Will you go?

                                

Jonah 1-4    Jonah is not only a Hebrew but also a Hebrew who worships the Lord, the God of heaven. Yet, Jonah is a picture of the selfish racial condemnation of others. God said in Isaiah, who will go for us and Isaiah said, “send me.” Yet, Jonah hearing that same call turns a blind eye and says, “send another, not me.” Does this sound familiar? Do we have excuses why we do not say “send me?” Look within and see why we take a ship to Tarshish and sleep away the opportunities God has placed before us. We are the Jonahs of today with our plethora of excuses.

Yet as the Psalmist said, “The Lord is merciful and fair; our God is compassionate.” [Ps 116:5] He will not relent when He has a plan to send men/women to the lost fields of Nineveh to bring them hope and the message of salvation. He may send a fish or a neighbor, or another believer to accost us in our tracks and redirect us to the lost. God is the antithesis of Jonah, and we are to be His messengers of hope as He is the God of hope.

Where is God directing you this day? To whom will you bring the message of God’s love and hope?

“The Jonah Syndrome Surfaces Again”

acts 11 jonah syndrome2aWhat is it that we do not learn from Jonah and what do we learn? We don’t learn to obey God instantly—no questions asked. We do learn that “God does not show favoritism in dealing with people!”

Peter falls into the Jonah Syndrome in a vision of four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth and hears “Get up, Peter, slaughter and eat!” Peter vehemently tells God no and we say “NO???” Instead of being shocked by Peter’s response, we must remember that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. We too often say the same.  God asks us to speak to our neighbor or an office mate and we come up with all kinds of excuses—just like Jonah. But, God is adamant about obedience as Peter will learn when Gentile strangers show up at the door asking for him. We smile to see God’s sense of humor. Hmm, Peter you didn’t get it yet so, I have a real life lesson and it includes you and Gentiles.

But then into this mix are the naysayers, the circumcised “holier than thou” Jewish believers. It is then that he hears and we hear: “how c-o-u-l-d you do that!” But, God has a plan that is as true then as now:  “He loves ALL people!”  God did that in Nineveh, in the home of Cornelius and now in Jerusalem with these believers.

Be careful of saying “no” to God or you might find yourself in a Jonah situation and have to take a real life lesson walk. You don’t want to miss God at work!

Storms as Life Lessons

psalm 37 self or god2Yesterday as we were helping a young couple pack and move, their 10 mth old was wrestling with himself on the floor. He wanted to sit up but no one was helping him. He just kept persevering and before he knew it there he was in a sitting position. It was a vivid illustration of how we often strive to achieve something and we seem to be alone in our struggle. God lets us struggle and when we find victory we are filed with joy just as this little was beaming from ear to ear. It is then that God reaches down with his still small voice and says “well done thou good and faithful servant.”

As I have been teaching each Saturday night I noted that the stories that have been chosen for me are all about wind, waves and storms. So as we compared Jonah, the disciples in Matt 8 and Matt 14 we noted how in each case the wind and waves sought to overturn the boats. Jonah’s storm was a storm of correction and his pride led him to this disastrous storm. But, even in we saw the truth that God will take what is bad and use it to accomplish His will and His purpose for good. One of the boys asked why the sailors believed Jonah’s God was the true God and the answer is that it was only when they saw the wind and waves cease that they knew and worshiped the God of Jonah.  How often are we like this. We say we have to see much like the Pharisees wanted a sign from heaven. The same thing happened with the disciples.  God sent them into a storm so that they might know and worship His Son. But, since they did not learn the lesson, Jesus sent them into a second pre-arranged perfect storm. It was only then that they fell upon their faces and worshiped.

Why is that we have to weather storms and sometimes even repeat them? The baby’s striving and Jonah’s struggle  is an illustration of how hard we try to do things on our own. Sometimes God lets us struggle in the storm and sometimes he comes to rescue us. It all depends on where we are in our faith walk. The disciples show us how dull we are to learn the lesson God wants us to learn and so he sends us through another perfect storm.

Oh that we might learn from our struggles and hear the words of praise from our Lord. Oh that we might learn the lesson in the first storm and fall upon our faces and worship him. Where are we? Are we in the perfect storm struggling like the disciples against the wind? Are we like the sailors who struggled so as to not dump Jonah overboard?

Lord Save Me!

matt 14 j+ save meThis  is  the  second  time  the  disciples  have  witnessed  first-hand  the  power  of  the  Christ  in  a  storm.  In  Matt  8  the  disciples  unsuccessfully  battle  a  storm  and  Jesus  sleeps  through  it  all.  Being  awakened  he  commands  the  wind  and  the  sea  to  cease  and  it  does.  Then  the  disciples  ask  “What  sort  of  person  is  this?”    Now  as  they  once  again  are  unsuccessful  in  another  storm  Jesus  comes  walking  to  them  on  the  water.  This  time  after  the  wind  ceases  they  worship  him  and  say  “Truly  you  are  the  Son  of  God.”

As  they  ponder  what  has  just  transpired  the  disciples  hear  Jesus  ask  Peter  ‘why  did  you  doubt?’    Perhaps  James  remembers  the  disciples  recounting  this  story  and  the  truth  principle  derived  from  it:    “the  one  who  doubts  is  like  a  wave  of  the  sea,  blown  and  tossed  around  by  the  wind.”    Unlike  Jonah  who  knew  what  God  could  and  would  do in Nineveh,  the  disciples  needed  a  faith  lesson.  Jonah  did  not  call  out  to  the  Lord  until  he  was  “IN”  the  midst  of  the  fish’s  belly.  Peter called out  to  Jesus  “ON”  the  water.  How many storms does Jesus have to bring into our lives before we stop and worship him? When  we  face  a  storm  that  God  has  pre-arranged  do  we  wait until we are in the midst of the storm, do we doubt  or  do  we  have  faith  that  the  Son  of  God  will  immediately  save  us?  Jesus save us should be our cry.

Laboring in the Vineyard or Sitting on the Hillside with Jonah?

prov 18 laboring vineyard2Just as there are two sides to a coin there are two sides to every story. Note vs 1 of Proverbs 18: “One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires;he rejects all sound judgment.” (NET). Note this is self-imposed not God imposed as in the case of Moses (Ex 3:1), the plain for Ezekiel (Ezek 3:22), the wilderness for John (Luke 1:80), Arabia for Paul (Gal 1:17) and the wilderness for His Blessed Son (Mark 1). And that is where we find the two sides to every story.

There are those who seek isolation due to a need or desire to grow closer to God but vs 1 clearly indicates that this is not the case. These are people who have a “Jonah complex.” They fail to see the ramifications of their isolation and God’s plan and purpose for their life. Jonah really did not want the sailors to know his God, nor did he want the Ninevites to be saved. That is the problem with the self-isolationist and we would be wise to beware of this for God has given us the gift of the gospel message that we might reach the world for Christ. Perhaps this is why the author of Hebrews reminded us to not abandon meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day drawing near.” [Heb 10:25]

The question before us is: do we too have a “Jonah complex” or do we see that the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Are we laboring in the vineyard or sitting on the hillside with Jonah?

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