IS YOUR GARDEN IN DISREPAIR?

Isaiah 58:11 (NLT) 11 The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.

The other day I went golfing with some friends from church.  After being in the heat for 4+hours (and not playing very well) I was spent and dehydrated.  That night, I kept drinking water to hydrate my body because I was so depleted.

Do you ever feel like that spiritually?  Do the cares of life deplete your soul?  Are you experiencing a desert experience right now and perhaps feel far from God?  Do you feel dry and thirsty for a spiritual renewal?

For me, I know I have been there numerous times and have been in need of a spiritual drenching that can only come through the Holy Spirit.

Here's something to think about  - How well is your vessel able to hold the anointing that comes from God?  In other words, when blessings come your way - are you able to hold on to and contain the blessings or are their leaks and cracks that empty your vessel before you even leave the parking lot at the church?

I've seen where God's spirit touches a worship service and fills the cups of those worshipping to overflowing.  And yet, for some, they lose that anointing quickly because their life is filled with many cracks and holes and they are not able to "contain" that anointing within their lives.

The character flaws, the inconsistencies of spiritual disciplines, the lure of money and power, the heart of unforgiveness and the temptations of this world all drain the anointing and filling that God gave has given to us.

Then there are others who can receive "a little from the Lord" and ride that wave for weeks upon weeks.  They are able to milk the precious anointing of the Holy Spirit in their lives and pull out everything promise that God has given them and even believe for more.

In fact, it is a lot like the story of the little boy who gave what he had to the Lord (his lunch) and God multiplied it to feed the multitudes who needed to be fed.

It seems instead that the anointing is increased in their lives and not depleted and they grow stronger and stronger.

“Yet the righteous will hold to his way, And he who has clean hands will be stronger and stronger.”  Job‬ ‭17:9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬


We all desire a "well-watered garden."  The thought of it invokes a garden that is lush and green and vibrant.  It is producing fruit and bringing much satisfaction to those attending it.

But we are all aware of when there are times that gardens die because of a lack of care or a lack or water.

May I be bold enough to say that it is not the lack of water in many of our lives but the lack of attention to our garden that has brought on the drought.  The Holy Spirit comes and saturates our soul but our garden is in disrepair and needs to be fixed in order to contain the anointing.

There are many crying out for God to bring His rain into their lives and yet they don't realize that the rain has been there but their life is filled with leaks.

My prayer is this: that all of us would look at our containers today and see if we are capable of holding the anointing. We must examine ourselves and "fix" that which is broken.

“Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah.” Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭3:19-20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

THE 5 WOUNDS OF JESUS

“Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah‬ ‭53:4-5‬ ‭NKJV

I don't think that we are always mindful of what Christ did for each of us - giving Himself to die on the cross that we too might have life eternal.

I am humbled again and again as I read passages of scripture like this that remind me of the pain and suffering that He endured that we might be forgiven of our sins.

Actually, if you read the whole of Isaiah 53 you will see 5 WOUNDS THAT JESUS ENDURED FOR US.

Wounds: Webster’s dictionary says this about wounds …’An injury to the body that involver laceration or breaking of the skin.’ According to a classification by the medical profession, wounds are shown in at least five ways.

The amazing thing here that in the phrase "He was wounded" there is included all the five wound concerning the suffering of Christ.

1.  The Contused Wound

This is a wound produced by a blunt instrument, a blow, by a rod.

This was fulfilled in:

“Then they began to spit in Jesus’ face and beat him with their fists. And some slapped him,” Matthew‬ ‭26:67‬ ‭NLT‬‬

2. The Lacerated Wound 

A wound produced by a tearing instrument. Lacerations in Jesus suffering were produced by scourging or whipping. The scourge was made of thongs each tipped with bone or metal.

In the hands of an expert the recipient could say.. 

“My back is covered with cuts, as if a farmer had plowed long furrows.” Psalms‬ ‭129:3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting.” Isaiah‬ ‭50:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This was fulfilled in:

“So Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified.” Matthew‬ ‭27:26‬ ‭NLT‬‬

3. The Penetrating Wound   

This is awound produced by a sharp pointed instrument.’

The crown of thorns produced this kind of wound upon the head of Jesus. It is said the Jerusalem thorn bore sharp spike like projections up to 4 inches in length.

“So Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified...They wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head, and they placed a reed stick in his right hand as a scepter. Then they knelt before him in mockery and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!”” Matthew‬ ‭27:26, 29‬ ‭NLT‬‬

4. The Perforating Wound

This is a wound produced by a piercing instrument. Perforating comes from a Latin word ‘to pierce through.’

“My enemies surround me like a pack of dogs; an evil gang closes in on me. They have pierced my hands and feet.” Psalms‬ ‭22:16‬ ‭NLT‬‬
 
The nails were driven into Jesus’ hands and feet. They were driven between the bones, separation, perforating the flesh. The way Jesus died was not a normal way.

5. The Incised Wound

This wound was a deep cut produced by a sharp edged instrument.

“One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” John‬ ‭19:34‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This wound was the last one upon the body of Jesus and was inflicted with the practiced hand of the Roman soldier to make certain that whatever life was present would be put out. This wound was quite large, for in:

“Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!”” John‬ ‭20:27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

"Doubting Thomas" had reservation about Jesus.  To prove His identity Jesus had Thomas place his hand into the wound on Jesus' side.  Jesus then tells him to no doubt any more and just "believe."

We must all come to that point of belief in Jesus and what He did for all of us - the whole world.

Let us be like Thomas…John 20:28 and cry out as he did in worship and adoration…. “My Lord and My God!”

We should daily thank God for his provision and sacrifice to take away all our sins.  Thank God for His wounds.

Original Sermon by Tony Abram

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD

Psalm 46:10 (NLT) 10 "Be still, and know that I am God!"

Life is hectic and busy.  Our days are filled meetings and schedules.  We rush from one thing to another only to wonder what happened to the day.  Do you relate?  Does that describe your life?

I know it does for me.  And, if I allow it to - it will keep going on and on with no end in sight.  It is like a being on a treadmill, going nowhere.

The Author C.S. Lewis wrote, “The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists of shoving it all back, in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.” 

We can allow life to crowd out time with God, or we can choose to spend some quality time with Him each and every day.

We all need to take an opportunity to step aside from the busyness of life and just be still in the presence of God.

In the fast, busy, do it now, instant world that we live in, we need to press pause, be still and pray.

Our scripture this morning says, “Be still, and know that I am God!” 

I think it’s fair to say that all of us need to take a little more time each day to be still don’t we?

We need to avoid getting so caught up in our own agenda that we force God out of the way.

Be honest - we are more concerned about getting our task done than to spend that quality time with God.

Hebrews 4:16 reminds us to come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

When we take the time to be still, when we take the time to pray, God listens. 

God is always available, He is never too busy to listen, but too often we lose our focus, God is meant to be at the center of our lives, not pushed to the side or ignored. 

We need to be still and pray and draw near to Him. We need to be a people of prayer. We need to come before God with our thanks, our requests, our praise, our adoration, our confession of sin, our prayers for guidance. We need to take the time to experience the presence of God in our lives.

It is said that prayer changes things. I also believe prayer also changes the pray er, the person who prays.

In His presence we receive comfort, we receive strength, we receive peace, we receive guidance. Prayer must be central to our lives, we must never allow ourselves to be too busy to pray. Our deepest needs are met by God through prayer.

A Christian life without prayer is like a sports car without fuel - it may look impressive and powerful but it will not go anywhere.

Satan hates it when God’s people pray. He is happy when we allow other things to get in the way so that we do not take the time to pray.

Maybe some people find it easier to act Christian than to spend time with God in prayer. 

But God desires a real relationship with us. We need to spend time talking to Him.

And... it should be quality time - not just thirty seconds here, or two minutes there.

Time with God is never wasted time. We must make time for Him. God wants us to pray to Him and meet with Him. 

We must never be too busy to be still.

Examine your day, what have you filled it with that you have made more important than time with God?

Take a step back, look at your activities, and plan to put God in first place on your list. God should be first - before everything and everyone else - not last.

Jeremiah 29:13 says If you look for God wholeheartedly, you will find Him.

Matthew 7:7-8 says “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened”

Are you looking?

Are you asking?

Are you seeking?

Are you receiving?

Are you praying?

When trouble comes do you pray?

When your driving, pray!

When you wake up, pray!

When you go to sleep, pray!

Be still and pray.  Be active and pray. But remember to make time to pray!

God is calling us to an abundant life, a life of prayer. 
Prayer is important to God and it should be important to you and to me.

Some of our problems may be small, but others are big, but God can help you in every situation.

God’s power is greater than anything in all this world. 

Take the time to pray.

Make time to be still and know that He is God.

HOW GOD WORKS FOR GOOD FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM

One of the most encouraging verses in the entire Bible is found in Paul’s letter to the Christians living in extreme persecution in the city of ancient Rome.

Romans 8:28 NLT - And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

To be honest, as I was growing up, I didn’t necessarily like this verse.  It seemed as if some Christians would use it in the most inappropriate places.  You would be hurting and glibly they would say, “Well, you know... that all things work together for good to those who love God.”  I felt, during those times, that I wanted to stuff that verse down their throat. (Just keeping it real).

But over the years I have come to love this verse and what it really means. I have discovered that there are many ways that God works things together for good in our lives, even when we wouldn’t have expected.  Look at these 10 Ways That God Causes Everything To Work Together For God…

1. He Provides

One of the most amazing things I have discovered over the years is that God truly provides even in the midst of extraordinarily difficult circumstances. And... He does so in ways that I never would have expected.

Many times He has taken me through a path of loss only to bring me into pasture of abundance. God gives, and He takes away. But I have always found that He ends up giving me more than He has taken.

And... most of the time, He would not have been able to bless me if He had not first taken away those things I thought I needed at the time.

Philippians 4:19 NLT - “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.”

2. He Changes Hearts

God actually has the super-amazing ability to change hearts. At times he has changed my heart to conform with His perfect plan. At other times I have seen him change the hearts of others in order to accomplish His will in my life.

Proverbs 21:1 NLT - “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the LORD; he guides it wherever he pleases.”

3. He Protects

Even as God protected the Children of Israel in the midst of the plagues in Egypt, I have seen God protect my family and other Christians who have been in the midst of extreme hardship.

There have been times in my life in which I have felt like I was experiencing a setback. But after allowing time to sort things out, I was able to see that God was actually taking me out of the way of a greater harm that could have befallen me. God was truly protecting me.

Jeremiah 24:6-7 (NLT) ⁶  I will watch over and care for them, and I will bring them back here again. I will build them up and not tear them down. I will plant them and not uproot them. ⁷  I will give them hearts that recognize me as the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me wholeheartedly.

4. He Empowers

Another profound thing I've seen over the years is that God has the ability to empower me through challenging events in a way that I never could have experienced otherwise.

God will never leave us or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6) and He tends to give us the greatest amount of his divine power when life is in those darkest hours.

5. He Confounds the Enemy

When you feel that someone is tormenting you, and they just seem to be "getting away with it," you can dismiss that notion from your mind.

Even when you cannot see what God is doing, you can rest assured that He is at work—even in the hearts and minds of your enemies.

Justice reigns, and He has the ability to confound the works of the wicked.

2 Chronicles 20:22 (NLT) ²²  At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves.

6. He Strengthens

A famous theologian once made the statement, "Whatever doesn't kill us will make us stronger." OK, that was not actually theologian. It was Arnold Schwarzenegger!

But God clearly uses adversity to make us stronger. The key is to run TO God and not AWAY from Him in times of trials.

God has used trials to strengthen me over the past several decades to the point that I can now withstand hardships that would have crushed me when I was a young man. I am thankful for His spiritual strength which He has imparted to me through those trials.

7. He Builds Your Character

Nothing purifies our character and motives quite like the fiery furnace of trials and tribulations. And it is important for you to know that we all NEED that type of refining.

God uses pain to turn us into clean, pure vessels for His use.

8. He Heals

Just as God allowed Lazarus to die so that He could demonstrate His power over death by raising him back to life (John 11), at times God allows us physical maladies so that He can heal us for His glory.

He is the Great Physician and has the ability to heal when that is what is best in your particular situation. And I have seen His healing in ways that have convinced me that He is truly in control.

9. He Gives You Wisdom

I don't have an exact measuring tool here, but I would estimate that 90% of the wisdom I have gained over my last several decades of adulthood have come during hardship—and not when times were easy.

When we are dialed in to God, He can use pain and difficult times to help us to learn about life in ways that we never could have experienced in times of bliss.

10. He Gives Purpose and Direction

God often gives us direction and purpose by pointing us on a certain path in the midst of hardship.

God can pull you through the storm and into a bright new day of ministry like you've never experienced thus far in your life.

God is good, and He can work all of the events of your life into a great masterpiece—if you let Him.

Proverbs 16:9 (NLT) ⁹  We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.

May God give you much grace as you learn how God causes all things to work together for good.  If you are going through a storm today – trust God.  Look to Him and the bigger picture that you don’t see.

1 John 4:4 (NLT) ⁴  But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.

DEALING WITH FEAR

“This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”” Joshua‬ ‭1:9‬ ‭NLT‬

Over my lifetime I have met and ministered to many people and many needs.  I don't think, however, that I have ever seen so many discouraged people than I have seen of late.

People are not happy, discontented and miserable.  They are afraid. They can't find any peace and satisfaction in life.  What's going on?

Joshua was facing one of the most difficult times of his life.  He had just been commissioned to lead a nation of gripping, complaining people to the promised land.  

In fact, their lack of contentment in earlier years had cost them an extra 40 years wandering in the wilderness.

God tells Joshua to be strong.  Why is the Lord telling him or us to be strong?  It is this - He knew that we can easily lose our resolve in the face of the enemy.  God knew that Joshua had more on his plate than he would know how to handle.  He knew that he must be "strong" in order to accomplish the purposes of God.

Taking on this enormous task was going to take perseverance.This was not going to happen overnight. Becoming possessors of the Promised Land was going to take a long time.

If he was to be a successful leader, Joshua needed to possess an absolute resolve.

Now, even though God tells Joshua to be strong, it was not going to be because of his own power. The secret of his success was not his strength, but in the fact that he would be dependent on the Lord’s strength.

Success would come because the Lord was with him.

Joshua could be strong. He should be strong because the battle was the Lord’s.

He could count on the Lord’s strength and His assistance.  After all, this was the Lord’s work, not his.

Not only was Joshua told to be strong but he was also told to be courageous.

Now I ask a similar question… Why does God tell us to be courageous? Frankly, it is because we get scared a lot. We fear the process and the consequences.

And as a result… Fear can paralyze us.

Whether we feel apprehensive, anxious, scared or petrified, God calls on us to have courage.

The Lord repeats this command over and over because we are so easily frozen by fear. The task God has given can seem so massive, there is a definite temptation to run the other way.

Whatever fills us with fear, we are to stop ourselves and find new courage. It is available. It is available because God provides it. God is with us.

We will move forward, no matter what distresses us. We will move forward because God has promised to be with us.

General John Gavin who was the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and the Commander-in-Chief of US European Command was asked what was it like to be in charge of so many and various forces. His response went like this…

“I often feel like the director of a cemetery. I have a lot of people under me, but nobody listens.”

Joshua had to be concerned about the same thing. Would people listen? Would they listen to him? Would they listen or be distracted in the midst of the conflict?

It was a legitimate concern.  I'm sure that he was filled with fear.

When God promises His Presence, it is always enough.

The sole source of our strength and our courage is the Lord’s Presence. Our trust in Him is to be unshakeable, no matter how great the tasks may seem.

This verse gives us 11 of the most important words that you will ever know... "For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

I don't have to be afraid of today or tomorrow because God will be with me wherever I go.  That's His promise and He doesn't break His promises.  Joshua needed to hear these words and so do we.  

We need to be reminded of God's provision and promise.  We need to be reminded that we are not in this battle alone.  God is with us - always.  We can trust Him to bring us completely through whatever trial we may be facing. Victory is ours!

WHEN THE WHEELS FALL OFF THE BUS

“When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” Psalm 11:3

There have been a number of times in my life where I entered into a "great trial."  This is not the normal everyday trial but it is when the wheels come off the bus and life is thrown into great chaos.  The way I handled those times and seasons made all the difference in the world.

Psalm 11:3 addresses this by asking "When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

We don’t know exactly when David wrote this psalm. Many writers connect it to the time when Saul chased David in the wilderness (1 Samuel 23:13-14), but we can't be sure. We know the psalm comes at a desperate moment when his enemies seemed to be closing in on him and his friends encouraged him to run away.
    
When the foundations are destroyed, there are many things the righteous can do, but above everything else, they must first get a right view of God. 
  
As we look at the first three verses that describe David’s predicament, let’s consider the commitment we must make as we face an uncertain future.

1. We Will Not Flee

“I have taken refuge in the Lord. How can you say to me, ‘Escape to the mountain like a bird!’” (v. 1)

Sometimes the Lord calls you to stand and face whatever comes. Yes, there are times when we need to flee, but there are times when we must stand and fight. 

When David’s friends encouraged him to flee the country, he replied, “I have taken refuge in the Lord.” If God cannot protect him, then running to Egypt won’t keep him safe. 

I apply that same principle to the current moral crisis in America. I have no doubt that things will get worse in the near future. Open hostility toward Christians will increase. 

Some will lose their jobs because of their convictions. Others will find their careers stymied because of overt anti-Christian hatred. 

Increasingly believers will be marginalized and ridiculed. Christians who dare to speak out against the prevailing tide will be vilified on social media. Some will receive threatening phone calls. They will discover that other Christians don’t want to be around them.

All of this was foretold in the New Testament. Truly the “perilous times” of 2 Timothy 3 are upon us.

How will we respond? Will we run and hide? Will we flee from the battle?

Sometimes you have to stand and fight. You may lose the battle. You may be wounded. You may not survive.

We have to stand and fight for what we believe.We leave the results in God’s hands.’

As they say in the Coast Guard, “You have to go out. You don’t have to come back.”

2. We Will Not Fear 

“For look, the wicked string the bow; they put the arrow on the bowstring to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart” (v. 2).

In this case David is being quite literal. At one point Saul tried to kill David with a spear. Later he sent his army after him. The arrows they were shooting were not metaphorical. When those arrows hit, they drew blood.

It’s always good to know what you are up against. That way you won’t be surprised when trouble comes.

3. We Will Not Fret

“When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (v. 3)

The word translated “foundations” refers to the moral and spiritual underpinnings of any society. What can the righteous do when the foundations crumble beneath them?

Do they quit? Do they despair? Do they run away? Do they become bitter? Do they resort to violence?

4. We Will Look To God

What will the righteous do? What can we do?

What do you do when the foundations are destroyed? Answer: It all depends on how big your God is.

If you’ve got a small God, you’ve got a big problem. If you’ve got a big God, you'll be okay even when the bad guys seem to be winning.
  
But in times like these, we need God first and foremost. When the foundations are being hacked away, we’ve got to go back to the First Principles. That’s what David does in verses 4-7.

Notice that in the midst of this trial David acknowledges God's presence...

“The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven” (v. 4).

This is David’s way of saying God is everywhere. He’s on the earth (in his holy temple), but his throne is in heaven. I admit that it doesn’t always look that way. When you read the headlines, it can seem as if the whole world is spinning out of control. 

We believe there is a God who sits on the throne of the universe, a God who is absolutely sovereign, a God whose ways are far above our ways, a God to whom the whole human race must someday give account.

Was God shocked by the murders in Charleston? Was God caught by surprise by the crisis in Greece? Was God unprepared for the Supreme Court decision?

The answer to all such questions is a resounding no. Our God is never surprised, never asleep, never startled by evil, never shocked by natural disasters, and never astonished by Supreme Court decisions.
  
Where is God? He’s not nervously pacing heaven wondering, “Who will I get to replace Uzziah?” Not at all. At that critical moment, God is where he has always been. Seated on his throne.

Verses 4-6 state... “His eyes watch; He examines everyone. The Lord examines the righteous and the wicked. He hates the lover of violence. He will rain burning coals and sulfur on the wicked; a scorching wind will be their portion."

No one gets away with anything.  God will have the last word. God knows exactly what is going on.

God sees everything. He reads every heart. He knows every thought. He hears the words whispered in the darkness. He knows us better than we know ourselves.

“For the Lord is righteous; He loves righteous deeds. The upright will see His face” (v. 7).

Follow after God with all your heart.  Yes, the foundations might seem to be shaken right now but God will have the last word over your life and eventually over world events.

Today we walk by faith. Today we stumble along through this life. Today we struggle.

But today is not the last day. There is a better day coming for the people of God when all will be made right. 

“When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

Make no mistake. The foundations are being destroyed right in front of our very eyes. Long-held moral values are being jettisoned in favor of a new morality that is really no morality at all.

When the foundations are being destroyed, we need a fresh view of God and a long view of history. God who sees all things will judge the wicked and bring them down in the end, and the righteous will see God’s face.

THE RESULT OF RUNNING FROM GOD

“Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.” But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the LORD. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the LORD by sailing to Tarshish. (‭Jonah‬ ‭1‬:‭2-3‬ NLT)

I've always been fascinated by the story of Jonah and the big fish that swallowed him.  As a young boy I remember my Sunday School teacher telling this story with flannel graphs and illustrations which made my imagination run wild.

In “Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie,” there is a scene where Jonah is sitting in the belly of a whale, and some angels appear out of nowhere and began explaining to Jonah how God wanted to give him a second chance to be obedient; and thus, they broke out into song about the God of second chances.

What’s really neat is how the artists animated some sailing ships that were swallowed by the whale. While the angels were singing about the God of second chances, the masts of the ships formed the backdrop, and they were in the shape of crosses; thus, communicating how each of us has a second chance through Jesus Christ.

God told Jonah to preach in the city of Nineveh, but Jonah was disobedient and ran away. Our passage states that he fled to the city of Tarshish from the seaport of Joppa. The distance from Joppa to Nineveh was nearly 700 miles; however, the distance from Joppa to Tarshish was about 2200 miles! Tarshish was on the Spanish peninsula and Nineveh was in Assyria; therefore, these two cities were on the complete opposite sides of the known world at that time.

Jonah did a complete U-turn and went in a totally opposite direction of God’s will. Because the Lord asked him to do something that he didn’t want to do and that he didn’t understand, he deliberately disobeyed. When Jonah fled to Tarshish he went three times the distance that God had asked him to journey when he was commanded to preach in the city of Nineveh.

You see, when we are in deliberate defiance to God, our guilt can sometimes result in running as far away from the Lord as we can possibly get. We will try to run from God, because we are hoping we can hide from His face. For example, in the story of the Prodigal Son, we read that the prodigal fled to “a far country” (Luke 15:13). We can certainly run from the Lord, but we absolutely cannot hide from His presence; no way, no how.

I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. (‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭7-10‬ NLT)

We might choose to run from the Lord; but even if we do, we will still have to come face to face with God at some point or another and reckon with Him.

I want to briefly point out what happens when we run from the Lord. In verse 3, we read that “He went down to Joppa . . . and [he] went down into the [ship].” We are going to notice later in the story that he also went “down into the sea,” and “down into the belly of a great fish.”

Whenever we run from the Lord we wind up going down, and still farther down, until we hit rock bottom. 

When we do our own thing this will only lead to death and destruction, for we read in Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” 

Acting apart from the will of God is what the Bible calls sin, and Romans 6:23 tells us, “The wages of sin is death,” meaning spiritual death. As we will see, because Jonah ran from the Lord and entered a downward spiral, he was going to have a brush with death.

Jonah Was Given a Second Chance (1:4; 1:17; 2:1-2; 2:10)

1:4 – 4 But the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up.

1:17 – 17 Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

2:1-2 – 1 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly. 2 And he said: “I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, and He answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and You heard my voice.”

2:10 – 10 So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Here we see Jonah’s brush with death that resulted from his disobedience to God. As Jonah sailed for Tarshish, a terrible storm arose that threatened the lives of everyone on board the ship. If we take a look at verse 7, we read that the men cast lots (or gambled), in order to find out who brought the disaster upon them, and the lot fell on Jonah; and then in verse 15, we see that they threw Jonah overboard in order to save their own lives, and they abandoned him to die at sea.

You would think that things couldn’t get any worse for Jonah, with the storm and being tossed overboard, but next we see that Moby Dick came along and gobbled him up. We read here that a great fish swallowed Jonah and he was in the belly of the fish for three days and nights.

We don’t know exactly what this fish was; however, most children’s stories call the fish a whale. As I like to say, God made a fish just Jonah's size.

In chapter 2, verses 1-2, we read that Jonah was in the belly of sheol - the Hebrew word for "grave."  For Jonah - it was a spiritual grave until he came into obedience to God's call on his life.

This great fish swallowing Jonah was not God’s punishment; it was actually His provision to save Jonah from drowning. After Jonah’s deliberate running and outright disobedience, God had compassion on him and spared his miserable life. The Lord revealed here that He is indeed “a God of second chances.”

However, God had heard him in his state of spiritual distress, and answered him by having the fish spit Jonah out onto dry land. Whenever we are in a state of spiritual death and the grave, God hears us too when we choose to call out to Him.

You can run from God and protest His call upon your life but you will not win.  God loves you too much to allow you to go your own way.  No, He won't force you to follow Him but He will allow life to become tough and hard until you surrender fully to Him.

Jonah is a story of second chances.  It's my story and it's many of your stories.  It is a reminder that I can't run from God and be successful.  Until I surrender to His will I will never be who God wants me to be.  The sooner any of us surrender to Him - the sooner our lives will be at total peace.

THE DANGER OF NOT FOLLOWING GOD WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART

2 Chronicles 25:2 (NLT)  Amaziah did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight, but not wholeheartedly.

In reading through the Old Testament there is an interesting thing that happens when each king is introduced to us.  It’s almost like a Google rating system that went something like this – “ ___________ did what was right before the Lord.” Or… “ ___________ did what was evil before the Lord.”

The following paragraphs would then describe the good or bad traits of that king.

In describing Amaziah it changed it up by saying “Amaziah did what was pleasing to the Lord’s sight, but not wholeheartedly.”

Which is it?  Was he a good king or not?

Well, it seems that he was both.  He started out right but ended up not so good.  He had what I would refer to as a “lukewarm” heart.

King Amaziah took the throne after his father was assassinated. In fact, the last 3 rulers before Amaziah were all murdered … so he had good reason to be looking over his shoulder as he took the throne. According to the text, Amaziah had his father’s murderers executed, but he did not execute the sons of those assassins. 

That was a tactic used by most monarchs as a “security measure.” But Amaziah was obeying the Law of Moses, which said that sons were not to be punished for their fathers’ sins. In other words, so far Amaziah did what was right in God’s eyes.

Next we see Amaziah preparing to attack the bordering nation of Edom. In order to “beef up” the army, he hired 100,000 mercenaries from Israel. These were big, tough professional warriors. 

But the problem was that Israel had become unfaithful to God. God’s favor was no longer with them. And to make an alliance with an ungodly nation was against God’s law. So, a prophet came and reminded Amaziah, “It’s God who has the power to help you or overthrow you. Get rid of those mercenaries or you will lose God’s favor.”

Amaziah paid attention, but he couldn’t help hedging a bit. After all, he’d paid those mercenaries up-front and he didn’t want to lose his investment. Verse 9 tells us: Amaziah asked the man of God, “But what about the hundred talents I paid for these Israelite troops?”

This is the first hint we get that Amaziah was not whole-hearted in his desire to obey God. Now, it’s true that Amaziah was talking about a lot of money. 100 talents would be about 4 tons of precious metal. At current silver prices that would be well over $500,000 dollars.

Amaziah’s heart was set on earthly, material concerns. But the prophet re-directed his mind to focus on God and his power: The man of God replied, “The LORD can give you much more than that.”

So Amaziah obeyed God. He dismissed the mercenaries (about 25% of his entire army). And … with God’s blessing … he won a decisive military victory. But then Amaziah does something that jolts us. Verse 14 tells us that he takes the idols from Edom and sets them up. And worse than that, he worships them! 

He has just won a great victory … obviously from God’s hand. He has every reason in the world to be praising God, and God alone. But instead he turns to idols. He appeared to be running the good race --- then he made a sudden U-turn. It’s obvious that his heart has suddenly gone from LUKEWARM to downright COOL.

2 Chronicles 25:14 (NLT) 14  When King Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought with him idols taken from the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down in front of them, and offered sacrifices to them!

God’s prophet points out to Amaziah that what he’s done is not only wrong, it’s flat-out STUPID. If your army beat their army, isn’t that proof positive that your God is better than their gods? 

But Amaziah’s heart was not turned toward God. Amaziah had been influenced by the godless culture around him. In those times, people believed that when a nation won a battle it was not because their gods were stronger but because the losers’ gods abandoned them and moved to the other side. By worshipping the idols, Amaziah was thanking them for “helping out” with his victory… as if the one true God could not have done it without them.

What is most disturbing about this account is that one minute Amaziah appeared to be serving God and the next minute he was blatantly bowing down to foreign idols. Have you ever seen anything like that? 

Amaziah started out right, but he never put his whole heart into it. He started out with faith, but it was a flabby, lukewarm faith. Even after he sinned by worshipping idols, God … in his mercy … gave him another chance. But look at how he responded to the prophet’s warning to him…

2 Chronicles 25:15-16 (NLT) 15  This made the LORD very angry, and he sent a prophet to ask, “Why do you turn to gods who could not even save their own people from you?” 16  But the king interrupted him and said, “Since when have I made you the king’s counselor? Be quiet now before I have you killed!” So the prophet stopped with this warning: “I know that God has determined to destroy you because you have done this and have refused to accept my counsel.”

In other words, I don’t want to hear anything from God. If you don’t stop talking, I’ll have you executed. No small threat from a King. So the prophet summed up where Amaziah’s STONE COLD heart was going to take him.

The rest of the story goes down hill fast. The COLD-HEARTED King lurches from one disaster to another. First he attacks the northern nation of Israel and gets trounced. The Israelites capture him, then plunder the temple and the palace. After 10 years, Amaziah is released and returns to his ruined country of Judah. But, after a while, he is chased from his own palace and assassinated by his own people.

I Corinthians 10:6 tells us that these Old Testament accounts were recorded examples for us. So we need to ask: What can we learn from Amaziah’s example? 

If nothing else, Amaziah teaches us that a lukewarm heart is a dangerous thing. If left unattended, it will ultimately grow stone cold.  When we talk about the heart, we usually just think of our feelings. But when the Old Testament talks about the heart it includes not just our feelings, but our mind, our will, our entire spiritual nature. It embodies the whole life of a person.

Jesus said this was the greatest commandment: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Matthew 22:37, Deuteronomy 6:5

So, how is your heart today?  When is the last time that you had a check up from the neck up?  Is your heart soft and pliable to God or is it stone cold.  Perhaps you are in the middle and you are neither hot nor cold (which God doesn’t like).  May I encourage you today to follow and serve God with your whole heart?  He is waiting to hear from you today.