The podcast episode centers on the importance of spiritual preparation as articulated through the lens of the prophet Joel’s teachings. The speakers emphasize that genuine faith requires active engagement, urging listeners to repent, respond, and rend their hearts in pursuit of a deeper relationship with God. They discuss the distractions that often lead individuals away from spiritual growth, highlighting that true worship and devotion are essential in the face of impending judgment. The conversation underscores the need for communal support within the church, advocating for unity and collective action as believers rally together to strengthen their faith. Ultimately, the episode conveys that a heartfelt commitment to God will result in blessings and spiritual fulfillment. The podcast episode delves into the profound themes of spiritual preparedness and the importance of repentance as articulated through the lens of the biblical Book of Joel. The speakers engage in a thoughtful dialogue, highlighting the necessity for individuals and congregations alike to examine their spiritual lives in light of the approaching day of the Lord. They emphasize that spiritual growth requires more than mere acknowledgment of one's faith; it necessitates an active response that includes repentance, heartfelt mourning, and an earnest desire to cultivate a deeper relationship with God. By sharing personal anecdotes and scriptural references, the speakers illustrate how distractions in daily life can lead believers away from their spiritual commitments, urging listeners to prioritize their walk with God amidst the busyness of life. In this way, the episode serves as both a cautionary tale and a clarion call for spiritual awakening, encouraging believers to rally together in unity and support, fostering a community that seeks to honor God in all aspects of life.

Takeaways:

• The podcast emphasizes the importance of church planting, describing it as a transformative experience for those involved.
• Listeners are encouraged to engage actively in their faith by repenting and turning to God with sincerity and commitment.
• The speakers stress that spiritual growth is essential and should be a priority for all believers, regardless of their current state.
• There is a call for unity within the church, highlighting that the body of Christ should support and uplift one another during challenging times.
• The need for personal examination of one's faith is underscored, with a reminder that genuine faith must produce visible actions.
• Finally, the episode concludes with a powerful reminder that God's grace and mercy are rewards for those who earnestly seek Him.

Yeah, don't mess up.

He says, you know, it was a blessing singing Revive Us Again.

It's kind of a.

Kind of funny that we sang Revive Us Again.

We were helping church plant for quite some time.

And if you've never church planted before, man, you should do that.

It's a whole new world out there.

And my wife, she can play the piano some.

She can play about four or five.

Songs, and so she was our piano player.

And we would sing the same four or five songs over and over and over and over again.

And Revive Us Again was one of those songs.

And then we got to Rock Wall and we started singing Revive Us Again.

And most of the people there says amen.

And I don't say amen.

I say amen.

We say amen at church.

How many of y' all say amen.

Whenever something good has said during the preaching?

Nobody does that.

If you do, it's kind of weird.

It's weird.

You do.

Yeah.

And.

But anyways.

And so it's kind of funny that we sang that.

And thank you for saying amen in that song.

Amen.

Well, it has been a blessing to be here today.

I've had a great time here at the church, and I've really enjoyed the opportunity to get to preach for you.

And I'm thankful for the attentiveness in the services.

It's been.

Been a blessing.

This morning in Sunday school, we've already looked at how the love of Christ constraineth us and our motivation behind what we do and why we are doing what we do.

And then in the morning message, we preached on the cause and effect of Christ.

They asked Peter, why are you doing these things?

By what power, by what name are you doing the things that you're doing?

And Peter stands and he preaches the.

Word of God, basically preaches Christ to them.

And he is the reason why we.

Do what we do.

And whatever Christ has done for us,.

He saved our soul.

He's helped us out.

He walks with us, he talks with us.

He promises never to leave us nor forsake us.

He's the best friend that we've ever had.

That friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

Jesus Christ has been so good to us.

And because of that, we go out and we want to share that message with the lost and dying world.

And tonight I want to draw our attention and hopefully bring it all together.

Out of the Little Book of Joel.

The Little Book of Joel.

If you don't have the same Bible I do.

It's probably in the white pages of your Bible.

Okay?

It's the Book of Joel.

You know, many times in church, the.

Preacher will tell us what to do, but sometimes we don't get the how.

Do we do what you're telling us to do?

How many times have you been to church and you've been told, this is how we are to do this, this is how we're to do that, this is how you grow spiritually, this is what you're to do, but we don't know how here.

Recently, I've been dealing with people, counseling people, even my own children, that have come to me and said, dad, I don't know how to properly study the word of God.

I know that I'm supposed to read the Bible, but I don't know how to study the word of God.

And these are kids that have grown up in church their whole life.

And I would imagine there's people here, even in this church that have read the Bible.

Maybe you read it through all the time, but you don't know how to study the Bible.

We should be taught how to do these things.

I believe.

And so I pray that the message.

Tonight will help us with the how.

To put together the Sunday school, how to put together the AM Service.

I typically don't read a whole, whole bunch, but I'm going to read a little bit.

And please don't lose me as I'm reading this, okay?

In Joel, chapter number one, Joel, chapter number one, the Bible says this the word of the Lord that came to Joel the son of.

Hear this, ye olde men, and give ear all ye inhabitants of the land.

Hath this been in your days or even in the days of your fathers.

Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children and their children another generation.

So he's teaching right off the bat on, hey, we need to tell these younger people, this younger generation and this younger generation, we need to keep passing these things on.

In verse four, he goes on to say, that which the Palmer worm hath left, the locust eaten.

Hath the locust eaten.

And that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten.

And that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpillar eaten.

Awake ye drunkards and weep and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine, for it is cut off from your mouth.

For a nation has come up upon my land strong and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a Lion.

And he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.

He hath laid my vine waste and barked my fig tree.

He hath made it clean bare and cast it away, and the branches thereof are made white.

All the things that Joel is talking about are not good things.

He says, lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.

The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the Lord.

The priest, the Lord's ministers mourn.

The field is wasted, the land mourneth, for the corn is wasted and the new wine is dried up and the oil languisheth.

Be ye ashamed.

O ye husbandmen, howl.

O ye vinedressers.

For the wheat and for the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.

The vine is dried up and the fig tree languisheth, the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree.

Even all the trees of the field are withered, because joy is withered away.

From the sons of men.

Gird yourselves and lament, ye priests.

How ye ministers of the altar come.

Lie all night in sackcloth, you ministers of my God.

For the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.

Verse 14.

He says, Sanctify ye a fast.

Call a solemn assembly to gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord, alas for the day, for the day of the Lord is at hand.

And as destruction from the Almighty shall it come, is not the meat cut off before our eyes?

Yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God.

The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate.

The barns are broken down, for the corn is withered.

How do the beasts groan?

The herds of cattle are perplexed because they have no pasture.

Yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

O Lord, to thee will I cry.

For the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.

The beasts of the field cry also unto thee.

For the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of wilderness.

And now, how many of y' all think this is a good passage to read?

A very encouraging passage.

It's not, but it's a very instructive passage.

In chapter two, he goes on to say, blow ye the trumpet in Zion and sound an alarm in my holy mountain.

Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble for the day of the Lord.

Cometh, for it is nigh at hand.

A day of darkness and of gloominess, A day of clouds and of thick darkness.

As the morning spread upon the mountains.

A great people and a strong There hath not been ever the like.

Neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

A fire devoureth before them, and behind them a flame burneth.

The land is as the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness, yea, and nothing shall escape them.

It's not getting any better.

It's continuously getting worse and worse and worse and worse.

Judgment is happening, it says.

The appearance of them is as the.

Appearance of horses and as horsemen.

So shall they run like the noise of the chariots on the tops of the mountain shall they leap like the noise of the flame of fire that devoureth the stubble.

As strong people set in battle array before their face.

The people shall be much pained.

All faces shall gather blackness.

They shall run like mighty men.

They shall climb the wall like men of war.

They shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks, Neither shall one thrust another.

They shall walk every one in his path.

And when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.

They shall run to and fro in the city, and they shall run upon the wall.

They shall climb up upon the houses, they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.

The earth shall quake before them, the heavens shall tremble, the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.

And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army, for his camp is very great.

For he is strong that executeth his word.

For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible, and who can abide it?

I just read a whole bunch and none of it was good.

It was all a warning.

You know, you think about the prophet Joel.

It's been thought that Joel was the first of the writing prophets.

And the major theme of the book.

Of Joel is the day of the Lord.

The day of the Lord is at.

Hand, judgment is coming, and it's really for God's people to be prepared for the day of the Lord.

That's the reason why he's writing it, that we need to be prepared for.

The day of the Lord.

I believe it's safe to say that this message rings just as clear today as it did back when Joel wrote it.

I believe that we're living in a time where judgment is coming.

In the world, there's all kinds of different pestilence and different plagues and things that are happening all across the world today.

And so what we see in the book of Joel is exactly what's happening in today's time.

Listen, there's so many things in our.

Lives, not necessarily bad things, but things.

That will distract our walk with God.

And as Joel is writing this, what happened was, is the people had just gotten distracted by living their life and.

Just doing what they were doing.

They were saying they were children of God.

They were saying they were the people of God.

But as Joel tells us, they weren't doing what they were supposed to be doing.

And Joel is warning them, hey, the day of the Lord is at hand.

There's coming a time when the day of the Lord is going to happen.

And.

And you better be prepared.

You better be ready.

And they were so distracted by every single thing in their life that they were not ready for the day of the Lord.

Aw.

Tozer said this.

He said the devil's greatest weapon is distraction.

You ever been distracted?

We drive a whole lot.

I told you this morning, my church.

Is 70 miles from my house.

On a good day, when my kids.

Were going to school here, Melissa was working here.

It was 30 miles from my house.

You know, you drive and you see people on their phones, people being distracted.

Even us.

We can get distracted by things.

We get distracted by our jobs, by our neighbors, by our friends, by family.

We just get distracted.

We're distracted.

People in our Christian walk, when we decide that we want to go out and do something for the Lord, the devil is going to try to distract you and to stop you from doing what God has told you to do.

Listen, we know that Jesus loves us.

We know that his love can constrain us.

And we know that we can be.

Motivated by the love that Jesus has for us.

We know how important the cause and effect of Christ is in our life.

We know these things and we'll say amen to these things.

But we just simply.

Sometimes we get distracted as soon as we leave church.

Have you ever been to church and you heard a message and you're like, wow, that's great.

And you come down to the altar and you tell God you're gonna do something, and you commit something to the Lord and then you get up and then you shake some hands and you talk to some people, and as soon as you get in your car, you completely forget everything that was said, Everything that you promised, everything that you did,.

Or is that just me?

We do that, don't we?

As soon as our alarms go off.

In the morning to go to work.

That old flesh says this again and we get distracted.

No doubt you're just like me that you've sat in church services and you've done that.

Maybe you've committed something to the Lord.

God, I want to do this for you.

I'm going to do this for you.

And then we got distracted.

Listen, as they were preparing, as they were preparing for the day of the Lord, I don't believe that Joel was.

Saying that they should stockpile water or stockpile food or ammo or other things in fear.

But rather, I believe that he was trying to get these people to prepare themselves spiritually.

I believe what we need today more than anything in our churches is for God's people to be a spiritual people.

We need to be prepared spiritually in every walk that we do in life, whether it be work, whether it be church stuff, whether it be just family situations.

We need to be prepared spiritually because we have no idea what's going to come our way.

To be prepared spiritually.

Listen, it's a big deal how you and I prepare.

I believe that all saved people should desire to grow spiritually.

I believe that you should have a hunger to grow in your spiritual walk with the Lord.

I say this to my church.

I say this every time that we have church.

Every time that we have church at Rockwall Baptist Church, at 9:30am on Sunday morning, we have a prayer meeting with the guys in my office.

Sometimes it's just Caleb and me, sometimes it's more guys, whatever.

But I always pray that we would come to church and we would leave differently than we came in, that we would leave closer to God.

On Sunday pm, before we have our PM service, we have a prayer meeting, a church wide prayer meeting in the auditorium or the sanctuary, if you will.

And we pray, and I pray that.

We do not leave this place the same as when we came in, that we grow spiritually.

During the service on Wednesday night, we preach and we have a prayer list that we go corporately over the prayer list and we pray for the needs of the church, but we also pray.

That God would allow us to leave.

Differently than we came in.

And I pray that today that you have left differently than you came in.

If not, you have an opportunity to.

Leave this evening differently than you came in.

Listen, when you come to church, it should be a place of spiritual growth, but it should not stop here.

Oh, listen.

We desire to have spiritual churches all across our country.

And I pray that you, the members.

Of Heritage Baptist Church, desire that this church be a spiritual church.

But Can I say this?

That will never, ever happen.

Until we as individuals are spiritual, we can't have a spiritual church full of unspiritual people.

Somebody ask you, are you a spiritual person this evening?

I believe in order for us to ever get to that point, we must listen to the word of God and we must act upon the word of God, apply it to our lives.

Listen, if you always do the same thing, you're always going to get the same results.

It's never going to change.

So in Joel, chapter one and two, we are seeing the judgment of God upon Israel.

He was talking directly to them.

He was talking directly to his people.

He wasn't talking to the heathen nations, he wasn't talking to the lost people.

He was talking to his people.

And he was saying, hey, you need to get spiritual because the day of.

The Lord is at hand.

Oh, I believe that we focus sometimes.

Way too much on the world and what the world is doing rather than ourselves and what we are doing.

In First Peter, chapter 4, verse number 17, the Bible says, for the time has come, that judgment must begin at the house of God.

And if it first begin at us, what shall the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?

Sometimes we focus on the people that aren't in church and that judgment's gonna.

Come on them and that, oh, yeah,.

You're gonna get what's coming to you or whatever.

But the Bible tells me and tells.

You that judgment is first gonna come to his house.

We, as God's people, are gonna be judged first.

So we must prepare ourselves.

Are we spiritual?

Are we doing what God wants us to do?

Are we being constrained by his love?

Is that our motivation is.

Is the effect of the cause of Christ in our life?

Is it for us to go out and do the will of God?

Therefore, Second Corinthians, chapter 13, verse 5, says, Examine yourselves.

Whether you be in the faith, prove.

Your own selves, know you not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is.

In you, except you be reprobates.

When's the last time that you truly examine yourself?

Like, honestly, we have the Lord's Supper, and usually that's the time that we have a time of self examination.

We'll come down to the altar, we'll pray and ask God to cleanse us or whatever.

I don't know however you do it.

But I believe that we should be examining ourselves way more often than we do.

As Joel has been writing here in.

This chapter and a half so far,.

He's just saying all of These negative.

Things, all these bad things that are happening will happen and encouraging the people, God's people, to prepare themselves, to get themselves spiritually ready, because the day of the Lord is at hand.

And then we get to verse number 12.

What's that first word that you see in verse number 12 says?

Therefore.

Therefore.

I believe right now, even this evening, right now, I believe right here at Heritage Baptist Church, we are living in the therefore of scripture.

I believe your life, you are living right now in the therefore of scripture.

Don't listen to me this evening.

The therefore is a present tense word.

I believe.

I don't necessarily want to focus on what's going on outside of the church walls, but I want to focus on.

What's going on inside of the church walls.

Listen, God was speaking through the prophet Joel to his people and telling them about the judgment that was upon them and would be upon them.

Listen, we all know that God is going to judge the ungodly.

We know that.

But he will also judge his own people.

In Joel, the people of God here have gotten away from him and from what he desired that they do.

And they were not being a spiritual type of person.

Jesus goes on to say in John, chapter 4, verse 23, he says, but the hour cometh, and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

For the Father seeketh such to worship him.

God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

So let me ask you something this evening.

Are you worshiping God in spirit and truth?

Am I truly worshiping God in spirit and in truth?

Oh, I believe that today the people of God.

Not everybody, okay?

But I do believe that we all can and should be closer to God than we are.

I believe that we all can take that little step.

I tell my church that we don't.

Have to take giant steps when we come to church every time.

Sometimes those giant steps will wear you out.

Sometimes you'll pull a hammy taking those giant steps.

Amen.

Amen, Caleb.

Amen.

If we just take a little bitty step, just a little step, just an inch closer to God every single time that we get into his presence.

But I believe that not everybody, where there's some that have gotten away from him.

And because of that, I believe that we need a few therefores in our life.

As Joel is going on and he's speaking here, he says, number one, therefore repent.

The day of the Lord is at hand.

So number one, therefore repent.

Verse number 12, he says, therefore Also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart.

The first thing that God ever desires for you and I to do is to repent.

We don't just repent the day that we get saved and we don't have to repent ever again.

Listen, what Joel is saying is like,.

Hey, you've gotten away from the Lord.

You need to repent.

You need to turn back to God.

Listen, in this passage, the Lord is calling for repentance and wanting Israel to take action.

I believe that God wants you and.

I to take action in our service to Him.

Look, the repentance is not some coming up to the altar and just confessing every prayer or every sin that you've ever committed.

That repentance is you and I just turning to God from all other pursuits.

I believe that the only way that.

You and I can be right with God is through repentance.

The only way that we can truly have the right motivation to come to church and be constrained by the love of Christ is through repentance by turning to Him.

The only way that we're going to have a proper effect because of the cause of Christ in our life is whenever we have a mind of repentance.

The only way that we're ever going.

To grow spiritually is if we repent.

We turn back to God and make.

Him be first in our life.

God is calling for repentance.

Repentance is turning into the Lord with.

All of your heart, as I mentioned this morning, making him preeminent in your life.

Let me ask you tonight, church.

Who has your heart today?

Who has your heart today?

Where is your heart today?

In Colossians, chapter three, verse number one, the Bible says this, Paul, he's encouraging this church at Colossae.

He says, if ye then be risen with Christ, who's he talking to there?

Is he talking to lost folk or is he talking to saved folk?

The saved folk.

But he says, if.

That if is a big word.

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

Set your affection on things above, not on things on earth.

You know what he's saying there in verse number two, where he says, set your affections on things above.

He's basically saying, bend your mind toward.

The things of God.

Have a repentant mind toward the things of God.

Setting your affections means that you're taking something, you're bending it, you're molding it.

He's saying, mold your mind toward the.

Things of God, not on the things on this earth.

And when you and I have a true repentant mind, we have that therefore repentant mind, then our minds are gonna be bent toward the things of God.

And I've come to in my life that once we turn our eyes upon.

Jesus, we look full in his wonderful face.

The things of earth will grow strangely.

Dim in the light of his glory and his grace.

He says, set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth.

Why?

For ye are dead and your life.

Is hid with Christ.

When Christ, who is your life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

Mortify, therefore, your members which are upon the earth.

Fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence and covetousness, which is I idolatry, for which things sake.

The wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience in the which ye also walked sometime when ye lived in them.

He's saying, hey, you used to be this way, but you've been saved.

Your life is hid with Christ.

You've been dead.

Don't do that anymore.

But now ye also put off all these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communications out of your mouth.

Can you imagine what our churches and our world would look like if just the Christians took out all of the malice, all of the blasphemy, all of the anger, all of the filthy communications?

Can you just think about what this church.

I don't know this church that well.

I know a lot of people here.

But look, if there's anger or malice or just wrong speaking towards one another,.

Just think about how much peaceful.

How much more we could do for the cause of Christ if we got these things out of our mouth, how much more we could do for him.

Therefore, repent.

And if you're here tonight and you.

Think I don't need to repent.

You need to repent more than anybody else.

He says, lie not one to another.

As a Christian person, we ought not lie to one another or anybody.

He says, lie not one to another.

Seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds,.

And I've put on the new man, which is.

Renewed in knowledge after the image of.

Him that created him.

How many are saved this evening?

I don't usually ask for hands, but I'm going to do that tonight.

Okay?

How many of y' all are saved this evening?

Yeah, you're new in Christ.

Put off the old man.

The way that we do that is through repentance.

The new man is a changed man.

And we are to bend our minds as that new man to the things of God.

Listen, bending takes effort.

Bending takes some time.

Bending takes somebody that's not lazy.

And I believe that God is not.

Looking for lazy servants.

He wants a servant that's ready to bend, a servant that's ready to do what he's asked him to do.

Listen, without repentance, you will never, ever.

Be a spiritual Christian.

Matthew, chapter 11, verse 20 says, Then began he to upbraid the cities.

Talking about Jesus, it says, then he began to upbraid or chide the cities where most of his mighty works were done because they repented not.

Do you realize that Jesus started upbraiding the city, chiding the city, and he stopped doing works there because they repented not.

How many of y' all want Jesus to work in your life?

How many of y' all want Jesus to work in your church?

How many want Jesus to work in your home?

How many of y' all want to.

Be effective for the cause of Jesus Christ?

Be constrained by the love of Christ?

Then repent.

Because without repentance, he's not going to help you.

He's not going to deal with you until you repent.

Number two, therefore respond.

Therefore repent.

Number one.

Number two, therefore respond in verse 12.

Again back over in Joel, chapter two.

How do we respond?

You ask.

We respond this way.

And with fasting and with weeping and with mourning.

Fasting, weeping and mourning.

I'm not going to ask for a raise of hands this time.

All right?

But how many of you have truly fasted over the things that's either happened in your life or the life of this church?

How many of you truly weeped over the things that's happened in your life.

Or the things that's happened in the life of this church?

How many have mourned over the things that's happened in your life or the life of this church?

Joel is saying, you need to be a spiritual people.

There needs to be a repentance going on.

But you need to fast.

You need to weep.

You need to mourn.

Listen, a repentant heart will cause a change in your life and thus a response in your life.

When is the last time that you truly fasted or wept or mourned over those things in your life or the things that's happened in this church?

When is the last time you examined.

Yourself and wept or fasted, mourned for a change in you?

So many of us are so stuck in our own ways that we don't Think we need to change.

Many times we ask God to help.

Us in areas, and we don't put forth any effort into the change.

Well, I prayed about it.

It's good to pray about things.

Some of y' all think it's good to pray about things.

I think it's great to pray about things.

But sometimes we need to pray and we need to put some feet behind our prayers.

Over in James, chapter two.

I love the Book of James.

I just preached through the Book of James not too long ago.

But James, chapter 2, verse number 14.

He says this, what doth it profit my brethren?

Though a man say he hath faith.

And hath not works, can faith save him?

How many of y' all think that faith and works work together?

Very good.

Faith is an action word.

I said that this morning.

I still believe it.

Verse number 15 says, if a brother.

Or sister be naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you saying to them, depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled.

Notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body, what doth it profit?

Even so, faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

Yea, a man may say, thou hast faith, and I have works.

Show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works.

Thou believest that there is one God, and thou doest.

Well, the devils also believe in trouble.

Do you realize that the devils believe in God?

They just haven't repented.

They didn't put their faith in him.

They know that there's a God.

It says verse 20.

But wilt thou know, O vain man,.

That faith without works is dead?

Was not Abraham our Father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

Seest thou how faith wrought this works?

And by works was faith made perfect.

And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness, and he was called the friend of God.

Ye see then, how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

Likewise, also was not Rahab the harlot, justified by works when she had received the messengers and had sent them out another way?

For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

I believe what James, the book of James, is telling us here is that,.

Look, you say that you have faith, then you must respond by acting upon that faith.

If you want to be a spiritual people, if you want to have the right motivation, take the faith of God and act upon it.

Respond.

A spiritual Christian I believe will respond to the faith in his life.

How are you responding to the faith in your life?

He says, therefore repent.

Number two, he says, therefore respond.

Number three, he says, therefore rend.

Rend.

We don't really use that word too much anymore.

Maybe some of you do.

Verse number 13, it says, and rend your heart, not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God.

That word rend.

In our Bibles, it means to tear.

Into pieces to cut out.

So what Joel is saying, he's given them the prescription, really, to how to be a spiritual people, how to be prepared for the day of the Lord.

He tells them to rend your heart, not your garments.

It's basically saying that we should completely remove our hearts.

Why do that?

Why do you think it's important for us to completely remove our hearts?

Well, Jeremiah 17:9 says, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.

Who can know it?

Left to ourselves, our heart is just desperately wicked.

In Matthew, chapter 12, verse 34, Jesus says, O generation of vipers.

How can ye, being evil, speak good things?

For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.

In Luke, chapter 6, verse 45, Jesus says, A good man, out of the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is good.

And an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil.

For out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaketh.

Oh, I believe what comes out of.

Our mouths says a whole lot about what we have in our hearts.

How many of you have told God, told somebody about God this week, this past week, witnessed to the Lord this week?

How many of y' all just spoke.

Things to somebody that wasn't in church or wasn't a Christian, said something about the Lord?

How many of us have used the name of God at all, whether good or bad?

You know, you think about that.

Can I just say this?

If you are old enough to take God's name in vain, then you're old enough to share a Christian testimony.

If you're old enough to bring dishonor to Christ, then you're old enough to bring honor to Christ.

If you're old enough to choose the wrong thing, then you're old enough to choose the right thing.

If you're old enough to sin, then.

You're old enough to serve.

Amen.

That goes for all of us, regardless of our age.

But it all starts with our hearts.

Listen, all throughout the Old Testament, the people would rend or rip or tear their clothes in order to show that they are broken or repentant.

But that was just an outward showing.

But if our outward showing does not match what's happening on the inside, then it is all in vain.

And so Joel is saying, look, you need to rend your heart, not your garments.

Look, don't worry about what's going on the outside.

We can make our outside look a certain way, act a certain way, so people will talk to us and have pity on us or whatever.

But whatever's going on the inside, God sees our hearts.

He knows your heart right now.

He knows the heart of this church right now.

And the Bible says, therefore repent, therefore respond, therefore rend.

Now, if this verse is telling us.

That in order to be repentant toward God that we need to basically take.

Our heart out in order for us to live, he's going to have to give us a new one.

Amen.

In Psalm 51, David is repentant toward God.

You know what he says?

He says, create me a clean heart, O Lord.

He sees himself for who and what he truly is.

He's a vile sinner.

And in verse 10, he says, God, create in me a clean heart.

And that word create he uses in Psalm 51, verse 10 is the same word that's used for creation in Genesis chapter one, verse one, when God created everything out of nothing.

So basically what David's saying is, look,.

I'm so repentant towards you that I don't even have a heart anymore.

God, create me a clean one.

Give me a brand new heart.

And look, I believe that today, tonight, God's people need a new heart towards him.

Amen.

David came to God with his heart torn out, torn to pieces.

And he was requesting for God just.

To simply give him a brand new one, the same David.

Psalm 139.

The Psalmist says, thou hast searched me and know me.

You know what happened?

He started spiritually growing in the Lord.

He asked God to search me, try.

Me, see where I'm at.

I don't want to ever get away from you again.

And then in 139, that was in Psalm 26:2, it says, examine me, O Lord, improve me.

Try my reins in my heart.

David's saying, God, examine me.

Look, I can examine myself, but I want you to examine me.

And then I want you to search me.

I want you to know me.

I want you to create me this clean heart.

Because I never want to get away from you again, because I've done that,.

And I royally messed up.

Therefore, he rended number four.

Therefore there's a reward.

How many?

All like to be rewarded for things.

My wife is teaching this year and she got a.

A bunch of rewards because she thought she was going to be teaching second grade, but she's not anymore.

She's teaching fourth through sixth grade, a little bit different.

And she got these little stickers and things that she's going to give.

And I was kind of making fun of her because I'm like, those sixth graders aren't going to like that.

They might.

She's like, kids like to be rewarded no matter what the reward is.

And I was like, all right, good.

I only said that because I really want the rewards.

They're little Texas stickers.

And I like Texas.

Not the college, the state.

Yee haw.

Amen.

But with God, there's a reward.

When we repent, when we respond, when we rend.

Look here at verse number 13.

It says, and rend your heart and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God.

Look here.

Here's the reward.

For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

Listen, our reward is God.

How many all want God?

How many all want his grace?

His grace is our reward.

His mercy is our reward.

His patience, his long suffering is our reward.

His great kindness in our life is our reward.

Listen, when you and I, when we.

Repent and we respond, we rend our heart.

He will reward you with his grace,.

His mercy, his love, his loving kindness.

All of these things.

I'm reminded of what it says in Genesis, chapter 15, verse number one.

After these things, the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision,.

Saying, fear not, Abram.

I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward.

Boy, I want to be rewarded by God.

I want God.

And lastly, number five.

Therefore rally.

Therefore, rally.

What am I talking about?

This morning in Sunday school, I talked about how the love of Christ constraineth us.

How the motivation why we do what we do is because the love of Christ.

And I believe that the love of.

Christ constraining us should have an effect inside the church and then spread to outside of the church.

And then we talked about the cause and effect of Christ.

What power.

By what name have you done this?

And he stands up and preaches about Jesus and he says that I'm not gonna stop talking about Jesus.

Listen, what I think our churches need.

Today is for God's people to be a spiritual people, rally each other together.

The church is not a place for division.

The church is a place for unity.

Striving together, rallying one another, encouraging one another, exhorting one another, helping one another.

Look, the whole church.

The reason why I love the independent fundamental church, the autonomous church, the local visible church, is because that when one.

Of us weeps, we should all weep.

When one of us rejoices, we should all rejoice, we should all love one another.

We're all part of the same body.

We should all be helping each other out.

And therefore we need to be rallying one another.

Hey, let's go.

Let's do this.

It's time.

Look here at verse number 15.

He says, blow the trumpet in Zion,.

Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly.

He's not talking to the individual now,.

He's talking to it as a group, as a whole.

He says, gather the people, sanctify the.

Congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children.

And those that suck the breasts.

Let the bridegroom go forth of his.

Chamber and the bride out of her closet.

He's saying, hey, get everybody.

That's my people.

Gather them all together.

Let's go.

Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord weep between the porch and the altar.

Let them say, spare thy people, O.

Lord, and give not thine heritage to.

A reproach, that the heathen should rule over them.

Wherefore should they say among the people, where is their God?

You get that verse right there.

Verse number 17.

He's saying the reason why we need to rally together, the reason why that we need to repent, the reason why we need to respond, the reason why we need to rend our hearts.

The reason why we need to do these things is, he says, o Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them.

Do these things because the heathen is chomping at the bit to come in and destroy and rule over.

In verse number 18 says, Then will.

The Lord be jealous for his land.

And pity his people?

He says, you do this, you do all of these things, then you rally each other together.

It says, then the Lord will be jealous for his land and pity his people.

Yea, the Lord will answer and say unto his people, behold, I will send you corn and wine and oil, and you shall be satisfied therewith.

And I will no more make you.

A reproach among the heathen.

But I will remove far from off.

Of you, the northern army and will.

Drive them into a land barren and.

Desolate, with his face toward the east sea and his hinder part toward the uttermost sea, and his stink shall come up and his ill savors shall come up because he hath done great things.

You know what he's saying?

He's saying, you do these things and I will take care of you.

All of the reproach that's coming on you, all of the negativity that's coming on you, I will take care of that.

And I will bless you.

I will give you corn, I will give you oil.

I will give you everything that you need.

In verse 21, he says, Fear not.

I will even take away your fear.

How about that?

Be glad and rejoice, for the Lord will do great things.

Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field.

For the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit.

The fig tree and the vine do yield their strength.

Be glad then, ye children of Zion,.

And rejoice in the Lord your God,.

For he hath given you the former.

Rain moderately and he will cause to come down for you.

The rain the former rain and the latter rain in the first month.

He says, I will just continue to bless you.

I will continue to bless you.

How many?

I want that former and the latter rain.

Amen.

You just do this and I will bless you.

I believe that Heritage Baptist Church.

I believe that you desire for God to bless your church.

If there's somebody here that does not.

Desire that, there's something absolutely wrong with you and you need to repent.

God has given us the recipe for blessings, and it's simply turn to him.

Be a spiritual people.

Respond with fasting, with weeping, with mourning.

Rend your heart.

Ask God to give you a clean new heart.

Rally each other together.

There's a reward, and that reward is God.

Listen, it only takes one spark to start a little fire.

And that fire will grow and grow and grow.

Are you going to be that spark?

Are you going to be that spark?

Let me ask you, when's the last time that you made a decision for the Lord?

Any decision?

I'm not saying a salvation decision.

I'm saying when is the last time that you allowed God to work in your heart?

And you said, I'll do that.

I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I'm going to do it.

Listen, maybe you're that spark.

Maybe you're the start of that rally that this church needs for God to start pouring his blessings out.

Amen.

Listen, God desires to have a heart.

That he can use.

He wants to give our hearts.

He wants us to give our hearts to him and to allow him to make with it whatever he wants.

What's going on in your heart today?

Are you a spiritual Christian?

If not, or even if so, therefore repent, therefore respond, therefore rend, therefore rally.

And you will be rewarded.

Let's pray.

Father.

We thank you God for this.

Lord, I pray that you would continue to work now during this invitation time.

Father, I pray that everything that I said was directly from you, God.

I pray, Father now that you would Lord, speak to hearts and God.

No doubt there's people here that need to make a decision for you and God.

I pray that they would not say no to that.

I pray these things now in Jesus name, amen.