WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:02.479 Allow me to begin this morning with a true story. 00:00:02.720 --> 00:00:05.839 Travel back with me to the year 1956. 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:14.720 When you get there, you're gonna find five young missionaries who landed on a sandbar in the Ecuadorian jungle. 00:00:14.960 --> 00:00:17.280 Among them was Jim Elliott. 00:00:17.679 --> 00:00:23.679 Jim Elliott was convinced that there was this one tribe who never had heard about the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:26.160 The tribe was known as the Warani people. 00:00:26.480 --> 00:00:29.359 Back then they would refer to them as the Alka Indians. 00:00:29.600 --> 00:00:32.240 Everyone knew about this tribe, everyone knew the danger. 00:00:32.399 --> 00:00:34.799 The tribe had this reputation for violence. 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:37.679 Their friends warned them not to go. 00:00:38.079 --> 00:00:43.119 Their families understood the risk that was involved here as well. 00:00:43.600 --> 00:00:55.359 But for Jim and for his friends, he believed deep down in his heart that there wasn't a people that were beyond the reach of God's amazing grace. 00:00:55.600 --> 00:01:08.400 Years earlier, he had famously written some words down that we all probably know when he said this he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. 00:01:08.719 --> 00:01:16.239 Jim understood that his life didn't really belong to him, that his life belonged to Jesus Christ, who had purchased him. 00:01:16.400 --> 00:01:24.319 And if Christ had given him his grace, how could he now withhold that grace from others who had never heard? 00:01:24.640 --> 00:01:32.560 So on January 8th, 1956, Jim and the team of four other missionaries made contact with the tribe. 00:01:32.879 --> 00:01:40.480 Instead of receiving them peacefully, what we know is that the missionaries were speared to death. 00:01:40.799 --> 00:01:47.040 There was a documentary produced which told that entire story called The End of the Spear. 00:01:47.519 --> 00:01:54.640 Many people back then, and maybe even many people today, conclude that that was a tragic waste. 00:01:55.200 --> 00:02:01.359 But the truth is that God was just beginning to write that story. 00:02:02.239 --> 00:02:22.479 It was just a few years later when Jim's widow, Elizabeth Elliott, along with Nate Saint's widow, Rachel Saint, decided that they were going to go back, that they were gonna return to pursue the very people who killed their husbands. 00:02:22.719 --> 00:02:25.439 They did not come there seeking revenge. 00:02:25.680 --> 00:02:30.000 They came there offering this tribe a second chance. 00:02:30.240 --> 00:02:34.159 They came there offering this tribe the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:02:34.240 --> 00:02:52.240 And by God's grace, over time, through a miraculous series of events, a great number of Warani people, including the very men who were involved in those killings, placed their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:56.080 The tribe has been transformed by the power of the gospel today. 00:02:56.240 --> 00:02:58.240 Here we are, a generation later. 00:02:58.400 --> 00:03:14.080 There are Warrani believers, there are Warani pastors, there are churches amongst the Warani people, and they are there because one person believed that God's grace was worth risking something to proclaim it. 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:22.719 He is no fool who gains what he cannot keep, who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. 00:03:22.879 --> 00:03:23.520 Amen. 00:03:37.039 --> 00:03:38.879 But we are all sent. 00:03:39.599 --> 00:03:43.039 We all have neighbors, we all have coworkers. 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:53.520 You like me, all have family members that are far from God, and God has placed them around us, and some of them may be difficult to love at times. 00:03:53.840 --> 00:03:57.680 So this morning I want to ask you a simple question, and I think it's driven from the text. 00:03:57.759 --> 00:04:00.960 The question is this Where is God calling you? 00:04:01.199 --> 00:04:03.039 But you're kind of afraid to go. 00:04:03.280 --> 00:04:06.719 Where is God calling you, but you're afraid to go? 00:04:07.120 --> 00:04:15.039 A family member, a friend, a coworker, maybe it's even somewhere beyond those individuals. 00:04:15.520 --> 00:04:18.079 The book of Jonah is asking a very similar question. 00:04:18.319 --> 00:04:26.000 God had told Jonah to go to a people who were violent, to go to this people who were wicked, to go to this people who were dangerous. 00:04:26.160 --> 00:04:29.839 Nineveh was the last place that Jonah wanted to be. 00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:37.040 Yet God's purpose was not merely to go there and announce his wrath and judgment, it was to extend grace. 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:40.399 It was to offer them a second chance. 00:04:40.879 --> 00:04:42.959 And that's what this passage is about. 00:04:43.199 --> 00:04:47.600 And so the title of my message today is The God of Second Chances. 00:04:47.839 --> 00:04:52.800 And as you read through the text, it pretty easily divides into three distinct movements. 00:04:52.959 --> 00:04:59.120 You're gonna see God calls, you're gonna see the people repent, and then you're gonna see God forgives. 00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:00.399 That's the plan. 00:05:00.800 --> 00:05:03.040 Let's pray and ask the Holy Spirit for help here. 00:05:03.360 --> 00:05:10.959 Heavenly Father, as we open your word, give us ears to hear what your spirit is not only saying to your church, but to us, to our hearts. 00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:19.199 Just as you call Jonah a second time, I know that your grace pursues undeserving people like me. 00:05:19.439 --> 00:05:29.600 So humble our hearts, where we have maybe become resistant to your will, and strengthen us again in a fresh way to obey your voice without delay. 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:35.040 Would you fill us with the compassion of the Savior for those that are far from you? 00:05:35.360 --> 00:05:42.319 Forgive us for relating to this thing like it's a burden and not a blessing, like it's a pain and not a privilege. 00:05:42.639 --> 00:05:45.519 So may your word accomplish exactly what you intend today. 00:05:45.920 --> 00:05:50.720 If there are folks here today who don't know you, would you draw them to repentance? 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:53.600 Encourage weary saints here with your mercy. 00:05:53.920 --> 00:06:05.680 And make us all into a church, into a people, eager to proclaim the best news in all of the world, the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Savior who offers a second chance. 00:06:05.839 --> 00:06:07.040 For we pray it in his name. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:08.879 And everyone said, Amen. 00:06:09.040 --> 00:06:10.399 All right, we left off last time. 00:06:10.560 --> 00:06:12.639 Oliver Aridi did a fantastic job. 00:06:12.720 --> 00:06:14.319 What an amazing young man. 00:06:14.560 --> 00:06:17.120 He ended with chapter 2, verse 10. 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:18.240 Remember what that said? 00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:25.519 It said this, and the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. 00:06:25.920 --> 00:06:29.120 Jonah was vomited up onto the beach. 00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:30.399 Beach barf. 00:06:30.720 --> 00:06:31.759 Pretty gross. 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:38.879 But there's really only two ways you could get out of that whale, and I guess this is be the preferred way that you would want to get out of that whale if you had to choose. 00:06:39.040 --> 00:06:46.480 Now, I recognize this account in the Bible, like maybe some other miraculous accounts in the Bible, seem extreme. 00:06:46.639 --> 00:06:52.879 And for that reason, I recognize that some people find this story to be very hard to believe. 00:06:53.199 --> 00:06:57.279 And I want to encourage you just with a little fact here. 00:06:57.519 --> 00:07:06.720 There have been documented cases, they are rare, but there are cases of human beings surviving, being swallowed and vomited back up by whales. 00:07:07.120 --> 00:07:11.120 You probably saw this one last year, it caught my attention, February 2025. 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:14.480 There was this 24-year-old kayaker, his name was Adrian. 00:07:14.639 --> 00:07:30.000 He was in the Strait of Magellan near Punta Arenas, Chile, and this humpback whale suddenly surfaced right underneath of him, swallows him and his kayak, and the whale engulfs the whole person and then releases him a little while later. 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:34.399 His dad was kayaking right next to him, and he had his phone and he videoed the whole thing. 00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:36.959 Go to YouTube and just watch that video. 00:07:37.120 --> 00:07:38.639 And it's unbelievable. 00:07:38.879 --> 00:07:41.759 As they interviewed this young man later, he described it. 00:07:41.920 --> 00:07:50.079 He described the darkness, he described the stinkiness, he described the slimy surface that he experienced in there before he was spit back out. 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:58.399 And amazingly, this dude was uninjured, but understandably shaken up a little bit. 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:01.279 Just go to YouTube after church, enjoy that story. 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:02.319 It's unreal. 00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:05.120 I say that just to say that's not the only documented case. 00:08:05.199 --> 00:08:10.399 This has happened, it's rare, but the story's not as far-fetched as you might think. 00:08:10.720 --> 00:08:15.120 It reminds me of a funny story about a little girl who was riding on an airplane. 00:08:15.279 --> 00:08:20.800 The little girl was reading her Bible, and she happened to be sitting right next to an older man who was skeptical. 00:08:20.959 --> 00:08:24.480 And the older man who was skeptical turned to this little girl and said, What are you reading? 00:08:24.639 --> 00:08:26.480 She said, Well, I'm reading my Bible. 00:08:26.720 --> 00:08:29.519 And he said, Oh, I, you know, I don't know if I believe that book. 00:08:29.600 --> 00:08:30.639 I don't know if I believe that Bible. 00:08:30.720 --> 00:08:31.519 What are you reading in the Bible? 00:08:31.680 --> 00:08:33.679 She goes, Well, I'm I'm reading the book of Jonah. 00:08:33.919 --> 00:08:35.440 He goes, That's a perfect example. 00:08:35.679 --> 00:08:36.720 Do you really believe that? 00:08:36.879 --> 00:08:41.759 Do you really believe that a man could get swallowed by a fish and somehow survive all of that? 00:08:41.919 --> 00:08:45.200 And the little girl was, yeah, I believe it, and it's in the Bible. 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:47.120 And the guy goes, Well, how's that possible? 00:08:47.279 --> 00:08:48.639 How could he possibly survive that? 00:08:48.720 --> 00:08:50.480 And the little girl goes, Well, I don't know. 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:52.799 When I get to heaven, I'll ask him. 00:08:53.279 --> 00:08:56.559 And the guy goes, Well, what if you get to heaven and he's not there? 00:08:57.679 --> 00:08:59.759 She goes, Well, then you ask him. 00:09:02.159 --> 00:09:03.840 All right, these are the jokes, folks. 00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:08.399 For context, remember, there are two major scenes in the book of Jonah. 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:09.519 Some of you'll get that later. 00:09:09.679 --> 00:09:13.360 There are two major scenes in the book of Jonah, scene one, scene two. 00:09:13.679 --> 00:09:17.279 They are almost identical in their structure. 00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:21.679 I love a good chart, but this is not just to show you a cool literary device. 00:09:21.840 --> 00:09:27.600 What this chart is showing you is demonstrating a theological principle that happens all over the Bible. 00:09:27.679 --> 00:09:35.519 And the principle is this: first, God does a work in you, and then he uses you to do a work in others. 00:09:35.759 --> 00:09:37.519 That's what our God loves to do. 00:09:37.759 --> 00:09:52.639 He loves to take a person, to redeem them, to clean them up, to take them out of a certain environment, and then after having done his sanctifying work, calls them back to go back into that same environment and carry his news of grace to others. 00:09:52.799 --> 00:09:54.480 That's what's happening right here. 00:09:54.639 --> 00:10:05.519 As we enter into scene two, we realize Jonah first was saved himself, and now who better to carry the message of salvation than him who had just experienced that? 00:10:05.840 --> 00:10:09.200 Jonah is now more prepared than anyone else to go. 00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:12.000 Jonah had sinned and Jonah was forgiven. 00:10:12.240 --> 00:10:15.360 Jonah had suffered and Jonah was now delivered. 00:10:15.519 --> 00:10:25.360 Jonah had prayed and Jonah received an answer, and now that experience has now uniquely qualified him to bring that same message of God's grace to the people of Nineveh. 00:10:26.000 --> 00:10:34.399 What past experiences might you have that have uniquely qualified you for God to use you in your life? 00:10:34.639 --> 00:10:37.120 And that brings us to our text today. 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:40.720 As we look at scene two, we pick it up with chapter three and verse one. 00:10:41.120 --> 00:10:42.480 You say that was just the introduction? 00:10:42.639 --> 00:10:43.919 Yes, that was just the introduction. 00:10:44.080 --> 00:10:45.200 Buckle your seatbelts. 00:10:45.279 --> 00:10:46.720 Chapter three, verse one says this. 00:10:46.879 --> 00:10:50.480 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time. 00:10:50.639 --> 00:10:53.679 Everybody say, second time, second time, yes. 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:56.559 Notice carefully what came the second time. 00:10:56.799 --> 00:11:01.200 Not forgiveness, not comfort, not an apology, not a new assignment. 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:02.159 The word. 00:11:02.720 --> 00:11:16.399 Friends, God's grace often comes to us in the form of the word every Sunday, every quiet time, every conviction, every rebuke, every gospel invitation, the word comes again a second time. 00:11:16.559 --> 00:11:19.600 How many of you in here are thankful for second chances? 00:11:19.759 --> 00:11:25.039 How many in here are grateful that we serve a God who not only calls, but he calls back? 00:11:25.200 --> 00:11:26.559 Can I get a good amen? 00:11:26.799 --> 00:11:28.000 We couldn't save ourselves. 00:11:28.159 --> 00:11:29.360 We all needed a do-over. 00:11:29.600 --> 00:11:30.960 We all needed a second chance. 00:11:31.120 --> 00:11:35.519 We're not saved by works, we're saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. 00:11:35.679 --> 00:11:46.960 We come to this God and we thank him that no matter who you are and what you've done or how much you messed up, we have a God of second chances who says everyone who calls on the name of the Lord can be saved. 00:11:47.200 --> 00:11:50.399 In some ways, this is the story of the whole Bible. 00:11:50.559 --> 00:12:00.559 The Bible's filled with people who needed a second chance, who failed, and God in his grace pursued them a second time and he used them. 00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:03.039 Moses was a murderer. 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:05.279 David was an adulterer. 00:12:05.600 --> 00:12:07.440 Rahab was a prostitute. 00:12:07.600 --> 00:12:10.559 Zacchaeus was a corrupt tax collector. 00:12:10.799 --> 00:12:13.759 Peter denied the Lord three times. 00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:16.240 Thomas doubted the resurrection. 00:12:16.320 --> 00:12:22.320 Yet the God of the Bible displays his grace for his people again and again and again. 00:12:22.559 --> 00:12:24.320 Isn't that your story too? 00:12:24.559 --> 00:12:28.240 I thank God for the story of my own salvation in my life. 00:12:28.399 --> 00:12:32.240 I thank God that the word of the Lord came to me a second time. 00:12:32.399 --> 00:12:33.840 That's what's happening here. 00:12:34.000 --> 00:12:35.679 And what did God say to do? 00:12:35.840 --> 00:12:36.879 Look at verse 2. 00:12:37.039 --> 00:12:45.120 It says, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you. 00:12:45.360 --> 00:12:46.960 Notice a couple things going on here. 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:54.720 First, that phrase at the beginning, arise, go, means go, go now, go immediately, go today. 00:12:54.879 --> 00:12:56.399 This is an imperative command. 00:12:56.559 --> 00:12:57.759 No time to waste. 00:12:58.000 --> 00:13:06.080 I think there's a principle here that we need to learn, and it's this whenever God speaks to you, do it now, do it immediately, do it today. 00:13:06.320 --> 00:13:11.039 Whenever God prompts you to do something, do it now, do it immediately, do it today. 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:12.240 Not later. 00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:18.399 You know, sometimes Julie and I would run into these other parents that had this technique of parenting their little kids and they had the counting method. 00:13:18.639 --> 00:13:20.960 You know the counting method when kids are disobeying? 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:25.759 They're disobeying and then the parents start this countdown, like one, two. 00:13:26.879 --> 00:13:29.039 Julie and I were not having any of that. 00:13:29.200 --> 00:13:31.279 We had something called first-time obedience. 00:13:31.360 --> 00:13:33.039 We're not counting to nothing, okay? 00:13:33.200 --> 00:13:34.320 That's what God wants. 00:13:34.559 --> 00:13:37.039 God wants us to have first-time obedience. 00:13:37.279 --> 00:13:41.120 Now we all know Jonah did not have first-time obedience. 00:13:41.200 --> 00:13:44.080 But here, this second time, it's a different story. 00:13:44.240 --> 00:13:46.799 And what a different scenario it is. 00:13:47.200 --> 00:13:52.559 Now, Jonah gets this message, and his response is, here I am, send me. 00:13:52.639 --> 00:13:54.399 And that needs to be our response to. 00:13:54.720 --> 00:13:56.559 In fact, church, would you say that with me? 00:13:56.799 --> 00:13:58.960 Here I am, send me. 00:13:59.120 --> 00:13:59.679 Amen. 00:13:59.840 --> 00:14:02.000 Notice the message that Jonah's supposed to give. 00:14:02.159 --> 00:14:04.080 Jonah's not to give his own message. 00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:05.120 Did you see that? 00:14:05.360 --> 00:14:08.159 The message that I will tell you. 00:14:08.559 --> 00:14:10.240 This is God's message. 00:14:10.559 --> 00:14:14.080 Jonah does not get to decide the content of the preaching himself. 00:14:14.320 --> 00:14:17.519 No, his conscience is held captive by the word of God. 00:14:17.759 --> 00:14:20.159 And my friends, the same is true today. 00:14:20.399 --> 00:14:25.600 The gospel of Jesus Christ is ours to proclaim, it is not ours to edit. 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:38.720 My friends, there is not anyone, no matter how great of a minister you are, or how learned you are, or how acute you are, or how educated you are, that you don't have to observe this same exact rule. 00:14:38.879 --> 00:14:53.360 Whether that's James, whether that's Peter, the rock, whether that's Paul the Apostle, or any preacher today, Galatians 1 says, if anyone comes preaching another gospel than the one you've already received, let them be accursed. 00:14:53.600 --> 00:14:56.720 We are to give the message that God tells us to give. 00:14:57.039 --> 00:14:58.320 Verse 3 continues. 00:14:58.559 --> 00:15:04.720 It says this, so Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the Lord. 00:15:04.960 --> 00:15:09.600 Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breath. 00:15:09.759 --> 00:15:13.440 Jonah began to go into the city going a day's journey. 00:15:13.679 --> 00:15:14.879 This is fascinating. 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:24.000 First of all, notice it says Jonah arose, and you may remember from back in chapter one that Jonah was constantly going down, down, down, down. 00:15:24.399 --> 00:15:25.840 Here we have the opposite. 00:15:26.080 --> 00:15:29.679 Now Jonah is beginning to obey, and he's going up, up, up. 00:15:29.759 --> 00:15:32.000 And that's what happens when you get back into the will of God. 00:15:32.159 --> 00:15:33.679 You go up, up, up. 00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:34.960 Jonah arose. 00:15:35.200 --> 00:15:40.320 Secondly, here is a man who has crossed into enemy lines. 00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:45.759 He is now into Assyria, and he is deep into this strange territory. 00:15:45.840 --> 00:15:47.440 He's a third of the way in. 00:15:47.600 --> 00:15:50.480 And he's bold, but he's alone. 00:15:51.200 --> 00:15:54.639 Think of what he might be seeing here in this great city. 00:15:54.799 --> 00:15:59.039 As he looks around, what a contrast to Joppa or to Jerusalem. 00:15:59.279 --> 00:16:03.679 Here he would have seen pagan temples dedicated to false gods. 00:16:03.840 --> 00:16:08.399 Here he would have come across tombs and monuments to other deities. 00:16:08.559 --> 00:16:12.879 He probably saw great military power as he walked through this city. 00:16:12.960 --> 00:16:17.840 And he probably also saw terrible things happening in the city of Nineveh. 00:16:18.240 --> 00:16:20.559 So Jonah goes and he preaches this message. 00:16:20.639 --> 00:16:21.519 And what does he say? 00:16:21.679 --> 00:16:23.200 What is his message? 00:16:23.519 --> 00:16:28.799 Now, if you go to seminary and you want to be a pastor, they have these preaching classes and you're supposed to learn how to preach. 00:16:28.960 --> 00:16:31.360 And they teach you how to do introductions. 00:16:31.600 --> 00:16:36.080 And usually they say you should craft an introduction with some care and some skill. 00:16:36.159 --> 00:16:38.799 And the common advice is to start with something soft. 00:16:38.960 --> 00:16:42.799 Start with a story or start with something inviting, some kind of hook or something like that. 00:16:43.039 --> 00:16:44.240 Give a gentle intro. 00:16:44.320 --> 00:16:49.200 If you're given the gospel, you know, start with this: God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life, that kind of thing. 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:52.399 So this is the way they teach you to craft sermon introductions. 00:16:52.559 --> 00:16:55.840 I just want you to notice that Jonah completely missed that preaching class. 00:16:55.919 --> 00:16:58.799 Okay, so uh the text goes on to tell us this. 00:16:58.960 --> 00:16:59.759 This is what he said. 00:16:59.919 --> 00:17:07.039 It says, and he called out, quote, yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown. 00:17:07.519 --> 00:17:11.680 Now Jonah probably said more than this, but this was the summary, this was the gist of his message. 00:17:11.839 --> 00:17:20.559 And so he goes around to different locations throughout the city preaching with this warning: This city will be overthrown or destroyed. 00:17:20.799 --> 00:17:27.519 Same Hebrew construction as we read in Genesis 19, with the city of Sodom and Gomorrah being overthrown or destroyed. 00:17:27.599 --> 00:17:28.640 That's his message. 00:17:28.960 --> 00:17:31.680 Here it says that he gave them 40 days. 00:17:32.559 --> 00:17:38.799 40 days in the scripture is oftentimes a period of time associated with having an encounter with God. 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:44.400 And so Jonah wants these people, God, through Jonah, wants to give these people an encounter with himself. 00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:48.960 And I wonder as Jonah goes around preaching this message, what in the world is going through his mind? 00:17:49.119 --> 00:17:50.960 I wonder, what is he thinking? 00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:55.759 Well, he's probably thinking, this is so dumb. 00:17:56.400 --> 00:17:58.079 These people hate God. 00:17:58.480 --> 00:18:00.160 These people hate me. 00:18:00.480 --> 00:18:02.880 There's no way they're gonna listen to me. 00:18:03.119 --> 00:18:04.720 This isn't gonna work. 00:18:05.519 --> 00:18:09.920 Now, some of you, you might be thinking the same thing. 00:18:10.160 --> 00:18:15.519 In other words, you've got somebody in your life and you're like, I don't think this person's gonna listen to me. 00:18:15.839 --> 00:18:21.680 Maybe it's your parents, maybe it's your friend, maybe one of your siblings, maybe one of your children. 00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:29.759 Whoever it is, I want to encourage you not to underestimate the power of the word of God. 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:33.519 God's word does what he wants it to do. 00:18:33.759 --> 00:18:38.240 The scripture tells us really clearly: God's word never returns empty or void. 00:18:38.400 --> 00:18:40.240 It accomplishes his purpose. 00:18:40.400 --> 00:18:44.799 The word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword. 00:18:45.119 --> 00:18:52.559 Here we have one of the most powerful moves of the Holy Spirit in the whole Bible, at least in the whole Old Testament. 00:18:53.200 --> 00:18:56.079 Nineveh was 500,000 strong. 00:18:56.319 --> 00:18:58.480 That's the size of Atlanta, Georgia. 00:18:58.799 --> 00:19:03.839 Just imagine all of Atlanta, Georgia turning to God. 00:19:04.559 --> 00:19:06.960 Just imagine a revival of that size. 00:19:07.200 --> 00:19:12.319 And here, Jonah preached like the shortest evangelistic sermon I think I've ever seen. 00:19:12.480 --> 00:19:17.839 There's no invitation, there's no stories, there's no illustrations, there's no worship team. 00:19:18.160 --> 00:19:21.200 John and Amy aren't coming up afterwards to have a closing song. 00:19:21.279 --> 00:19:22.559 There's no altar call. 00:19:22.720 --> 00:19:24.960 Yet we see revival. 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:26.960 And do you know why? 00:19:27.440 --> 00:19:31.519 It's because salvation belongs to the Lord. 00:19:31.759 --> 00:19:33.440 I say that to encourage you. 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:37.039 You might be a lay person, you may have an opportunity to share Christ. 00:19:37.119 --> 00:19:44.160 You're not formally trained in the ministry, you're not exactly sure what you're gonna say, and you're going, Do I really have what it takes to articulate the gospel? 00:19:44.319 --> 00:19:45.759 The answer is yes. 00:19:46.079 --> 00:19:52.799 You do not need a lot of sophisticated information to be able to share the simple message of the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:19:53.039 --> 00:19:56.640 What happens here comes from a simple message. 00:19:56.799 --> 00:20:06.799 What happened to the Warani people when Elizabeth Elliott and Rachel Saint went back to minister the gospel to them was a result of the simple grace of God. 00:20:06.880 --> 00:20:11.279 And God used them mightily, and God wants to use you too. 00:20:11.519 --> 00:20:18.480 Here at NBC, we have one of the most robust missions programs that I have ever encountered. 00:20:18.720 --> 00:20:21.359 And we are doing this each and every day. 00:20:21.599 --> 00:20:24.880 So good to hear from missionaries every single week during this series. 00:20:25.119 --> 00:20:26.880 Now, some people struggle with this. 00:20:27.039 --> 00:20:30.559 Some people struggle with the whole concept of missions. 00:20:30.640 --> 00:20:40.319 And especially if you look at the data and the statistics, there are people, especially in the younger generations in Gen Z who object to missions in general. 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:49.200 So when we hear stories like Jimmy Elliott's story or some other missionary work, they perceive that as a form of cultural imperialism or colonialism. 00:20:49.359 --> 00:20:54.480 And if that's your perspective, I just want to lovingly argue with you for just a minute by answering that question. 00:20:54.799 --> 00:20:57.839 Is global Christian missions unethical? 00:20:58.079 --> 00:21:12.079 Well, the first way I would answer that question is I would say, actually, let me acknowledge that sadly, there have been times in history where political conquest and the spread of Christianity have become intertwined in unhealthy ways and in sinful ways. 00:21:12.240 --> 00:21:17.599 And Christians should be honest about those failures and never defend coercion or exploitation. 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:22.559 But I also want to say that that's not what happened with Jim Elliott. 00:21:22.799 --> 00:21:26.720 They were not backed by an army or a government or economic power. 00:21:26.880 --> 00:21:28.240 This wasn't the Crusades. 00:21:28.400 --> 00:21:32.319 They didn't come to seize land or extract resources or impose political control. 00:21:32.559 --> 00:21:37.200 Actually, they came willing to give their lives, not take somebody else's life. 00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:50.720 And because they simply believed the message of the Great Commission that every single people, regardless of culture or language, deserved an opportunity to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ and freely respond, they decided to go. 00:21:50.960 --> 00:21:56.559 In that sense, Jim Elliott's story is closer to Jonah than colonialism. 00:21:56.799 --> 00:22:00.559 Jonah, like that, was sent not to conquer Nineveh, but to Preach. 00:22:00.799 --> 00:22:04.319 God did not send an empire, he sent one prophet. 00:22:04.720 --> 00:22:08.880 His mission was not domination, it was an invitation. 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:13.680 And we have the same kind of message when we engage in global missions today. 00:22:13.839 --> 00:22:14.960 It's an invitation. 00:22:15.200 --> 00:22:16.559 So this was Jonah's message. 00:22:16.640 --> 00:22:18.319 It was blunt, it was brief. 00:22:19.759 --> 00:22:22.480 By all human reasoning, this should have failed. 00:22:23.440 --> 00:22:29.920 But what happens next is one of the most surprising moves of God in all of history. 00:22:30.319 --> 00:22:31.119 Part two. 00:22:31.440 --> 00:22:33.039 The people repent. 00:22:33.680 --> 00:22:35.200 Jonah preaches. 00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:36.720 Look what happens. 00:22:36.960 --> 00:22:37.599 Verse 5. 00:22:37.680 --> 00:22:41.519 It says, And the people of Nineveh believed God. 00:22:43.279 --> 00:22:45.680 This is a miracle. 00:22:45.920 --> 00:22:49.759 They didn't just believe in God, they believed God. 00:22:50.559 --> 00:22:59.359 Hebrews chapter 11 says, if anyone wants to come to God, first they must believe that he is and that he rewards those who diligently seek him. 00:22:59.680 --> 00:23:02.400 Until you start there, there's no spiritual beginning. 00:23:02.640 --> 00:23:03.920 They believed God. 00:23:04.079 --> 00:23:05.599 They believed what he said. 00:23:05.759 --> 00:23:07.359 They believed who he was. 00:23:07.519 --> 00:23:09.440 They believed what he says about people. 00:23:09.680 --> 00:23:11.839 They believed what he says about sin. 00:23:12.319 --> 00:23:13.599 And this is what happens. 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:15.359 They believe God. 00:23:15.920 --> 00:23:17.839 Now you might be sitting back going, how? 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:19.359 Like how did this happen? 00:23:19.599 --> 00:23:23.200 How did this one prophet go take this one simple message? 00:23:23.279 --> 00:23:25.440 And all of a sudden there's all this fruit. 00:23:25.599 --> 00:23:27.440 How could we explain this? 00:23:27.839 --> 00:23:43.119 Well, historians actually point out that during this time, the nation of Assyria was experiencing a series of famines and plagues and other natural disasters, which they would have seen as omens of worse things to come. 00:23:43.359 --> 00:23:50.799 And so in that way, it appears that the God of all creation was preparing the ground in advance before his prophet came. 00:23:50.880 --> 00:23:52.720 That's a sociological explanation. 00:23:52.880 --> 00:24:05.039 But then, of course, there's also the spiritual explanation that we serve a God who has perfect timing, who sends his prophet Jonah and pours out upon them his grace. 00:24:05.359 --> 00:24:08.000 He shows mercy to whom he shows mercy. 00:24:08.160 --> 00:24:11.119 And we know repentance is also a work of God. 00:24:11.279 --> 00:24:12.960 2 Timothy 2.25. 00:24:13.200 --> 00:24:17.920 Repentance is a result of the conviction of the Holy Spirit of God. 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:21.920 And so the people respond by believing God. 00:24:22.720 --> 00:24:23.920 And that's not all. 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:25.920 It goes on to tell us more. 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:34.000 It says they called for a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest of them to the least of them. 00:24:34.240 --> 00:24:39.039 Now, back then, fasting and sackcloth, that would have been a posture of grief. 00:24:39.519 --> 00:24:41.359 That would have been a posture of mourning. 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:43.440 That would have been a posture of repentance. 00:24:43.599 --> 00:24:46.319 That would have been a posture of seeking mercy from God. 00:24:46.559 --> 00:24:48.720 They are mourning over their sin. 00:24:49.039 --> 00:24:50.880 And this is what God calls us to do. 00:24:51.039 --> 00:25:01.279 King David, after he sinned, cries out to God with a humble and contrite spirit and says, Quote, I acknowledge my transgression before you, and my sin is ever before me. 00:25:01.519 --> 00:25:08.240 This is why the Lord Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount said, Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 00:25:08.640 --> 00:25:13.359 There is a time for mourning and humbling ourselves before a holy God. 00:25:13.680 --> 00:25:18.000 And when people do that, heaven takes notice. 00:25:18.559 --> 00:25:23.920 There's a poem written about those who humble themselves that really is wonderful. 00:25:24.079 --> 00:25:32.799 It says this, quote, on bended knee, replete with godly grief, see where the mourner kneels to seek relief. 00:25:33.119 --> 00:25:39.680 For from his full heart pours forth the gushing plea, God of the lost, be merciful to me. 00:25:40.079 --> 00:25:47.519 The light of life descends in heavenly rays, and the angels shout and sing, Behold, he prays. 00:25:48.720 --> 00:25:51.440 This is the response of Nineveh. 00:25:52.000 --> 00:25:52.960 And that's not all. 00:25:53.200 --> 00:26:05.839 It also tells us in verse 6, it says, the word reached the king, the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removes his robe, covers himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 00:26:07.039 --> 00:26:15.759 Now many scholars believe the reigning monarch at this time was probably Shalmaneser III, or one of the two who followed him, Ashur Danil or Ashur Nirari. 00:26:16.079 --> 00:26:36.640 We're not totally sure, but those are the kings that overlap with Jonah's ministry, and history tells us that Assyria during their reigns experienced a series of crises, military setbacks, internal unrest, a significant plague, and there was actually a solar eclipse in 763 BC, which ancient peoples often viewed as an ominous sign. 00:26:36.880 --> 00:26:48.880 All of those events together, combined with Jonah's preaching, makes the king of Nineveh take notice, and he has this unusually receptive response to Jonah's message. 00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:53.440 Secondly, notice that this king removes himself from his throne. 00:26:53.759 --> 00:26:59.200 This king gets up off of the throne in an incredible act of humility in that time. 00:26:59.359 --> 00:27:01.440 This was a very powerful person. 00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:05.279 Here he is, humbling himself. 00:27:05.599 --> 00:27:14.799 These ashes, they would have been symbolic, meaning when something is burned like that, the symbol is that everything worthwhile is gone. 00:27:15.119 --> 00:27:22.960 So here is this king humbling himself in ashes, leading by example, providing really a model for government officials. 00:27:23.200 --> 00:27:25.839 Kings can lead their nations into sin. 00:27:26.079 --> 00:27:35.440 Kings can be responsible for leading a nation into misery, and kings and leaders can lead nations to a time of national repentance and prayer. 00:27:35.599 --> 00:27:37.759 Here we have an example of the latter. 00:27:38.000 --> 00:27:43.519 And he invites the whole nation to follow him in his example with this big proclamation. 00:27:43.759 --> 00:27:45.279 Take a look at verse 7. 00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:57.440 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, quote, by the decree of the king and his nobles, let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock taste anything. 00:27:57.599 --> 00:27:59.200 Even the animals are going to fast. 00:27:59.440 --> 00:28:06.960 Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. 00:28:07.279 --> 00:28:12.319 Let every one turn from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their his hands. 00:28:12.640 --> 00:28:13.680 Who knows? 00:28:14.000 --> 00:28:19.920 God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish. 00:28:20.559 --> 00:28:22.079 This is the proclamation. 00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:28.319 The key term in this whole text is the term turn, or the Hebrew word shoev. 00:28:28.720 --> 00:28:35.200 It means to turn, to turn around, to turn aside, or sometimes it's translated to repent. 00:28:35.440 --> 00:28:42.000 And it is an absolutely central concept for what's going on here and what God calls us to do as well. 00:28:42.160 --> 00:28:46.960 Repentance is saying, I am sorry for the wrong that I have done. 00:28:47.279 --> 00:28:54.480 No apologies, no excuses, no equivocations, just I am sorry, period, full stop. 00:28:55.119 --> 00:28:57.680 Is it possible that you're here today and you've presumed? 00:28:57.839 --> 00:29:02.960 You've assumed that things were right between you and God, but you have never truly repented of your sin. 00:29:03.599 --> 00:29:05.599 I encourage you to do that today. 00:29:05.839 --> 00:29:07.599 This is what they choose to do. 00:29:07.920 --> 00:29:12.559 Second, I want you to notice they turn from their evil ways and their violence. 00:29:12.799 --> 00:29:19.200 The term violence there is the Hebrew term Hamas, same root as the Arabic cognate that we hear often today. 00:29:19.359 --> 00:29:22.000 That's what they were known for: violence. 00:29:22.319 --> 00:29:25.839 But here they turn from their violence. 00:29:26.319 --> 00:29:29.839 So just step back and observe this just for a second. 00:29:30.079 --> 00:29:40.960 Against all odds, against all expectations, including Jonas, this powerful city of Nineveh turns to God and repents. 00:29:42.480 --> 00:29:45.759 Can we just pause and thank the Lord for his mercy? 00:29:46.079 --> 00:29:48.240 Oh, thank you, Lord, for your mercy. 00:29:48.400 --> 00:29:49.519 Would you say that with me? 00:29:49.759 --> 00:29:51.519 Thank you, Lord, for your mercy. 00:29:51.680 --> 00:29:52.160 Think of it. 00:29:52.319 --> 00:29:58.480 Nineveh, proud in its invincibility and power, is now humbling themselves. 00:29:58.640 --> 00:29:59.759 They turn. 00:30:00.640 --> 00:30:05.119 Now, if you were God, how would you respond to their repentance? 00:30:05.279 --> 00:30:10.240 If you were God, how would you decide to act? 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:14.240 Maybe if I was God, I'd be like, all right, prove it. 00:30:14.640 --> 00:30:18.559 If I was God, I'd be like, okay, I'll give you a year of probation. 00:30:19.200 --> 00:30:22.880 If you're serious, we'll be able to tell over time. 00:30:23.279 --> 00:30:28.319 But you gotta make sure you tell tell everybody that this is really serious, this is really gonna be true. 00:30:28.559 --> 00:30:33.359 Maybe that's how I would respond if I was God, but that's not what our God does. 00:30:33.680 --> 00:30:34.880 Part three. 00:30:35.200 --> 00:30:37.039