Repentance is the key!
The book of Joel is an example of God reaching out to his people and trying to call them back to himself.
Joel calls to the priests of Judah to call all the people to fast and mourn and turn back to the Lord. He has a real sense of urgency for the people to act and return to the Lord because he can see that their current state is going to lead them down the path of destruction quickly! However it seems that the people are not aware of how far they have drifted from God.
Despite the locusts and judgement passages what stands out to me about this book is how much God desires to be with his people and how he wants them to acknowledge him as Lord and worship him alone. He disciplines them in a desire to have them see their need for him and return to him. He restores them because he is merciful and compassionate and truly wants them to know how much he cares for them.
This book looks forward to the New Testament era and shows us the reality that if we turn to God we will find refuge in him but if we turn away there will be judgement. God longs to show his mercy to me and has in Jesus!
