“The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.” Acts 2:20
In Joel’s prophesy concerning the outpouring of the Spirit upon all flesh, given about seven hundred years before Pentecost, we find in his declaration perhaps the greatest, most extensive, and powerful revelation of the blessing of God upon man since the resurrection of Christ. Why? There was in the declaration, and even more importantly in the accomplishment of it, the world-wide effect of the promise of God which would affect “…every tribe and tongue, and people and nation.” (Rev. 5:10). How do we know this? Scripture tells us that there is coming a day when the redeemed of all ages will be gathered before God in heaven, there coming the moment when the glorified, slain Lamb of God, Christ, will be worshipped specifically for His saving, redeeming work on Calvary. By the declared shedding of His precious blood, the redeemed will sing a new song, saying: “For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by your blood.” This is the proof of the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel, the beginning of which was revealed on the day of Pentecost, soon after the ascension of Christ into heaven. Why is this so very important?
When Peter stood up with the other eleven disciples at Pentecost, he quoted Joel’s prophecy to the crowd of those seekers of God which had assembled at Jerusalem at that time. Peter quoted Joel’s prophesy, not only proclaiming that what was occurring in Jerusalem at that moment was the fulfillment of the prophesy, but that there was the evidence of it. First of all, all the representatives of the different language groups who had gathered in Jerusalem heard from simple Galileans messages of the “wondrous works of God” in their own language. Immediately we discover that the issue of God’s blessing destined to “all flesh” was beginning to reveal itself, eventually to be extended to the then known world, and throughout our own.
Secondly, Peter spoke of the proof of the outpouring, when he said, “Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17) God would give to the believers, the disciples of Christ, in Jerusalem, the capacity to not only know the truth of the gospel as it had been communicated to them by Christ, but to communicate it by the power of the Spirit. The truth had become “them” by the outpouring of the Spirit, and yet, they had only just begun to understand, and to grasp, what had just occurred by Christ’s work in them.
Thirdly, not only would this prophesy be directed to the “sons and the daughters,” but to Christ’s “menservants” and “maidservants.” They too would be given from heaven the capacity by the Spirit to communicate the wondrous things of God in the power of the Spirit to unbelieving souls. No barrier of social standing, privileged education, or powerful position and power would refrain God from fulfilling His promise. From the so-called “greatest’ to the “smallest” the blessing was poured out, so that, out of a true fellowship with God by the Spirit, the words of Christ, the message of the Gospel, would be spread to, and throughout the entire world.
This was the great blessing of Pentecost, and yet, there would come with the proclamation of Joel, declared by Peter, a warning from God. It was in the form of a deadline, a point at which, like the blessing of the outpouring, there would be a moment of massive, eternal reckoning of sinful men with God. The judgment would be on the basis of one’s rejection of Christ as one’s Savior.
This day is called the “Day of the Lord,” a moment fixed in heaven, known only to God, when He will judge all nations, peoples, and every individual. However, there is a hope in Joel’s prophesy, for he declared: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Dear Father, Fulfill Thy blessing today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.