Jonah 2
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Jonah 2 - God hears our prayers even in the mess of our lives…
On December 31st, 2024 we had at our house what we call the incident
For those who were with me this morning you remember I told you that I had drain problems that resulted in Lillie standing in my basement, under a pipe that I had to cut hold a big tote catching all the stuff that comes out of a clogged sewer line
about six months after Lillie did that for me it started all over again
we discovered that we had not completely gotten rid of the problem
the toilet was gurgling
the shower was backing up
the last time it happened when I put all the pipes back together I made a clean out, a way to get into the sewer line without cutting it apart again
I bought a longer snake, a tool that I was able to send up the pipe
it worked a little but there was obviously something still in there and it was not moving
I worked for days… stuff flowed a little, as long as it was liquid
Then it happened… I had discovered when hot was run in our shower and I would snake I could get some of the sewage to move
being very frustrated, I tell heather I am going to try one last time
told her that she could go shower and maybe I could clear it
as she showered, I snaked the line and I could tell that the clog was moving and quickly
I had the snake in the line so I could not close the hole that I was using and then it happened
all the sewage that was clogged in that line came flying out… at me!
I begin to scream for my family to come help me…
my son Jimmy is not good at emergencies… he runs upstairs, and begins to run circles in our kitchen because he does not know what to do
Lillie who is better at emergencies than others in the family runs to get buckets… unfortunately they were the movie
don’t worry we threw them away
There I stood in my basement… covered in my families sewage and everything else around me
in the mess we had to thank God that our prayer was answered… Our sewer line was clear.
Left to ourselves, our own desires, our own wisdom that is us
I pray that you never find yourself standing in the basement of your house covered in your families sewage…
that is a sentence I never imagine I would say
The truth is you find yourself in a mess in the darkness of life
when we left Jonah he was covered in filth
I cannot imagine what the inside of a fish smells like, but it might not have been much worse than I smelled that day
We find ourselves covered in filth due to sin, as Jonah had done but, like last night, we need to see where the Lord is in the darkest part of our lives
1 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:
2 I called to the Lord in my distress, and he answered me. I cried out for help from deep inside Sheol; you heard my voice.
Even though Jonah had run from God and what he was told to do God heard his prayer…
even in the disgustingness of where he was
3 When you threw me into the depths, into the heart of the seas, the current overcame me. All your breakers and your billows swept over me.
Remember last night… it was God who brought the storm, the fish
it was God who threw him into this place, not the sailors
4 And I said, “I have been banished from your sight, yet I will look once more toward your holy temple.
5 The water engulfed me up to the neck; the watery depths overcame me; seaweed was wrapped around my head.
I believe that there are many of you that feel that verse
you feel like your sin has banished (cast out) from God
like the water is up to your neck
you may even acknowledge that it is because of something you have done
like your head is barely above water and you are not sure if you can even breath anymore
hold on…
6 I sank to the foundations of the mountains, the earth’s gates shut behind me forever! Then you raised my life from the Pit, Lord my God!
7 As my life was fading away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you, to your holy temple.
as his life was slipping away, that is when he called out to the Lord
he was confident he wanted to die, throw me into the water…
sometimes we think death is the better option, but we really do not want to die
8 Those who cherish worthless idols abandon their faithful love,
9 but as for me, I will sacrifice to you with a voice of thanksgiving. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation belongs to the Lord.
10 Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Jonah acknowledges his sin, offers his life to the Lord and the Lord commands the fish to vomit him out
Jonah went through four stages in repenting before he was vomited out of the fish.
Jonah Understood Where He Was
Jonah Understood Where He Was
I wonder… Not that Heather would ever allow me to do it, what would it have been like if I would walk around with sewage all over me like it was not there
he was in distress and he knew it
1 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:
2 I called to the Lord in my distress, and he answered me. I cried out for help from deep inside Sheol; you heard my voice.
distress = anxiety, need
can you imagine how anxious you would be if you had been swallowed by a fish, yet not dead yet
the smell… the darkness
he was staring death in the face
why… because he did not do what the Lord commanded
I think that sounds harsh… God is going to punish me for making the wrong choice, for disobeying
God said from the beginning that disobedience to him would result in death
We have earned the same punishment
we have inherited a sin nature from our parents… who inherited it from theirs
everyone from Adam down has been born sinful
that is why the virgin birth is so important
Jesus did not inherit the sin nature like we did
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin
he was not born in sin, did not sin and was the perfect sacrifice for our sin
the difference for some of us is we do not like to admit that we are in sin
we have things that we do not want others to see
we have things we do not even want to admit to ourselves
we do this by finding people we deem worse than ourselves and comparing ourselves to them
But remember God sees and to get out of the mess we are in we must admit to where we are
Jonah Understand Who He Disobeyed
Jonah Understand Who He Disobeyed
1 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:
The Lord - Jehovah
God of the covenant
the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
the God that freed the Israelites from Egypt and led them to the promise land
the God that gave manna in the desert and drove out their enemies
God - Elohim
power creator God
Jonah did not sin against the Ninevites or the sailers that were on the boat with him
He sinned against God
it was his command he broke
same for us, it is God’s law that we break in our sin
we may have done things that have impacted others and need to make a mends with them
we have been taught from a time when we were little that we are to say we are sorry
We acknowledge we are wrong and ask for forgiveness
but it is the Lord whom we are to come to in repentance
He knew who put him in this place
we saw last night that God is all powerful and brought the storm, controlled the lots and appointed the fish
Now Jonah acknowledges who put him in this place
it was not the sailers who threw him overboard
Jonah Remembered Who Could Save Him
Jonah Remembered Who Could Save Him
Illustration of somebody being saved while they are drowning
it does not look like saving
the swimmer is in a panic, they are swing their arms and legs everywhere
they are in self preservation mode and start to crawl on the one coming to save them
the lifeguard looks like their chocking them out and drag them to safety
the one drowning if not for the training of the lifeguard, can easily drown the very one who there to save
Jonah in the belly of the fish remembers that the one that put him there, is the only one who can save him from this mess
7 As my life was fading away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you, to your holy temple.
We go through a lot of other options before we get this honest
we try a lot of things
we tell ourselves that what we did wasn’t that bad… or that we have our reasons
we admit it was bad and then we try to make up for it and earn our way out of the mess
the truth is the only one who can make us right with God his God himself.
there is nothing we can do on our own
Jonah Responded to the Grace He Received
Jonah Responded to the Grace He Received
9 but as for me, I will sacrifice to you with a voice of thanksgiving. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation belongs to the Lord.
I will praise you with my lips
he was supposed to go and tell
I will do what I am called to do
God preach the word
Why… Salvation belongs to the Lord
Salvation = being rescued from sin and the punishment that it is due
this is not a deal that he is making… but an acknowledgement of God’s salvation
1 Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship.
Conclusion
remember last night… God is compassionate
Jonah 2:1–2 (CSB)
1 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:
2 I called to the Lord in my distress, and he answered me. I cried out for help from deep inside Sheol; you heard my voice.
Jonah running from God, now suffering in the belly of a fish that God appointed to swallow him up
God hears him,
evidence… you are never too far gone for God for hear your prayer and forgive your sin.
