.379 --> 00:15:37.659 You see, 00:15:37.699 --> 00:15:38.719 on the day of Pentecost, 00:15:38.799 --> 00:15:39.659 this was after Jesus 00:15:39.659 --> 00:15:41.479 had died 00:15:41.479 --> 00:15:42.620 and resurrected 00:15:42.620 --> 00:15:43.360 from the grave 00:15:43.360 --> 00:15:44.659 and ascended into heaven. 00:15:45.699 --> 00:15:46.559 His followers 00:15:46.559 --> 00:15:47.139 were gathered 00:15:47.139 --> 00:15:48.059 in the upper room 00:15:48.059 --> 00:15:49.539 and on that day, 00:15:49.639 --> 00:15:50.719 God poured out 00:15:50.719 --> 00:15:51.359 his spirit 00:15:51.359 --> 00:15:52.619 on all flesh 00:15:52.619 --> 00:15:53.539 just like 00:15:53.539 --> 00:15:54.599 he had promised. 00:15:55.599 --> 00:15:56.279 And on that day, 00:15:56.359 --> 00:15:57.639 the new covenant age 00:15:57.639 --> 00:15:58.579 of the risen Lord 00:15:58.579 --> 00:15:59.859 and his spirit began 00:15:59.859 --> 00:16:01.500 without reserve, 00:16:01.819 --> 00:16:02.699 without distinction, 00:16:03.099 --> 00:16:03.559 and fruitful 00:16:03.559 --> 00:16:04.659 beyond imagination. 00:16:07.059 --> 00:16:08.119 God has poured 00:16:08.119 --> 00:16:09.159 out his spirit. 00:16:10.239 --> 00:16:11.299 But that leads us 00:16:11.299 --> 00:16:12.039 to our second point. 00:16:12.139 --> 00:16:13.059 We've seen how intimacy 00:16:13.059 --> 00:16:14.099 with God is possible 00:16:14.099 --> 00:16:15.000 because God has poured 00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:15.559 out his spirit, 00:16:15.659 --> 00:16:16.479 but now we need to see 00:16:16.479 --> 00:16:17.539 how do we get it? 00:16:18.059 --> 00:16:21.099 Let me read again 00:16:21.099 --> 00:16:21.719 the second half 00:16:21.719 --> 00:16:22.259 of our text, 00:16:22.359 --> 00:16:23.239 starting in verse 30. 00:16:25.000 --> 00:16:25.599 God says, 00:16:25.679 --> 00:16:26.559 And I will show wonders 00:16:26.559 --> 00:16:27.619 in the heavens 00:16:27.619 --> 00:16:28.759 and on the earth, 00:16:29.139 --> 00:16:30.259 blood and fire 00:16:30.259 --> 00:16:31.339 and columns of smoke. 00:16:31.439 --> 00:16:32.339 The sun shall be turned 00:16:32.339 --> 00:16:32.879 to darkness 00:16:32.879 --> 00:16:34.599 and the moon to blood 00:16:34.599 --> 00:16:35.759 before the great 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:36.359 and awesome day 00:16:36.359 --> 00:16:37.319 of the Lord comes. 00:16:38.079 --> 00:16:39.159 And it shall come to pass 00:16:39.159 --> 00:16:40.259 that everyone who calls 00:16:40.259 --> 00:16:41.099 on the name of the Lord 00:16:41.099 --> 00:16:42.000 shall be saved. 00:16:42.659 --> 00:16:43.719 For in Mount Zion 00:16:43.719 --> 00:16:44.500 and in Jerusalem, 00:16:44.659 --> 00:16:45.439 there shall be those 00:16:45.439 --> 00:16:46.079 who escape, 00:16:46.159 --> 00:16:47.079 as the Lord has said. 00:16:47.080 --> 00:16:48.960 And among the survivors 00:16:48.960 --> 00:16:49.700 shall be those 00:16:49.700 --> 00:16:50.759 whom the Lord calls. 00:16:50.840 --> 00:16:51.660 So how do we, 00:16:52.639 --> 00:16:53.020 here, 00:16:53.139 --> 00:16:54.020 right here and now, 00:16:54.280 --> 00:16:55.300 how do we get 00:16:55.300 --> 00:16:56.780 this intimacy with God 00:16:56.780 --> 00:16:57.900 through his spirit? 00:17:00.740 --> 00:17:01.480 Joel says, 00:17:01.740 --> 00:17:03.600 Everyone who calls 00:17:03.600 --> 00:17:05.039 on the name of the Lord 00:17:05.039 --> 00:17:06.380 will be saved. 00:17:07.120 --> 00:17:07.519 Now, 00:17:07.600 --> 00:17:08.620 verses 30 and 31 00:17:08.620 --> 00:17:09.960 use the figurative language 00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:10.640 of a battle. 00:17:11.539 --> 00:17:12.039 Blood, 00:17:12.579 --> 00:17:12.980 fire, 00:17:13.579 --> 00:17:13.980 smoke. 00:17:13.980 --> 00:17:14.099 smoke. 00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:15.339 And the smoke 00:17:15.339 --> 00:17:16.400 is rising so high 00:17:16.400 --> 00:17:17.259 that in daytime 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:18.400 it blocks the sun 00:17:18.400 --> 00:17:18.880 and at night 00:17:18.880 --> 00:17:19.640 it makes the moon 00:17:19.640 --> 00:17:20.920 look blood red. 00:17:21.019 --> 00:17:22.779 This is battle language. 00:17:23.880 --> 00:17:25.299 Language of turmoil 00:17:25.299 --> 00:17:26.819 and conflict. 00:17:28.140 --> 00:17:29.420 And what Joel is saying here 00:17:29.420 --> 00:17:30.039 is that between 00:17:30.039 --> 00:17:31.480 the outpouring of the spirit 00:17:31.480 --> 00:17:32.380 on the one hand 00:17:32.380 --> 00:17:33.039 and the great 00:17:33.039 --> 00:17:33.720 and awesome day 00:17:33.720 --> 00:17:35.019 of the Lord's return 00:17:35.019 --> 00:17:36.120 on the other, 00:17:37.400 --> 00:17:39.160 the in-between time 00:17:39.160 --> 00:17:40.279 will be a time 00:17:40.279 --> 00:17:41.779 of great upheaval. 00:17:43.440 --> 00:17:43.960 And the in-between time 00:17:43.980 --> 00:17:44.559 it's the time 00:17:44.559 --> 00:17:45.360 we're living in now. 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:47.220 And if you look over 00:17:47.220 --> 00:17:48.480 the last 2,000 years 00:17:48.480 --> 00:17:49.140 of human history 00:17:49.140 --> 00:17:50.299 since the day of Pentecost, 00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:52.620 you have to agree. 00:17:53.839 --> 00:17:54.920 There have been moments 00:17:54.920 --> 00:17:56.059 of grandeur 00:17:56.059 --> 00:17:57.559 and grace 00:17:57.559 --> 00:17:59.160 and peace. 00:18:00.259 --> 00:18:01.140 But human history 00:18:01.140 --> 00:18:02.259 has also been full 00:18:02.259 --> 00:18:03.500 of upheaval, 00:18:04.140 --> 00:18:04.819 conflict, 00:18:05.420 --> 00:18:06.000 turmoil. 00:18:07.099 --> 00:18:08.839 And all this distress 00:18:08.839 --> 00:18:09.819 reminds us 00:18:09.819 --> 00:18:11.380 that our world 00:18:11.380 --> 00:18:12.220 is still broken. 00:18:12.220 --> 00:18:13.940 things aren't 00:18:13.940 --> 00:18:14.680 how they're supposed 00:18:14.680 --> 00:18:15.079 to be. 00:18:15.360 --> 00:18:15.960 We're not 00:18:15.960 --> 00:18:16.839 how we're supposed 00:18:16.839 --> 00:18:17.380 to be. 00:18:18.339 --> 00:18:18.920 And if God 00:18:18.920 --> 00:18:19.700 were to return 00:18:19.700 --> 00:18:21.380 in his holiness, 00:18:21.380 --> 00:18:22.440 if he were to 00:18:22.440 --> 00:18:23.539 simply show up, 00:18:23.920 --> 00:18:24.819 the sinful world 00:18:24.819 --> 00:18:25.600 would collapse 00:18:25.600 --> 00:18:26.640 under the weight 00:18:26.640 --> 00:18:27.319 of his glory. 00:18:28.600 --> 00:18:29.740 But in the midst 00:18:29.740 --> 00:18:30.640 of this upheaval 00:18:30.640 --> 00:18:31.519 and distress, 00:18:32.519 --> 00:18:33.839 something else 00:18:33.839 --> 00:18:34.559 is happening. 00:18:35.559 --> 00:18:36.500 Amidst the sounds 00:18:36.500 --> 00:18:36.980 of battle, 00:18:37.180 --> 00:18:38.180 another sound 00:18:38.180 --> 00:18:39.160 is going forth. 00:18:39.160 --> 00:18:40.100 another voice 00:18:40.100 --> 00:18:40.960 is ringing out 00:18:40.960 --> 00:18:42.160 through the tumult 00:18:42.160 --> 00:18:43.400 of human history 00:18:43.400 --> 00:18:45.060 and it's the voice 00:18:45.060 --> 00:18:46.840 of the Lord 00:18:46.840 --> 00:18:48.180 calling. 00:18:49.180 --> 00:18:50.220 That's how verse 32 00:18:50.220 --> 00:18:50.660 ends, 00:18:50.720 --> 00:18:51.440 with the reality 00:18:51.440 --> 00:18:53.320 of the Lord's call. 00:18:54.660 --> 00:18:55.960 And that sovereign 00:18:55.960 --> 00:18:56.980 call of God 00:18:56.980 --> 00:18:57.980 is drawing forth 00:18:57.980 --> 00:18:58.600 a response 00:18:58.600 --> 00:18:59.500 in human hearts. 00:19:00.220 --> 00:19:01.340 The Lord's call 00:19:01.340 --> 00:19:02.120 goes out 00:19:02.119 --> 00:19:03.299 and the human 00:19:03.299 --> 00:19:04.479 response calls 00:19:04.479 --> 00:19:05.019 back. 00:19:07.459 --> 00:19:08.559 And in that 00:19:08.559 --> 00:19:09.899 call and response, 00:19:10.099 --> 00:19:10.799 this promise 00:19:10.799 --> 00:19:11.799 unfurls. 00:19:12.579 --> 00:19:13.819 Like a banner 00:19:13.819 --> 00:19:14.599 of hope 00:19:14.599 --> 00:19:16.319 over the chaos, 00:19:16.739 --> 00:19:17.159 everyone 00:19:17.159 --> 00:19:18.599 who calls 00:19:18.599 --> 00:19:19.639 on the name 00:19:19.639 --> 00:19:20.199 of the Lord 00:19:20.199 --> 00:19:21.639 will be saved. 00:19:23.559 --> 00:19:24.979 Now you might ask, 00:19:25.639 --> 00:19:26.699 well, 00:19:26.919 --> 00:19:27.799 saved from what? 00:19:29.419 --> 00:19:30.739 It's a good question. 00:19:30.740 --> 00:19:34.079 We're not saved 00:19:34.079 --> 00:19:35.620 from the tumult 00:19:35.620 --> 00:19:36.319 and upheaval 00:19:36.319 --> 00:19:37.960 and conflict 00:19:37.960 --> 00:19:38.779 of human history. 00:19:40.700 --> 00:19:41.859 What we are 00:19:41.859 --> 00:19:42.680 saved from 00:19:42.680 --> 00:19:44.200 is permanent 00:19:44.200 --> 00:19:45.359 alienation 00:19:45.359 --> 00:19:46.259 from God. 00:19:47.200 --> 00:19:47.519 You see, 00:19:47.599 --> 00:19:48.200 that's the very 00:19:48.200 --> 00:19:49.400 opposite of intimacy 00:19:49.400 --> 00:19:50.000 with God, 00:19:50.680 --> 00:19:51.779 is alienation 00:19:51.779 --> 00:19:53.240 permanently 00:19:53.240 --> 00:19:54.200 from God. 00:19:56.140 --> 00:19:57.480 In Matthew 25, 00:19:57.620 --> 00:19:59.079 Jesus says 00:19:59.079 --> 00:20:00.519 that to be 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:01.139 permanently 00:20:01.139 --> 00:20:02.079 alienated 00:20:02.079 --> 00:20:02.740 from God 00:20:02.740 --> 00:20:03.339 is like 00:20:03.339 --> 00:20:04.639 being forever 00:20:04.639 --> 00:20:05.319 excluded 00:20:05.319 --> 00:20:06.240 from the feast. 00:20:07.519 --> 00:20:08.359 Like being 00:20:08.359 --> 00:20:08.919 lost 00:20:08.919 --> 00:20:10.159 in perpetual 00:20:10.159 --> 00:20:10.740 darkness. 00:20:11.819 --> 00:20:12.659 Even like 00:20:12.659 --> 00:20:13.480 disintegrating 00:20:13.480 --> 00:20:14.179 in a fire. 00:20:15.059 --> 00:20:15.679 And if you've 00:20:15.679 --> 00:20:16.159 ever been 00:20:16.159 --> 00:20:16.879 alienated 00:20:16.879 --> 00:20:17.500 from a loved 00:20:17.500 --> 00:20:17.839 one, 00:20:18.939 --> 00:20:19.220 you know 00:20:19.220 --> 00:20:19.699 a little 00:20:19.699 --> 00:20:20.460 of what 00:20:20.460 --> 00:20:20.740 that 00:20:20.740 --> 00:20:21.419 disintegrating 00:20:21.419 --> 00:20:21.919 fire 00:20:21.919 --> 00:20:23.079 feels like. 00:20:23.079 --> 00:20:25.879 what if 00:20:25.879 --> 00:20:26.519 the trajectory 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:27.179 of your 00:20:27.179 --> 00:20:27.819 life 00:20:27.819 --> 00:20:28.500 apart 00:20:28.500 --> 00:20:29.199 from God 00:20:29.199 --> 00:20:30.319 continues 00:20:30.319 --> 00:20:30.839 for 00:20:30.839 --> 00:20:31.439 eternity? 00:20:33.359 --> 00:20:34.379 What if 00:20:34.379 --> 00:20:34.740 when the 00:20:34.740 --> 00:20:35.039 curtain 00:20:35.039 --> 00:20:35.720 of your 00:20:35.720 --> 00:20:36.139 life 00:20:36.139 --> 00:20:37.019 drops 00:20:37.019 --> 00:20:38.099 and the 00:20:38.099 --> 00:20:38.460 play 00:20:38.460 --> 00:20:39.199 is over 00:20:39.199 --> 00:20:39.939 and the 00:20:39.939 --> 00:20:40.279 drama 00:20:40.279 --> 00:20:40.740 ends, 00:20:40.859 --> 00:20:41.319 what if 00:20:41.319 --> 00:20:41.799 you find 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:42.179 yourself 00:20:42.179 --> 00:20:43.039 in darkness 00:20:43.039 --> 00:20:43.960 outside 00:20:43.960 --> 00:20:44.740 the feast, 00:20:45.139 --> 00:20:45.839 not in 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:46.240 intimacy 00:20:46.240 --> 00:20:46.879 with God 00:20:46.879 --> 00:20:47.779 but alienated 00:20:47.779 --> 00:20:48.199 from 00:20:48.199 --> 00:20:49.039 God? 00:20:49.039 --> 00:20:50.740 Is there 00:20:50.740 --> 00:20:51.180 any way 00:20:51.180 --> 00:20:51.460 to be 00:20:51.460 --> 00:20:51.740 saved 00:20:51.740 --> 00:20:52.319 from that? 00:20:53.700 --> 00:20:54.299 Is there 00:20:54.299 --> 00:20:54.599 any way 00:20:54.599 --> 00:20:54.960 to get 00:20:54.960 --> 00:20:55.500 the intimacy 00:20:55.500 --> 00:20:56.159 that God's 00:20:56.159 --> 00:20:56.440 spirit 00:20:56.440 --> 00:20:56.899 makes 00:20:56.899 --> 00:20:57.460 possible? 00:20:59.119 --> 00:20:59.720 Well the 00:20:59.720 --> 00:21:00.099 good news 00:21:00.099 --> 00:21:00.619 according to 00:21:00.619 --> 00:21:01.240 Joel is 00:21:01.240 --> 00:21:01.720 yes, 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:02.539 everyone 00:21:02.539 --> 00:21:03.220 who calls 00:21:03.220 --> 00:21:03.500 on the 00:21:03.500 --> 00:21:03.779 name of 00:21:03.779 --> 00:21:04.099 the Lord 00:21:04.099 --> 00:21:04.440 will be 00:21:04.440 --> 00:21:05.079 saved. 00:21:06.720 --> 00:21:07.319 Now you 00:21:07.319 --> 00:21:07.799 might also 00:21:07.799 --> 00:21:08.259 ask, 00:21:08.720 --> 00:21:09.559 what does 00:21:09.559 --> 00:21:09.799 it mean 00:21:09.799 --> 00:21:10.339 to call 00:21:10.339 --> 00:21:10.759 on the 00:21:10.759 --> 00:21:10.980 name of 00:21:10.980 --> 00:21:11.359 the Lord? 00:21:12.440 --> 00:21:13.019 And that's 00:21:13.019 --> 00:21:13.200 a good 00:21:13.200 --> 00:21:13.839 question too. 00:21:15.579 --> 00:21:16.180 In the 00:21:16.180 --> 00:21:16.819 Old Testament 00:21:16.819 --> 00:21:18.500 to call 00:21:18.500 --> 00:21:18.920 on the 00:21:18.920 --> 00:21:19.279 name of 00:21:19.279 --> 00:21:19.740 the Lord 00:21:19.740 --> 00:21:20.500 is an 00:21:20.500 --> 00:21:21.099 expression 00:21:21.099 --> 00:21:22.279 that basically 00:21:22.279 --> 00:21:22.920 means to 00:21:22.920 --> 00:21:23.559 worship the 00:21:23.559 --> 00:21:23.799 Lord 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:24.579 exclusively. 00:21:25.720 --> 00:21:26.720 To shift 00:21:26.720 --> 00:21:27.460 the allegiance 00:21:27.460 --> 00:21:27.799 of your 00:21:27.799 --> 00:21:28.299 life from 00:21:28.299 --> 00:21:29.119 any other 00:21:29.119 --> 00:21:29.880 God to 00:21:29.880 --> 00:21:30.539 the Lord 00:21:30.539 --> 00:21:31.519 and to 00:21:31.519 --> 00:21:31.859 the Lord 00:21:31.859 --> 00:21:32.259 alone. 00:21:36.980 --> 00:21:37.819 In the 00:21:37.819 --> 00:21:38.319 New Testament 00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:39.200 this is 00:21:39.200 --> 00:21:39.599 called 00:21:39.599 --> 00:21:40.680 faith. 00:21:42.140 --> 00:21:42.900 Trusting 00:21:42.900 --> 00:21:43.980 or resting 00:21:43.980 --> 00:21:44.960 the weight 00:21:44.960 --> 00:21:45.420 of your 00:21:45.420 --> 00:21:45.940 life 00:21:45.940 --> 00:21:47.420 no longer 00:21:47.420 --> 00:21:48.200 on yourself 00:21:48.200 --> 00:21:49.700 but on 00:21:49.700 --> 00:21:50.160 the Lord. 00:21:52.980 --> 00:21:53.680 And that 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:54.240 raises another 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:54.720 question. 00:21:56.960 --> 00:21:57.440 Why is 00:21:57.440 --> 00:21:58.340 calling on 00:21:58.340 --> 00:21:58.640 the name 00:21:58.640 --> 00:21:58.880 of the 00:21:58.880 --> 00:21:59.380 Lord the 00:21:59.380 --> 00:21:59.840 way to 00:21:59.840 --> 00:22:00.580 get intimacy 00:22:00.580 --> 00:22:01.259 with God? 00:22:01.380 --> 00:22:02.059 Why isn't 00:22:02.059 --> 00:22:02.680 it those 00:22:02.680 --> 00:22:02.960 who are 00:22:02.960 --> 00:22:03.700 smart enough 00:22:03.700 --> 00:22:05.080 can find 00:22:05.080 --> 00:22:05.660 intimacy with 00:22:05.660 --> 00:22:06.019 God or 00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:06.420 those who 00:22:06.420 --> 00:22:06.779 are good 00:22:06.779 --> 00:22:07.319 enough or 00:22:07.319 --> 00:22:07.940 enlightened 00:22:07.940 --> 00:22:08.480 enough or 00:22:08.480 --> 00:22:09.440 kind enough 00:22:09.440 --> 00:22:10.519 can find 00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:10.980 this intimacy 00:22:10.980 --> 00:22:11.559 with God? 00:22:11.660 --> 00:22:11.920 Well the 00:22:11.920 --> 00:22:12.600 reality is 00:22:12.600 --> 00:22:13.019 you can 00:22:13.019 --> 00:22:13.500 never be 00:22:13.500 --> 00:22:13.940 enough. 00:22:13.940 --> 00:22:17.200 the chasm 00:22:17.200 --> 00:22:17.680 of sin 00:22:17.680 --> 00:22:18.500 between us 00:22:18.500 --> 00:22:18.900 and God 00:22:18.900 --> 00:22:19.360 is too 00:22:19.360 --> 00:22:20.019 great for 00:22:20.019 --> 00:22:20.480 us to 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:20.940 bridge. 00:22:21.180 --> 00:22:21.660 That's an 00:22:21.660 --> 00:22:22.080 unpopular 00:22:22.080 --> 00:22:22.559 thing to 00:22:22.559 --> 00:22:22.900 say. 00:22:26.039 --> 00:22:27.019 But maybe 00:22:27.019 --> 00:22:28.820 the reason 00:22:28.820 --> 00:22:29.259 that we 00:22:29.259 --> 00:22:30.180 try to 00:22:30.180 --> 00:22:30.720 keep telling 00:22:30.720 --> 00:22:31.420 ourselves 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:32.600 over and 00:22:32.600 --> 00:22:32.960 over 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:34.299 I'm enough 00:22:34.299 --> 00:22:35.860 I'm enough 00:22:35.860 --> 00:22:36.860 I'm enough 00:22:36.860 --> 00:22:37.299 is that 00:22:37.299 --> 00:22:38.340 deep down 00:22:38.340 --> 00:22:38.700 we know 00:22:38.700 --> 00:22:39.000 that we're 00:22:39.000 --> 00:22:39.500 really not 00:22:39.500 --> 00:22:39.920 enough. 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:40.019 enough. 00:22:42.340 --> 00:22:43.300 But here's 00:22:43.300 --> 00:22:43.539 the good 00:22:43.539 --> 00:22:43.880 news. 00:22:44.019 --> 00:22:44.220 There's 00:22:44.220 --> 00:22:44.820 one who 00:22:44.820 --> 00:22:45.759 is enough 00:22:45.759 --> 00:22:48.600 and he 00:22:48.600 --> 00:22:49.900 loves you. 00:22:50.480 --> 00:22:51.420 When sin 00:22:51.420 --> 00:22:52.860 separated us 00:22:52.860 --> 00:22:53.620 from God 00:22:53.620 --> 00:22:54.620 Jesus took 00:22:54.620 --> 00:22:55.320 our sin 00:22:55.320 --> 00:22:56.560 and he 00:22:56.560 --> 00:22:57.240 bore that 00:22:57.240 --> 00:22:57.840 separation 00:22:57.840 --> 00:22:58.300 on the 00:22:58.300 --> 00:22:59.140 cross in 00:22:59.140 --> 00:23:00.660 your place 00:23:00.660 --> 00:23:02.080 in my 00:23:02.080 --> 00:23:02.900 place 00:23:02.900 --> 00:23:04.180 and he 00:23:04.180 --> 00:23:04.840 rose again 00:23:04.840 --> 00:23:05.200 so we 00:23:05.200 --> 00:23:05.779 could call 00:23:05.779 --> 00:23:06.420 on his 00:23:06.420 --> 00:23:07.100 name 00:23:07.100 --> 00:23:08.320 and be 00:23:08.320 --> 00:23:08.860 saved. 00:23:09.920 --> 00:23:10.960 You see 00:23:10.960 --> 00:23:11.480 we get 00:23:11.480 --> 00:23:11.880 intimacy 00:23:11.880 --> 00:23:12.460 with God 00:23:12.460 --> 00:23:12.960 not through 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:13.560 what we've 00:23:13.560 --> 00:23:14.000 accomplished 00:23:14.000 --> 00:23:15.100 but through 00:23:15.100 --> 00:23:16.080 what Christ 00:23:16.080 --> 00:23:16.900 has accomplished. 00:23:17.100 --> 00:23:17.440 It's 00:23:17.440 --> 00:23:18.700 grace. 00:23:20.080 --> 00:23:20.360 Something 00:23:20.360 --> 00:23:21.019 has been 00:23:21.019 --> 00:23:21.940 done for 00:23:21.940 --> 00:23:22.400 you. 00:23:22.960 --> 00:23:23.320 The Lord 00:23:23.320 --> 00:23:23.840 Jesus has 00:23:23.840 --> 00:23:24.500 come and 00:23:24.500 --> 00:23:25.220 lived and 00:23:25.220 --> 00:23:25.779 died and 00:23:25.779 --> 00:23:26.340 rose again 00:23:26.340 --> 00:23:26.900 for you 00:23:26.900 --> 00:23:27.860 so you can 00:23:27.860 --> 00:23:28.500 call on his 00:23:28.500 --> 00:23:29.480 name and 00:23:29.480 --> 00:23:29.960 rest your 00:23:29.960 --> 00:23:30.620 life in him 00:23:30.620 --> 00:23:31.740 and be 00:23:31.740 --> 00:23:33.420 saved now 00:23:33.420 --> 00:23:34.259 and for 00:23:34.259 --> 00:23:34.940 all eternity. 00:23:35.940 --> 00:23:36.580 And if 00:23:36.580 --> 00:23:36.960 you get 00:23:36.960 --> 00:23:37.480 that, 00:23:37.980 --> 00:23:39.140 if you get 00:23:39.140 --> 00:23:39.480 that it's 00:23:39.480 --> 00:23:39.960 all of 00:23:39.960 --> 00:23:40.360 grace and 00:23:40.360 --> 00:23:40.880 we can't 00:23:40.880 --> 00:23:41.220 accomplish 00:23:41.220 --> 00:23:41.520 it in 00:23:41.520 --> 00:23:41.900 our own 00:23:41.900 --> 00:23:42.200 name but 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:42.480 we can 00:23:42.480 --> 00:23:43.000 receive it 00:23:43.000 --> 00:23:43.320 in his 00:23:43.320 --> 00:23:43.580 name, 00:23:43.580 --> 00:23:44.180 then the 00:23:44.180 --> 00:23:44.900 intimacy with 00:23:44.900 --> 00:23:45.600 God will 00:23:45.600 --> 00:23:45.980 come. 00:23:47.259 --> 00:23:48.020 Because the 00:23:48.020 --> 00:23:48.600 spirit who 00:23:48.600 --> 00:23:49.060 is poured 00:23:49.060 --> 00:23:49.500 out at 00:23:49.500 --> 00:23:50.180 Pentecost will 00:23:50.180 --> 00:23:50.720 begin to 00:23:50.720 --> 00:23:51.440 wash over 00:23:51.440 --> 00:23:52.080 you too. 00:23:52.840 --> 00:23:53.280 And God 00:23:53.280 --> 00:23:53.860 will include 00:23:53.860 --> 00:23:54.240 us in 00:23:54.240 --> 00:23:54.759 his people, 00:23:55.020 --> 00:23:55.520 this new 00:23:55.520 --> 00:23:56.020 Jerusalem, 00:23:56.200 --> 00:23:56.620 this new 00:23:56.620 --> 00:23:57.040 Zion, 00:23:57.460 --> 00:23:58.040 those as 00:23:58.040 --> 00:23:58.740 Joel says, 00:23:58.840 --> 00:23:59.480 those whom 00:23:59.480 --> 00:23:59.980 the Lord 00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:00.600 calls. 00:24:02.540 --> 00:24:03.259 I wonder 00:24:03.259 --> 00:24:03.820 do you sense 00:24:03.820 --> 00:24:04.300 that even 00:24:04.300 --> 00:24:05.040 now or have 00:24:05.040 --> 00:24:05.520 you sensed 00:24:05.520 --> 00:24:05.860 that? 00:24:06.460 --> 00:24:07.280 The Lord's 00:24:07.280 --> 00:24:07.960 call? 00:24:09.140 --> 00:24:09.920 In Acts, 00:24:10.020 --> 00:24:10.740 when Peter 00:24:10.740 --> 00:24:12.080 preached this 00:24:12.080 --> 00:24:12.860 very text, 00:24:12.920 --> 00:24:13.380 he read these 00:24:13.380 --> 00:24:14.180 very words on 00:24:14.180 --> 00:24:14.540 the day of 00:24:14.540 --> 00:24:15.000 Pentecost, 00:24:15.080 --> 00:24:15.500 it says the 00:24:15.500 --> 00:24:15.980 people were 00:24:15.980 --> 00:24:16.520 cut to the 00:24:16.520 --> 00:24:16.800 heart. 00:24:18.640 --> 00:24:19.200 Have you 00:24:19.200 --> 00:24:20.020 felt a tug 00:24:20.020 --> 00:24:20.360 on your 00:24:20.360 --> 00:24:20.680 heart? 00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:22.960 On the one 00:24:22.960 --> 00:24:23.240 hand, 00:24:23.320 --> 00:24:23.840 it's a voice 00:24:23.840 --> 00:24:25.180 that may seem 00:24:25.180 --> 00:24:26.380 strange and 00:24:26.380 --> 00:24:27.180 other because 00:24:27.180 --> 00:24:27.580 it's not your 00:24:27.580 --> 00:24:28.100 own voice. 00:24:29.500 --> 00:24:30.160 And at the 00:24:30.160 --> 00:24:30.640 same time, 00:24:30.680 --> 00:24:31.140 it's familiar 00:24:31.140 --> 00:24:31.820 and true. 00:24:32.740 --> 00:24:33.320 And it's 00:24:33.320 --> 00:24:33.580 saying, 00:24:33.740 --> 00:24:33.980 come. 00:24:35.400 --> 00:24:35.800 And do you 00:24:35.800 --> 00:24:36.180 sense your 00:24:36.180 --> 00:24:36.660 own heart 00:24:36.660 --> 00:24:37.460 responding with 00:24:37.460 --> 00:24:38.360 a yes to 00:24:38.360 --> 00:24:38.740 the voice 00:24:38.740 --> 00:24:39.319 of God? 00:24:42.700 --> 00:24:43.319 If you've 00:24:43.319 --> 00:24:44.120 experienced that, 00:24:44.200 --> 00:24:44.400 if you're 00:24:44.400 --> 00:24:46.640 experiencing that 00:24:46.640 --> 00:24:47.100 now, you're 00:24:47.100 --> 00:24:48.180 experiencing the 00:24:48.180 --> 00:24:49.000 power of the 00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:50.360 Holy Spirit and 00:24:50.360 --> 00:24:50.880 the effective 00:24:50.880 --> 00:24:52.160 call of God, 00:24:52.640 --> 00:24:53.380 liberating you 00:24:53.380 --> 00:24:54.500 to call on 00:24:54.500 --> 00:24:55.700 Jesus and 00:24:55.700 --> 00:24:57.019 be saved. 00:24:58.299 --> 00:24:59.079 So do just 00:24:59.079 --> 00:24:59.420 that. 00:25:00.500 --> 00:25:01.100 Call on the 00:25:01.100 --> 00:25:01.640 name of Jesus, 00:25:01.799 --> 00:25:02.460 take him as 00:25:02.460 --> 00:25:03.840 your Lord, 00:25:04.240 --> 00:25:04.920 the only 00:25:04.920 --> 00:25:05.600 Lord. 00:25:05.599 --> 00:25:05.759 Lord. 00:25:06.659 --> 00:25:07.339 And then go 00:25:07.339 --> 00:25:08.000 public, talk 00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:08.679 to a friend or 00:25:08.679 --> 00:25:09.159 talk to one of 00:25:09.159 --> 00:25:10.299 the pastors about 00:25:10.299 --> 00:25:11.099 making your 00:25:11.099 --> 00:25:11.899 faith public by 00:25:11.899 --> 00:25:12.579 getting baptized. 00:25:14.719 --> 00:25:15.539 And if this is 00:25:15.539 --> 00:25:15.959 true of you 00:25:15.959 --> 00:25:18.359 already, if 00:25:18.359 --> 00:25:18.859 you've already 00:25:18.859 --> 00:25:19.459 heard and 00:25:19.459 --> 00:25:20.099 responded to 00:25:20.099 --> 00:25:20.899 that call of 00:25:20.899 --> 00:25:21.839 God, if you've 00:25:21.839 --> 00:25:22.480 called on the 00:25:22.480 --> 00:25:22.879 name of the 00:25:22.879 --> 00:25:24.740 Lord, continue 00:25:24.740 --> 00:25:26.259 to make your 00:25:26.259 --> 00:25:27.799 profession known. 00:25:29.419 --> 00:25:30.179 Continue to 00:25:30.179 --> 00:25:31.059 enjoy the 00:25:31.059 --> 00:25:31.799 intimacy that 00:25:31.799 --> 00:25:33.599 you have in 00:25:33.599 --> 00:25:34.899 the Spirit of 00:25:34.900 --> 00:25:36.759 God, through 00:25:36.759 --> 00:25:38.680 prayer, through 00:25:38.680 --> 00:25:39.300 fellowship with 00:25:39.300 --> 00:25:39.920 other believers, 00:25:40.180 --> 00:25:41.019 through serving 00:25:41.019 --> 00:25:41.860 with the Spirit's 00:25:41.860 --> 00:25:42.300 gifts, through 00:25:42.300 --> 00:25:42.860 loving your 00:25:42.860 --> 00:25:43.420 neighbor, through 00:25:43.420 --> 00:25:44.280 sharing this 00:25:44.280 --> 00:25:44.880 good news of 00:25:44.880 --> 00:25:45.360 Jesus with 00:25:45.360 --> 00:25:46.060 others, all of 00:25:46.060 --> 00:25:46.860 those are ways 00:25:46.860 --> 00:25:48.120 that the 00:25:48.120 --> 00:25:49.380 indwelling Spirit 00:25:49.380 --> 00:25:51.240 of God works 00:25:51.240 --> 00:25:53.460 in us and 00:25:53.460 --> 00:25:54.140 through us. 00:25:55.560 --> 00:25:56.300 And as we 00:25:56.300 --> 00:25:56.940 keep in step 00:25:56.940 --> 00:25:57.540 with the Spirit 00:25:57.540 --> 00:25:57.920 who's been 00:25:57.920 --> 00:25:58.880 poured out, this 00:25:58.880 --> 00:25:59.519 intimacy will 00:25:59.519 --> 00:26:01.600 continue through 00:26:01.600 --> 00:26:03.320 joys and sorrows 00:26:03.320 --> 00:26:04.259 until one day we 00:26:04.259 --> 00:26:05.259 will see him 00:26:05.259 --> 00:26:07.500 face to face, the 00:26:07.500 --> 00:26:09.140 Lord, on whose 00:26:09.140 --> 00:26:09.720 name we have 00:26:09.720 --> 00:26:10.140 called. 00:26:11.180 --> 00:26:11.799 And when the 00:26:11.799 --> 00:26:12.440 great and awesome 00:26:12.440 --> 00:26:13.140 day of the Lord 00:26:13.140 --> 00:26:14.920 comes, our faith 00:26:14.920 --> 00:26:15.740 will become sight 00:26:15.740 --> 00:26:17.339 and our intimacy 00:26:17.339 --> 00:26:18.059 with God will 00:26:18.059 --> 00:26:18.839 have no end. 00:26:20.180 --> 00:26:20.940 Let's pray. 00:26:20.940 --> 00:26:30.580 Father, thank you 00:26:30.580 --> 00:26:31.360 for this promise 00:26:31.360 --> 00:26:34.160 that you gave to 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:34.880 your people long 00:26:34.880 --> 00:26:35.519 ago through the 00:26:35.519 --> 00:26:36.100 prophet Joel. 00:26:36.220 --> 00:26:37.039 Thank you for 00:26:37.039 --> 00:26:38.100 fulfilling that 00:26:38.100 --> 00:26:39.140 promise by sending 00:26:39.140 --> 00:26:41.519 your Spirit on 00:26:41.519 --> 00:26:41.960 the day of 00:26:41.960 --> 00:26:44.920 Pentecost to 00:26:44.920 --> 00:26:46.920 seal the work 00:26:46.920 --> 00:26:47.740 that Jesus has 00:26:47.740 --> 00:26:49.660 done to our 00:26:49.660 --> 00:26:52.039 hearts, to 00:26:52.039 --> 00:26:52.920 fill us with 00:26:52.920 --> 00:26:54.000 that fountain 00:26:54.000 --> 00:26:55.039 of living water, 00:26:55.819 --> 00:26:57.880 of overflowing 00:26:57.880 --> 00:26:58.400 life. 00:26:59.660 --> 00:27:00.920 We pray that we 00:27:00.920 --> 00:27:03.000 would be 00:27:03.000 --> 00:27:04.519 refreshed by 00:27:04.519 --> 00:27:05.200 the power of 00:27:05.200 --> 00:27:05.960 your Holy Spirit 00:27:05.960 --> 00:27:07.779 this morning. 00:27:09.039 --> 00:27:10.059 We pray that we 00:27:10.059 --> 00:27:10.799 would live in the 00:27:10.799 --> 00:27:11.319 power of your 00:27:11.319 --> 00:27:12.640 Spirit day by day. 00:27:12.740 --> 00:27:15.539 We pray that we 00:27:15.539 --> 00:27:16.440 would call on you 00:27:16.440 --> 00:27:17.160 and know your 00:27:17.160 --> 00:27:19.519 promise that those 00:27:19.519 --> 00:27:20.539 who call upon your 00:27:20.539 --> 00:27:21.500 name will be 00:27:21.500 --> 00:27:24.820 saved, that you 00:27:24.820 --> 00:27:26.620 have rescued us 00:27:26.620 --> 00:27:28.299 and you will 00:27:28.299 --> 00:27:29.180 continue to abide 00:27:29.180 --> 00:27:29.840 with us. 00:27:31.380 --> 00:27:32.259 Pray all these 00:27:32.259 --> 00:27:32.759 things in Jesus' 00:27:32.940 --> 00:27:33.100 name. 00:27:33.880 --> 00:27:34.120 Amen.