The Jewish Nation had split into two Kingdoms, the Northern 10 tribes and the 2 tribes of Judah. Yet, they failed to worship God. That is all but a remnant turned away. Revivals came. Prophets spoke. Yet, no one listened. History seemed to repeat itself even with a people whom God appeared to devote so much attention. He displayed His power repeatedly. Still, they quickly became discontented and ran in many directions away from God’s precious hand of love to seek other things. Disaster was around the corner, but God bid them to remember Him; because those who really know God have Peace and Joy in the darkest hours of history. Ezekiel was such a prophet as was Jeremiah and Zechariah to prepare them for the tragedies awaiting the nation. So, they who really know God understand and see God’s Providential hand in all that is to come.
We, too, are not left ignorant of all that will come. God has spoken through His word and told us what is to come. Just as what has come to pass, so shall His word stand true. It is for that reason; we have no cause to mourn. Rather we have reason to live with peace and joy within us. If we really know God, then we understand this is not our final home. We are to be the light in this world where darkness and confusion seem to be running rampant until He calls us home.
Reason #1 for Peace and Joy-God Did Exactly What He Said He Would
The Northern tribes of Israel were taken by Assyria and then the southern tribes named Judah were taken by the Babylonian Empire. 70 years later there was a remnant that returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt. Albeit they were not a Kingdom. Ruled by the Persians for a time, then the Greeks and later the Romans; Israel did not return as a nation until 1948 when they were declared an independent nation. Prior to that they were owned by the Ottomans (modern day Turkey and then British rule). Think for a moment how miraculous that was! God preserved a people with a heritage despite their being scattered throughout the world. He did just what He said He would. And those who have ruled over them were exactly as foretold by Daniel.
I will surely assemble all of you, Jacob,
I will surely gather the remnant of Israel.
I will put them together like sheep in the fold;
Like a flock in the midst of its pasture
They will be noisy with men. Micah 2:12
Even Moses Foretold Their Rebellion, Exile and Gathering
then the Lord your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you. 4 If any of your scattered countrymen are at the ends of the earth, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back. 5 The Lord your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will be good to you and make you more numerous than your fathers.
6 “Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, so that you may live. Deuteronomy 30:3-6
Consider how impossible this may all seem; yet, God is faithful to complete all that He has promised. And we see that very thing being carried out in our time, before our very eyes.
Reason #2 for Peace and Joy—God will Display His Glory for His Own Names Sake
22 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “It is not for your sake, house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went. 23 And I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord,” declares the Lord God, “when I show Myself holy among you in their sight. 24 For I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the lands; and I will bring you into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances.
Ezekiel 36 (NASB)
Not because you deserve it, but because I have declared it. All this by His Great Love and Grace.
28 And you will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers; so you will be My people, and I will be your God. 29 Moreover, I will save you from all your uncleanness; and I will call for the grain and multiply it, and I will not bring a famine on you. 30 Instead, I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, so that you will not receive again the disgrace of famine among the nations. 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight for your wrongdoings and your abominations. 32 I am not doing this for your sake,” declares the Lord God; “let that be known to you. Be ashamed and humiliated for your ways, house of Israel!”
Ezekiel 36 (NASB)
A tiny little strip of land with barely 3 million people to start, has successfully reached a point of power, economic strength, and position so as to flourish surrounded by hostile nations much larger than themselves. And one day:
33 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “On the day that I cleanse you from all your wrongdoings, I will populate the cities, and the places of ruins will be rebuilt. 34 The desolated land will be cultivated instead of being a desolation in the sight of everyone who passes by. 35 And they will say, ‘This desolated land has become like the Garden of Eden; and the waste, desolated and ruined cities are fortified and inhabited.’ 36 Then the nations around you that are left will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted that which was desolated; I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it.”
Ezekiel 36 (NASB)
Reason #3 for Peace and Joy: Jesus Came
The greatest of reasons is this. Regardless of all that happened with the Kingdom of Israel, God in the fullness of time brought His Son to be the propitiation for our sin.
4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, 5 so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters. 6 Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba! Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God. Galatians 4
If you know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you are a son or daughter of God Almighty. No power can separate you from Him. Nothing can harm You. He will carry out His plans in you and through you. And one day you will live with Him in perfect righteousness forever. How amazing is that! So why worry or fret about the little things. And in the scheme of eternity, all of this is little things. God’s got this.
Reason #4 for Peace and Joy: He who keeps His Promises Has sealed us
We see Israel standing as a nation against all odds, they were re-established. Everyday, more of the Jewish people return home defying even their own logic as they are drawn to do so. And we stand on the truth of Ephesians 1.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved.
Ephesians 1 (NASB)
His will, His Grace
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, 10 regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. ( Ephesians 1).
Ephesians 1 (NASB)
We have already obtained! So just a little while we will see.
11 In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, 14 who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 1 (NASB)
When Others Say, He Will Not Return, WE must Save the Earth
3 Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue just as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5 For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, 6 through which the world at that time was destroyed by being flooded with water. 7 But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly people.
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be discovered.
2 Peter 3 (NASB)
Therefore, what kind of people should we be?
11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
14 Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found spotless and blameless by Him, at peace, 15 and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16 as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which there are some things that are hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unscrupulous people and lose your own firm commitment, 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
2 Peter 3 (NASB)
So, How Do You Who Know Christ Live in Joy and Peace?
- Keep Your EYES on Him. He is the prize our heart desires.
- Stay in His Word
- Focus on Truth
- Continuously Rejoice with Worship in your heart
- Stand Firm in the truth
- Be a beacon of light in a dark world
- Never ever forget, Christ has already won the victory for us.
I highly recommend this sermon to all my followers who can understand English
DO YOU KNOW CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOR AND LORD? He is our only Hope in Life and Death! Our Joy is found in Him.
Therefore if you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord: I urge you today. Go to my page titled How to Be Saved by clicking on this link. There is nothing more important than this; because He is the way, the truth and the life. Therefore, I urge you to seek Him today.
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DISCLOSURES
©Effie Darlene Barba, 2023Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. Furthermore, I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned except for my own books. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
Credits
New King James Version (NKJV)Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New Living Translation (NLT)Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV)The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New American Standard Bible (NASB)New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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