Don't I Know you? You look likeJonah

Don't I Know you? You look like Jonah - Jonah 1:1-3

Jonah 1:1–3 NLT

1 The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.” 3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.

May God Bless The Reading Hearing & Understanding of his Precious Word!

Prayer

Confession of Faith

I am not moved by what I see or by what I feel. I am moved by what I believe. I believe the WORD of God! The victory is mine! I have it now! I can see it through the eyes of my faith! In Jesus Name

Intro: Today I am starting a series on the book of Jonah! This book is a story about sin, about forgiveness, and about how much God loves His people no matter what. The story of Jonah is a powerful warning that even though God loves us very much, He is sad when we go against His will. I need you to open your hearts, open your minds, to the lessons that can change our lives, open your hearts, open your minds To the lessons that will inspire us to live in accordance with God's will. Now as we learn about Jonah's life, you will see yourself, I know I have seen myself all throughout the book! You will see examples of your decisions previous times in your life and how those decisions have affected you and the people around you, also even decisions that we have made today - decisions that we can use to get back to or get closer to God's mercy, God’s kindness, God’s grace, and God’s forgiveness.

Let’s go back to basics

Jonah 1:1–3 NCV

1 The Lord spoke his word to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up, go to the great city of Nineveh, and preach against it, because I see the evil things they do.” 3 But Jonah got up to run away from the Lord by going to Tarshish. He went to the city of Joppa, where he found a ship that was going to the city of Tarshish. Jonah paid for the trip and went aboard, planning to go to Tarshish to run away from the Lord.

Have you ever ran from God's calling? At different times in our lives, we might face God's calling - what i mean is God telling you a specific way He wants you to go or a specific thing he wants you to do . But it's normal to have times of doubt, hesitation, or even outright resistance. Even the Prophet Jeremiah had doubts

Jeremiah 1:6–8 NCV

6 Then I said, “But Lord God, I don’t know how to speak. I am only a boy.” 7 But the Lord said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I am only a boy.’ You must go everywhere I send you, and you must say everything I tell you to say. 8 Don’t be afraid of anyone, because I am with you to protect you,” says the Lord.

But when we look at The story of Jonah - this is a powerful warning of what happens when we run away from God's calling and what we miss out on as a result.

Like Jonah, we may feel inadequate or ill-equipped to fulfill God's calling. We may doubt our abilities, skills, or knowledge, causing us to shrink back from the task at hand. That’s why it’s important to remember that God equips those He calls and provides everything necessary to accomplish His purposes.

He tells us all in

Matthew 28:19–20 NKJV

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

When you read the book of Exodus in chapters 3 and 4 - Moses, faced a similar struggle. When God called him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, he initially resisted, doubting his ability to speak eloquently. However, God assured Moses of His presence and provided Aaron as his spokesperson!

Sometimes, we run away from God's calls because we want to stay in our comfort zones. We might like what we know and many of us are afraid to try something new. But God's plans for us are often outside of our comfort zones, and it's in those places that we grow, find meaning, and feel fulfilled.

Genesis 12:1–4 NLT

1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” 4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.

When God told Abraham to leave his home and go to a place he didn't know, he had to deal with this problem. Even though he didn't know what would happen, Abraham believed God and set out on a journey that would change his life!

Sometimes we ignore what God calls us to do out of Fear of being left out or being persecuted or talked about! Folks don’t want to follow God's call if they think they will stand out, face resistance, or lose acceptance from other people. But God tells us that He is with us, that He is strong, and that faith will pay off in the end.

2 Corinthians 4:16–18 NKJV

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Paul, the apostle, knew this battle well. For the sake of the Gospel, he had to go through many trials, Paul was persecuted, and Paul was put in prison! But he didn't give up because he knew that pleasing God was much more important than any temporary problems he was experiencing!

Sometimes we run from God’s calling because of personal ambitions and desires over His will. We may become in love with worldly success, in love with wealth, or in love with fame, neglecting the greater purpose God has for us.

Matthew 6:33 NKJV

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

We find true fulfillment occurs when we align our ambitions with God's plan.

lean in - wait

Don't I Know you? You look like Jonah and You acting like Jonah?

Running away from what God tells you to do is a problem that many Christ Followers face today. We are too busy trying to feel good! But you have to realize that our fears, safety zones, and personal goals should never stop us from obeying God. When we live our lives in line with His will, there is a deep sense of meaning, a deep satisfaction, and an amazing joy of being a part of His work to save the world.

Jonah 1:1–2 GW

1 The Lord spoke his word to Jonah, son of Amittai. He said, 2 “Leave at once for the important city, Nineveh. Announce to the people that I can no longer overlook the wicked things they have done.” 

When this new order came from the Lord, Jonah was already a prophet for the people of Israel. Jonah had been a prophet in Israel for a while! Jonah lived and worked during a time when both Israel's military and economy were strong. This was a time when God showed His kindness to the Northern Kingdom. During this time Under Jeroboam II, the Northern Kingdom of Israel had its most famous and wealthy time. God picked this king to rule so that the people would have one last chance to change. God used the wicked king as a way to bless the people, hoping that His goodness would get them to stop being bad and turn back to Him. But despite all the benefits, and even though they reached a level of wealth and power not seen since Solomon's time, there was no spiritual prosperity in the country. The people were not close to God in their hearts.

During these times, God told Jonah to help the people of Israel. the Prophets Amos and Hosea lived at the same time as him. Like him, they were called to tell the people that God would punish them if they didn't change. God cared about the people even though they kept rejecting him and being bad. He sent prophet after prophet to tell them what was going to happen, but this was the last time. The people of the Northern Kingdom had to change their minds or God would punish them. If this happened, the country would never get back up!

Now the people of Nineveh - let me tell you how bad the people of Nineveh were

The people of Nineveh were evil and malicious;

Jonah 3:8 NCV

8 But every person and animal should be covered with rough cloth, and people should cry loudly to God. Everyone must turn away from evil living and stop doing harm all the time.

They were a violent, bloodthirsty people guilty of slaughtering so many others that they were known as one of the most cruel people ever to live on earth

Nahum 3:1–3 NCV

1 How terrible it will be for the city that has killed so many. It is full of lies and goods stolen from other countries. It is always killing somebody. 2 Hear the sound of whips and the noise of the wheels. Hear horses galloping and chariots bouncing along! 3 Horses are charging, swords are shining, spears are gleaming! Many are dead; their bodies are piled up— too many to count. People stumble over the dead bodies.

Imagine being told by God to go preach and teach on the streets of such a big city to people who are so bad. On top of that - There had never been a Jewish preacher sent to Nineveh before. But now, the Lord was giving Jonah this most difficult and scary job. Jonah was picked for this hard job out of all the prophets who were serving the Lord at the time, which included both Amos and Hosea. Jonah had always been faithful, or else the Lord wouldn't have picked him for this mission, which was so hard it seemed impossible.

The Lord's directive for Jonah is a picture of what Christ followers are told to do in the Great Commission. The Lord has told every believer to go out and be a strong witness of His salvation—to show that we can be saved from sin, death, and God's coming judgment. We have to go to both the big cities of the world and the small towns and rural places of our own countries. In fact, the Lord's command is clear:

Acts 1:8 NKJV

8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Every human being of every generation needs to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ! Everyone needs to hear about God’s salvation. People must receive Jesus Christ as their Savior or else face the coming judgment of God. Without Jesus, people are doomed to live eternally separated from God. Therefore, as believers we have no choice, as followers of Jesus Christ we have no choice. We must go to proclaim Jesus to the ends of the earth. The Great Commission of the Lord is clearly given to every believer: it is our calling.

Until we meet again , God Bless You and God Keep You is my prayer