It's the Inward Change that Counts

Joel 2:13: "Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity."



The prophet Joel arrived on the scene in Israel as the messenger of God during a severe locust plague in Palestine. In an ironic twist of loyalty, the people of Israel had forsaken the very hand of God that had brought prosperity to them. As they gorged themselves on the abundant harvest of the land, they fell into the trap of thinking that they were self-sufficient. These covenant people did not think that they needed to follow the Lord, rather they believed that they were on the throne of their lives and should satistfy their own desires above anyone else, including God. Oh, they were good at holding religious services, and they even thought they were spiritual people. But in reality, their hearts were far from surrender to the One True God.



In turn, God brought a severe plague and a drought upon the people to get their attention. Even as God was using Joel to speak a message of the coming day of ultimate judgment (i.e. The Day of the Lord), He encouraged His people to respond with true repentance. This was not a mere outward ceremony of allegiance to the Lord (again, the people of Israel were great at external show without internal substance); rather, God expected that the people change ("rend") their hearts. If the people would respond to God's judgment with a true spirit of contrition and repentance, God would return the blessings that they had enjoyed previously. God declared Himself to be "gracious, compassionate, and abounding in love." He desired to bless His people, but He knew that they first must respond with loyalty to Him above all other things (including themselves).


We always must remember that merely going through the motions of spirituality will not impress God. What God expects is a heart completely surrendered to Him. Begin today by working on the person within, and commit yourself to Him wholely and obediently. God is the Sovereign One who blesses those who are found faithful.