Untitled Sermon (5)

The End

11-25-2018

Intro

Welcome

This week we are going to wrap up Jonah since this is the last chapter

Today you have guessed right that we will be in

before we jump right into Jonah chapter 4 I think it is only right that we do some recapping to ensure everyone understands what Jonah is about

Jonah Chapter 1

There are consequences for sin

Jonah knew why the storm was coming and knew what needed to happen for the storm to stop

God used a fish to save Jonah

Jonah Chapter 2

Salvation if from the Lord only

There is no salvation apart from repentance

You and I will never experience salvation unless we repent

Repentance is more than feeling sorry because you sinned, it is a desire to run after the Lord and not the sin, it is to be broken over your sin and to not want to do it again

God commanded the fish to spit out Jonah

Jonah Chapter 3

Be obedient the first time

Don’t make God call you a third time

All you have to do is be obedient

Leave the results up to God

God calls us to teach, preach and share the Gospel to make disciples, to GO

church we have to be obedient, you each one of you have to be obedient

Lets leave the results up to God

This brings us to Jonah chapter 4

Jonah 4:1 NASB95

1 But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry.

But

Again this totally changes the flow of the story, if you will remember things are going great, Jonah had just started to share with the city

The City begins to repent and change their ways

the kings sends out a decree that everyone will stop and fast and spend time praying to the Lord

They will stop their evil ways in hopes that God will save them

But Jonah is angry

Remember Jonah did not want to go to this place in the first place

Jonah didn't want these people to have the chance to be saved by God

Remember though our job is only to be obedient, not worry about the results

Jonah had begun before he even started to worry about the results

There is a video with Penn Jillette and he explains that he is an atheist and that someone came up and gave him a Gideon new testament

in this video he explains that if true christians actually believed that people who didn't know christ would be going to hell he asks this question

how much do you have to hate someone to not tell them about Christ

we should ask Jonah that same question

Church you and I need to ask that same question

How much do you and I need to hate someone to not tell them about Christ

Jonah though explains to God why he is upset

Jonah 4:2–3 NASB95

2 He prayed to the Lord and said, “Please Lord, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. 3 “Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for death is better to me than life.”

Jonah begins to talk to the Lord and tell Him that he knew if he came here and they repented that God would save them

Because God is a gracious and compassionate God and a God who is slow to anger and loves people

wait a minute

Jonah is mad and upset because God is that way?

that doesn't make sense he should be happy because God is that way

you know why he knows that about God

because Jonah has experienced that about God

He knows that God is gracious and compassionate and slow to angry, hello he was just in the belly of a giant fish and was saved

Jonah had experienced everything these people have experienced and know he is upset about it

all because Jonah got concerned with the results

Have we ever been talking to someone who's life is a complete mess thinking well I know why you life is a mess, its because of the sin in your life and we don't want to tell them, and then God does something awesome and things begin to turn around for them

and then you get mad because

actually you get mad because God saved them

you know to think of it do we even have a right to be angry

Jonah 4:4 NASB95

4 The Lord said, “Do you have good reason to be angry?”

Did Jonah?

Do we?

I mean Jonah is so upset he would rather die at this point in his life, all because God is a good and loving God

God asks him this question, do you have aright to be angry? A good right to be angry?

Church I think it is a valid question that you and I need to begin to ask ourselves, all the time when we get angry

Do you have a good reason to be angry?

I am not sure Jonah did, and if we are going to be honest, I don’t think you or I do either

so maybe the next time you get angry, for what ever reason, ask yourself that question

DO I have a good reason to be angry?

if not then maybe you pray that God would change your heart

Jonah 4:5–6 NASB95

5 Then Jonah went out from the city and sat east of it. There he made a shelter for himself and sat under it in the shade until he could see what would happen in the city. 6 So the Lord God appointed a plant and it grew up over Jonah to be a shade over his head to deliver him from his discomfort. And Jonah was extremely happy about the plant.

Jonah is still upset and because he is human and likes to watch a good drama unfold

He goes out to the city and makes himself a shelter to watch what will happen

see Jonah is still concerned with the results of what is going to happen rather then leaving it up to God

And to top it off, God, the same gracious and loving and compassionate God causes a tree to grow and add shade for Jonah

its the same God Jonah was angry about

its funny how that happens, when we see God be compassionate to another and not directly see it in our lives we start to get upset with God

But the story doesn't stop there

Jonah 4:7–9 NASB95

7 But God appointed a worm when dawn came the next day and it attacked the plant and it withered. 8 When the sun came up God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he became faint and begged with all his soul to die, saying, “Death is better to me than life.” 9 Then God said to Jonah, “Do you have good reason to be angry about the plant?” And he said, “I have good reason to be angry, even to death.”

God then causes a worm to come up and destroy the plant

The sun comes out and Jonah because so uncomfortable that he begs to die again

Jonah get so upset at stuff he has no control over

Jonah is so upset with God again over what he has no control over

Jonah didn't cause the plant to grow, Jonah didn't even thank God for the plant

Jonah 4:10–11 NASB95

10 Then the Lord said, “You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. 11 “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?”

Jonah didn’t cause the plant to grow, Jonah didn’t cause the worm to eat it up

Jonah had no right to be upset over the plant

Jonah hd no right be upset over the city of Nineveh

See God created the city and loved them because they were his creation

God was then upset like any parent would be at their child who turn out not so good

God had the right to saved them if He wanted, Jonah did not have the right to be upset

See God love the city Nineveh so much that he sent one of His messengers to tell them to turn from their evil ways and cry out to God

shocking part is they did that, and God saves them!!

God can and will do the same for you, if you will turn from your ways and cry out to God

Closing

see maybe you are here and have never experienced salvation

I want to invite you to the front and we can show you through scripture how you can experience the salvation through Jesus Christ

maybe you need to make another decision or maybe you need to simple spend some time in prayer at the altar crying out to God