Text Jonah 1:1 Opening Statement: Let us start our time today with a pop quiz. • Zacchaeus climbed ----------- • Adam and ----------------------- • Noah and ------------------------ • Daniel and ----------------------- • Ammishad’dai and ------------- • Jonah and ------------------------ In less than fifty verses of scripture, there is a storm at sea, the conversion of idolatrous sailors, a miraculous rescue, a song of praise, the repentance of a brutal nation, the unique revelation of God’s relationship to unbelieving Gentiles, a disobedient Jew, and uses of all sorts of nonhuman creations – the wind, a fish, a vine, a worm, and cattle. The book of Jonah is much more than a Whale of a Tale. I) The Evidence that God is at Work A) Why Should we Believe this Story to be True? Because Jonah is not make-believe. He was a real man, living in a real time, with a real challenge on his hands. Jonah, in fact, has already been around for quite a while. He was the court prophet for Jeroboam II who reigned in the northern kingdom of Israel 750 years before the birth of Christ. (II Kings 14:25). This verse collaborates the time and place of Jonah’s ministry. II Kings even mentions his hometown which would become known during the days of Christ as Galilee. B) Why don’t Some Believe this Story to be True? There is little wonder that Satan has attempted throughout history to make the book of Jonah the butt of many jokes and sneers. Let me briefly lay out a few of their objections. 1. They object to the abundance of miracles in the book of Jonah. 2. They consider Jonah a fairytale because of the strange unique mission of Jonah. 3. Their objection is that Jonah uses some words that seem incompatible with his vocabulary. II) The Evidence of God’s Call (Jonah 1:1) “Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai” A) Key Lessons about Jonah Jonah is the Hebrew word for “dove”. So, this is a man whose name was the symbol of peace, sent as a messenger to extend the olive branch to a nation headed for destruction. Jonah, the “dove,” is about to be commissioned by the Emperor of Heaven to serve as the ambassador of peace. Jonah the son of Amittai” which meant “the messenger of peace, the son of truth”. Here is the messenger of peace who is going to tell the truth. “If you don’t repent, you will be destroyed.” We cannot have peace with God unless we believe the truth of God. B) Key Lessons from Jonah 1. Be alert – God has delivered His word to us as well. Have you ever thought about the fact that the word of the Lord has come to you too? It has it is right here we call it the Bible. God has spoken. So, be alert to what God has spoken to you through His word – it will equip you for life. 2. Be encouraged – God can use anyone and anything to accomplish His will. Jonah shows us how God use pagan sailors, a storm at sea, a plant and a worm, a fish, and a stubborn prophet. So, be alert and be encouraged God can use you too. 3. Be careful – past obedience does not guarantee future obedience. Think about it – Jonah had years of faithful service as a prophet of God and we have only one verse about it in II Kings, but he has a couple months of failure, and we have a book on it. I am grateful that God did not give us a book on Jonah’s successes and one verse on his failures. We would not learn nearly enough of what we need in our own struggle with obedience. This is a book for saints who get it wrong. This is a book to warn and amaze and thrill and challenge us to get it right. Watch us on our YouTube channel, our website or our Facebook page https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi7C66QudDzbTDtA-DaSQBw/ https://midwaybaptistnc.org https://facebook.com/midwaybaptistnc