So maybe you’ve blown it in the past. And maybe you believe God will give you another chance even if you don’t deserve it. But sometimes getting back on track with what God doesn’t mean that our circumstances will all clear up at once. Is facing the music really worth it?
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MESSAGE NOTES
God is a God of new beginnings.
“Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh, and deliver the message I have given you. This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all. ” [Jonah 3:1-3]
“Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” [Matthew 18:21]
“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!”[Matthew 18:21]
God has given you something to share with others.
“This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all. On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” [Jonah 3:3-4]
God didn’t need Jonah to be perfect, He needed Him to be obedient.
“Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” [2 Corinthians 12:9-10]
“The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow. When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes. “Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city: “No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.” [Jonah 3:5-9]
“When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.” [Jonah 3:10]
My plan has to take a backseat to God’s plan.
Jonah isn’t a story about one man’s willingness to allow God’s plan to happen. It’s a story about God’s willingness to include us in His plan.
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” [Isaiah 55:8-9]
God is working behind the scenes.
“Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” [Ephesians 4:32]
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Application Questions
- What stood out to you from this message and why?
- What is one thing God is telling you to START doing because of this message?
- What is one thing God is telling you to STOP doing because of this message?
- How will this message change how you act at home, work and in the your relationships?