Heart Storms

Guy Smith

Jonah & The City • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

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1 - OCC Video

2 - Blank

3 - Jonah Title

The story of Jonah is narrative which is a plain and pleasant and dramatic story to tell children, but to careful adult readers is ingenious and puzzling.

Tell the story of Jonah up until this point.

Hebrew prophet who loves Israel, he’s patriotic to a fault because his patriotism lowers his opinion of other people groups.

In the first 2 chapters of this 4 chapter book Jonah is given a command from God to go to Nineveh and he fails to obey it.

Instead of traveling 500 miles east to preach repentance to prevent disaster on those non-Jewish people, he purchases an expensive ticket to board a ship traveling 2500 miles to southern Spain (Tarshish).

As he runs from the Lord’s will for his life on a cargo ship operated by pagans, God sends a great storm that gets exceedingly stronger until Jonah is labeled the culprit and tossed into the raging sea… at which time the sea calms instantly, the pagan sailers make sacrifices and worship the God of Jonah who made the land and the sea, and Jonah is gobbled up by a great fish where he would spend the next three days and nights.

From that slimy pit on the edge of death God taught Jonah about Grace and Mercy - Jonah called out to God from his affliction and was vomited onto a beach.

Jonah’s calling was unchanged and reinstalled, he walked to Nineveh, prophesied total destruction unless they repent of their evil ways, the entire city from the peasants to the king turned from evil, and God relented his punishment.

From that slimy pit on the edge of death God taught Jonah about Grace and Mercy - Jonah called out to God from his affliction and was vomited onto a beach.

God kept his promise to not destroy the city when they repented.

A lot of people think the story ends there, but there is a final startling chapter chalked full of lessons.

And this is where we pick back up today heading into chapter 4.

Week 1: Running Away - Not running from God’s calling on your heart.

Week 2: Belly Up - God can hear your prayer, save you, and create space for you to listen and obey him, even at your lowest point. Like he did for Jonah.

Week 3: Diverting Disaster - We’re all living on a timeline with an end, and we don’t know when it ends…so it’s high time to seek the Lord and repent of sin.

Today: Heart Storms - God’s great love and compassion and mercy is for renegade cities, and also for the heart of individual people.

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Jonah 4 NLT

This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. So he complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.” The Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry about this?” Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city. And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant. But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed. Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?” “Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry enough to die!” Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”

13 - Jonah Title

This is a remarkable passage to help us understand God’s compassion toward us even in our anger.

First, I want to remind you that Nineveh was a large city in Assyria, and Assyria was the greatest power in the world and the cruelest at this time. So understandably at first Jonah did not want to go and preach there.

The 3rd largest capacity stadium in the world is Beaver Stadium at Penn State in State College at 106,572.

Nineveh has 120,000 people, at least. Let’s consider Beaver Stadium at 106,572 people filled with the worst, cruelest, most evil people in the entire world, and Jonah walks in to preach repentance. It’s the toughest audience of his life - and at the altar call every last person responds positively.

How would you expect him to respond? Positively as well, right? Instead of delight, Jonah is filled with furious rage.

How strange - Jonah dreads the success of his ministry.

A lot of ministers withdraw from their work because they’re not seeing success, Jonah withdraws after amazing success.

In his anger he complains to the Lord! Essentially he says, “I told you even before I left home this would happen. That’s why I ran away. I knew you were merciful, compassionate, slow to anger, filled with unfailing love. You’re eager to change your decision about destroying people. Kill me. I’d rather be dead than alive if you forgive these cruel people.”

God says, “How is your anger working for you? Is this a right response to me saving these people? Have you any right to be angry?”

Jonah condemns God for not being angry and then God challenges him on his anger.

In the first chapter of the book Jonah flees from the face of God - Now he’s flying in the face of God

JONAH’S HEART / ANGER

Jonah’s real problem was at the deepest level of his heart.

Jonah has replaced God as the main joy, reason, and love of his life. He has a relationship with God, but there is something he values more and if he doesn’t get it he’s willing to discard God and die in his anger.

Tim Keller writes it likes this, “When you say, ‘I won’t serve you, God, if you don’t give me X, then X is your true bottom line, your highest love, your real god, the thing you most trust and rest in.’”

What was it for Jonah?

While Nineveh’s repentance was pleasing to God, it was threatening to the national interests of Israel and this made Jonah anxious about Assyria’s survival. It was a terrorist state.

His extreme patriotism as an Israelite and his reputation as a prophet was Jonah’s real bottom line.

Safety, comfort and security for my people, and needing to go down in history as a good prophet.

This is a mistake we call all make so easily. It’s sinful for us to care more about our own interests and security than the good and salvation of other people.

Sinful fear of who God may save in our midst. [not the right person, wealth, status, color, addiction, reputation, popularity], Don’t fill our pews with people I don’t want to associate with. None of us would say it, but oftentimes we think it subconsciously.

Does your heart need reoriented to a passion for the lost…all the lost?

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume Jonah 4:1–4

“Do I well to be angry at the mercy of God to repenting sinners?” That was Jonah’s crime. Do we do well to be angry at that which is so much for the glory of God and the advancement of his kingdom among men—to be angry at that which angels rejoice in and for which abundant thanksgivings will be rendered to God? We do ill to be angry at that grace which we ourselves need and are undone without; if room were not left for repentance, and hope given of pardon upon repentance, what would become of us? Let the conversion of sinners, which is the joy of heaven, be our joy, and never our grief.

Does your heart need reoriented to a passion for the lost…all the lost?

GOD’S COMPASSION

Even though Jonah is angry…even though Jonah doesn’t get it…even though Jonah is sitting outside the city under a shelter he made for himself waiting for God to change his mind BACK to destruction…GOD IS COMPASSIONATE TOWARD HIM. AS HE HAS BEEN FROM THE BEGINNING.

Jonah is like the ungrateful servant in , who having been forgiven, still refuses to forgive others.

God is always altering nature to get Jonah’s attention.

God ‘arranged...’

A great storm

Great storm he hurled on the ship (but did not kill him)

For a great fish to swallow up (but did not kill him)

and now...For a leafy plant to grow and provide him with shade

then...For a worm to eat through the stem and kill it

then…For a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah and the sun beat down on his head

We may look at these and see an angry God smiting Jonah, but I think what we really see is a patient, merciful, and compassionate God who is trying to get Jonah’s attention.

Jonah seemingly had a conversion experience in the belly of the fish.

So we automatically think after conversion everything will be perfect. No more problems, no more pain, no more suffering, no more affliction. Now I’m automatically going to do God’s will, be in perfect tune with the Holy Spirit and do exactly what God commands.

I’m afraid that’s just not the case for new converts to the Christian faith.

Galatians 5:17 NLT

The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

Of course, this is NOT an excuse to justify bad behavior, but we can take comfort in knowing God is patient and compassionate and understands the condition of the human heart. He knows your sin nature.

And he still continues to take his rebellious children by the hand.

Kid in rain hand story?

God continues to be compassionate toward his children and toward the lost

COMPASSION MEANS TO GREIVE OVER SOMEONE OR SOMETHING, TO HAVE YOUR HEART BROKEN, TO WEEP FOR IT.

In verse 10 God says to Jonah, “You had compassion for the plant.”

A plant that grew one night and died the next night.

It’s as if God is saying, “You weep over plants, but my compassion is for people.”

How often do we make the mistake of allowing stuff or things to take priority over people? When truthfully it’s the people that matter and the stuff that is either a resource or simply in the in the way.

If you are my prophet, if you are my follower, why don’t you share in my compassion. Why are you not weeping over the city!

Jonah did not weep over the city, but Jesus, the true prophet, did.

In we read of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the last week of his life. He knew he’d suffer and die at the hands of a mob and the leaders of the city, but instead of being filled with anger and absorbed with self-pity, like Jonah was, Jesus saw the city and wept over it. He wept out of compassion because he longed to gather his people together and they were unwilling and blinded.

On the cross Jesus cried out, “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” ()

Over a century ago a Princeton Theologian B.B. Warfield wrote an essay called “The Emotional Life of Our Lord,” where he considered every recorded instance in the gospels that described the emotions of Christ. He concluded that by far the most typical statement of Jesus’ emotional life was the phrase “HE WAS MOVED WITH COMPASSION,” a Greek phrase that literally means he was moved from the depths of his being. The Bible records Jesus weeping 20 times for every one time it records him laughing.

This wasn’t because he was depressed or overwhelmed, no he had joy in the Holy Spirit, it’s because our sadness makes him sad. Our pain brings him pain. Our sin breaks his heart

Tim Keller writes, “Jesus is the prophet Jonah should have been. Yet, of course, he is infinitely more than that. Jesus did not merely weep for us; he died fo rus. Jonah went outside the city, hoping to witness it’s condemnation, but Jesus went outside the city to die on a cross to accomplish its salvation.”