ELIJAH - a man for the times - God's multi-purpose, multi-person plan
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1 Kings 17
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Luke 4:25-26
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God in the little things - part 2
On our last program, Barbara Sandbek began a new series on Elijah, a man for the times. The ungodly King, Ahab, had led them into Baal worship. In an effort to steer His people back to Him, God withdrew His hand of blessing so they would appreciate what He had done for them. God chose the prophet, Elijah, to tell the king that there would be no dew or rain until he said so. Then he told Elijah to go and hide, and He’d supply his needs through a brook and a raven. God kept His promise, and then began to groom Elijah’s faith for an even tougher task ahead. Let’s continue now, and see how Elijah handled his isolation and humbling conditions.
God in the little things
Faithfulness…what does it mean? Webster defines it as loyal. And ‘loyal’ is defined as faithful to a trust or confidence – true to duty or love. Is that the definition you had in mind? On this Grace Notes program, Barbara begins a new series which will take us on a journey with the prophet Elijah. We’ll see how God worked THROUGH Elijah to demonstrate His faithfulness to His people, Israel, despite their unfaithfulness. We’ll also see how God worked IN Elijah to groom him to truly be a man for the times. So, buckle your seat belts, and get ready to roll with the prophet of old.
God's provision
The book of Jonah is a book about God’s provision. It was evidenced when He sent a great wind on the sea to get the rebellious prophet back on the right track, and again when He prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah and safely deliver him onto dry land. God also provided salvation for the sailors who prayed to Him for help, and the heathen Ninevites who repented. On our program today, we’ll conclude our study of Jonah and once again see God’s provision as he teaches Jonah an object lesson about His mercy.
Revival in the land
In our study of the book of Jonah we’ve seen God SPEAK a command to Jonah, Jonah SIN by running away, God SEEK out Jonah, Jonah SURRENDER to the call, God SPARE Jonah’s life, and finally God SPEAK His command to Jonah a SECOND time. God was merciful to Jonah in saving his life and in giving him another chance. It’s now time for Jonah to extend God’s mercy to the Ninevites. Jonah still doesn’t agree with what God is going to do, as we’ll see later, but he does yield his will to do what God commands. On our program today we’ll follow Jonah to Nineveh and see why God was so insistent on having this mission completed.
JUST DO IT!
JUST DO IT!
In describing Jonah’s personality, one commentator wrote… He was a proud, self-centered egotist: willful, pouting, jealous, and blood thirsty; a good patriot and lover of Israel, but without proper respect for God or love for his enemies. What a poor assessment of a man who is supposed to be God’s spokesman. Do you think God will use Jonah with an attitude like that? We’d say ‘no’, but that’s where God’s mercy comes in. God extended mercy to Jonah by saving his life, and in His mercy, gave him another chance to obey. The poet Robert Frost said, "After Jonah, you could never trust God NOT to be merciful again." …So true. God is a God of second chances and we’ll see that demonstrated on our program today.
Did Jonah repent?
The definition for the word ‘repent’ is ‘to feel remorse, contrition or self-reproach for what one has done or failed to do’. Oswald Chambers writes… Repentance always brings a person to the point of saying “I have sinned.” The surest sign that God is at work in his life is when he says that and means it. Anything less is simply sorrow for having made foolish mistakes. On this program Barbara Sandbek, will look at Jonah’s prayer from inside the fish and see if he is truly repentant.
It's only downhill from here!
So far in our study of Jonah, we’ve learned that God wanted to REACH out to the pagan Gentiles of Ninevah with His mercy, so He REVEALED a message to His prophet, Jonah, and told him to go there and preach it, but Jonah REACTED by RUNNING away. On this program, we’re going to reenact what happened as a result of Jonah’s disobedience. The setting is Joppa, a seaport about 35 miles northwest of Jerusalem - known today as Jaffa. A ship is docked there and about ready to leave. It’s destination - Tarshish, a mining colony in Spain. Looks like a nice day for a cruise. Hey…there’s Jonah boarding the boat now.
God can repay with mercy
The purpose of the book of Jonah is to show that God is concerned for ALL mankind, not just the Jews and that He will do whatever is necessary to accomplish His purpose of making Himself known, even to His enemies. 2 Peter 3:9 says that God is not willing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance. The book of Jonah anticipates the universality of Jesus' Gospel, and is the Old Testament counterpart to the salvation message of John 3:16 which says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that WHOSOEVER believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” On this program, Barbara Sandbek will take a look at Jonah’s reaction to God’s call to go to Nineveh.
It's all about God's grace!
There has been much debate over whether the story of Jonah is true or just an allegory. Regardless of your stance, 2 Timothy 3:16 says that ALL Scripture is inspired by God and is PROFITABLE for our training. On this Grace Notes program, Barbara Sandbek will begin a series on the book of Jonah. You’ll find this to be NO fish story - rather one that’s alive with lessons we can learn and apply so don’t miss a single program.