The Book of Jonah

03 Jonah 3 • Fighting God • Grace Church • Fellowship Bible Studies • June 22, 2014 03 1 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. 6 When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 7 This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. 9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” 10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened. Jonah 3 NIV

In Jonah 01, we focused on spending time in God’s word. In Jonah 02, we focused on communicating with God in prayer. Today, we will look at obedience and evangelism. We will see that our God gives us innumerable opportunities to get things right – to obey Him. Since His Spirit lives inside us, we have the desire and the power to do what is right. Along the way, however, we make mistakes, but as we grow, we learn to trust and obey , and we learn to share His message with other people. Our God is truly the God of innumerable second chances – the God of grace!

Jonah 3:1 NIV 1 Then the ______ of the LORD came to Jonah a __________ time:

Jonah went his own way the first time, but now, after God intervenes, Jonah has the desire to go God’s way. If left alone by God, Jonah never would have gone to Nineveh. And if God left us alone, we would have never come to Him. We would have sought something, but we would have never turned to the one true God for salvation. The Apostle Paul wrote:

Romans 3:10-11 HCSB 10 as it is written: There is no one ______________, not even ____. 11 There is no ____ who ________________; ���there is no ____ who _______ God.

The Psalmist wrote:

Psalm 53:1-3 HCSB 1 The ______ says in his heart, “____ does not exist.” ���They are corrupt, and they do vile deeds. ��� There is no ____ who does good. 2 God looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is ______, ���one who _______ God. 3 ____ have turned ______; ���all alike have become corrupt. ��� There is no one who does ______, ���not even ____.

We can only know God when we are born again — born from above by the Spirit of God.

Isaiah wrote this:

Isaiah 55:7 NLV Let the sinful turn from ____ ____, and the one who does not know God ______ from his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and He will have loving-pity on him. Let him turn to our God, for He will for ______ forgive ____ his _____.

Before we became Christians, our ways were not God’s ways. When it came to spiritual matters, our ways were always the wrong way. Though we didn’t realize it, we were running from God. Each of us went our own way — away from God. And we ran until God, as He did with Jonah, stepped in with the remedy. And I’ll be honest. I like the remedy God had for us better than the one He had for Jonah!

As the wind blew a storm into Jonah’s life that day on the sea, so the storms of life blow in our direction. In severe, prolonged storms, we feel helpless and hopeless. All the while, God works on our hearts, and then He quickens us, or makes us alive in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are born again for service to God.

Our first birth was by the flesh, from our mother’s womb. The second birth is by the Spirit of God. Although we run and we hide, He seeks. God always seeks us first. He always initiates our salvation. Always! Then, after this intervention by God, we begin to live by faith, and it is then that we can truly seek God. Now when God intervenes in Jonah’s life and gives him another chance to complete the mission, God does not say, “Look Jonah. You botched it the first time; get it right this time.”

There is no mention of Jonah's former call and flight. The Lord passes this over in gracious silence. • Homer Hailey

The Lord was willing to forgive and forget – then! And the Lord is willing to forgive and forget – now! He forgave Jonah and He forgives you and me. He did not bring up Jonah’s past mistakes, and He won’t bring up yours or mine. He just gives Jonah this directive:

Jonah 3:2 NIV 2 "Go to the great city of Nineveh and ____________ to it the message __ give you."

God, after helping Jonah to see it His way, sends Jonah with His message, which was a warning of impending doom, which we’ll look at in a few verses. Jonah’s message would have been something like this: “You worthless dogs. You have been enemies of Israel and have done great violence against us, but our God is going to destroy you! He is going to wipe you out!” That message would paint God as a vengeful, vindictive, tyrant, yet that is how many people characterize God. Many view Him wholly as the Old Testament God of wrath, who stands with a big bat, ready to bash anyone who does something He doesn’t like. Those same people favor their version of a New Testament God – a cheery, old soul who has lost his bat and replaced it with a baton that He uses to lead us in a continual chorus of Kumbaya. However, God’s attributes, His characteristics, do not change. He has always been a God who acts justly, loves mercy, and wants us to walk in His ways, for He views obedience better than the sacrifice of animals.

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That was something the prophet Samuel said long before to King Saul:

1 Samuel 15:22 NLT “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and _______________ or your obedience to his ________? ��� Listen! ______________ is better than sacrifice, and submission is _________ than offering the fat of rams.

The prophet Malachi elaborates on mankind’s views of God changing over time:

Malachi 3:6 NLT I am the Lord, and I do not _________. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already _______________.

God has always been perfectly just and perfectly merciful. His blend of attributes cannot be improved upon, and we see Him when we see His Son, as well:

Hebrews 1:1-3 NIV 1 In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the ____________ at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these ______ days he has spoken to us by his _____, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he ______ the universe. 3 The ____ is the radiance of God’s glory and the ________ representation of his ________, sustaining all things by his powerful ______. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

Hebrews 13:8 NLT Jesus Christ is the ______ yesterday, today, and forever.

God does not change, and His message to Nineveh was a gracious warning, giving the Ninevites time to consider the alternative. The message of impending doom was bathed in the perfect character of God. The message is the same today for every human being:

John 3:16-18 NIV 16 For God so ________ the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever ____________ in him shall not _________ but have eternal ______. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not ______________, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the ______ of God’s one and only Son.

Now the message Jonah delivered, and we’ll read it later, wasn’t a cheery acclamation or a warm salutation to the Assyrian people. It was a message that most people would not want to deliver to anyone anywhere. It’s not a message that I’d like to deliver as I walked the streets of Sarasota, let alone a city the size of Nineveh.

Yet we, as Christians, do have a message to deliver. It’s called the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Good News from God Himself, and it was an angel who delivered it to the shepherds:

Luke 2:10-11 NIV 10 “Do not be _________. I bring you good news that will cause great ____ for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a _________ has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

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And the Greek word for good news is where we get our word evangelism. Paul said to Timothy, “Do the ______ of an evangelist,” one who proclaims the good news of Jesus Christ to a sinful world. The Gospel is for every person on Earth, for all people, and it is a gracious warning from God for sinners to turn to Him, through Christ, for salvation.

Salvation is deliverance from impending doom. In Christ, we have safety – salvation. Apart from Christ, we face impending doom – eternal death, or separation from God for eternity. In one verse, Paul not only warns us of impending doom, he offers the grace-laden solution:

Romans 6:23 AMP For the ________ which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] ______ _____ of God is eternal life through (in ________ with) Jesus Christ our Lord.

So, our message is the Gospel, and it’s a simple message. Turn to Christ! Only He can save you from the impending doom. The Ninevites only received a warning that doom was on its way, but God gave them 40 days to come up with some way to do something that would save their souls. Thank God Christ says, “I am the _____...” Only He can save our souls.

Jonah 3:3 NIV 3 Jonah _________ the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three ______ to go through it.

This time, Jonah takes God’s message to Nineveh. Jonah obeys. While I was researching the word obey, I found an actual letter written by a dog after attending 6 weeks of obedience school. It reads:

Dear God, ���

I obey hand signals, whistles, horns, clickers, beepers, and invisible fence signals sent electromagnetically. I obey voice commands. I sit, heel, rollover, shake hands, fetch and speak. I even submit to leading by Frisbee flight paths. When I hear my master’s voice, I jump with joy. But I have a question God, and it is this: Whom do humans obey?

Though I’m old and draggin’, I’m still waggin’.

Your friend,

Zak

PS. Will there be mailmen in heaven? And will I still bark during prayer, or will I have the gift of tongues?

? Whom do you obey?

Wouldn’t it be great if we had an obedience school, like dogs? Then we could learn to comply, because, too often, we don’t want to take a back seat to God. We still do things our own way — even as Christians. Now some people would have you believe that we would be obedient Christians if we just obeyed the law – the 10 Commandments. But the 10 commandments were not given to the church as a way to make anyone of the church right with God. The law was given to Israel to show them their need for the coming Messiah and to show the world that Israel was in a special relationship with God.

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God blessed them if they kept the law, which is still pure and holy, but God gave them priests to offer sacrifices to atone for their sins when they broke the law. God’s measuring stick for right standing with Him was the Law, but Israel proved it’s impossible to keep the law perfectly. Thank God that Christ was made sin for us and that He kept the law for us so that we would be made right with God through Him. Let’s hear what Paul said about Abraham, an Old Testament saint:

Romans 4:13 NLT Clearly, God’s ___________ to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was ________ ____ on his obedience to God’s _____, but on a right relationship with God that comes by ________.

God has always wanted people to simply trust Him, and obedience is simply our trust and corresponding actions to all that God says in His good book. In Galatians, Paul says:

Galatians 3:24-26 NKJV 24 Therefore the law was our ________ to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by ________. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer ________ a tutor. 26 For you are all sons of God through faith ___ Christ Jesus.

Connie often tutored students in Algebra at evenings in our home. They needed extra attention, and over time they developed a relationship with her that they could not obtain in the structured walls of her classroom. In the short time allotted each day, there were too many new rules to follow using terms and equations they did not grasp when presented to the herd. But one on one, Connie made it simple for them to understand. Those parents trusted Connie to help their children make it to the promised land – graduation.

The law, even though it is perfect, won’t make us right with God. The law is our tutor, a taskmaster that drives us to Christ, for it is a burden too heavy for us to bear. It can never lead us to the Promised Land – heaven. After all, James wrote:

James 2:10 NLT For the person who keeps ____ of the laws except ____ is as _________ as a person who has broken ____ of God’s laws.

The law is like a mirror we use to see dirt on our face. The mirror allows us to see the dirt, but it cannot be used to remove the dirt. Only Christ can cleanse us, and He makes it simple:

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV 28 “Come to ___, all you who are weary and ____________, and I will give you ______. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your ________. 30 For my yoke is ______ and my burden is ________.”

As Christians, we are not supposed to sit around and focus on keeping the law. That won’t make us obedient followers of Christ. Paul, after his conversion to the faith, wrote:

Romans 1:5 NIV Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the ______________ that comes ______ ________ for his name’s sake.

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Faith brings about obedience, or obedience comes from faith. Our obedience comes from faith in Jesus, who lives within us and gives us the desire and the power to obey.

Faith is the fountain, the foundation, and the fosterer of obedience. Charles Spurgeon

The apostle Peter wrote that we are:

1 Peter 1:2 NKJV ________ according to the __________________ of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for ______________ and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: ________ to you and peace be multiplied.

1 Peter 1:2 NLT God the Father knew you and ________ you long ago…

God chose (elected) us at the foundation of the world to be sons or daughters by faith. God chose us at the foundation to have the blood of Christ cleanse us from sin.

God chose us at the foundation of the world for obedience to the faith.

One of the signs of practical obedience is expressed in your belief in the teachings of Christ, trusting in His work, and resting in His salvation. You are obedient when you believe that you are saved by grace and not by works. That’s the obedience of faith. You believe God. You trust His words are true. You are obedient to the faith. You are not under the law! You are obedient when you study God’s word, pray, use your gifts within the body of Christ, and share the Good News of Jesus Christ with those outside the church.

Now Obedience is from a Greek word (hoop-ak-o-ay') that means to comply or to be in submission. It means we comply, or submit, to the requirements of Christianity – the easier yoke and the lighter burden we find in Christ. We submit to God and each other. We love God and people.

The prophet Micah wrote this:

Micah 6:8 NIV He has shown you, O mortal, what is ______. And what does the LORD require of you? ���To ____ justly and to ______ mercy and to walk _________ with your God.

! Act Justly – Do what’s right, be responsible, and His word tells us what is right. ! Love Mercy – Be compassionate with others, as Christ is towards us. ! Walk Humbly – Know that you came from the line of Adam, like everyone else, and

if it weren’t for God intervening, you’d still be a sinner – not part of God’s family, the church.

God does require us to obey, but our obedience is wrapped up in the faith God has given us to trust Him. Obedience (hoop-ak-o-ay') doesn’t mean we jump through “hoops” while others are watching us make an attempt to obey the law. Our obedience comes from faith, a gift from God, and in Christ we have the freedom to do the right thing as we yield (submit) to the Holy Spirit and walk in His ways, for Paul said that when:

Galatians 5:18 NLT …you are directed by the _________, you are ____ under obligation to the ____ of Moses.

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The Law constantly shouts, “Thou shalt not; Thou shalt not; Thou shalt not!” But faith is different; it gently whispers, “Thou shalt.”

Men will never obey God until they believe God, and they cannot believe unless they hear the Good News, and they don’t hear the Good News unless we go and tell – evangelize. In Christ, the obedience to the faith is not based on what we can’t do; it is based on what Christ did and what He can do through us. Consider how Paul ends The Epistle to the Romans:

Romans 16:25-27 NIV 25 Now to ____ who is ______ to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 26 but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the ______________ that comes from ________– 27 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.

How can family and friends who are not Christians obtain the obedience that comes from faith? It’s the E word – Evangelism. Others will become obedient to the faith when we are obedient to the faith and share the Good News of Jesus Christ with them! Jonah’s trust in God grew when God delivered him from the belly of the fish, so he obeys God and goes into Nineveh to deliver this message to the Gentiles:

Jonah 3:4 NIV 4 … “________ more days and Nineveh will be _______________.”

Jonah’s message was just 8 words long – only 7 in some translations (5 in Hebrew). It did not offer any carrots, any stimulus package, only God’s forthcoming judgment and a grace period – 40 days. The word overturned is translated in others versions of the Bible this way:

Jonah 3:4 NLT “Forty days from now Nineveh will be _______________!”

Jonah 3:4 VOICE After 40 days, Nineveh will be __________________.

Now it wasn’t like Jonah went into the city and sugar coated the message for three days. He didn’t talk to the people about the weather, the economy, the latest movie or health care, then, just as he was going out the gate, say, “Oh by the way, forty more days and Nineveh will be destroyed.” He gave them God’s word. He didn’t say God might damage Nineveh in forty days. He said destroy. However, in our day, Christians like to sweeten the message. Often, we talk about everything but Christ, and we surely don’t mention hell or sin; then, at the last moment as everyone heads for the door, we try to slip Jesus in by feebly saying, “Jesus loves you.” We end up saying a few truthful words, but we fail to share a clear presentation of the Gospel. You’ve probably done that, haven’t you? I have! So it seems that the word obedience, for many, has given way to the word expedience, or saying what is favorable for the listener instead of what is needed for the heart. But God is gracious to us and those we share His love with.

He not only gives us more opportunities to Say What We Need To Say,

He gives the unsaved more opportunities to Hear What They Need To Hear.

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And some of the people that God puts in our path are hard of hearing, aren’t they? We can share the Gospel, but some people have heads so big and dense and so full of misconceptions about God and His Word that we have to take 40 days or 40 years to answer their questions by speaking the truth in love.

I’m glad and thankful for those who kept on dealing with my thick head, aren’t you? I’m thankful for the people God used to bring me into His family, aren’t you?

I mentioned that when we share the Gospel, we often talk about everything but Christ. We beat around the bush and talk about going to church, reading the Bible, going to Christian concerts, giving money to Christian charities, feeding the poor, building shelters for the homeless, and the like. There is nothing wrong with those things, but they are not the Good News of Jesus Christ. The Gospel message is pretty simple. It’s found in:

1 Corinthians 15:1-10 NLT 1 Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this ______ ______ that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you– unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place. 3 I passed on to you what was ______ important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ ______ for our _____, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was _________, and he was raised from the ______ on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 5 He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. 6 After that, he was ______ by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then he was seen by James and later by ____ the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also ____ him. 9 For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church. 10 But whatever I am ____, it is all because God poured out his special ________ on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not __ but ____ who was working through me by his ________.

The Gospel message, the Good News of Jesus Christ, can be boiled down to 29 words from the above passage:

Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.

29 simple yet profound words that can change a life.

Those words, “Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said” are enough of a start to help people along the path if the Holy Spirit is drawing them to Jesus, for they are the words of God, and words about Christ, and Paul wrote:

Romans 10:17 NLT ________ comes from ___________, that is hearing the ______ news about Christ.”

There is enough in those few words to start the wheels turning upstairs, for God’s word does not return to Him void. It accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it. Page 8

So keep it simple when you share the gospel. People aren’t interested in how much you know, but they’ll know how much you care when you share the Good News with them.

Remember the old KISS acronym: Keep It Simple, Saint

You’re no longer a sinner. You were a sinner, but you were saved by grace, and God now calls you a saint. So, share the truth God has given you! God saved Jonah, and when he proclaimed God’s message as he went through the city:

Jonah 3:5 NIV The Ninevites believed ____. A ______ was proclaimed, and ____ of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

If Jonah did mention God to the Ninevites, it is not written. We are only given Jonah’s simple message. Yet, the Scripture says that the Ninevites believed God. Was the sight of a ghastly pale walker delivering a message of doom enough to change their minds? Or was God intervening in the hearts and souls of individual people to bring about national repentance?

When the Ninevites fasted, they took their eyes off the evil they were doing and began to think about God and how they could avert disaster. Fasting helps us to focus on God and not our problems. During Old Testament times, sackcloth was actually a hair shirt most often made of coarse, black goat's hair. It was customarily worn by mourners or as a sign of deep repentance and humility. Ashes were often included as a further symbol of personal disgust and sorrow.

But notice, what’s of greatest importance is that “The Ninevites believed God.”

Faith came by hearing the word, which is the spring of true repentance, and the root of all good works. John Gill

It has always been about believing with God. Abram believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Later, when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only son’s life, you might remember this part of the conversation with Isaac, his son:

Genesis 22:7-8 NIV 7 “The fire and wood are here, but where is the ______ for the burnt _____________?” 8 Abraham answered, “God ____________ will provide the ______ for the burnt offering, my son.” And the ____ of them went on together.

Abraham believed God, and God provided. Jonah cried out to God in belief that only He could save him, and God did. For us, God provided the Lamb of God – Jesus – and He gives us the faith to believe when we hear the Gospel. And then, we learn to become obedient.

Unless a person operates by faith, that person cannot please God. That person, due to unbelief, will end up in hell. Yet, man doesn’t need to clothe himself in sackcloth to avoid hell; man doesn’t need to fast, or abstain from certain foods, drink or sex, to avoid hell. To avoid an eternity in hell, man needs to be clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Man can’t save himself. God saves man.

God alone gets all the glory. Page 9

Jonah 3:6 NIV 6 When Jonah’s ___________ reached the ______ of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took ____ his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the ______.

Good things usually start down at the grass roots level, don’t they? As we read earlier, the Good News of Christ’s birth came to the shepherds first, didn’t it? But, as the angel declared, the Good News is for all people – carpenters and kings! Everyone needs Jesus! We could say the king was a typical politician, reading the polls and lining up behind the people with an edict that kept him in a favorable light. From a human perspective, that would be true, but God was working in hearts that day, as He still does every day.

Maybe one of the truths that come out of the Book of Jonah, and, as usual, God provides many, is that we may see that:

God can change any heart – or any number of hearts at any time.

Unlike Pharaoh, whose heart God hardened, this king bows low. This king fears God, and he issues a proclamation for Nineveh. The king and his nobles make a noble effort to lead the people by issuing a majestic memorandum:

Jonah 3:7-8 NIV 7 “By the decree of the ______ and his _________: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, ________ anything; do not let them eat or ________. 8 But let people and ___________ be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call ____________ on ____. Let them give up their ______ ways and their violence.

For the Ninevites, that meant they couldn’t even go to Hummus World or the Falafel King. They couldn’t even grab an ice-cold bottle of Evian Euphrates from the fridge to quench their thirst, for the king said, “Don’t eat or drink!” A directive from DC that ordered people not to eat or drink would be beyond the pail for most Americans today, even most American Christians. America is the land of the free, and we have the right to make our own decisions on just about everything, but most of us aren’t brave enough to miss even one bowl of our favorite Publix Premium ice cream. If I heard that decree coming from the White House today, I’d immediately scoff and then ask, “For how long?” The king gave no time frame, and that would concern me. After all, I might miss my next snack, and what if God took His time and dallied until the end of the forty-day window? Like most other Americans, I’d ignore the edict, but the Assyrians did not.

If you were an Assyrian and weren’t already in sackcloth, the king’s decree would give you the necessary incentive to don your vapid vesture. Yet, you’d still have to cover your animals, a process I’m still trying to picture in my own mind. After all, most herd animals have their own hairy hides, and to cover them, the sackcloth would have to come from other animals. So, this decree would have raised hairs on PETA necks and fostered a lawsuit, as long as the suit wasn’t made from the fibers of subjugated silkworms. Interestingly, the custom of sackcloth continues today. At funerals, we wear black clothing to signify mourning. At funerals for great leaders, even the horses that draw the hearse and the coaches are covered with black velvet. It’s an outward show of an internal feeling. Page 10

The king’s decree also commanded the people to call on God and give up their wicked ways, which is something the Scripture consistently calls on the people of God to do. In Jeremiah, God says:

Jeremiah 18:11 NLT “…Jeremiah, go and warn all Judah and Jerusalem. Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am planning ____________ for you instead of ______. So turn from your ______ ways, ______ of you, and do what is ________.’”

In Ezekiel, God says:

Ezekiel 33:11 NKJV Say to them: ‘As I ______,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no _____________ in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from ____ way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you ____, O house of Israel?’

In Zechariah, God says:

Zechariah 1:4 NLT Don’t be like your ancestors who would not _________ or pay attention when the earlier ____________ said to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Turn from your evil ways, and ______ all your evil practices.’

Jeremiah said, “Turn.” Ezekiel said, “Turn.” Zechariah said, “Turn.” God is always saying, “Turn! Turn! Turn!”

Back in the sixties, The Byrds recorded a song with lyrics taken by Pete Seeger from the book of Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3. It was called, “Turn! Turn! Turn!” The last words of this anti-war song are these:

A time for peace, I swear it’s not too late.

When the Lord of Heaven’s Armies threatens to destroy you, your animals, and your way of life, you’re in a world of trouble. You could make a stand and fight, but if you do, the outcome is inevitable. You lose! So the Ninevites had a decision to make, and hearing the word of the Lord from Jonah and knowing the power of the God of Israel, they repent of their wickedness, hoping for mercy and a stay of execution – hoping it’s not too late.

As Christians, we have the advantage of the Scriptures, which teach us that the heart of man is desperately wicked and that a man cannot turn from doing evil by his own power. We deserve a backhand from God, but we have learned from Scripture that God has always been merciful. He is always extending the olive branch of peace, offered in the nail-pierced hands of Christ. God knew we needed help, so He sent Christ to not only die for our sins, but to make it possible for people to get a new heart and, with that new heart, the desire to do what is right by following Him through faith — the obedience of faith. And that obedience includes urging people through evangelism to call on Jesus for salvation.

God also reminded His people that when they acknowledge Him by requesting His help – and that would be considered a prayer – He responds. In Jeremiah, God said:

Jeremiah 33:3 NKJV ‘_____ to ___, and I will _________ you, and show you ________ and mighty things, which you do not know.’

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The Ninevites weren’t sure God would turn from his anger against them, but they did what they could. And their king’s words reveal what most were thinking:

Jonah 3:9 NIV 9 Who ________? God may yet _________ and with compassion ______ from his fierce anger so that we will not _________.”

The Ninevites weren’t sure, but they were hoping. Here again, Christians have the advantage of the Scriptures, which reveal the sure hope of the promises of God. His word tells us that:

1 John 5:11-13 NIV 11 And this is the testimony: God has ________ us eternal life, and this life is in his ____. 12 Whoever has the Son has ______; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may ______ that you have eternal life.

Psalm 12:6 GNT The promises of the Lord can be ___________; they are as ___________ as silver refined seven times in the furnace.

1 Thessalonians 5:9 NCV God did not _________ us to suffer his ________ but to have _______________ through our Lord Jesus Christ.

John 5:24 NOG I can ______________ this ________: Those who listen to what I say and ___________ in the one who sent me will have eternal life. They won’t be judged because they have already passed from ________ to ______.

As Christians, our belief that God’s promises are true is a practical revelation – to others and ourselves. It reveals our obedience to the faith. As you read this promise from God, write your first name in the blanks as you repeat this promise aloud:

For God so loved _________________ that He gave His only begotten Son, that if _________________ believes in Him, then _________________ should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 NKJV

If you could say your name sincerely, knowing that you believe God’s word to be true in your life, that’s obedience to the faith. Those words penned by the Apostle John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit are more than an invitation. Those words are a promise — a promise from God to His elect. God showed compassion by sending His Son to die in our place. If we trust in Jesus, we won’t perish, or die, for He has moved us from death to life. As Christians, we can count on God, knowing that His promises are true.

However, the Ninevites weren’t sure, but:

Jonah 3:10 NIV 10 When God saw what they did and how they _________ from their ______ ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.

The Ninevites believed God, so He relented, but God didn’t change. And He does destroy them about a century later, for they went back to their old ways and were attacking the Southern Kingdom – Judah.

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We find this in the Book of Nahum, the prophet, written about the same time as Jonah:

Nahum 1:1-15 NIV 1 A prophecy concerning Nineveh. 2 The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with ________. ��� The Lord takes vengeance on his ______ and vents his ________ against his enemies. 3 The Lord is ______ to anger but great in power; the Lord will not leave the guilty ________________. 6 Who can withstand his indignation? Who can endure his _________ anger? ��� His wrath is poured out like ______; the rocks are shattered before him. 7 The Lord is ______, a refuge in times of trouble. ��� He ________ for those who ________ in him, 8 but with an overwhelming flood ���he will make an end of Nineveh; he will pursue his ______ into the realm of darkness. 9 Whatever they ______ against the Lord he will bring to an end; trouble will not come a _________ time. 11 From you, Nineveh, has one come forth who plots ______ against the Lord and devises wicked plans. 12 This is what the Lord says: “Although they have allies and are numerous, they will be destroyed and pass away. 14 The Lord has given a command concerning you, Nineveh: “You will have ___ descendants to bear your name. ��� I will destroy the images and idols that are in the temple of your gods. ���I will prepare your ________, for you are ______.” 15 Celebrate your festivals, Judah, and fulfill your vows. ���No more will the wicked invade you; they will be completely destroyed.

Fear was a great motivator, short term, but it didn’t do much to change the nature of the Ninevites in the long term, did it? The Ninevites feared what God could do when they heard Jonah’s message, so they changed their ways, and God withheld His wrath. But judgment did come! It just came much later because the next generations of the Assyrians reverted back to their bloodthirsty ways. However, all those who heard Jonah’s message were spared, although some may have lived long enough to see God’s wrath poured out through the Medes and Persians. As all this unfolds, the books of Jonah and Nahum help us to understand another truth about true repentance:

Unless God changes a heart, people – sooner of later – revert back to their old ways!

The people that heard Jonah were sincere, but only sorrowful in a worldly way. Paul explains:

2 Corinthians 7:9-10 NASB 9 I now rejoice, not that you were ______ sorrowful, but that you were ______ sorrowful to the point of _______________; for you were made sorrowful according to the _____ of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything through us. 10 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without _________, leading to salvation, but the __________ of the ________ produces ________.

Paul said this to the Romans:

Romans 2:4 GW Do you have contempt for God, who is very ______ to you, puts up with you, and deals _______________ with you? Don’t you realize that it is God’s kindness that is trying to lead you to him and change the way you ________ and _____?

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God didn’t change His mind when He relented from the destruction that Jonah warned the Ninevites would come. God, through His compassion to the Ninevites, was giving them time for true repentance, a repentance that His kindness and patience would lead some to make.

God is always at in front of the march of human history to fulfill His purposes, and as Christians, we are part of those purposes. As the Jews were Old Testament witnesses for God, we are New Testament witnesses, and God’s grace is working within us to produce practical righteousness (obedience), so that we may draw others to the obedience of the faith by sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them through evangelism. When you consider all that God has done to make you right with Him through Jesus, be grateful and thank the Lord often.

Scripture says that there is rejoicing in heaven when one turns to Christ. Have you ever considered that there was rejoicing when you put your faith in Jesus Christ? So, to show your gratefulness, share the Gospel with those people God puts in your path, and pray that God, through His patience and kindness, will lead them to true repentance and faith in Christ. May there be much rejoicing in heaven because of your obedience to the faith.

Memory Verse

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. 13 Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you.

Psalm 51:12-13 NLT

See you next week for our last study in the Book of Jonah.

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Are there different types of fasting? ������The Bible describes four major types of fasting: A Regular Fast - Traditionally, a regular fast means refraining from eating all food. Most people still drink water or juice during a regular fast. When Jesus fasted in the desert, the Bible says, "After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry." This verse does not mention Jesus being thirsty. ��� A Partial Fast - This type of fast generally refers to omitting a specific meal from your diet or refraining from certain types of foods. Daniel 10:2-3 says, "At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips; and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over." In Daniel 1:12, they restricted their diet to vegetables and water: "Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink." ��� A Full Fast - These fasts are complete - no food and no drink. Acts 9:9 describes when Paul went on a full fast for three days following his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus: "For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything." Esther also called for this type of fast in Esther 4:15-16: "Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 'Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.'" It is recommended that this type of fast be done with extreme caution and not for extended periods of time. ��� A Sexual Fast - 1 Corinthians 7:3-6 says, "The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control." Although not mentioned in the Bible, Christians today commit to fasting from other activities as well. Some give up entertainment such as TV or movies to concentrate on prayer. Others fast from sleep or another activity for a specified period of time.

All About Prayer.org

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The function of the true minister of Jesus Christ is to preach the message that is given to him by the Lord. The skeptic may wonder whether God has ever spoken by human lips, but those who have been saved by the Lord, have been given the ear of the sheep to know the Master’s voice; and they will always recognize His tones, through whatever lips they may fall, and will not follow another. When we receive the call from God to minister His Word, we are responsible only to Him for our faithfulness in preaching that which He gives us to preach. This was the word which came to Jonah, “Preach the preaching that I bid thee” (Jonah 3:2), and there can be no fruitfulness apart from obedience to this Divine command. The Lord must furnish the message; we must deliver it. If a boy asked for a job delivering telegrams, he would not be allowed to select the messages which he would deliver. He could not ask for those messages which announced weddings, births, and advances in the stock market, and refuse those which told of loss, illness, and death. His function would be to take every message that came and deliver it as rapidly as possible to the person to whom it was addressed. Thus must the minister of the Gospel of Christ look upon his work.

Donald Grey Barnhouse

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If you missed Reverend Hallet’s workshop June 21, there will be other opportunities. ⇐

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