Witnessing ….book of Jonah….08/24/2014...
We are going to look at witnessing this morning…telling others about the goodness of God...we are going to look at a man who ran from God because he didn’t want to witness to the city of Nineveh ….why didn’t he? …sometimes we run from God in our disobedience…..we are going to look at the story of Jonah …so turn to chapter 1 of Jonah…
ILL.- A young Bible college student was witnessing in a small town. He came to a house and there was an elderly gentleman sitting on the front porch.
He said, “Are you a Christian?” The old fellow said, “No, I’m a Smith.
The Christians lives two doors down.” “You don’t understand. I mean, are you lost?”
The old man said, “No young man, I ain’t lost. I’ve lived here for 25 years.”
Young Bible student said….“But are you ready for the Judgment Day?” The old man said, “When’s it going to be?” The young man said, “Well, it could be today or it could be tomorrow.” The old man said, “WELL, PLEASE DON’T TELL MY WIFE, BECAUSE SHE’LL WANT TO GO BOTH DAYS.”
Jonah 1:1 Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
Jonah’s name means “Dove” and his father Amittai means “My Truth
You put those together and you see that Jonah means messenger of the Truth.
All born again Christians are messengers of the Truth. I think sometimes or most of the time we forget that. It’s our duty as a Christian to tell others about the grace and goodness of God.
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Once we surrender to Christ it is our duty to tell others about what He did for us ….don’t think for a moment that God hasn’t call you to tell others…..every Christian has Gods authority and been given the tools and gift to be a witness.
***Each of you here that are saved are unique and have a witnessing gift that no one else has.
You have a unique testimony…….no one can tell others how God changed your life except you….no one can tell others how He convicted you of your sins except you….God called you for a reason ….not only because He loves you unconditionally but, you and only you can bring that special someone to Christ…
I believe when you come to Christ…sometime during your life time He sets up a meeting between you and that someone to witness too……but, it’s you that has to be willing…it’s you that that God calls to be a witness to that person or persons.
There is someone ….somewhere that God wants you to tell about His grace through Jesus Christ our Lord. …..Everyone is not called to be a Billy Graham ……everyone is not called to be a DL Moody or Charles Spurgeon.
*******But, you are called to be a servant and witness for Jesus just as they were.
**There are a few reasons why people don’t witness for Christ….just as Jonah had a reason for running from the Lord I believe.
Number one I believe that many Christians lead a life of unforgiven that keeps them from witnessing.
They feel they are not good enough….feel uneducated or don’t know the right words to say.
God will never put you in a position to were you will be lost for words….He will give you the words to say.
Don’t let modern society beat you down and tell you…”you can’t witness until you learn the right words…memorize the right Bible verses…. ***God gave you the knowledge when He saved you.
…Your testimony …….it can touch someone that no one else can.
***Its God who opens the door…..its God who opens the heart for His grace to pour in…and He uses each of His children to do that…no just a Pastor or Evangelist…
God was using Jonah’s testimony even out of his disobedience to open doors and the hearts of the ones on the ship.
****Jonah thought he was running from the presents of the Lord and didn’t want to be a witness in the city of Nineveh…..he got on a ship to Tarshish but a storm came up on the sea and began to toss that ship around and the marines got afraid …mariners were the experienced ship hands…
*****I’m sure they had made the trip many times and been in many storms but, this one was different and they even cried out to their god but, their god wasn’t the same god that Jonah worshiped and because of their beliefs they wondered who had cause the storm that was threating their life.
******So they cast lots….something like the old game spin the bottle and it landed on Jonah…but there was no kissing going on…. they questioned Jonah…..and listen to Jonah testimony in verse 8 Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?
9 And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
10 Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him. Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
God used Jonah’s testimony and it was about to change their lives….you notice that after Jonah gave his testimony the men were afraid…..because he had told them he was running from the Lord.
…It seems they gave up on their god during the storm and began to look to Jonah’s god.
Lets read a few more verses….verse 11
11 Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous.
12 And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.
13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them.
14 Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee.
15 So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.
16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows.
God used Jonah in a mighty way to bring those ship hands believing in the true and living God.
You see, they offered sacrifices to the Lord and made vows….they made vows to God that they would worship Him and trust Him in the storms of life because God showed His mercy on them even when they trusted another god….that reminds me of what Paul said in…
Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
***Those men were now a witness to God’s grace….so they would go home and tell their family and friends….(and it all started with a disobedient child of Gods testimony.)
Your testimony is a powerful gift that God can use to bring others to Him….but, you have to let it shine….hide under a bushel no…I’m going to let it shine….let it shine …let it shine
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****The men on the ship threw Jonah overboard and the storm calmed just as Jonah said it would.
I believe that Jonah was willing to die so that he didn’t witness to those people in Nineveh.
I believe that he was afraid…. but I also believe he hated those people there.
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But, why?......I believe maybe that Jonah had some family members murdered there or something…..you see those people in Nineveh were evil and the Bible talks about them.
You see what God said in verse 2 of chapter 1 for their wickedness is come up before me.
The book of Nahum chapter 3 and verse 3 says..The horseman lifteth up both the bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses
God said in verse 1 of chapter 3 of Nahum…. Woe to the bloody city!
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But the mariners threw Jonah overboard and I’m sure Jonah thought this was it but, God had other plans…… Jonah 1:17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
The Lord prepared the hearts of those men on the ship…the Lord prepared Jonah to witness to those men in the ship ….the Lord prepared a great fish to take him to the great city of Nineveh and preach the grace of God.
*****Chapter 2 is the prayer of Jonah and his repentance and thankfulness 3 days inside the belly of that great fish…now chapter 3
Jonah 3:1 And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying,
2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.
We serve a God of a second chance….and I’m sure glad we do. …..
*God said to go now and preach what I told you…. Jonah cried out and said, in verse 4 Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
From the Whitehouse to the poor house …all repented of their sin because the Bible says they believed God.
**There is recorded in history about man being swallowed by a whale in the 1800 and lives…..the whales acid in his salvia turned the guys skin a pale white and bleached his hair.
This could have happen to Jonah…..but, something really interesting is that the people of Assyrian empire and Nineveh was the capital of Assyria ….worshiped a fish goddess of the fresh water by the name of Nanshe and Dagon a fish god which was half man and half fish….you can find that in the history books of Nineveh ….
***Now this also could have happen….a guy from the middle east running down the streets of that great city …pale white with bleached hair smelling like a fish and saying repent or it will be overthrown in 40 days…They came to know the true God…the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob…God prepares hearts…God prepares His people….God show grace and mercy on sinners.
****But, Jonah was not happy….Chapter 4 verse 1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.
3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
History tells us that the population of Nineveh at that time was around 600,000….verse 11 chapter 4 God told Jonah…And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand;
I believe God was talking about sixscore children…that’s 120,000 children so that would be over 700,000 people coming to the Lord in repentance….what a revival!!!
*****Jonah did not want God to show His mercy on the city of Nineveh but he knew He would if he preached to them….just because we don’t care for some people …sometimes we think God doesn’t…but God loves us all the same and that’s unconditional.
*Illu.….it was around 2003 that God keep putting a guy I use to know at work before I retired in my heart…God was putting in my heart to call him or go see him….
I just didn’t understand and so I didn’t get in touch with him…..my sons and I were singing together then and we were in town close to where he lived but, I dint think nothing of it..The service was about to start and here this guy come in…his wife was pushing him in a wheel chair. You see he retired a few years before I did.
He rolls up to the front pew where I was and says…what are you doing here?...I said I’m the one you came to see…and we both laughed….he had a stroke and wasn’t doing very well….God really opened my eyes that day….we became close friends in the months ahead…his family always supported our ministry where ever we were…I would visit and talk and pray with him….and a year or so later his wife called to say he passed away and they wanted me to speak and sing at his funeral.
***Have a passion for the lost….have a love for people….I’ve always said you don’t have to love someone for who they are but, love others for what they are...we are all human.
****The most important thing a Christian can do is to tell others what God has done for them…..if you stumble for words…just say God loves ya…you will be surprised just how far that will go.
But, before you can have a testimony ….God first convicts you of your sin and you ask Him into your life….if you haven’t invited Jesus into your life….do it today…there is no better time than right now…the Bible says today is the day.
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