“Then after I have poured out my rains again, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams. Your young men will see visions. In those days, I will pour out my Spirit even on servants, men and women alike.”
- Joel 2:28-29
If you have ever attended a charismatic church, or done any studying into the Holy Spirit, then this verse is probably highly familiar. It is a beautiful picture of what the Good News of Jesus is supposed to lead to. It is so beautiful that we even get to see this very event play out in scripture. If we flip to the first few chapters of the Book of Acts, we get to see the event of Pentecost, where the Spirit falls on the followers of Jesus. But we also get to see it fall once again upon the Gentiles a couple chapters later. Personally, I believe there are three beautiful things about these verses, and it’s display in Acts: Rain, Spirit, and Inclusivity.
Rain:
Why is the rain important? I mean, this is a verse about the Pentecost, who even cares about the rain? So, what, if it is God sending the rain or that the Holy Spirit comes after the rain, we want filled with the Spirit, just move along with it!
But the rain is essential, for without the rain there would be no fire of the Spirit. The fueled the flames of the Spirit.
Notice that is says, poured out my rains again. Again. That means at one-point God had stopped pouring out blessings of grace and purity upon His people. There was a spiritual drought. Their spirits were more reminiscent of a desert, where the ground is cracked, and the only sings of existence is the scorching wind against one’s flesh. They were spiritually dead and distant from God. Controlled by political overlords, religious court systems, and stained by rebellious blood, such was the scene of Israel that Jesus entered in on. Sounds a tad familiar…
Here’s the thing though, Israel had brought that upon themselves, they wrecked the covenant, essentially telling God we do not need His rain because we can make our own “rain.” And thus, the blessings were capped.
Yet, that is not the desire of God, No! God longed to bless them, but to do so God needed to redeem and purify the people from their iniquity of sin. Thus, He allowed His rains to burst forth in the incarnation of Jesus. Jesus is the rain that came as the living water to quench a thirsty soul. Removing the cracks and stains of rebellion and filling one with life once again.
Holy Spirit:
That life revived by the rain is essential for the Holy Spirit does not dwell in the spiritually dead but among the living. With the waters of life having burst forth upon those who have received Christ, now the Spirit may burst forth as fire in one’s heart.
It is the second grace of God. The first being Christ of course, the rain that blessed us to be alive once again. But now the second grace is coming, and it is knocking on our entire being to make this New Life a thriving grace-centered life. It is a life that continually receives the grace that comes from God and decides to share it with others.
When the Holy Spirit burst forth, the Kingdom of God burst forth in the church, providing energy and fiery passion in God’s people. Here we must wonder, if we do not see the Spirit bursting forth in such radical manifestations that strengthen such a New Life, are we then still in need of the rains to our soul?
Inclusivity:
The last beautiful thing is that these blessings of rain and the Holy Spirit are not necessarily exclusive. To be sure, the Rain must be received prior to the bursting forth of the Holy Spirit. However, many people today will try to restrict how the Holy Spirit works, that it must only be in a manifestation of tongues, or that the church leaders or most devout only have the Spirit.
In this verse, and in Pentecost, that is not so. The Spirit burst forth on men and women alike, on old and young alike, on brother and sister alike, for the Spirit falls on ALL peoples. Joel went a step further to clarify on even servants, the lowest position one could be in in society, for the Holy Spirit is not controlled by the powerful, but instead is graced upon the meek.
While we should 100% discern whether something is from the Holy Spirit or not, we must be equally hesitant to deny something from the Holy Spirit simply because it came from a woman or child, or that it came from someone newer in faith than us, or so on. We must allow for the rain and the Spirit to burst forth wherever it may be coming from.
Final Blessing:
May that be our prayer in this time, for the Spirit and the rain to burst forth into our lives. May God uncap this, letting our hearts be open and soft to what is needed in our souls. And if we are the desert, may we pray for rain.
May the Lord of Life and Redemption be with you in every step, every breathe, and every heartbeat of your journey.
Comments