CORINTH

-Sermon Notes-

October 26, 2025

 

“Living After Locusts”

 (Joel 2:23-32, 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18, Luke 18:9-14)

     On June 9, 2009 the historic Katahdin building burned in downtown Orono.  Built in 1829, the building served as a tavern, library, bank, office building and apartments.  After in burned it was eventually torn down.

     I remember the first time I heard verse 25 from our Joel reading today (“The Lord will restore the years eaten by the locusts.”) A woman who had experienced significant loss in her life (poor health, divorce, loss of a child) recounted how she was reconnected into a relationship with God due to a friend bringing her to church.  This woman tearfully explained she could identify with this verse from Joel, because she felt that God had restored her life, returning the years she felt had been taken away by “locusts.”

     The passage from Joel includes words of encouragement to people who had experienced devastation due to an experience with locusts (historians believe these may have been actual locusts, or suppose the locusts may be representative of an invading army.) Joel follows the usual pattern of a prophet; first he warns of consequences of living apart from God’s purposes for them, then he weeps as the people suffer hardship, then he offers words of encouragement.  In this passage Joel explains that the Lord will bring rain to produce bountiful crops (vs.22, 23) and will restore the years the locusts have eaten.  In other words, the Lord will bring renewal and restoration to your lives.

     In 2nd Timothy, Paul continues to instruct his protégé Timothy to stay strong in faith as he takes over for Paul. Why? Because he knows from personal experience that Timothy will experience “locusts” in the form of persecution, false teachings and indifference as he carries on the teachings of Christ (vs. 6, 9 and 14 highlight Paul’s own “locusts.”) Verse 18 speaks of the Lord delivering Paul while offering restoration.

     From the Luke passage, Jesus spoke of a Pharisee and a tax collector who were both praying.  The Pharisee was singing his own praises, remarking that he was thankful he wasn’t like the “sinners.”  In sharp contrast, the tax collector humbled himself while asking for forgiveness.  Which of these two men will experience restoration? Clearly, the tax collector; after all, you can’t experience renewal and restoration if you don’t recognize your need for it.  That would be like not recognizing the need for the Katahdin building to be torn down to allow a new building to be raised (an event we are witnessing each day as we drive through downtown Orono.)

     I want to extend an invitation to you; if you find yourself surrounded by “locusts,” if you are now, or are coming out of a period of loss, I encourage you to be intentional in inviting the presence of God to indwell you.  All of us will experience loss (recall Jesus’ words from John 16:33 “In this world you WILL have trouble.”)  Yet in a relationship with God through Christ, we are able to experience restoration and renewal.  I would love to pray with you, as would many others in our church family.  Let us be thankful for the words from Joel, 2 Timothy and Luke which remind us of the restorative presence of our faithful God.