Second Chances
Jonah 3:1-3:10
Today we are looking at a portion of the Old Testament prophet Jonah.
We’re pretty familiar with Jonah’s story. IT is the biggest fish storey in the bible and so we believe that any fish story is a FISH Story. Something you really can’t believe because you know how fishermen are. But this is s story from God and that is dramatically different. In fact, This story is not really about a fish at all. It is about obedience and the results of disobedience.
Jonah wound up in a whale because of direct disobedience to God.
There’s a little Jonah in all of us.
We don’t always get the message of God’s will right the first time around. So God sometimes has to give us a second chance...and all too often a third chance...
The first time God told Jonah to go to Nineveh he balked. His response to God was, "Here am I, send somebody else. Thoes Assyrians are just trailer trash, and generally all round unlikable people anyway.
Unfortunately that’s the part of Jonah’s autobiography that every body remembers.
But Jonah’s story is more about a second chance than it is about God’s discipline in his life. The provision of a whale for Jonah in the storm tossed sea is actually part of the Jonah’s second chance. If God had only wanted to judge Jonah he would have let him drown in the sea. The whale wasn’t about judgment - it was about salvation! It was transportation, it was inspiration.
God didn’t want to curse Jonah He wanted to bless him! God wanted to bless Jonah by giving him a part in His plan and wanted to make him a blessing to the Ninevites. He wanted to bless him by giving him an opportunity to change his mind, heart and spirit.
God also wants to bless you and He wants to make you a blessing. But there’s a big obstacle in the road to that happening. That obstacle is – a negative spirit. Just like Jonah, God can’t bless you until your spirit changes from negative to positive. Not that He won’t try, you just refuse to receive.
A negative spirit is like a virus that lives in us and our body normally keeps it in control. Yu are never totally cured of the virus and if your immune system is weakened you suffer the illness all over again.
A negative spirit is a virus that man kind can suffer from at a moment’s notice. Its symptoms are discouragement, depression, the general idea that things are never going to turn out right, Perhaps the feeling that people don’t like or love us. Being filled with worry. Keeping bitter and angry feelings toward others. Talking pessimistically, to think that we will never be able to overcome the bad things we have done or the bad things done to us. A negative spirit leads us into living a life in the pit of despair.
The good news is that, although we’re all carriers, we don’t have to let this bug become active. We don’t have to let the human nature to negativity take charge in our lives. Because of God’s love we each have a chance to develop a positive spirit.
Jonah sinned because he was self-absorbed. He tried to exert his will over the will of God. He was more concerned about his prestige than he was about the Assyrians coming to know God.
Basically that’s what sin is – putting ourselves in God’s place.
Jonah sorely needed to develop a positive spirit and that’s really what this book is all about.
Humans have this natural bent towards negativity.
God wants to give you a second chance to see that your negativity is placing a strain on things. A negative spirit can wreak havoc on things like your relationships, your finances, and more importantly – negativity can ruin your walk with God. He wants to give you another chance to develop a positive spirit.
Even if a negative spirit has controlled you in the past and it has messed up things in your life, as it always will, you don’t have to keep letting a negative spirit call the shots in your life. God has a positive message for you today! God can help you develop a positive spirit for your life.
The text of Jonah’s story gives us the essentials we need.
Jonah 3:1-2 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: "Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you."
Notice the term, "second time" in verse one. When I was a kid I remember asking my mom for a second chance many times. I think it was most often when she told me to go out a get a switch.
Some times, she gave me another chance. Sometimes, she let me off the hook to do better.
In this scripture from Jonah, he has not directly asked for a second chance in the chapter before he acknowledges that God is God and he offers a sacrifice of prayer. The God gives a second chance by issuing the same instruction to go into the city and give the message.
I find it very comforting that God gives second chances and I praise him for that.
When My mom threatened punishment she was looking for a change in attitude and change in spirit from me. She was looking for obedience to her and her instructions.
The first thing we need to do to develop a positive spirit is to see obedience to God as a good thing. God said, "Get up and go Jonah. Deliver the message I’ve given you. Do as I have instructed."
The greatest thing you can do in your life to live positively is to follow God’s instructions.
As soon as I say that most of you think I’m talking to someone else. But I’m not. I’m talking to you – every single one of you.
Every person is born with a sinful nature that is against God. And if you let it, it can control your thinking.
Romans 8:5-8 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
Every one of us has a choice to live by the influence of our sinful nature. If we do, we will not have any real interest in what God wants in fact we will become hostile to God. The goal of the sinful nature is to try to get through life paying little or no attention to God and his instructions. Living a life on our terms and being as independent as possible. Which an leave us facing things like giant fish and deep valleys , foul smells which hit of smoke.
The good news is that you don’t have to allow your sinful self to control your thinking.
Romans 8:6 told us that the choice of living in the spirit set our minds on doing what the spirit desires. If we let the spirit influence out thinking we will envelope a positive spirit.
The first time God called him to go to Nineveh Jonah let his sinful self control his thinking. The second time he did the right thing, he was not exactly happy about his decision to act as god instructed by the went. Then, God had to work on his thinking some more.
God is constantly working on our thinking, our attitude, our spirit, constantly working to develop in us that positive spirit that comes from Him.
In order to rid your self of a negative spirit you must be led by God’s Holy Spirit. He must rule in your life – not your ego, not your self-will, not your wisdom, not your skills, not your emotions, not your material possessions, not your puny successes – but the Spirit of God must be in charge if you are going to develop a positive spirit.
You must decide; are you going to live in the kingdom of God or the kingdom of self? You must conform your will to God’s will. You must decide whether you want to be an achiever or a believer – are you going to place your faith in what you can do (achiever) or what God can do (believer)?
You must do what the Word of God and Spirit of God tells you to do even when you don’t understand why. It is about obedience and yielding to the spirit of God not how strong willed we are. It is about trust in God and his wisdom and love for us.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
You need, and God wants you to have, a positive spirit. That is essential to a working relationship with God.
We develop a positive spirit toward God by obeying Him.
Obedience is not the hard work it’s made out to be. Obedience is good for you!
Obedience is choosing to listen for God and agreeing to respond when you hear, see of or feel them message. Obedience is much less action than it is waiting and listening But, at some point there will be action.
The second essential for developing a positive spirit:
We develop a positive spirit toward others by being gentle and humble.
A positive spirit normally does not start or end a conversation with a non-Christian or anyone else with “Well you are going to hell.” Normally that is easily brushed off as arrogance.
A positive spirit always works on keeping an open relationship. The invitation to blessing through friendships and a church home. The sharing of the choice of an after life. A positive spirit lives in the mode of true compassion for every person God places in our path.
Jonah 1:3-5 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very important city—a visit required three days. 4 On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." 5 The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
Jonah was obeying God but his spirit was one that wanted to avoid a whipping not on of being chosen as a messenger of God.
We know this because of the last chapter in Jonah’s story. Look at Jonah’s attitude after the people of Nineveh believed God’s message and repented.
Jonah 4:1-3
But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry. He prayed to the LORD, "O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live."
Whoa, Jonah has a problem in his spirit doesn’t he?
When the people of Nineveh repent and show outward grief and remorse over their judgment. He is displeased and angry. He is stomping his foot and has a pruned face.
When He give the simple message of destruction even the king responds and children are not fed and the people don’t feed or water their animals.
Jonah a Jew, does not want to see a response from the people, they are bad, they have attacked the Jews and hurt them bad. They are just plain mean, they talk funny and no body ought to like them, especially not God.
He wants to see fire and brimstone fall on the city and totally destroy Nineveh. He wants a show of God’s power on those trailer trash criminals.
-- Before you judge Jonah’s spirit too harshly think of all the times you have said things, bitter and hurtful things, that you later regretted saying. Jonah was dead wrong but he isn’t alone. We’ve all been guilty of wrong thinking and talking.
How many times have we just written off people that treated us bad to were just people of poor character. How often have we just decided hat they can go to hell for all we care.
Fellow Christians – That is wrong. When we feel that way outwardly or even subconsciously we are exhibiting a negative spirit. More properly were relying on our spirit which is heavenly influenced by the world and its opinions.
If we are to have a positive spirit for thoes that are totally against us then what about within the catholic church, the world wide body of Christ.
We are allowed to disagree with or have concerns over interpretations of other Christians but we can not have a negative spirit related to them.
Your first excuse about being negative toward another person is to point out their bad qualities, their faults, or the things that they have said or done to hurt you.
Perhaps, you just hold the grudge of the past where they did you wrong. Perhaps you feel like you can never ever trust old so and so again.
You think you have a right to harbor a negative spirit against someone because of these things. But according to the Word of God you have no such right.
According to the word of God you have no such right especially within the church family.
Romans 14:10-13 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written:
" ’As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
’every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.’ "So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.
Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way.
We can’t judge our brothers? Dog gone it. They are the ones I know best. They are the ones I catch the most.
Maybe you will like this piece of news. You do get to judge someone. According to scripture you are allowed to judge yourself.
This is the judgment that the Scriptures teach us, self-judgment. Each one of us is to look into our own hearts and lives and keep in check our own motives: our own pride, our own lust, our own envy and greed. That should keep us busy enough without having to judge others.
God did not bring us into one another’s lives to criticize one another but to help each other, and to do it in a spirit of gentleness and humility. Not in a spirit of anger and harshness. Not in a spirit that says, "I’m going to set them straight. I’m right and they’re wrong and I’m going to prove it even if I have to get ugly!"
A number of years ago, Dr. David H. Fink, a psychiatrist for the veterans administration, wrote an article for Coronet Magazine, entitled, "Release from Nervous Tension." In his article, he outlined his research into the causes of mental and emotional disturbances.
From over 10,000 case studies, he discovered that there was a common trait with all his patients who suffered from severe tension. They were habitual fault-finders, constant critics of people and things around them.
Those who were free from tension were the least critical.
His conclusions were that the habit of fault-finding is a prelude or mark of the nervous, or the mentally unbalanced. He suggested that those who wish to retain good emotional and mental health should learn to free themselves from a negative and critical attitude.
Free yourself from a negative spirit. Start developing a positive spirit toward others that says, "I’m not going to see how I can criticize others, "and that won’t be hard because everyone has some characteristic you can criticize – including you, but instead say, "I’m going to find a way to work with them in gentleness and humility."
1. Develop a positive spirit toward God by obeying Him.
2. Develop a positive spirit toward others by being gentle and humble.
3. Develop a positive spirit toward your self by being honest about your sin.
Jonah 3:6-10 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh:
"By the decree of the king and his nobles:
Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish."
When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.
The king of Nineveh actually had a more positive spirit than the prophet Jonah!
He viewed God as merciful and forgiving. He also considered himself in the right way. When he heard God’s message he admitted that it was true. He owned up to his sin and to the sins of the people in his kingdom. He didn’t say, "Compared to King so and so I’m not so bad,” or, "I really think this sin thing is all in your head Jonah." He didn’t try to excuse, or explain away his responsibility.
The King of Nineveh did what you need to do to develop a positive spirit; he was honest about his sin.
What do you thing should set Christians apart from the world.
-Might it be a positive spirit that already knows what the grace of God has done for us.
-That positive spirit that looks that the worst sinners and hurts for their condition. -A spirit that listens to God’s direction and speaks out or steps up to do something when God calls.
-How about a spirit that will lead a Christian to join those in bad situations….
That is what missionaries do isn’t it. Folks we need missionaries right here and right now that have a positive spirit that will touch, men Women and children For God. People that will interact with the foreign environment and harsh situations to built relationships which will save people.
In that section from the 4th chapter:
O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live."
Jonah knew about God, He knew that God was gracious and forgiving. He probably celebrated thoes details for himself. What he could not stand, what his spirit would not allow was for God to actually care for thoes nasty old Ninevites. He could not celebrate the dramatic change from criminals to people that feared God.
How about us?
God offers second chances, He offers 3rd and 4th and 5th chances to thoes that will listen and try, to thoes that want a better life for themselves and others.
Do you want another chance?
All Glory be to God!
