Sermon Tone Analysis

INTRODUCTION

Good morning!

What a gift to be worshipping together again as a church family.

I’d like to add my welcome to any first-time guests who are here this morning – I hope you were warmly greeted by several people during our greeting time – and I’m so glad you’re worshipping with us this morning.

Welcome!

· Thanks – Heath & Kinsey Senkel (Pumpkin Patch Party)

· Small groups – feasting on the gospel

· God’s at Work – many 1-1 conversations, opportunities this past week, to have Jesus living in and through us, our affections for Him deepened, and drawn closer to Him and one another

· Virginia away – Gone for three days this week- praying for her time with family.

There is a common/familiar expression that goes like this – “I’ve got some good news and some bad news” – I trust you’ve had someone come up and say that to you or you’ve said that to someone else! Here’s a few examples.

· Preacher – “Bad news: we need a new roof.

Good news: all the $ is in your pockets.”

· Captain

Many times the expression “I’ve got some good news and some bad news is followed up with a question – what question?

(Share) “Which do you want to hear first?”

How many of you like to hear the good news first?

(Stand) How many of you like to hear the “bad news” first?

Life is filled with “good news” and “bad news.”

It’s no fun to be the bearer of bad news.

I’ve been in the home of a family just minutes after they were visited by two soldiers to inform them that their son had been killed in Iraq.

I can’t imagine being a doctor who has to tell a patient they have cancer and they have 6 months to live.

Today we continue our series in JONAH we’re going to see the prophet become the bearer of “bad news” to the people of Nineveh and yet their response resulted in being able to experience and enjoy some really “good news.”

Need

How we think about God is very important in life.

One of my professors at Dallas Seminary said something that has always stuck with me “The most important thing you think about, is what you think about, when you think about God.” I’m not sure what you think about God today?

Maybe you think of Him as distant?

Maybe you think of Him as loving?

Maybe you think of Him as powerful?

Maybe you think of Him as scary?

Maybe you think of Him as good?

Maybe you think of Him as a friend?

Maybe you think of Him with curiosity?

Maybe you think of Him with skepticism?

Maybe you don’t think of Him at all.

We need to think rightly about who God is – that’s why I love preaching and teaching God’s Word – for the Scriptures reveal the truth about God.

We need to think rightly about God!

We need to know “How God Responds to Repentant hearts” - We need to hear the “bad news” of His judgment and the “good news” of His mercy.

Preview

Take your Bible and turn to the book of Jonah.

In our JONAH series we’re being confronted with God’s relentless pursuit of rebellious sinners—you and me!

It’s not a story confined to children’s storybook bibles – it’s a story that teaches us profound truths about God.

Let’s do a brief review of the story.

· Jonah called to go preach to the people of Nineveh he said “No” (1:1-3) – sailed to Tarshish (MAP)

· God pursued the rebellious prophet through a storm but he eventually was thrown overboard – he would rather die than go to Nineveh (1:4-16)

· God saved Jonah from the peril of death through a great fish – Jonah thanked God and vowed to praise Him in public (1:17-2:9)

· Jonah was burped up on dry land (2:10)

Jonah, left on the shoreline of Joppa.

Is he disqualified for ministry?

Is he a washed-up prophet?

Will he go to Jerusalem to fulfill his vow to publicly praise Yahweh in temple?

Will he go home to Gath-Hepher?

Take your bible and turn to the book of Jonah.

Turn to .

Jonah Chapter 3. Jonah Chapter 3:1-10.

Let’s continue the story of God’s relentless pursuit of rebellious sinners.

(Read )

I) GOD’S PURSUIT OF THE GREAT CITY

Jonah Chapter 3 is a pivotal part of the entire story—it highlights God’s ongoing pursuit of the great city of Nineveh through the prophet from Galilee—and it reveals Jonah’s response to God’s renewed call, Nineveh’s response to Jonah’s preaching, and God’s response to Nineveh’s repentance.

Let’s walk through this part of the story in order to discover yet another incredible truth about the God who relentlessly pursues rebellious sinners and the implications for our lives as followers of Jesus.

We “see” three things in this story.

A) A Preaching Prophet (3:1-4)

First, we see “A Preaching Prophet” (3:1-4).

God pursued Jonah through the storm, the sailors, and the great fish in order to turn draw the rebellious prophet back to Himself.

Jonah has gone from the running prophet, to the praying prophet, and then the preaching prophet.

I’m not sure what Jonah thought when he hit dry land after his terrible ordeal on the belly of a great fish, I suspect he was ready to head back to Jerusalem to make good on his vow to make a public declaration of praise, but God had other plans.

The Lord saved Jonah from death so that he would serve Him in Nineveh.

1) Jonah’s Recommission (3:1-2)

We see Jonah’s Recommission (3:1-2)—“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.”—Jonah

was given a second chance to proclaim the Lord’s message to the wicked people of Nineveh.

God continued to pursue Jonah – he was not a washed-up prophet –for the Lord commanded him to “go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give to you.”

Sound familiar?

Yes! It’s as if we’re back at the beginning of this book (story).

The second call carries the same urgency as the first call, get up and get going to Nineveh to preach the message I give to you.

The Lord would reveal to Jonah what he should proclaim to the people of Nineveh.

In His sovereignty Yahweh gave Jonah another opportunity to serve Him – Jonah’s disobedience would not deter God from accomplishing His purpose and plans for the prophet, and the people of Nineveh.

· J. Baldwin – “He will not be frustrated by the effrontery of a prophet, nor has he allowed the prophet to wander indefinitely off course”

Sermon Sidebar: God is gracious with His people.

God doesn’t condemn us or reject us because of our failures, disobedience, and unfaithfulness.

God doesn’t put us on the shelf and deem us as unusable.

God used Abraham even after he lied about his wife, God used Moses after he killed and Egyptian, God used Jonah after he ran from Him, and God still used Peter after he denied Him three times – rejoice, be grateful, and bask in the His grace when He offers you a second chance to serve Him.

2) Jonah’s Obedience (3:3)

The second commission prompted a different response from this wayward prophet—“Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh” (3:3)—what a complete contrast to Jonah’s first response!

Jonah has gone from the rebellious prophet to the obedient prophet.

Instead of “getting up” and “going” down to Tarshish, Jonah “got up” and traveled “up” to the great city of Nineveh.

Jonah made the 500 mile journey (one month) NE to the city of Nineveh (located in Assyria – modern day Iraq).

Jonah obeyed God’s call to preach to the people of Nineveh.

We are given a brief description of Jonah’s ministry destination.

Once again Nineveh is described as a “great” city (3:1) as well as “an important city” (3:3).

The phrase “very important city” literally means “great to god”—a poetic way of saying this city is so big it stands out as great in the eyes of God—and hinting that this city is important enough to God to send Jonah to warn them of His judgment.

Nineveh was an “enormous” city.

Nineveh is so vast “a visit required three days.”

Nineveh was home to 120,000 people and protected by a wall that encircled the city.

The city was about 7.5 miles long or 50 miles in circumference.

Nineveh is so large it would take Jonah three days to walk through the entire city proclaiming Yahweh’s message of judgment.

3) Jonah’s Message (3:4)

We also get a glimpse of Jonah’s message that he preaching in the city of Nineveh—"On the first day, Jonah started into the city.

He proclaimed: “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned”—Jonah wasted no time preaching the Lord’s message when he entered the city.

The prophet likely found a good location fitting for public proclamation to the masses of people in that part of the city.

On day one of his journey into the great city he began preaching Yahweh’s judgment to the people of Nineveh.

Jonah proclaimed to the people of Nineveh that God’s judgment was imminent—Jonah declared “Your days are numbered!”—for he warned the people of Nineveh that their city would be “overturned” in 40 days.