Jonah - Deep Truths: Part 2
This week: The relationship between repentance and revival
Jonah 2:1–10 (NKJV)
1 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly. 2 And he said: “I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, And He answered me. “Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, And You heard my voice. 3 For You cast me into the deep, Into the heart of the seas, And the floods surrounded me; All Your billows and Your waves passed over me. 4Then I said, ‘I have been cast out of Your sight; Yet I will look again toward Your holy temple.’ 5 The waters surrounded me, even to my soul; The deep closed around me; Weeds were wrapped around my head. 6 I went down to the moorings of the mountains; The earth with its bars closed behind me forever; Yet You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord, my God. 7 “When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; And my prayer went up to You, Into Your holy temple. 8 “Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their own Mercy. 9 But I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.” 10 So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Jonah's experience teaches us that you cannot go far enough or deep enough to get away from the presence of God.
But
As far as his relationship with God, things are not going great:
Living in disobedience
Being corrected by the Spirit
Have you ever been in a position where you knew that you weren't right in the center of where God wants you?
Hard to pray
You don't really want to worship
It's a mix of shame, hurt, guilt
You FEEL a thousand miles away from God...... But:
Acts 17:27 (ESV)
27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,
What if our relationship with God was not based DISTANCE from God, but alignment with God?
If it's based on distance:
I live a life where:
I think that I have to work to make my way back to him
I think that sin can be quantified
I think that my good actions make me 'better'
This is the root of works based religion!
BUT WHAT IF.....
If my relationship is based on alignment instead of distance then things are much different!
So Jonah is as "far" as he can be from God (He's even talking about that)
but the moment he repents, the whole situation changes
The fish vomits him up
God asks him again to go to Ninevah
INSTANTLY
That's not what we see here:
One moment, Jonah's relationship with God is vibrant - He's in alignment -God calls him to Ninevah
Next, Jonah disobeys - He's out of alignment - storms, seas, fish guts
He repents - back into alignment - God puts him on dry land, calls him again to Ninevah
So this Sunday is about checking our alignment!
As I bring disobedience and sin into my life, it doesn't push me FARTHER from God, but takes me out of the alignment with the work of Christ.
The lesson we learn from Jonah here in chapter 2 is a lesson of how to repent!
He called out to God
He admitted his disobedience
He asked for God's mercy
He is acknowledging that he needs the salvation that only comes from the Lord
When Jonah repents - he is brought back into alignment with the will of God
When I bring my heart to repentance, it brings me into alignment and brings the opportunity for:
A new start
A renewed mind
A renewed calling
“It's not the task of God to align himself with us, it's our job to align ourselves with him.”
John 15:7–8 (NKJV)
7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
Abiding in Jesus means spending MORE TIME in ALIGNMENT with his will
