The hour (time) of restoration has come.

Written by amadi

CENTRAL TRUTH: God’s Divine Plan of Restoration brings life to dead situations and brings you in line with God’s Word and the power resident in His Word. MEMORY VERSE: Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; John 11:25 NIV TEXT: Joel 2: 18-27TOPIC: The hour (time) of restoration has come.INTRODUCTION:                                                                        According to the dictionary, "restoration" means to reestablish something to its original condition.                                                                                           1 It is the action of returning something or bringing back to a former condition, place, or owner Jn 11:25                                                                                 2 the process of repairing or renovating a building, work of art, etc.3 the reinstatement of a previous practice, right, or situation.Restoration is God’s divine plan to restore, revive, return or rebuild ministries, homes, spiritual and material blessings in the lives of every born again Believer.When something is restored in Scripture, it always grows, multiplies or improves, so that its final condition is superior to its original state.THE PROMISE OF  TOTAL RECOVERY (Joel 2:19-27).                                                                   Joel comforts Israel with a declaration of God's mercies, speaks of a change for the better which God would bring upon the Jews' land, -- a change from drought and barrenness, from disease and devouring insect, to fertility and large increase. Some expositors understand these promises figuratively, TWOFOLD RESTORATION: --A. The restoration of lost MATERIAL MERCIES.  God restores lost temporal blessings to His people in two ways --1. By giving back the same in kind, as in the case of Job; and2. By restoring that which answers the same purpose? Jn 11:25 B. The restoration of lost RELIGIOUS PRIVILEGES: What are these?1. Worship. "And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God that hath dealt wondrously with you." V 262. Communion. "And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else." V 27 A. The restoration of lost MATERIAL MERCIES (Job 42:10-12; Luke 18: 41-43; Acts 3: 3-9; Mark 5: 25-28; 2 Sam 9: 3-17; John 5: 7, 8)    God is still in the "restoration business."   He takes that which is broken, battered and bruised and makes it beautiful. We can't help think of Job who, due to Satan's attacks, sat in the ash heap having lost everything; but in the end, everything was restored, God gave him double that which he had lost and blessed him more abundantly in his final days than at the beginning of his life.                                                                                 (Gen. 41:42, 43) Joseph was abandoned, falsely accused, and forgotten. But he finally became favored by God and restored to the role God assigned him’    Their reputation shall be retrieved (v. 19): The destroying army shall be dispersed and defeated (v. 20): God will stop the activity of the locusts;The destroyed land shall be watered and made fruitful.                          (v. 22)Rain when it is wanted and expected (v 23) Their joys shall be revived (v. 23, 15),All their losses shall be repaired (v. 25repay for the years destroyed by the ravaging pestsThey shall have great abundance of all good things. The earth shall yield her increase, and they shall enjoy it. No more a reproach among the land v. 26, 27,                Joel 2:26 And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your GodAnd my people shall never be ashamed   Joel 2:26 Their faith in God shall be confirmed and increased. (v. 27):            God pledged to not only provide for the present, but that all the losses would be made up forJoel 2:27 And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel - (John 1:14 ;Matt 28:20).  B. The restoration of lost RELIGIOUS PRIVILEGES: Acts 3:19-21                                                                                                   Times of refreshing and times of restoration:There are seasons when God refreshes His people, seasons when He restores truths and ministries that have been lost through sin, neglect and tradition.  True repentance is a healing balm like that of Gilead, that cures the wounds of our sins, and has a sovereign charm to render a nation safe; having power enough to ward off the force of any stroke of Divine vengeance, though just ready to be given. Illustrate by pious Hezekiah and good Jehoshaphat. Repentance has such influence upon heaven as to acquit from ruin some of the vilest people and most wicked princes, as in the cases of Nineveh and Ahab.  CON CLUSION:The fruits of wasted years are gone -- gone past hope. Yet the Lord will bring forth life out of the tomb; those long-lost spells shall be restored. Is anything too hard for the Lord? Does not the very difficulty, yea impossibility, of the enterprise make it the more worthy of the Almighty? To him that believeth all things are possible (Rom 4: 21) Your blessing shall adequately atone for past suffering.                    Years which have gone, frittered away, we do not know how, and for which we have nothing whatever to show, years devoured in trifles; years that fleeted, as on the wings of a hurricane, in the wild rush of dissipation, and out of which are left only the broken strains of old songs, and a few dry leaves of withered garlands. Comments (0) >> Write comment Name Email Website Title Comment Add Comment

 

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