Joel 3
by Pastor David Groendyk

If you’re a baseball fan, you might know the name Karim Garcia. He spent 10 years playing professional ball in America. He wasn’t a particularly good player. He didn’t hit a lot of home runs. He wasn’t fast. In fact, most of his career was spent on the bench. He was a serviceable back-up, at best. But Karim Garcia is famous for one incident. In a playoff game in 2003 while he was batting, he got hit by a pitch from Pedro Martinez, one of the all-time great pitchers in baseball history. Garcia and Martinez also happened to be on rival teams (the Yankees and Red Sox, respectively, in case anybody’s wondering). Naturally, Garcia was upset. He exchanged heated words with Martinez on the field. Later during the game, the two teams ended up getting into a brawl. After the game, Garcia was critical of Martinez, and Martinez (again, one of the greatest baseball pitchers in history) memorably fired back, “Who are you Karim Garcia to try to test Pedro Martinez?” Now that’s a huge pride-filled statement from Pedro Martinez, but he was kind of right! Karim Garcia was a forgettable nobody in baseball history. Who was he to challenge one of the greatest players of all time?

After God had promised that judgment would fall on Judah for all of their evil, and after God had promised that different nations would exile God’s people and sell them into slavery, God also promises hope and restoration. In verses 1–8, God would one day overthrow the enemies who commit terrible atrocities against Judah. In essence, God is saying, “Who are you, Tyre, Sidon, Philistia, and Greece, to challenge me, the Creator of the heavens and the earth?” It’s a powerful reminder from God of his own sovereignty. Although our enemies seem pretty powerful, and although our situations can seem utterly hopeless, God is still in control. As the hymn goes, “Although the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.” He even goes so far as to taunt the enemy nations in verses 9–15: “Get ready for war! Bring out your strongest warriors! Prepare every weapon! But your blood will flow like the juice that flows from the crushed grapes in the winepress.” All the multitudes of God’s enemies and our enemies will be soundly defeated.

Historically-speaking, though, this promise of restoration and rescue occurs in three parts. Part one: the people of Judah are eventually rescued from exile; Babylon does get overthrown, and God’s people return to their country. That was a partial fulfillment of God’s promise. But something much, much bigger is going on here, as is apparent when we read of the universe coming apart at the seams, for instance, in verse 15 (also compare v. 13 with Rev. 14:14–20). Part two: Jesus comes and rescues us from all of our spiritual enemies. His rescue and deliverance from the power of sin, death, and hell by dying on the cross and resurrecting again has eternal consequences, and it is the beginning of our ultimate and final salvation… Part three: at the final judgment, all evil will be wiped from the universe. We will never again have any enemies to fear.

But how can we make ourselves safe on the great and awesome Day of the Lord when this final judgment comes? Find your refuge in the Lord (v. 16). He offers peace, rest, protection, and deliverance from this wrath. Find your refuge in the Son of God who reigns over all and has already provided the salvation you need (see Psa. 2:12). For the Lord is not far off, but he dwells with his people (v. 21). What a great reminder for a people facing a dark immediate future: God is near and hears when his people cry for rescuing. When the Lord is on our side, and when we find our refuge in him, our future is gloriously bright.