WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:03.759 Yesterday, Christy and I flew home from New York. 00:00:03.839 --> 00:00:11.759 We were there with Sam and Rachel at a ministry conference that we get to go to every year, that is so good for each of us. 00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:18.239 It's wonderful and kind of refuels us in terms of hearing the gospel, not being in charge of anything, just sitting. 00:00:18.320 --> 00:00:22.079 And so we were flying home from a couple days of learning. 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:32.479 We get on the plane and Christy starts watching her movie, and I'm listening to music, and so I listen to music about the whole way, and I'm sort of contemplating this Jonah passage for this morning. 00:00:32.640 --> 00:00:37.759 Finally, the plane lands at taxis, we park there at the gate. 00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:44.880 Immediately, you know, when it parks, everybody who's along the aisle, including me, we you know immediately hop up and try to stake a little standing room. 00:00:44.960 --> 00:00:50.719 And so I'm I get up, I'm standing, got my little space, and two rows in front of me. 00:00:50.880 --> 00:01:01.840 This guy stands up, he's about 65 years old, very preppy, probably Upper East Side, coming down to visit his daughter, who is apparently probably trying to get as far away from him and his wife as possible. 00:01:02.079 --> 00:01:21.040 Uh very expensive blazer silk scarf around his neck, which I guess that expensive blazer was a little too hot, so he took off that precious little silk scarf and he carefully folded it very well and handed it to his wife, who was equally decked out with her silk scarf, you know, because it's so hot in Atlanta. 00:01:21.120 --> 00:01:37.599 I mean, cold in Atlanta, you know, so all that, and the lady behind him, he's sort of standing like the lady behind him, sort of bumps him, not like with any menace or pert, just like deboarding the plane type of stuff that all of humanity goes through. 00:01:37.760 --> 00:01:42.879 And she bumps a cup, every time she bumps, she says, you know, she says, I'm so sorry, she's a very sweet lady. 00:01:43.040 --> 00:01:54.480 And every time he does not even acknowledge her, and he sort of rolls his eye, looks at his wife, like, can you believe you know our private plane is broken down and we're, you know, had to book this ticket the last minute. 00:01:54.719 --> 00:02:00.400 I mean, every time just rolling, and I just knew, I man, I knew this guy was horrible. 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:05.200 I mean, I could just tell he was, I I hated this guy. 00:02:05.359 --> 00:02:07.760 I'm standing there, I'm just like, I hate you. 00:02:10.479 --> 00:02:25.039 And then he reaches in his pocket and he pulls out a travel-sized crest toothpaste, and he takes the lid off and he puts it to his lips, and he squeezes just a little bit into his mouth, and he puts the top back on and puts it back in his pocket. 00:02:25.280 --> 00:02:29.520 And I thought, either that is the most awesome thing I've ever seen in my life. 00:02:30.319 --> 00:02:32.479 He did it so elegantly. 00:02:32.800 --> 00:02:35.280 I'm like, maybe that was awesome. 00:02:36.319 --> 00:02:38.639 Then I'm like, no, I really do hate you. 00:02:39.039 --> 00:02:41.280 That actually made me hate you more. 00:02:41.439 --> 00:02:42.240 There's close. 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:43.599 It's like close to awesome. 00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:46.240 No, I I hate you even more. 00:02:46.960 --> 00:02:49.280 Now he had not stolen from me. 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:52.080 He had not said anything to me. 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:57.439 He had not hurt me or anybody I loved. 00:02:57.840 --> 00:03:02.479 He he had not flown planes into buildings and in my country. 00:03:03.199 --> 00:03:13.199 And still I was that quick, right, to make judgment on him, to dehumanize him. 00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:19.280 And maybe I only hated him because I saw a lot of myself in him, right? 00:03:19.360 --> 00:03:21.919 And maybe that's too deep for us to break out this morning. 00:03:22.080 --> 00:03:24.159 That's for me to do with a counselor later. 00:03:24.240 --> 00:03:25.680 But it's very possible. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:26.800 Very possible. 00:03:26.960 --> 00:03:30.560 Because the crest toothpaste thing, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna be doing that. 00:03:30.800 --> 00:03:32.479 Because I thought I did think it was awesome. 00:03:32.560 --> 00:03:34.400 I'll admit I thought it was awesome. 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:40.479 And I I did help the grandma who was, I think, from Italy or Malta or something. 00:03:40.719 --> 00:03:44.960 I did help her because I'm not like him. 00:03:45.360 --> 00:03:53.599 But also while I'm helping her, I'm sort of hoping he sees me help her because he should be like he should be like me. 00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:56.000 And isn't it all that interesting, right? 00:03:56.080 --> 00:04:04.560 Like how quick we all draw lines and put one guy or lady or person as the enemy, and we want nothing to do. 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:06.400 Like, I'm not interested in helping him. 00:04:06.560 --> 00:04:09.919 I'll help the grandma from Malta, but I don't want to help him. 00:04:10.080 --> 00:04:11.120 I don't want to help him at all. 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:13.680 I I hate him in his little crest toothpaste. 00:04:13.840 --> 00:04:14.960 Hate everything about him. 00:04:15.680 --> 00:04:19.839 We all know the feeling of having an enemy, whether it's silly, right? 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:25.199 Quick and silly, or whether it's a lot deeper, and maybe it's the liberals. 00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:28.720 Or maybe it's the conservatives. 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:32.079 Or maybe it's that race. 00:04:33.040 --> 00:04:36.800 The one for whatever reason you grew up hearing whatever about them. 00:04:38.160 --> 00:04:44.480 Or maybe that person of that other religion, maybe the people who live over there, wherever their is. 00:04:46.000 --> 00:04:48.560 Or that person who did that thing. 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:53.600 Your enemy can be your neighbor. 00:04:55.439 --> 00:04:57.600 Your enemy could be a friend. 00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:00.319 Like it used to be a friend. 00:05:02.560 --> 00:05:04.240 It could be a family member. 00:05:06.480 --> 00:05:07.839 Who you once loved. 00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:10.399 We all know hate. 00:05:11.680 --> 00:05:12.000 Right? 00:05:12.079 --> 00:05:17.040 And we also know Jesus' seemingly impossible words. 00:05:18.800 --> 00:05:20.160 Love your enemy. 00:05:20.959 --> 00:05:24.879 And so we're looking at this book Jonah for the next nine weeks. 00:05:26.639 --> 00:05:31.439 Jonah lives about 800 years before Jesus, 8th century BC. 00:05:31.519 --> 00:05:33.519 He lived near a town near Nazareth. 00:05:33.600 --> 00:05:35.680 He was clearly a prophet of respect. 00:05:35.839 --> 00:05:36.959 He was well known. 00:05:37.279 --> 00:05:44.160 Maybe you know the story from VBS and the flain old pictures and all that, stuck to the, you know, the graph, all that. 00:05:44.319 --> 00:05:45.680 Maybe you know all that. 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:48.879 We're gonna break it apart for nine weeks. 00:05:49.040 --> 00:05:51.279 Let's reread Jonah 1 and 2. 00:05:51.360 --> 00:06:01.519 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah, the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me. 00:06:02.000 --> 00:06:03.199 A few points to guide us. 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:09.839 Point number one is this the first word is God's holy word of what we should do or be. 00:06:10.000 --> 00:06:11.279 This is the first word. 00:06:12.160 --> 00:06:14.720 We see this in two places in this passage. 00:06:15.279 --> 00:06:16.399 Their evil. 00:06:17.680 --> 00:06:19.360 Complete moral clarity. 00:06:20.560 --> 00:06:22.319 It is not up for debate. 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:24.560 God has declared this. 00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:27.759 There is right and wrong, and they are wrong. 00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:29.360 They are morally wrong. 00:06:29.519 --> 00:06:33.759 It is very clear, it is not subjective, it is declared by God. 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:40.399 Moral clarity, right and wrong, God's holy word. 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:45.279 We see it in the second place in the same couple verses because Jonah hears this call. 00:06:45.439 --> 00:06:47.199 Arise and go to Nineveh. 00:06:48.000 --> 00:06:53.920 So we see the holy word of morality, and we also see the holy word of calling. 00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:56.720 Honor God, be holy. 00:06:58.160 --> 00:06:59.360 Love your enemy. 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:02.160 Point number two is this. 00:07:02.720 --> 00:07:08.959 Our natural response to what is right is not always right. 00:07:09.680 --> 00:07:13.839 Now that's a really gracious way to just say we are sinners, right? 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:21.199 That sometimes we know how we should feel or think or the motives we should have or the behavior we should have, and we just don't care. 00:07:24.800 --> 00:07:26.319 Arise and go to Nineveh? 00:07:26.720 --> 00:07:28.560 That's Jonah's enemy. 00:07:28.720 --> 00:07:31.199 That's his people's enemy. 00:07:31.360 --> 00:07:35.199 I mean, go to them, like go to Janet and Accounting. 00:07:35.279 --> 00:07:37.360 Do you know Janet and Accounting? 00:07:37.519 --> 00:07:40.079 Janet in accounting is petty. 00:07:40.639 --> 00:07:43.360 And she is, she talks about everybody's back. 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:45.199 She's passive aggressive. 00:07:45.279 --> 00:07:47.519 She makes little comments about everybody's lunch. 00:07:47.680 --> 00:07:52.639 She makes comments about how much she worked out in the morning and did you work out and makes you feel bad. 00:07:52.800 --> 00:07:53.920 Like she is horrible. 00:07:54.000 --> 00:07:54.560 She's a horror. 00:07:54.800 --> 00:07:58.079 She takes a little crest toothpaste out of her pocket, squirts it in her mouth. 00:07:58.319 --> 00:07:59.360 We hate her, right? 00:07:59.439 --> 00:08:04.480 Like go to when she's sick, you don't want to take her a meal, right? 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:09.439 You want to punch her in the ear, stab her in the eye with a butterfinger. 00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:11.600 I mean, you don't want to be kind. 00:08:13.439 --> 00:08:15.040 She's horrible. 00:08:18.560 --> 00:08:25.759 Jonah has this enemy that's actually hurt his people, people he knew. 00:08:27.600 --> 00:08:29.360 This is a racial enemy. 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:31.920 This is a political enemy. 00:08:32.639 --> 00:08:34.399 This is a religious enemy. 00:08:34.639 --> 00:08:36.399 I mean, we could we cover the categories. 00:08:36.559 --> 00:08:38.879 I mean, those are the big ones. 00:08:40.480 --> 00:08:43.519 And they are known to be absolutely brutal, these people. 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:49.200 Second Kings tells us these people, when they invaded Israel, they would capture people. 00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:52.960 They would just steal people from their homes and from their families. 00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:59.360 They would starve cities, they starved cities until the people were so hungry that they surrendered. 00:08:59.519 --> 00:09:10.480 They were known to cut off the legs of the people they captured, both legs, one arm, shake the hand of the man dying in mockery as he bled to death. 00:09:11.200 --> 00:09:18.960 They beheaded people, put the head on a pole, and then made their loved ones carry the pole around the town. 00:09:21.200 --> 00:09:29.039 They tied ropes to people and stretched them and skinned them alive and hung the skins up in the cities. 00:09:33.039 --> 00:09:33.919 Go to them. 00:09:36.879 --> 00:09:37.919 Jonah didn't want to go. 00:09:38.480 --> 00:09:40.399 Jonah didn't want to go preach to them. 00:09:40.720 --> 00:09:45.519 Because what if those people, that person I hate? 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:53.120 What if he or she actually repented? 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:57.759 What if God showed them mercy? 00:09:59.840 --> 00:10:01.679 Jonah didn't want their repentance. 00:10:01.840 --> 00:10:03.679 Jonah didn't want them to have redemption. 00:10:03.759 --> 00:10:06.240 Jonah wanted them to pay for their sins. 00:10:06.320 --> 00:10:10.399 He didn't want to pay for his sin, but he wanted them to pay for their sin. 00:10:10.799 --> 00:10:12.639 So he runs. 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:18.240 Now to hate, you must run the other way from God. 00:10:20.240 --> 00:10:23.759 You have to run away from God's ethic and call to hate. 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:32.639 And it turns out hating and running is incredibly destructive, more destructive, and also exhausting. 00:10:32.799 --> 00:10:35.440 Here's what Paul says, 1 Corinthians, an interesting passage. 00:10:35.600 --> 00:10:37.840 1 Corinthians 2, 14 through 16. 00:10:38.000 --> 00:10:44.639 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him. 00:10:45.279 --> 00:10:49.519 And he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 00:10:50.159 --> 00:10:58.080 The spiritual person judges all things, that means to examine all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. 00:10:58.240 --> 00:10:59.279 So you're free. 00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:08.559 Verse 16, for who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him, but we have the mind of Christ. 00:11:09.840 --> 00:11:17.120 About two years ago, somewhere around there, we went to Epcot to mainly ride the frozen ride. 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:18.720 We have little girls. 00:11:33.039 --> 00:11:36.080 By the mid-afternoon, like we're exhausted, we're tired, everybody's tired. 00:11:36.159 --> 00:11:38.399 So we go into one of those 3D movies, right? 00:11:38.559 --> 00:11:48.480 You've been to a 3D movie, you get the glasses when you walk in, you put the glasses on, you sit down, the movie starts, everything's clear, it's crisp, it's in focus, it has depth, it's coming out at you. 00:11:48.960 --> 00:11:50.559 And we all we all do it, right? 00:11:50.639 --> 00:11:54.240 Like you raise the glasses up, put them down, raise them up, put them down. 00:11:55.679 --> 00:12:00.480 And every time you take them off, everything's jumbled. 00:12:01.039 --> 00:12:03.600 I said it's out of it's out of focus. 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:06.080 None of it sort of like makes sense. 00:12:06.240 --> 00:12:09.039 You you simply have to have the glasses. 00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:11.919 This is sort of what Paul's saying. 00:12:12.240 --> 00:12:25.519 The natural person, the self without the Spirit of God, because that self is fragile and defensive and sinful, that self will not perceive and understand rightly. 00:12:33.519 --> 00:12:42.559 Gifted to have the Holy Spirit in them and have the mind of Christ to perceive and understand things differently. 00:12:46.720 --> 00:12:53.759 That even loving your enemy would not be something that's easy, but possible. 00:12:55.679 --> 00:13:01.600 So the first word is the law, the second word becomes grace. 00:13:02.639 --> 00:13:14.559 Because the spiritual person that Paul's talking about, this spiritual person begins in the security of God's being God's beloved in grace, the grace of Jesus for you. 00:13:14.799 --> 00:13:20.399 And because you're secure in God, not using enemies as to justify yourself, that's what I was doing on the plane. 00:13:20.559 --> 00:13:30.399 If that preppy from the Upper East Side and his precious little silk scarf and his little toothpaste, if I if I could hate him and he's horrible, look at me. 00:13:31.360 --> 00:13:33.279 Look how righteous I am. 00:13:34.080 --> 00:13:35.759 Makes me feel pretty good. 00:13:38.559 --> 00:13:48.320 But if we're secure in God and in God alone and not using enemies to justify ourselves or our positions or opinions, then we're free to judge as to examine. 00:13:49.600 --> 00:13:52.879 And we're also not bound by anybody's judgment. 00:13:53.759 --> 00:13:55.039 This is the mind of Christ. 00:13:55.120 --> 00:13:57.919 This is the way of thinking and living in the world we should have. 00:13:58.240 --> 00:14:01.039 Point number three: the second word is grace. 00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:02.720 We see the story. 00:14:03.039 --> 00:14:06.320 God pursues his children even while we run. 00:14:08.399 --> 00:14:09.600 I could say it this way. 00:14:09.840 --> 00:14:21.120 Jonah, the book of Jonah teaches us God is free as God to pursue his children even while we are not always pursuing him. 00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:26.559 Margaret Wise Brown's author, she wrote a children's book called The Runaway Bunny. 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:28.159 Anybody know the runaway bunny? 00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:30.240 Little bunnies. 00:14:30.559 --> 00:14:35.840 Little bunny decides he's gonna run away from his mama. 00:14:36.720 --> 00:14:37.759 I'm gonna run away. 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:39.200 I'm running away. 00:14:40.480 --> 00:14:45.120 And she replies, if you run away, I will run after you, for you are my little bunny. 00:14:46.080 --> 00:14:51.039 If you run after me, I will become a fish in a trout stream and I will swim away from you. 00:14:51.600 --> 00:14:53.039 Mother never hesitates. 00:14:53.200 --> 00:14:56.240 If you become a fish, I will become a fisherman and I will fish for you. 00:14:56.399 --> 00:14:57.759 And it goes on and on and on. 00:14:57.919 --> 00:15:06.879 The little bunny becomes a bird or a sailboat, and the mother becomes a tree or the wind and so on, always finding her little bunny. 00:15:09.200 --> 00:15:10.639 Jonah 1, verse 3. 00:15:10.879 --> 00:15:14.480 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. 00:15:14.559 --> 00:15:24.159 He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish, really making the point here, going to Tarshish the wrong way. 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:25.840 Away from the presence of the Lord. 00:15:26.000 --> 00:15:26.559 Verse 4. 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:37.200 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:42.000 I don't understand all the storms in life. 00:15:42.080 --> 00:15:45.440 I wouldn't be able to explain them to you or your storms. 00:15:45.600 --> 00:15:47.120 I won't pretend to. 00:16:15.840 --> 00:16:23.519 The world is actually even full of conflict for you to create or be a part of, in which you can dehumanize people and hate them. 00:16:27.039 --> 00:16:28.799 But the Lord. 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:32.720 But the Lord sent a storm. 00:16:34.080 --> 00:16:35.919 I was headed the wrong way. 00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:38.240 I was way gone. 00:16:39.360 --> 00:16:40.639 I was rebellious. 00:16:40.960 --> 00:16:42.000 I was hurt. 00:16:42.879 --> 00:16:44.159 I was arrogant. 00:16:46.080 --> 00:16:48.000 I was in the gutter I was in the head. 00:16:49.679 --> 00:16:50.320 No change. 00:16:53.759 --> 00:16:54.799 By the Lord. 00:16:58.799 --> 00:16:59.440 Last point. 00:16:59.600 --> 00:17:00.639 Point number four. 00:17:02.480 --> 00:17:06.720 We are agents of God's grace and mercy to the world. 00:17:08.000 --> 00:17:15.440 Because we are already objects of God's grace and mercy. 00:17:16.720 --> 00:17:21.200 Jesus said in Matthew chapter 12 that he is the greater Jonah. 00:17:21.519 --> 00:17:22.640 That's what he said. 00:17:22.960 --> 00:17:34.480 This is Jesus' way to say the Jonah story points to the greater story that Jesus is playing out, because Jesus is our righteousness even while we run. 00:17:38.559 --> 00:17:43.119 Jesus God manifests, God manifested into the world. 00:17:43.920 --> 00:17:49.119 Is God running after us while we run from Him? 00:17:50.240 --> 00:17:55.440 While we hold anger or resentment or bitterness or hate. 00:17:56.400 --> 00:18:01.519 Even then God is pursuing us and loving us and forgiving us and absolving us. 00:18:02.480 --> 00:18:06.240 As to change the heart, as to change the will. 00:18:07.039 --> 00:18:08.160 As to change our lives. 00:18:08.720 --> 00:18:19.119 My brothers and sisters, by the death and resurrection of Jesus, you have absolution of all of your running and are gifted the mind and the righteousness of Jesus. 00:18:19.359 --> 00:18:20.640 Let's pray together. 00:18:21.599 --> 00:18:30.960 God, thank you for your grace and mercy to us, which we need because we do have people in our lives, perhaps groups of people that we've demonized. 00:18:31.359 --> 00:18:32.480 Perhaps they've hurt us. 00:18:32.559 --> 00:18:33.839 Perhaps they're evil. 00:18:34.960 --> 00:18:36.319 But perhaps not. 00:18:39.119 --> 00:18:49.920 But either way, it is our issue to deal with our bitterness, our resentment, our hate, our dislike, our disdain, our loathing. 00:18:51.279 --> 00:18:56.480 And for all of this, this is not the heart and the mind of Jesus that loved his enemies. 00:18:56.559 --> 00:18:59.359 And for this we repent. 00:19:00.640 --> 00:19:03.200 And we thank you for your grace that runs after us. 00:19:03.359 --> 00:19:10.240 While we hate, you run after us, you absolve us and declare us righteous. 00:19:12.000 --> 00:19:25.440 God, would you create in us hearts that can examine the world and at the same time love and be agents of God's grace and mercy. 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:26.880 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:19:27.119 --> 00:19:27.759 Amen.