“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” —Ephesians 4:32

Have you ever found yourself bitter because someone else was given a second chance and you didn’t think they deserved it? The climax of Jonah’s story focuses on the prophet’s self-centeredness, deficiency of compassion, and his subtle hypocrisy.

We see that “it displeased Jonah exceedingly” that in the previous chapter, the pagans turned from their “evil” and God “relented” of the “disaster” he had threatened. The pagans are in harmony with God, but Jonah is not, as he alone is now characterized by disapproval of the outcome.

Usually a preacher is pleased when his audience repents, but in this last chapter of Jonah we see the opposite. Jonah was displeased that the Ninevites had repented and that God had shown them mercy. In fact, Jonah became exceedingly “angry,” as the language in the original Hebrew here is quite intense. Why would the preacher get so upset at the success of his own ministry?

When Jonah does finally express concern over something perishing, ironically it is a withered plant, not the pagan sailors or the 120,000 people “who do not know their right hand from their left”—an idiom for being morally unaware or spiritually lost. Jonah himself had called on the mercy of God and benefited from that mercy, but he resents that mercy when it is extended to others he doesn’t approve of. What if God treated Jonah the way Jonah wanted God to treat the people of Nineveh?

Isn’t it astounding that Jonah was so much like the prodigal son in need of mercy, but then later finds himself looking just like the self-righteous older brother in Luke 15:25-30, or the unmerciful servant in Matthew 18:21-35? I think there is at least one other semblance God wants us to apprehend in this lesson, and that is how sometimes our attitude can look a lot like Jonah’s. When I reap the benefits of God’s mercy but find myself wishing God’s wrath to be poured out on others, I look very much like that selfish prophet from the past. When I sing the praises of God’s amazing grace over my own sins, yet secretly wish that others pay the price for their sins, I share a similar hypocrisy with Jonah. When I find myself angry or jealous at the spiritual successes of others rather than rejoicing in what God is doing in them and through them… you get the picture.

The book of Jonah ends abruptly, as if the biblical author intended to create a tension with the cliffhanger. After Jonah’s complaint, God explains in verses 10-11 why it is silly for Jonah to care so much about a plant and so little about a city full of people—and that’s the end. We are left to make our own conclusions about the contrast between God’s grace and Jonah’s desire for judgment, and how we can look just like him when we are deficient in our mercy giving. Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, you are merciful and gracious. Your loving-kindness has disrupted my life in so many good ways. Teach me to rejoice when that same mercy is given to other undeserving sinners. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. When have you experienced a surprising, undeserved measure of God’s mercy in your life?
2. How did Jonah respond to God’s goodness to the Ninevites? (Jonah 4:1) What was the attitude of Jonah’s prayer? (vv. 2-3)
3. How did God deal with Jonah and what did God want Jonah to understand? (vv. 4-11)
4. Jonah wanted Nineveh, Israel’s enemy, destroyed. When have you wanted revenge rather than restoration in a relationship? What hard lesson have you had to learn from God?
5. What is one way you can extend God’s love and mercy toward others, particularly those who don’t deserve it?

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The post Self-Righteous, and Mercy Deficient appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” —Matthew 12:40

The Pharisees were “fit to be tied!” That’s a southern expression used when someone is so angry that he must be tied up to restrain him from committing an act of aggression. Jesus had gotten under the skin of these religious hypocrites, and they wanted to fight back in more ways than one.

After Jesus “unlawfully” healed on the Sabbath and then freed a man of demonic oppression, the smug Pharisees accused him of doing the work of the devil by attributing it to Beelzebub, or “the prince of demons.” They necessitated a “sign” that Jesus was truly who he claimed to be. They demanded proof of his deity. But Jesus answered them:

“An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.” —Matthew 12:39-41

The sign Jesus gave them was a picture of his death, burial, and resurrection, by pointing to the prophetic implications of the life of Jonah. Just as Jonah was hurled into the sea to appease the wrath of God coming upon others, Jesus would absorb the wrath of God on the cross for the atonement of our sins, and thereby fulfill the justice of God by paying the penalty our sins deserve. Just as Jonah spent three days in the belly of a massive fish that eventually released him, so Christ would spend three days in the heart of the earth. But death could not hold him. The grave could not contain him. His enemies could not defeat him.

Of all the countless miracles associated with the life of Jesus, there are none more significant than his resurrection from the dead as confirmed by over 500 eyewitnesses. Imagine having over 500 people testify in a court of law today and having all of their accounts perfectly harmonized without any inconsistencies. Most prosecutors today are brimming with confidence if they have just three or four corresponding eyewitnesses to their case. The resurrection had hundreds of witnesses, but the Pharisees were too stubborn, prideful, and arrogant to receive the salvation Jesus came to give them.

But there is another caveat Jesus gave to confront the callousness of the scribes and Pharisees. He told them “the men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation to condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah.” Remember those Ninevites that Jonah cared so little about—the “wicked” people that the renegade prophet didn’t think were worthy of second chances and the good news of God’s mercy? Well guess what? They repented. And according to Jesus, they will rise again to “condemn” those who reject the Gospel message.  

Those demanding more signs that day were of the same crowd of which Jesus said, “corrupt tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom of God before you do” (Matthew 21:31). God had given them an abundance of signs, and more signs on top of those signs, and yet they still rejected the most blatant sign of all—JESUS has conquered death, hell, and the grave.

CONSIDER: Jesus is the undisputed risen Champion, the living Son of God, presently seated at the right hand of the Father, and making intercession for you and me. If you are looking for a “sign” of His faithfulness in the face of sickness, suffering, betrayal, loneliness, depression, loss, discouragement, or failure, look no further than the Resurrection. He is alive and there is nothing, absolutely nothing, too difficult for Him. He doesn’t need you to convince Him that your needs are important, He simply longs for you to worship Him… and TRUST Him as your LIVING HOPE.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for the greatest sign from heaven—a picture of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection that will never grow old. Holy Spirit, thank you that the same power that raised Christ from the dead is now alive in me. You will continue to lead me in a triumphant victory over all that is in this world, to the glory and honor of Jesus, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. In your opinion, what is the strongest evidence for God?
2. What did a hostile group of people ask Jesus to do? (Matthew 12:38)
3. What kind of people did Jesus say asked for additional miraculous signs? (v.39) How did Jesus respond to the request for a sign? (vv.39-40)
4. Why will the “men of Nineveh” be in a position to judge? (v.41)
5. How can you demonstrate the reality of the resurrected Christ in your life today? How should it shape your worship?

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The post The Sign of Jonah, Jesus’ Resurrection appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” —Romans 2:4

A church was seeking a new pastor and had two different candidates each preach a trial sermon after assigning them the same topic and same text, in order to determine who would be the new pastor. The topic was “Hell.” The man who was not hired asked why and the chairman of the search team said, “You preached on Hell as if you were glad that people were going there, the other Pastor preached on Hell with a tear in his eye.”

Jonah wasn’t shedding tears over Nineveh. Last week, we saw how the God of “second chances” graced Jonah. The prodigal prophet’s journey from the pride of self-righteousness was a slow one, but it was God’s kindness that led him to repentance. Jonah would much rather worship a god of his own making—one who smites the bad guys (the wicked Ninevites) and blesses the good guys (the Hebrew people). Jonah wanted a nationalist god who simply protected his countrymen and punished the pagans, but when the real God—not Jonah’s counterfeit—keeps showing up, it frustrates the misguided prophet. We see this pattern throughout the story of Jonah.

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us,” wrote A.W. Tozer. Jonah had to be brought to the end of his self-made god, the god of self-comfort and ethnic prejudices, which he had constructed in his own mind. He had to surrender his life fully to the one true God, having learned the hard way that “God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:34-35), and that “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9)—including pagans and gentiles.

God had brought His reluctant prophet to repentance, so Jonah goes to Nineveh and declares God’s Word to them. Yet we still see a subtle tone of Jonah’s callousness at the ill fate of the Ninevites as he simply says: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” We don’t see much compassion in his sermon. No hint of tears. There was no mention of repentance, of hope, or redemption in turning back to God, just an apparent declaration of doom on these infidels. But, once again, we see pagans demonstrating more sensitivity to what God is up to than the career clergy.

The people of Nineveh “believed God” and it had little to do with the skillfulness of Jonah’s street preaching (we still see his spiritual insensitivity in the next chapter), and a whole lot more to do with amazing grace. We see a marvelous display of the kindness of God leading them to repentance, as the king issues a proclamation of a national fast and commands the people to call on God and turn from their evil ways.

The king says, “Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” The phrase “who knows” is an expression of hope. They had more room in their theological box for the possibility of what God could do than Jonah did in his little narrowly crafted theological box. God saw their repentance and relented of the disaster He intended to do to them.

CONSIDER: When have you been guilty of seeing people beyond the reach of hope? In what ways have you made a god after your own image/liking/comfort? Have you been insensitive to the plight of lost souls or calloused to the fate of infidels? Where do you need to recover your “who knows” theology, and be reawakened to the God of wonder, Who is so much bigger than the finite deity we have constructed in our own minds? Whatever your need is in this hour, what might happen if you were once again captivated and marveled by “HIM who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20)?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, forgive us for making you small in our minds, finite in our theology, and anything less than omnipotent in your ability to save the “unsavable” and draw evildoers to repentance. Holy Spirit, touch our calloused hearts and make them tender with compassion and softened with your mercy so that we can be unadulterated ambassadors of the Gospel. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. In your view, which culture, nation, or special interest group is undeserving of God’s mercy?
2. When have you experienced a surprising, undeserved measure of God’s mercy in your life?
3. How did the people respond to Jonah’s message? (Jonah 3:5) What did the king do? (vv.6-9) What action did God take? (v.10)
4. Why do you think that fasting might be a useful part of repentance?
5. What is one way you can extend God’s love and mercy toward others, particularly those who don’t deserve it?

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The post Making God in Our Image appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time…” —Jonah 3:1

They called him “Wrong Way” Roy. His gaffe on New Year’s Day, 1929, is often cited as the worst blunder in college football history. When Roy Riegels and his University of California team played Georgia Tech in the Rose Bowl, Riegels picked up a fumble and began to run in the wrong direction. Though he was only 30 yards away from the Yellow Jackets’ end zone, Riegels somehow got disoriented and sprinted in the opposite direction for 69 yards, which turned into a scoring opportunity for Tech.

During halftime, Riegels was humiliated and so distraught that he had to be pressed hard by his coach to return in the second half. Roy said, “Coach, I can’t do it. I’ve ruined you, I’ve ruined myself, I’ve ruined the University of California. I couldn’t face that crowd to save my life.” Coach Nibs Price responded by saying “Roy, get up and go back out there—the game is only half over.” And those Tech players might tell you that they had never seen a man play football as Roy Riegels played in that second half.

Jonah was a prophet of God, called with a specific purpose, who ran in the opposite direction of which the Lord had called him. Much more significant than humiliating oneself on a gridiron and disappointing a fickle fan base, Jonah put countless lives at risk, including 120,000 who were helpless and doomed apart from the message he was commissioned to bring them. Eternity hung in the balances. Jonah certainly blew it in the scheme of God’s plan for his life. He had failed the Lord, himself, and many others. The story would’ve ended there had his God not been faithful, good, and full of grace.

After being vomited by the great fish the Lord had appointed to swallow him, we see that “the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time.” Jonah had a head-on collision with a “second chance” God. He rose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the Lord, entered the city, and began his street-preaching ministry. Amazing things happened as the Ninevites believed God and called for a fast, from the greatest to the least of them.

Aren’t you thankful that we serve a God of second chances? We read a Bible chock-full of “second chance” stories. Abraham lied, yet still became the father of faith. Sarah laughed at God, yet still went on to bear a child at an unlikely age. Noah got drunk. Samson was immoral. Rahab had been a prostitute before a second chance landed her in the lineage of Jesus! David was an adulterer and a murderer. Elijah was suicidal. Peter denied Jesus before his second chance put him on a platform preaching the Gospel to thousands on the day of Pentecost.

Where have you gaffed it up for God? What have been your spiritual blunders or moral failures? When have you run from God in pursuit of your own comfort or selfish ambition? Have you been humiliated, disgraced, shamed, or judged as a failure by others? What if we pointed the arrow in a different direction: have you been guilty of judging others as unworthy of God’s grace and mercy—undeserving of second chances? Jonah’s rebellion speaks so loudly to our own failures, our own brokenness, our own prejudices, our own judgmentalism, and our own need to be rescued from ourselves. In Jesus, we have such a Rescuer.

In 1991, Roy Riegels was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame. He wasn’t defined by one bad play, as humiliating as it was. Your story isn’t over either, because our God has a really good track record of turning second chances into stories of triumph. Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

God, thank you for second chances. Because of your grace, our failures don’t have to define us. Our best days are still ahead of us because of you hold our future. Thank you for that assurance. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. Do you have a favorite “second chance” story?
2. In what way did God give Jonah a second chance? (Jonah 3:1-2) What did Jonah tell the Ninevites? (v.4) How did the people respond to Jonah’s message? (v.5)
3. When have you experienced a surprising, undeserved measure of God’s mercy in your life?
4. Why do you think that fasting might be a useful part of repentance?
5. How can you express thanks to the Lord this week for all the love and mercy He has given to you and others?

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The post The God of Second Chances appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“When my life was fainting away, I remembered the LORD, and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple.” —Jonah 2:7

When a humpback whale off Herring Cove Beach swallowed Michael Packard, it was utter darkness for the veteran lobster diver. “I was completely inside; it was completely black,” Packard said. “I thought to myself, ‘there’s no way I’m getting out of here. I’m done, I’m dead.’ All I could think of was my boys — they’re 12 and 15 years old.”

Can you imagine that feeling of despair? For Jonah, it was three days of utter and complete darkness. He had been guilty of judging who was worthy or not worthy of God’s grace. He would rather see his enemies perish than for them to experience mercy and forgiveness. So he “sailed” away from God’s mission and tried to do his own thing. It didn’t go well. God was faithful to send one crisis after another in an attempt to rescue Jonah from himself, reset his heart, and correct his vision.

In an incredible twist of fate, the drifting prophet now finds himself in a place where he needs mercy more than those he had denied mercy. Had Jonah been as desperate for those unlovable Ninevites as God was relentlessly desperate for him, he would’ve never been in this predicament. But now he is “bottomed out” and crying out to God from the reeking belly of a fish.

There is much we can glean from Jonah’s prayer of desperation. We see that he uses language from the Psalms, revealing that Jonah was a man who knew God’s Word, and knew it by heart, because there would’ve been no Bible and no candle in the fish’s belly. In order to survive the torture of a Nazi concentration camp, Corrie Ten Boom spoke of relying on the memory of scripture that had been stored in her heart. Don’t underestimate the importance of hiding God’s Word in your heart because you never know when your desperation will make you lean upon it more than your next meal.

We can also see how Jonah’s prayer reveals the way he interprets his circumstances. Jonah said to God, “For you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas.” He doesn’t blame the sailors because he recognizes that God was working sovereignly through them. Joseph once told the brothers who had beaten and betrayed him, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20). There is nothing like a grim dark night of the soul to prune our hearts, humble us, retract those accusatory fingers we are pointing at others, and recalibrate our perspective. God’s ways are so much higher than ours (Isaiah 55:9), and we drift when we fail to trust His process.

But perhaps the most important lesson we can pull from Jonah’s prayer is the element of remembrance. “When my life was fainting away,” Jonah cried, “I remembered the LORD, and my prayer came to you…” (v.7). That remembrance of God’s character, faithfulness, and sovereignty over our lives can reset us with sincere gratitude, humble surrender (sacrifice), and renewed vows as we see in verse 9. At the conclusion of his prayer, the Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. His salvation was by grace alone, for Jonah had done nothing to deserve being rescued.

Consider: Where do you find yourself desperate right now? Financial hardship? Loneliness? Anxiety? Fractured relationships or family dysfunction? Disconnect with your spouse? Prodigal children drifting away from the Lord? Debilitating illness? Anger at the world? A deficiency of compassion or mercy? It is good to “remember” the heart of the Father and His relentlessness love for us. In the belly of a fish there isn’t much you can control, but you can still trust the heart of God even when you can’t see His hand. Because God is good, a fish’s belly doesn’t have to be a pit of despair but a recalibration of HOPE.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you that you never give up on us. Your unfailing love and relentless pursuit to rescue us from ourselves is our only refuge. May we be good stewards of the mercy and grace you have given us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. When have you found it hard to be merciful to others?
2. Once inside the fish, how did Jonah respond to God’s rescue? (Jonah 2:1-9)
3. What was Jonah’s attitude toward God? (vv.7-9)
4. How has God pursued you when you have drifted or tried to avoid Him? In what ways have you been, or not been, a steward of His grace?
5. When have bad circumstances turned out for your good? How do you want to thank the Lord right now for all of the remarkable ways He has delivered you?

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The post Mercy at the Bottom appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” —Revelation 3:19

It’s been over thirty years and yet I can still remember sitting in the Marion Regional Juvenile Detention Center like it was yesterday. My teenage incarceration felt like the end of my life at the time, but little did I know then it was just the beginning. As I wrote about in my book 13-Foot Coffins, God used those dire circumstances of getting locked up to bring me into a real relationship with Jesus and to be awakened to a whole new perspective and purpose in life.

Uncomfortable and painful circumstances are never meant to diminish us, but God can certainly use them to recalibrate us to what He is up to and what He is speaking into our lives. As C.S. Lewis observed:

“Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

Jonah had been on the run from God. He put others at risk and failed to see the Ninevites through a lens of compassion—being worthy of his time and ministry. But God hurled a great storm upon the sea of Jonah’s rebellion and then He “appointed” a great fish to swallow up the renegade prophet. That massive aquatic beast was God’s megaphone to rouse Jonah, who was demonstrating tone-deafness to God’s mission and people who needed his ministry.

When giving attention to this dramatic story in the Old Testament, people often get sidetracked by the possibility of being swallowed up by such a literal marine creature and then surviving to tell about it. We don’t know exactly what kind of a fish this was. The Bible isn’t specific. Some scholars speculate it was a species of whale. To get stuck on this debate is to miss the main point, which is what we know unambiguously: God, Who is capable of doing anything that He wants to do in order to get our attention, sent a “lifeboat” fish to rescue Jonah from himself.

Jesus himself declared the veracity of Jonah’s story in Matthew 12:40, where he confirmed the account of Jonah being three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish. God loved Jonah too much to let him get away. The physical texture of what swallowed up Jonah is not as important as the fact that God “appointed” uncomfortable circumstances to stop Jonah in his tracks and to give him a chance to turn around, course-correct, and realign himself to God’s pleasure and purposes.

We are too much like Jonah. Too often we look at obedience through the lens of comfort, security, and self-preservation, rather than taking up our cross daily and dying to self. Whenever we default to “what’s-in-it-for-me” over servanthood sacrifices, we look a lot like Jonah. Yielding to individualism instead of togetherness with God’s family is very much a Jonah-like portrait. Whenever we find ourselves judging who is and is not worthy of God’s mercy and grace, we are sadly in the same boat as Jonah. It’s been inferred that Jonah may have spent time sulking in self-pity in the fish’s belly for a while before finally repenting and fully seeking God. Perhaps.

CONSIDER: God doesn’t give up on us in our nomadic selfish wandering. He loves us too much to let us sail off pleasantly into the sunset of our spiritual delinquency. He can and will appoint uncomfortable circumstances that may feel very much like the innards of a dark and smelly fish, but never with the intention of crushing us, but to rescue us from ourselves. God disciplines those whom He loves. When we sense that discipline, it is good to be reminded we are loved by the Father and take time to meditate on what He may graciously and patiently be course-correcting in us.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, the fact that grace does not immunize us to your discipline is a beautiful token of your love for us. Give us the understanding to recognize your discipline, and the wisdom to seek you fully when you bring course-correction to our hearts. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. When has God used uncomfortable circumstances in your life to bring about course-correction or a change in perspective?
2. Jonah was guilty of judging who was worthy or not worthy of God’s mercy. When have you caught yourself in this prideful posture?
3. In what ways can you relate to Jonah’s wandering ways? (Lack of mercy? Callousness? Individualism? Self-preservation? Other?)
4. Why is it important for us to be reminded that God disciplines those whom He loves? How is discipline attached to grace or mercy?
5. Is there a posture in your heart that needs to be realigned with the heart of God? Is there a particular sin or sinful pattern of which you need to repent?

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The post God’s Megaphone of Pain appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.” —Jonah 1:16

There has been no shortage of talk around the idea of the church looking like the world, but we don’t talk too much about when the world looks more like the church than the church itself.

What a travesty when political alliances have more unity in their agendas than brothers and sisters in Christ do with the Gospel that has been entrusted to them. What about when “the lost” demonstrate more love and kindness to the marginalized than “the saved,” or when unbelievers show more hospitality to the downtrodden than do believers? (A sharp contrast Jesus illustrated in the story of the Good Samaritan.)

Jesus rebuked those hardcore Pharisees because their rigid devotion to scriptures was nullified by a spiritual blindness that was juxtaposed by the fact that tax collectors and prostitutes where entering the kingdom of God before them (Matthew 21:31). I’m remembering where Paul told Timothy that one who is negligent in providing for their own household is “worse” than unbelievers (1 Timothy 5:8), or when Jesus said the “sons of this world” are more shrewd than the “sons of light” (Luke 16:8). We have so many contrasts in scripture to when religious outsiders are looking more kingdom-friendly, kingdom-minded, or kingdom-principled than the insiders.

We see that contrast in the first chapter of Jonah’s story as well. Pagan sailors seem to have more sensitivity and awareness to things God is doing around them than does Jonah, who ironically is a “prophet.” They appear to have more diligence in wanting to save lives than God’s messenger, who has checked out of his missional assignment and doesn’t care all that much if the Ninevites perish without a shot at repentance. Jonah claims to “fear the Lord” (v.9), but his actions contradict his confession.

Charles Spurgeon once preached a sermon about the actions of the ship’s crewmen in this chapter. Just as the disciples did in the boat when Jesus calmed the storm (Mark 4:35-41), the shipmen around Jonah move from fearing the storm to fearing the Lord. Spurgeon described this process as an evolution of sinners being tossed upon the sea of conviction at the weight of their own sin to making desperate efforts to save themselves, to the sorrow or anguish of not being able to save themselves, to finding ultimate HOPE in the sacrifice of another on their account.

After Jonah was tossed into the sea, the immediate ceasing of the storm proved that Jonah’s God was not just real, but sovereign over all. In the most logical response to His supremacy, the crewmen “feared the Lord exceedingly,” offered a sacrifice of worship to God, and made vows to serve Him. Spurgeon went on to say:

“Brethren, I wish I had meet words with which I could fitly describe the peace which comes to a human heart when we learn to see Jesus cast into the sea of divine wrath on our account. Conscience accuses no longer. Judgment now decides for the sinner instead of against him. Memory can look back upon past sins, with sorrow for the sin it is true, but yet with no dread of any penalty to come. It is a blessed thing for a man to know that he cannot be punished, that heaven and earth may shake, but he cannot be punished for his sin.”

When I think of how Christ took all of my sins upon Calvary’s cross, how Jesus bled and died for my transgressions, the only logical response that is fitting is to worship and follow Him. There are times when we can learn important life lessons from “pagans,” and never more importantly than when they bring us back to humble repentance, confession of our deficiencies, and renewed vows of faithful service to the Lord. Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, convict us of where our actions have contradicted our confession of beliefs, and in your grace teach us how to follow the way of Jesus in humility and faithful obedience. In His holy name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. When have you observed unbelievers looking more “kingdom-principled” or even more like Jesus than believers?
2. What can we learn from the irony of Jonah being a “prophet” (one who should be sensitive to the calling of God), while yet demonstrating such insensitivity to the Lord and callousness about the fate of others?
3. When have you been insensitive to the Lord’s calling on your life, or failed to consider the ways your disobedience affects others?
4. In what ways has the Gospel awakened your senses, illuminated your deficiencies, and caused you to worship God more intentionally?
5. Is the Holy Spirit prompting you to make any vows or renew any spiritual disciplines that would help you flesh out obedience in your faith?

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The post When Believers Must Learn From Unbelievers appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?” —Romans 2:4 (NLT)

It’s been said that most Christians are educated way beyond their level of obedience.

That statement cuts like a knife. I am all too familiar with my failures to live up to the knowledge that I have of the holy Scriptures, especially those red letters of Jesus that command that we love our enemies, bless those who curse us or speak ill of us, or pray for those who persecute us. I thank God for His mercies and trust that He continues to grow me in grace, particularly in these areas of discipleship.  

Jonah was a prophet of the LORD, well educated in the things of God and knowledgeable of the Scriptures. Jonah was given a distinct mission to go and preach the word of the LORD to the Ninevites, who had historically been enemies of Jonah’s people, the Israelites. It doesn’t seem that the wellbeing, or the fate of the Ninevites, was high on Jonah’s priority list. He may have supposed that serving God could be more like a spiritual à la carte approach, where you can pick and choose your areas of obedience as it fits into your comfort zone.

As we saw last week, Jonah chose “safe” theology over absolute surrender to God. Perhaps in pride, he wrote the Ninevite people off as the bad guys who didn’t deserve a second chance or a shot at repentance. Surely there would be people in Tarshish, more likeable people, who were more “deserving” of hearing God’s word, and wouldn’t pose a threat to him. The reputation of the “bloody” Ninevites may have been too intimidating to Jonah (Nahum 3:1).

As Jonah fled the presence of the LORD on a ship to Tarshish, “the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up.” The mariners were afraid and their lives were in grave danger. No one is more selfish in this picture than Jonah. He is sleeping through the storm. A good indicator of a calloused spirit is when we find ourselves sleeping through a crisis as it affects others but doesn’t touch our heart. The fate of the Ninevites didn’t touch Jonah’s heart, and neither does the distress of the mariners on the ship. He is spiritually dull, woefully indifferent, and backslidden to the core.  

But this is a story of God’s crazy love and amazing grace more than it is about Jonah’s failures, his disobedience, or getting sideways in the mission. We understand that God could’ve easily let Jonah run off into the sunset and simply found a replacement prophet, like a second string guy on the bench who would be more hungry for the ball with the game on the line. But God didn’t do that. He loved Jonah too much to let him get away. Isn’t it an awesome, maybe even convicting, picture to see the pagan mariners being the ones waking Jonah up from his slumber during the storm, and urging him to call out to his God? How often has God used a lost person to convict you of your sin and waywardness?

In our aim to follow Jesus, being the kind of people who are loving, considerate, compassionate, and touched by the wellbeing and eternal fate of our neighbors is not a deluxe version of Christianity, it is the standard. Serving the poor, the incarcerated, the marginalized, or the oppressed is not some à la carte option on the biblical menu, it’s at the very heart of Jesus and His mission (Luke 4:18). Being a part of Gospel communities who strive to make disciples together is not just a category of Christianity reserved for those more gifted “people-persons,” it’s for every one of us who call ourselves believers (Mark 16:15-20; Acts 2:42-47).

CONSIDER: Where have you been educated in the Scriptures beyond your level of obedience? Or, when have you had a speck of judgmental attitude toward other Christians in their area of deficiency, and not seen the plank in your own eye? Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, we long for your kingdom to be what wakes us up in the morning and lays us down at night. We often fail you in those in-between times of that rising and going to bed. Holy Spirit, teach us where these deficiencies can be narrowed in our discipleship journey and we can become more conformed to the image of Christ. This mercy is all from the riches of your kindness and patience. Thank you for that grace, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. What biblical commands or scriptural principles do you find hardest to obey?
2. What kind of people do you find it hard to love, or demonstrate the Gospel toward? How does Jonah’s callousness resonate with you? Why?
3. What are your feelings toward the unbelievers around you? What do you think is at the root of those feelings?
4. In what ways have you been judgmental toward the deficiencies in other Christians while ignoring your own?
5. How has God pursued you when you have tried to avoid Him? In what ways will you worship and flesh out your gratitude for His grace, mercy, and kindness?

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The post Educated Beyond Our Level of Obedience appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation…” —2 Corinthians 5:18

Jim Elliot was a missionary to tribal people and died as a young man, speared by the very people he was seeking to bring to Jesus. He wrote in one of his journals:

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.”

Paul wrote of a similar sentiment to the church at Corinth. When he said, “We make it our aim to please him,” Paul was expressing that he lives his entire life in light of a hope that his actions will bring delight to God each day. He also understood that pleasing God meant fleshing out the “ministry of reconciliation” in “persuading” others to know the living God. He said, “the love of Christ controls us,” and we are “ambassadors for Christ,” thus God is “making his appeal through us.”

If you have ever been mocked for sharing your faith, you should be pleased to know that you are not only in the company of Paul (v.13), but also of Jesus (Mark 3:21, John 10:20). Both gave us extraordinary examples of what it looks like to confront the lost with a sense of urgency, or, to stand as a fork in the road.

The statement, “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God,” is indicative of a crisis proclamation, or a DTR moment (Define The Relationship). Paul is no milepost on a single road, but a fork, passionately pointing others to the narrow road that leads to life. He is not afraid to challenge people to know God because he is obsessed more by the love of Christ than he is by the fear of man. Billy Graham echoed, “A crisis man—isn’t that a tremendous thought—that when a person meets you, they are faced with making a decision one way or the other concerning Christ in you?”

Paul concludes the chapter with the most important aspect of reconciliation, that God “made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” In other words, God the Father made Christ to be regarded and treated as “sin” even though Christ himself had never sinned (Hebrews 4:15; Galatians 3:13). Because He bore our sins on the cross, believers now have a legal status of “righteousness” that comes from the Christ who “knew no sin.” God is the one who reconciles, but He has bestowed upon us the ministry of fleshing out and sharing our witness with others. Where will you be a fork in the road this week?

PRAYER

God, thank you for the righteousness that comes to us through your Son, Jesus. He alone has carried all of our sins and imputed unto us the legal status of being justified in your presence. May this good and unmerited grace that has brought us into a right union with you also constrain us to be a fork in the road for others. We thank you for the power of the Holy Spirit that enables us to do this. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion

1. Why did Paul try to persuade others to follow Christ? (2 Corinthians 5:11)
2. Why was Paul concerned about justifying his ministry to the Christians at Corinth? (v.12)
3. What motivated Paul? (v.14) How did Paul change the way he looked at people? (v.16)
4. What is true about every person in Christ? (v.17)
5. How is a Christian an ambassador? (v.20)

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The post Jim Elliot: Make Me a Crisis Man appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.” —Nehemiah 1:4

For this week’s Abiding In Him devotion, I want to share with you five things we can remember during an unprecedented time of social distancing due to the Coronavirus.

1. Remember how God defines His Church.

With church doors temporarily closing all over the country, it’s important to remember that the New Testament “church” was never defined as a building, a service time, or a particular denomination. Even though these may speak to aspects of how we gather “as” the church, they don’t define the church. Church isn’t something we go to, it’s WHO WE ARE as God’s body—practically His hands and feet in a broken world. The inconvenience of the Coronavirus gives us an opportunity to pause and remember WHO WE ARE as “salt” (a preserving agent) in the world today (Matthew 5:13). We are thankful for the technology of Zoom and WhatsApp that has helped us to continue to fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, but we’ve also had time to have refreshing conversations about church as our identity, and not merely just a place in which we gather. Jesus is building His Church. HE is the UNCONQUERABLE King advancing an UNSTOPPABLE kingdom, of which the gates of hell will never prevail against. His throne hasn’t been rattled by this Coronavirus—it remains UNSHAKEN (Hebrews 12:27). Be encouraged by that, and remember WHO YOU ARE as His beloved.

2. Remember that discipleship begins in our homes.

According to scripture, parents are to be the primary disciplers of their children. In some ways, that idea can get lost in our Western Christian paradigms. This is a great time to be mindful that God never intended for you to outsource the discipleship of your children to “the trained professionals.” Take this time to get into God’s Word together. You don’t need to have all the answers to questions that arise from your Bible discussions together. In fact, your kids will respect your example more when you admit that you don’t have all the answers about the infinitely complex Creator of this universe. With such a BIG GOD, there is supposed to be room for wonder and mystery. It’s those who think they have all the answers that reveal their perception of God is very small, especially if God can be entirely explained by such finite human minds. The enigma of Isaiah 55:8-9 reveals that our God is so much bigger than our limited comprehension. David never considered the size of Goliath because he knew the size of his God was beyond comprehension. You are a disciple-maker right now, right where you are. That’s the mission of the Church. You can be about your Father’s business in your own home. Git-R-Done!

3. Remember the lostness of our world.

This week, I read that in Iran, a person dies from Coronavirus every 10 minutes. Let the thought of tens of thousands of people dying and slipping into eternity break your heart—especially as it pertains to those who are lost without Christ. Nehemiah’s heart broke for the things that broke God’s heart. I wrote a book about this called “Shapers.” When Nehemiah had his heart broken, he didn’t spring into his construction and renovation project immediately. He spent four months in isolated prayer. His social distancing prepared him for an unimaginable work that later contributed to reviving a whole nation. Once he was catapulted from that prayer chamber, in God’s right timing, all of the provision (the king’s throne) of the kingdom of Persia stood behind him. God gave him the favor of a pagan king with unlimited resources to do the job. Imagine the kind of gospel influence that can emerge from this present crisis when the church is catapulted back into everyday societal norms with a renewed missional focus. We have a much bigger throne behind us than a pagan king!!! Pray for God to break your heart for what breaks His, and to give you a renewed vision for how you can be His witness to gospel-destitute souls.

4. Remember that there are still ways to serve our neighbors and the marginalized, the underserved, and those at risk, even when we are “social distancing.”

Compassion hasn’t been canceled. Kindness hasn’t been canceled. Generosity hasn’t been canceled. As part of our normal programs throughout the calendar year, Breakaway Outreach helps to provide holistic supplementation (including meals, nutrition, and hygiene) for at-risk children affected by economic insecurity in our area. As Coronavirus affects closures to schools and after school programs, we are working creatively with others in our network to make sure no kiddos go hungry or get neglected of wellness resources. I’ve been inspired by many stories of altruism this week—churches utilizing their buildings to serve children of healthcare professionals who are working tirelessly around the clock, college students going grocery shopping for vulnerable elderly folks so they don’t have to risk leaving their homes, young people organizing donation centers to get food and supplies to low income families who don’t have the privilege of being able to stockpile goods. There are ways we can serve others without being exposed to large crowds. This requires getting quiet before God and letting Him speak into our hearts about how we can creatively flesh out compassion and generosity in such a time as this.

5. Remember to pray through a scriptural lens.

Many people have been asking, “Why is God allowing this?” Though our tendency may be to pray for God to just miraculously take away this plague and all of the inconveniences and suffering it brings, it’s also important to search the scriptures and pray according to God’s Word (the final authority in every aspect of a believer’s life). Dr. Roger Barrier has written a worthy response to why God allows plagues and how we should respond through the lens of scripture (our family had a great discussion and prayer time together while navigating this post). Sometimes it was to abolish idolatry, confront arrogance, reveal sin and disobedience, or lead people to repentance. Regardless of how we interpret the reason for this pandemic, and I try to be very careful about making assumptions, we should be earnest about praying for God’s purposes to be accomplished through manifold unknowns. We should pray for God to convict hearts, reveal sin, confront our personal and cultural idols, bring hearts to repentance, and draw people to Himself. We should pray for miracles. We should pray boldly for protection. We should pray for healing where there is infection. We should expect God to show forth His power, yet not to the neglect of spiritual introspection and biblical examination of ourselves. We should pray for the Holy Spirit to show us things we need to see about our communities, our nation, the world, and ourselves. If we do this, we may even see a major revival on the other end of this global crisis.

Think about these five things as you seek to abide in Him during times of social distancing.

PRAYER

Father, remind us that there is a purpose to every season in life. No matter what we face, we can be assured that You are on the throne, sovereign over all things. We trust Your heart, even in our constraints. We seek Your heart for the things that need to break ours. Holy Spirit, revive our prayer life. Confront our idols. Convict us of sin. Lead us to repentance. Bring healing through confession. Give us a healthy ecclesiastical identity and stir our missional creativity for discipleship. Show us our place in this moment, and remind us that we were made for such a time as this. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Reflection, Small Group or Family Discussion:

1. What has been the hardest part of your social distancing during the Coronavirus emergency? What has been positive?
2. Of the five things listed above that are worth remembering, which one most resonates with you in this moment?
3. Read Nehemiah 1:1-11. What was significant about Jerusalem’s walls of protection being destroyed? How did Nehemiah react to the news about suffering Jerusalem and the exiles? (Nehemiah 1:4)
4. How did Nehemiah describe God in his prayer (Nehemiah 1:5)? What are the benefits of focusing on the attributes of God?
5. What is the major theme of Nehemiah’s prayer? On whose behalf did Nehemiah pray and fast? What specific request did Nehemiah ask God to grant him? What can we learn from Nehemiah’s prayer life that may help us during this pandemic?

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The post Coronavirus and Social Distancing: 5 Things to Remember appeared first on Jimmy Larche.