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Father in Heaven, we give You 
praise for what You have given 

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us. 
This day already overwhelms our 

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souls. 
We're so thankful for Your 

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faithfulness to us, so thankful 
that we trust Your holy Word, so

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thankful for Your mercy, so 
thankful Holy Spirit, for your 

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illumination. 
We pray God that You would now 

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speak to us through Your Word 
and Spirit, that we would be 

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eager to turn away from anything
that displeases you, that 

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through the work of Your Word 
and Spirit we would be enabled 

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to leave this place obedient, 
faithful, full of joy and making

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known the good news of Jesus 
Christ our Lord. 

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Overwhelm us with Your presence 
and send us, Lord, for Your 

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glory. 
We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.

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This morning I'm going to be 
reading from the 3rd chapter of 

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Jonah, beginning at verse 4. 
We have been in the study of 

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Jonah this fall. 
Next week as John D Phillips 

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preaches for the missions 
conference, he'll be preaching 

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from the book of Haggai and then
we will move back into Jonah, 

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which will take us up to the 
season of Advent. 

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If you're new to our church, 
this very familiar story we 

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believe is a true story. 
And so as you hear what is being

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read, we believe this is an 
account of a man who was 

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swallowed by a fish, spit up on 
the shore. 

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And now after God has given him 
a second word and his obedience,

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he's moving towards one of the 
most evil cities known to man. 

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And he's moving towards that 
city to tell them the message 

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that God has given him. 
And this is what happens. 

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Jonah three Beginning at verse 
4, Jonah began to go into the 

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city, going a day's journey, and
he called out. 

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Yet 40 days, and Nineveh shall 
be overthrown. 

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The people of Nineveh believed 
God. 

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They called for a fast and put 
on sackcloth. 

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From the greatest of them to the
least of them. 

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The word reached the king of 
Nineveh, and he arose from his 

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throne, removed his robe, 
covered himself with sackcloth, 

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and set in ashes. 
And he issued A proclamation and

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published through Nineveh by the
decree of the king and his 

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nobles. 
Let neither man nor beast heard,

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nor flock taste anything. 
Let them not feed or drink 

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water, but let man and beast be 
covered with sackcloth, and let 

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them call out mightily to God. 
Let everyone turn from his evil 

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way and from the violence that 
is in his hands. 

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Who knows, God may turn and 
relent and turn from His fierce 

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anger so that we may not perish.
When God saw what they did, how 

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they turn from their evil way, 
God relented of the disaster 

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that He had said He would do to 
them, and He did not do it. 

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This is the word of the Lord. 
Thanks be to God. 

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Please be seated when God's word
reaches a soul. 

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When God's word reaches a soul, 
repentance follows. 

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Repentance means a change, a 
different direction, a new way 

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of thinking, a new way of 
feeling. 

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When God's word reaches the 
soul, repentance follows. 

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From the beginning of the Bible 
to the end, the story of 

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redemption follows that reality.
Jonah chapter 1. 

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He receives the word from the 
Lord. 

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He is a prophet of God, the 
prophet of God. 

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As a prophet of God, he rejects 
the word that God gave him. 

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He rebels and moves away from 
the Lord, as far away from the 

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city of Nineveh as he can, and 
as far away from the Lord as he 

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can. 
But our sin and our rebellion 

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cannot outrun God. 
In God's Providence and in His 

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power, He gave birth to a fish, 
1 fish whose purpose was to 

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swallow this man, showing God's 
grace and pursuit of the Sinner.

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Jonah would spend 3 days in the 
belly of that fish, finally 

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coming to the end of himself. 
And the fish spits Jonah up on 

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the shore, and in the word the 
Lord comes to Jonah a second 

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time. 
There was a real fish. 

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There was a real shore. 
There was real seaweed wrapped 

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around Jonah. 
There was real funk all over 

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him. 
Jonah is standing on the shore. 

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He receives the word again, and 
this time he rises up. 

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Instead of running from the 
Lord, instead of running from 

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Nineveh, he now moves towards 
this people. 

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Now this is what is important to
remember. 

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This is an evil people. 
It is a big city, 120,000 

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people. 
The 120,000 people are led by a 

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very evil and very violent king,
and they are a very evil and 

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violent people. 
Jonah walks towards that city. 

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He doesn't just magically appear
in that city, he moves towards 

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that city, a real place on this 
real earth. 

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And as he walks he knows that he
has one command. 

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Tell them the message that God 
had given them, given him, and 

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the message was this yet 40 days
and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

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It's not a self help message, 
it's not how to have a better 

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day. 
It is not a good feeling 

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message. 
Even if Jonas said more, and 

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it's very possible that he did, 
it would have been what God told

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him to say. 
He's being obedient and God saw 

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that. 
As that message is summarized, 

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this is the summary He wanted us
to have yet. 40 days and Nineveh

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shall be overthrown. 
The way we're going to approach 

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this today and really over the 
next few weeks after the 

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missions conference, is to look 
at what their response, the 

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people of Nineveh was to the 
message Jonah gave. 

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And then what was God's response
to the people of Nineveh? 

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And then what is Jonah's 
response to their response? 

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That'll be in two weeks. 
And then what is our response 

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which will stay with that as 
well today, let's begin by 

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talking about the power of the 
word of God. 

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Look with me again at verse 5 
after the text tells us Jonah 

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said yet 40 days and Nineveh 
shall be overthrown. 

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Verse 5 tells us, and the people
of Nineveh believed God. 

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This is important. 
It doesn't say, and the people 

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of Nineveh believed Jonah. 
That wouldn't have been 

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inappropriate because Jonah was 
the vessel, but it's more it's 

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in the people of Nineveh didn't 
just believe the preacher. 

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They didn't just believe the 
prophet. 

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They just didn't believe the one
who is an ambassador. 

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They believed God. 
They believed that the word that

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this man was bringing to them 
was truly God's word, the power 

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of God's Word. 
Verse 6 tells us that the word 

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reached. 
I love that word. 

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The word reached the king of 
Nineveh, and he arose from his 

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throne. 
When God's word reaches a soul, 

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repentance follows. 
When God's word reaches a soul, 

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repentance follows. 
The power of the Word of God is 

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present here. 
Jonah did not bring his own 

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word. 
He did not bring his own 

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courage. 
He did not bring his own 

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cleverness. 
He didn't bring his own 

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creativity. 
He brought the Word of God. 

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And the Word of God is living 
and active. 

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If you're in Christ Jesus, 
you've been called to take God's

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word as a missionary wherever 
you live. 

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We believe in the priesthood of 
all believers. 

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We have the privilege of taking 
that message. 

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If you're in Christ Jesus, you 
know what needs to be said. 

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Many Christians are like, I 
don't know enough. 

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What if they ask me a question? 
I don't know? 

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Friend in Christ, you know more 
than you think you know. 

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And yes, grow, learn more, but 
you know enough. 

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And if you don't think you do, 
we can give it to you quickly. 

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People that are lost, they don't
need your cleverness, they don't

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need your cultural analysis. 
They don't need your quotes from

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lots of other books. 
They need the word of God. 

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And the word of God is powerful 
and active, alive, and it's 

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sufficient. 
Jonah brings them the word. 

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Yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be
overthrown. 

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Think about that. 
To the most violent nation at 

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that time, this large city, this
one man in obedience moves with 

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his message, the message God 
gave him. 

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People of Nineveh believed God 
the king. 

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The word reached him. 
Whenever God's word reaches the 

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soul, repentance follows. 
John Calvin, commenting on Jonah

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Three, speaks of the ways in 
which kings cannot bear to be 

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admonished even by their equals.
Calvin writes, But Jonah wasn't 

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an equal. 
Jonah was a stranger and of 

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humble condition. 
That he therefore so touched the

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heart of the King, must be 
ascribed to the hidden power of 

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God, which God he puts forth 
through His Word whenever he 

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pleases. 
God does not indeed work alike 

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by the preaching of his word. 
It doesn't happen the same way 

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every time and every place. 
He does not always keep to the 

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same course. 
But when when he, God, pleases, 

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he so efficaciously touches the 
hearts of men that the success 

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of his word exceeds all 
expectation. 

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Right now I want you to consider
what nation, what leader, what 

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person in your life do you 
think? 

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I don't think they could come to
Christ. 

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I don't think it's possible that
they could ever believe. 

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The veil is too thick, the 
darkness is too great, the evil 

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is too pronounced. 
Who is it? 

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If you were living back then and
you were an Israelite, it would 

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have been the king of Nineveh. 
We have those kind of people in 

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our lives. 
As you pray for their salvation,

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do you do so with the confidence
of what God can do through His 

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word, that He can bring an evil 
king to the end of himself? 

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And through doing that, he would
call on his whole nation to 

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repent. 
That's what happened. 

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Do you believe it next Sunday or
this coming weekend? 

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The whole weekend is the 
missions conference next Sunday,

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as John D Rhodes is here 
preaching in this pulpit. 

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I won't be here in God's timing.
I'm going to be in Japan. 

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I'm going to be preaching from a
different pulpit with a 

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translator in a different 
language. 

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I'm going to Japan. 
Leaving early tomorrow morning 

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to celebrate the 20th 
anniversary of Christ Bible 

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Institute, a ministry that we 
have been partnering with, eager

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to support, and are so excited 
to watch. 

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Our home church missionaries 
Brett and Taylor Rail continue 

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to lead that ministry. 
It's amazing. 

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Japan, of all the modern cities 
of the world, is the least 

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Christian nation. 
Less than 1% of that population 

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professes faith in Jesus. 
One of the missionaries from our

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denomination who's been there a 
long time, Dan Iverson, will be 

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here, actually, for our missions
conference. 

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He and his wife landed there, 
and it took them eight years 

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before they saw one person 
profess faith in Jesus Christ. 

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The soil is hard. 
I remember the first time I 

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went, I think it was 2018, my 
daughter was living there just 

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out of high school in a gap 
year, serving with Christ Bible 

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Institute. 
My whole family went. 

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And as we were there, I heard 
over and over and over again 

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from missionaries, from those 
who are serving on the ground. 

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This is hard, hard soil. 
And it is. 

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But my word of encouragement to 
them was it doesn't take any 

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more power of God to save one 
Japanese soul as it did the 

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apostle Paul's or did the king 
of Nineveh to bring him to 

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repentance or me. 
It's the same power. 

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It's the same God. 
It's the same word that they 

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need. 
We don't need to worry about the

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results. 
We just need to be faithful to 

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give God's word wherever He 
calls us to give it. 

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And for most of us, it's right 
here where we live, where we 

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work, where we play. 
And the Word of God reaches a 

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soul, repentance follows. 
So how did the people of Nineveh

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respond to the message? 
Yet 40 days and Nineveh will be 

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overthrown. 
Well, here you're going to hear 

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the sound of repentance and 
really the sound of reformation.

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Let's go back to verse 5. 
The people of Nineveh believed 

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God. 
They called so vocally, now they

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believe God. 
And whenever some soul has been 

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reached by the word, repentance 
follows. 

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And so you begin to see the 
action that takes place, A soul 

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that is now in fear. 
And we all should be of the 

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living God. 
And on reverence, they're 

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calling out to one another, they
call for a fast, they put on 

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sackcloth from the greatest of 
them to the least. 

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To get more specific, the word 
tells us in verse 6 the word 

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reached the king of Nineveh When
the word reached the king of 

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Nineveh, Because the word 
reached the king of Nineveh, it 

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led to repentance. 
Repentance follows. 

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The word says in verse 6 that he
arose the same word for when 

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Nona no Jonah rose and went the 
wrong direction. 

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00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:45,280
The same word when the king or 
the the the sailor in the 

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captain of that ship said rise 
up the same word here at the 

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beginning of chapter 3 when it 
says Jonah arose. 

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Now the king with the word of 
God reaching him moves into 

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action. 
He rises from his throne, he 

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00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:08,880
takes his robe that only he can 
wear, He takes it off, and he 

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covers himself in sackcloth, and
he's set in ashes. 

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The word tells us in verse 7. 
And he issued A proclamation and

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published through Nineveh by the
decree of the king and his 

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00:16:22,280 --> 00:16:24,840
nobles. 
Let neither man nor beast heard 

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nor flock taste anything. 
Let them not feed or drink 

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00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:32,640
water, but let man and beast be 
covered with sackcloth, and let 

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00:16:32,640 --> 00:16:36,560
them call out mighty to God, and
let them call out mightily to 

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00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:38,640
God. 
Let everyone turn from his evil 

239
00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:40,840
way. 
This is the sound of repentance.

240
00:16:41,800 --> 00:16:47,760
The sound of repentance is 
people living in grief and shame

241
00:16:48,480 --> 00:16:52,840
and fear and humility, and in 
hope. 

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00:16:55,160 --> 00:17:01,680
They put on sackcloth, because 
sackcloth is humiliating and 

243
00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:04,880
it's rough. 
Every part of the skin it 

244
00:17:04,880 --> 00:17:08,040
touches, you feel it. 
And as you feel it, you're 

245
00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:11,640
reminded of why you were in this
posture. 

246
00:17:13,680 --> 00:17:17,359
The king sitting in ashes 
instead of on his throne is a 

247
00:17:17,359 --> 00:17:22,160
symbol of profound humility. 
The word has reached him. 

248
00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:26,800
He's repenting. 
He calls for a fast. 

249
00:17:28,119 --> 00:17:32,000
What's interesting, though, is 
this fast isn't just for the 

250
00:17:32,000 --> 00:17:36,080
human beings. 
Did you notice that the king in 

251
00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:42,040
his decree says we can't eat, 
but neither show our livestock, 

252
00:17:42,640 --> 00:17:46,920
never show our beast? 
I want you to think about that 

253
00:17:46,920 --> 00:17:48,640
for a minute. 
Why? 

254
00:17:49,240 --> 00:17:54,560
Why did that matter? 
Well, if you've ever fasted, you

255
00:17:54,560 --> 00:17:57,360
know that the word of God and 
calling us the fast is about 

256
00:17:57,360 --> 00:18:01,120
penitence, it's about 
desperation, it's about seeking 

257
00:18:01,120 --> 00:18:06,600
wisdom from the Lord. 
And when you fast, your stomach 

258
00:18:06,600 --> 00:18:11,680
doesn't know why. 
And so your stomach begins to 

259
00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:15,320
speak to you and it says, feed 
me. 

260
00:18:15,800 --> 00:18:20,600
It's time for us to eat. 
And when you feel that hunger 

261
00:18:20,720 --> 00:18:26,080
pain, it's because it's there. 
And that hunger pain reminds you

262
00:18:26,480 --> 00:18:31,440
of your desperation for God. 
It reminds you of why you were 

263
00:18:31,440 --> 00:18:35,280
in this moment. 
And there is the sound of 

264
00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:38,760
repentance. 
But in this case, the situation 

265
00:18:38,760 --> 00:18:43,560
is so severe that the king says 
not even the animals can eat. 

266
00:18:44,360 --> 00:18:48,200
Now I can explain to my children
why we're fasting. 

267
00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:52,400
You could explain to yours. 
You could explain to your 

268
00:18:52,400 --> 00:18:56,520
friends, but how would you 
explain it to the animals? 

269
00:18:57,600 --> 00:18:59,920
So here's the sound of 
repentance. 

270
00:19:00,480 --> 00:19:04,120
When that hunger pain hits the 
animals, they're going to let 

271
00:19:04,120 --> 00:19:06,680
you know. 
When they are thirsty and you're

272
00:19:06,680 --> 00:19:09,280
not giving them something to 
drink like you're supposed to, 

273
00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:13,720
they're going to let you know. 
So in the city of Nineveh, this 

274
00:19:13,720 --> 00:19:19,200
really happened. 120,000 people 
that the Lord has pity on are 

275
00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:23,160
now wearing sackcloth. 
There's ashes which people are 

276
00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:26,440
sitting in, they are all 
fasting. 

277
00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:31,760
And the sound of that repentance
is these animals moaning, 

278
00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:36,960
screaming, begging. 
That was the sound of repentance

279
00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:38,800
and that's the sound of 
reformation. 

280
00:19:42,160 --> 00:19:50,680
How does God respond? 
God's response, we are told in 

281
00:19:50,680 --> 00:19:55,320
verse 10, is that when He saw 
what they did, how they turned 

282
00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:59,560
from their evil way, God 
relented of the disaster that He

283
00:19:59,560 --> 00:20:03,080
had said He would do to them, 
and He did not do it. 

284
00:20:03,720 --> 00:20:12,400
God's mercy, they deserved it. 
We all deserved it. 

285
00:20:13,200 --> 00:20:18,040
There's not one who is here, not
one who has been born that 

286
00:20:18,040 --> 00:20:22,680
deserved mercy and grace. 
We all deserve the wrath of God 

287
00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:29,240
because of our sin, but here God
shows mercy to a people that 

288
00:20:29,240 --> 00:20:33,440
looks so evil and so violent and
so dark because they are. 

289
00:20:34,480 --> 00:20:36,680
Jonah didn't even want to go 
tell him the good news. 

290
00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:41,880
Now the king calls on them to 
pray. 

291
00:20:42,640 --> 00:20:46,560
He says in verse 9, Who knows? 
God may turn and relent and turn

292
00:20:46,560 --> 00:20:50,160
from his fierce anger so that we
may not perish. 

293
00:20:50,640 --> 00:20:55,400
The king didn't know what would 
happen, but God shows mercy. 

294
00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,960
The word for repent in Hebrew 
that describes the repentance of

295
00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:04,480
the people of Nineveh is a word 
that describes moving from evil 

296
00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:07,680
to good. 
It means from turning from doing

297
00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:12,000
evil violent things, and they 
all were doing that to doing 

298
00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:14,760
good. 
In some translations you will 

299
00:21:14,760 --> 00:21:18,400
hear in verse 10 where it says 
and God repented from what he 

300
00:21:18,400 --> 00:21:20,200
was about to do. 
It's not the same word. 

301
00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:23,520
God doesn't have to repent from 
something that is evil because 

302
00:21:23,520 --> 00:21:27,400
he doesn't do evil. 
The word here that is translated

303
00:21:27,400 --> 00:21:33,240
relent is a word that describes 
how God had an inward suffering 

304
00:21:33,680 --> 00:21:35,960
as he considered the people of 
Nineveh. 

305
00:21:36,360 --> 00:21:41,160
That inward suffering led to 
profound pity. 

306
00:21:42,000 --> 00:21:44,600
And that's how the book of Jonah
ends. 

307
00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:49,520
Verse 10 of chapter 4 or verse 
11 of chapter 4. 

308
00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:54,320
Jonas hears from God, and God 
says to Jonah, and should not I 

309
00:21:54,320 --> 00:21:58,040
pity Nineveh, the great city in 
which there are more than 

310
00:21:58,040 --> 00:22:02,520
120,000 persons who do not know 
their right hand from their 

311
00:22:02,520 --> 00:22:05,080
left. 
Those who didn't know their 

312
00:22:05,080 --> 00:22:11,520
right hand from their left were 
reached by the word of God, and 

313
00:22:11,520 --> 00:22:14,800
when they were reached by that 
word of God, it led to 

314
00:22:14,800 --> 00:22:19,560
repentance from the king to the 
beast. 

315
00:22:20,120 --> 00:22:24,680
There was a fast called 
sackcloth put not just on the 

316
00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:28,320
humans but also on the animals. 
Can you imagine trying to do 

317
00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:30,640
that? 
The sights and sounds of 

318
00:22:30,640 --> 00:22:34,240
repentance were all around them.
God's response? 

319
00:22:35,080 --> 00:22:39,200
Pity, mercy, because that's His 
nature. 

320
00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:44,960
It's the same way He sees His 
children. 

321
00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:51,600
And in meeting the need that we 
all have for salvation, He sent 

322
00:22:51,760 --> 00:22:58,160
his Son Jesus to die. 
The greater Jonah, the one and 

323
00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:02,360
only one who could pay the price
that we all deserve to pay, came

324
00:23:03,120 --> 00:23:07,640
Christ. 
The message that we have to give

325
00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:12,840
is not just this great story, 
this great true story about a 

326
00:23:12,840 --> 00:23:17,040
man named Jonah, but about the 
one to whom this points. 

327
00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:23,600
And that's Jesus, the only one 
who can save for eternal life. 

328
00:23:27,760 --> 00:23:33,280
In preaching on Jonah and then 
writing a commentary on this 

329
00:23:33,280 --> 00:23:39,440
book, in this chapter, Teaching 
on Jonah 3, Sinclair's Ferguson 

330
00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:43,920
shares a very personal story. 
We've had Sinclair in this 

331
00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:45,760
pulpit many times. 
He's a dear friend of this 

332
00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:49,400
church and maybe the greatest 
living theologian. 

333
00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:53,280
Sinclair Ferguson is in a 
hospital room. 

334
00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:57,200
He's visiting an elder in his 
congregation. 

335
00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:01,160
His life had been truly, 
remarkably blessed by God. 

336
00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:05,640
As Sinclair moves in to see his 
friend, his friend describes the

337
00:24:05,640 --> 00:24:08,400
unit they're on, and it's all 
mostly fatal. 

338
00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:12,840
Down at the end of the hall, 
there's two boys who are yet in 

339
00:24:12,840 --> 00:24:16,400
their teens. 
Sinclair's friend looks at him 

340
00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:18,760
and says, do you see those two 
lads? 

341
00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:22,480
Yes. 
I discovered that they had not 

342
00:24:22,880 --> 00:24:29,800
ever heard of Jesus. 
There are people all around you 

343
00:24:29,800 --> 00:24:38,280
who have not heard of Jesus or 
what they've heard of Jesus 

344
00:24:38,320 --> 00:24:41,720
isn't right. 
It's not true. 

345
00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:44,320
It's not the true word going 
out. 

346
00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:51,400
Sinclair was so overwhelmed by 
that moment that he describes 

347
00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:56,080
his drive home. 
He says I drove home feeling as 

348
00:24:56,080 --> 00:24:58,960
never before. 
The failure of the church's 

349
00:24:58,960 --> 00:25:05,000
witness and the great need for 
us in the church to cry to God, 

350
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:08,840
to come down and touch the 
hearts of people and sovereign 

351
00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:12,800
mercy. 
How much we need a revival as 

352
00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:20,440
much as Nineveh did. 
But it is vital to recognize 

353
00:25:20,800 --> 00:25:24,400
that Jonah was not sent to 
Nineveh with the assurance of 

354
00:25:24,400 --> 00:25:28,280
being a revivalist. 
We'll see in chapter 4 that 

355
00:25:28,280 --> 00:25:32,640
Jonah had an idea that God might
show mercy, but what happened I 

356
00:25:32,640 --> 00:25:34,280
don't think he could have ever 
imagined. 

357
00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,120
He wasn't sent to be a 
revivalist. 

358
00:25:38,600 --> 00:25:43,840
He was sent there as an 
evangelist. 1 commissioned by 

359
00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:49,160
God is a herald just like you 
and just like me. 

360
00:25:51,680 --> 00:25:58,520
Years ago, I guess it was 2008, 
I sat in the fellowship hall 

361
00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:03,040
next to my wife, Christina. 
Some of you were there. 

362
00:26:04,120 --> 00:26:07,320
The search committee and the 
session we're moving forward 

363
00:26:07,320 --> 00:26:10,360
with recommending me in the role
of senior pastor. 

364
00:26:10,880 --> 00:26:13,640
It was full. 
And then we entered into a 

365
00:26:13,640 --> 00:26:17,680
season of Q&A. 
You could ask me anything you 

366
00:26:17,680 --> 00:26:20,760
wanted, and you asked some great
questions. 

367
00:26:22,120 --> 00:26:28,160
My wife has a habit of putting 
her hand on my leg when we're 

368
00:26:28,160 --> 00:26:33,040
talking, or mostly when I'm 
talking, and whenever she senses

369
00:26:33,040 --> 00:26:39,000
that I'm about to say something 
that is going to make you or her

370
00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:44,600
uncomfortable, she might squeeze
my leg that day. 

371
00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:47,800
Someone asks one of the best 
questions I've ever been asked, 

372
00:26:48,920 --> 00:26:53,480
and God gave me through His Word
and Spirit an answer. 

373
00:26:54,120 --> 00:26:58,200
The question was, Mark, how do 
you anticipate steering this 

374
00:26:58,200 --> 00:27:04,160
ship and a new direction? 
And I thought for a minute about

375
00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:06,600
that. 
I thought about how throughout 

376
00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:12,640
the history of the church, a 
boat and men and women on a boat

377
00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:16,360
are a great symbol of the church
on mission, fulfilling, 

378
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:19,160
fulfilling what God calls to do 
at another time. 

379
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:20,840
Look around the sanctuary. 
You'll see it in the stained 

380
00:27:20,840 --> 00:27:22,440
glass. 
Don't look now, stop it. 

381
00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:30,200
But a couple of things need to 
be said. 

382
00:27:30,200 --> 00:27:36,280
I knew then I'm not the captain 
of the ship and I never will be.

383
00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:39,520
And if you don't choose me, 
whoever you choose won't be. 

384
00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:42,640
There's one captain, and it's 
the Lord himself. 

385
00:27:43,120 --> 00:27:46,680
It's Christ. 
My wife didn't squeeze my leg 

386
00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:54,600
until I said this, but I don't 
plan to steer the ship anywhere.

387
00:27:55,440 --> 00:28:00,360
I think we need to dry dock. 
I think we need to move in and 

388
00:28:00,360 --> 00:28:04,520
take a season of just asking the
Lord to show us who we really 

389
00:28:04,520 --> 00:28:08,200
are and here's who I think we 
really are. 

390
00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:12,560
I said this in the spring of O 8
and I'm offering it as a warning

391
00:28:12,560 --> 00:28:16,720
today and it will be needed 
again before Christ returns. 

392
00:28:18,680 --> 00:28:25,280
I said we are called to be like 
a military vessel taking the 

393
00:28:25,280 --> 00:28:30,440
gospel all over the world right 
where we live and wherever he 

394
00:28:30,440 --> 00:28:34,800
calls us to go. 
But we're not a military ship, I

395
00:28:34,800 --> 00:28:37,480
said. 
We're a cruise ship. 

396
00:28:38,040 --> 00:28:43,320
My wife grabbed my leg, I said. 
But it's worse than that. 

397
00:28:44,560 --> 00:28:48,240
We're a cruise ship that has 
painted itself battleship Gray. 

398
00:28:49,200 --> 00:28:52,320
So we actually think we're doing
a lot of things for the Lord. 

399
00:28:53,040 --> 00:28:56,800
But the truth is we're just kind
of lined up an endless buffets 

400
00:28:56,800 --> 00:29:00,240
of Bible studies, and we need 
those. 

401
00:29:01,280 --> 00:29:05,040
But those Bible studies aren't 
reaching us. 

402
00:29:05,400 --> 00:29:10,880
That word isn't reaching us if 
it's not leading to constant 

403
00:29:11,040 --> 00:29:16,000
joyful repentance, repentance 
for things that we've committed,

404
00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:19,800
sins of Commission, and 
repentance for sins of omission.

405
00:29:20,560 --> 00:29:27,880
We are a cruise ship painted 
battleship Gray, but God can 

406
00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:30,000
change that. 
And how does He do it? 

407
00:29:30,800 --> 00:29:35,120
By reaching us with His word. 
Right now some of you are 

408
00:29:35,120 --> 00:29:37,680
saying, I'm so glad he's saying 
that. 

409
00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:41,760
For all these people around 
here, they need to hear it. 

410
00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:50,240
We all need to hear it. 
In fact, we've heard it. 

411
00:29:51,360 --> 00:29:57,360
God's Word is clear. 
If He has reached you as one of 

412
00:29:57,360 --> 00:30:01,760
His children, your life began to
be a life of repentance. 

413
00:30:02,640 --> 00:30:09,480
Over time, though, we can be 
seduced into comfort or a lack 

414
00:30:09,480 --> 00:30:15,920
of compassion, are idolatry and 
distraction, and not seek the 

415
00:30:15,920 --> 00:30:18,400
things that the Lord's Lord has 
called us to. 

416
00:30:19,080 --> 00:30:24,240
We are all called to give this 
message away. 

417
00:30:24,960 --> 00:30:30,520
He has placed you in families 
and neighborhoods and places of 

418
00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:35,560
recreation and work and service 
on boards where you have a 

419
00:30:35,560 --> 00:30:41,320
chance as He leads you to hold 
out the Word of God, which is 

420
00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:46,120
the only thing that has the 
power to change a soul. 

421
00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:53,600
And when it reaches a soul, that
soul repents and enters into a 

422
00:30:53,600 --> 00:30:59,720
life of repentance. 
I told the 8:00 congregational 

423
00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:03,520
time together this morning in 
worship again at 9:30 and here 

424
00:31:04,200 --> 00:31:08,120
every week multiple times I hear
somebody say to me, I think 

425
00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:13,480
we're in the midst of revival or
I think 1's coming. 

426
00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:17,080
What do you think? 
I'll be honest, I'm never going 

427
00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:21,240
to know and I don't even think 
about it or worry about it. 

428
00:31:21,480 --> 00:31:25,560
I pray for it, but I don't think
it's that helpful. 

429
00:31:26,640 --> 00:31:31,320
What I will tell you is that 
revival starts not by 

430
00:31:31,320 --> 00:31:36,560
revivalist, but by obedient 
children of the living God 

431
00:31:36,840 --> 00:31:42,240
who've been reached by his word,
and then say, I can't believe 

432
00:31:42,280 --> 00:31:47,240
this good news, and I can't 
believe that I get to take this 

433
00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:53,480
good news in His power wherever 
he calls me. 

434
00:31:56,000 --> 00:31:57,760
These are the words of eternal 
life. 

435
00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:03,720
They reach people. 
They're going to reach every 

436
00:32:03,720 --> 00:32:12,080
person that belongs to Christ, 
whether you engage in obedience 

437
00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:15,000
or not. 
He's going to accomplish His 

438
00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:18,360
mission. 
But if you don't, you are 

439
00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:25,680
missing out on the most glorious
gift of holding Jesus out to a 

440
00:32:25,680 --> 00:32:29,640
world that's desperate for Him. 
Most of you know enough. 

441
00:32:31,080 --> 00:32:34,040
If you don't think you do, we 
would love to show you and it 

442
00:32:34,040 --> 00:32:37,640
won't take that long. 
That's not our biggest struggle.

443
00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:41,960
Our biggest struggle is that we 
don't care that much. 

444
00:32:43,080 --> 00:32:46,040
We don't love that much. 
We don't have the kind of 

445
00:32:46,040 --> 00:32:51,360
compassion that Christ had and 
we don't trust the power of His 

446
00:32:51,360 --> 00:32:56,280
word. 
If that just was received by 

447
00:32:56,320 --> 00:33:02,320
you, if that just reached you, 
joyfully go to the Lord and 

448
00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:07,960
repent. 
Change by his grace and for his 

449
00:33:07,960 --> 00:33:13,880
glory. 
Father in Heaven, we have 

450
00:33:13,880 --> 00:33:19,720
missionaries coming next Sunday.
Some are here today, but every 

451
00:33:19,720 --> 00:33:24,080
Sunday this sanctuary is full of
your people, your missionaries. 

452
00:33:24,680 --> 00:33:28,800
So many to missionaries, to 
islands I could never get to. 

453
00:33:29,880 --> 00:33:35,480
And Lord Jesus, we do not need 
to fear, because you have the 

454
00:33:35,480 --> 00:33:42,200
power in an instant to change 
any heart to reach them with the

455
00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:46,920
power of Your word. 
So, Father, I pray as you taught

456
00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:52,080
us to pray to the Lord of the 
harvest, that you would provide 

457
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:56,000
laborers, because the harvest is
plentiful, but the laborers are 

458
00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:58,400
few. 
And so, Lord, as we bring that 

459
00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:02,520
petition to you because it's the
way you told us to pray, let us 

460
00:34:02,520 --> 00:34:08,360
pray with an ear open, 
recognizing that it is us that 

461
00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:12,480
you desire to use. 
Show us where, show us when, 

462
00:34:13,480 --> 00:34:19,920
show us how, show us what, and 
let us live and the power that 

463
00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:22,600
is ours in Christ and whose name
we pray. 

464
00:34:23,480 --> 00:34:24,920
Amen. 
Please stand.