decision

Choose Your Role

“The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the power of his anointed.’” –1 Samuel 2:10, ESV

“This day I will give the corpses of the Philistine army to the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the land. Then all the land will realize that Israel has a God, and all this assembly will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves! For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will deliver you into our hand.’” –1 Samuel 17:46b-47, NET

Too often the account of David and Goliath is twisted into a prideful parable about pursuing selfish endeavors. We put ourselves in the place of David and cast as Goliath whatever obstacles we seek to conquer. But we are neither the author nor the director of life, although we seek to be such (Gen 3:4-6; Isa 14:14). The main characters and the battle have already been determined. The only available roles are the two supporting multitudes behind each challenger (1Sa 17:3).

How this also parallels the great battle scene in Revelation, where the anointed “King of kings” rides into battle. A great army rides behind Him and serves as witness to His single-handed elimination of His enemies with the sword of His mouth (before the bodies are fed to the birds of the air) (Rev 19:11-21).

Again, where do we stand in this battle?

“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” –Luke 11:23

Do you stand with the Lamb, your feet faithfully beside Him in obedience (Rev 14:1), clothed in righteous deeds among a conquering army (Rev 3:5) that then rides behind Him (Rev 19:14)? Are you of this armored army that simply stands (Eph 6:13) as witnesses to the chosen King’s conquering of the enemy (Acts 1:8), charging ahead into a battle that has already been won (1Sa 17:52)?

Or do you stand elsewhere? It matters not what the shape of the face, every idol is connected to the beast and wears a blasphemous name (Rev 13:1). Those who follow “might” and “proud words” ultimately worship the dragon (Rev 13:3-5) and are marked with the same number (Rev 13:17-18) and the same fate (Rev 20:15).

Let us see the clear distinction. Let us see Christ makes a clear divide (Mat 10:34-36). Let us choose this day our role, and call out to the multitudes to see there is no fence on which to sit. A decision must be made (Deu 30:19; Jos 24:15).

“Elijah approached all the people and said, ‘How long are you going to be paralyzed by indecision? If the Lord is the true God, then follow him, but if Baal is, follow him!’ But the people did not say a word.” –1 Kings 18:21, NET

Billy Neal

And it will come to pass in that day
That the mountains shall drip with new wine,
The hills shall flow with milk,
And all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water;
A fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord
And water the Valley of Acacias.

“Egypt shall be a desolation,
And Edom a desolate wilderness,
Because of violence against the people of Judah,
For they have shed innocent blood in their land.
But Judah shall abide forever,
And Jerusalem from generation to generation.
For I will acquit them of the guilt of bloodshed, whom I had not acquitted;
For the Lord dwells in Zion.”
— Joel 3:18-21

Men, the enemies of God’s people will be summoned to the valley of decision, where the Lord God will deliver His verdict and judgment. Those who take refuge in the Lord will be strengthened. All will know that the Lord is God.

Another time will come, and on that day the mountains will “drip with new wine.” Vineyards will be productive, but new wine also represents a season of celebration. “The hills shall flow with milk.” This tells us that in that day, grazing land will be rich enough to support cattle. Remember, Judah is barren at that time following waves of locusts.

Additionally, milk often represents Spiritual blessings in the Old Testament. It is mentioned roughly 50 times in the OT alone. In Joel’s time, water would be scarce in certain seasons, but in this coming time the rivers would flow.

Most importantly, it says a “fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord. In Solomon’s temple, a literal fountain flowed to feed the many baths for ceremonial preparation. There is likely dual meaning here, a literal fountain may flow, but as the Lord takes up residence in the new Millennial temple, His Spirit will flow out. Go back to Ezekiel for more.

The enemies of God are dealt with in this future time, and Judah is acquitted of all bloodshed from their history. The Lord will then dwell in Zion (Jerusalem). Zion means “fortification”. It is the area of Jerusalem where Abraham offered up Isaac, where David bought the threshing floor from the Jebusites and more.

Move forward men, with all the proclamation of judgment and shelter, famine and blessing, war and renewal, we can turn to v18 and recall, “And it WILL come to pass.” The Word of God is the reliable road map of what’s to come. Combining Joel with the whole of scripture grants us much to watch for. As prophecy unfolds, take care which side of God’s Word He may find us in. What is promised is as certain as if it’d already happened. May we each experience the Lord as Shelter, Deliverer, and Redeemer.

Vance Durrance