WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.879 Father, we thank you for this time and this opportunity to come before you, 00:00:04.879 --> 00:00:10.880 where we are at in life. Today we're going to open the word of God and we are 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:20.879 going to continue our study, our series on Jonah. Let us be open to you 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:28.120 speaking to us. Let us learn how important it is that we rely on you for 00:00:28.120 --> 00:00:35.000 our salvation. May we trust in you with our very lives. Our lives are but a drop 00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:40.760 in the ocean of eternity, but we are humbled by this. May we be in awe and 00:00:40.760 --> 00:00:48.120 wonder of who you are. Lord, we cannot do it without you. A life without you is 00:00:48.120 --> 00:00:55.000 no life at all. A life without you is empty. It's meaningless and futile and we 00:00:55.000 --> 00:01:02.320 wish to have a life with you. You knew us before we were born. You made us in your 00:01:02.320 --> 00:01:08.439 image and you loved us first. You gave us your son so that we can have life 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:15.079 everlasting through faith in Jesus Christ. May we be open to hear, to 00:01:15.079 --> 00:01:20.480 understand, and to apply your word here today. Lead us and guide us as you always 00:01:20.480 --> 00:01:27.240 have to have that relationship with you, to grow in you, and to go and make a 00:01:27.240 --> 00:01:34.760 difference in your name. We say this in Jesus' holy name, amen. Well good morning 00:01:34.760 --> 00:01:40.080 Ontario. It's great to be with all of you this morning. My name is Patrick Daly and 00:01:40.080 --> 00:01:45.840 I have the privilege to serve as the pastor here at Ontario Community Church. 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:54.960 Before we're going into our passage of Jonah chapter 1 verses 11 through 16, 00:01:54.960 --> 00:02:01.800 before we do that, you know there's something that's always been on my mind 00:02:01.800 --> 00:02:09.080 as a Christian and even before being a Christian. It's how God works in 00:02:09.080 --> 00:02:17.920 wonderful and mysterious ways. Some of us have a testimony that we share. Some of 00:02:17.920 --> 00:02:23.160 us have a story or we may know someone who God has worked in some incredible 00:02:23.160 --> 00:02:31.160 capacity or incredible way. Other stories, while these stories stick out, they 00:02:31.159 --> 00:02:39.759 testify for the power of who God is. What is your story? What is the story of how 00:02:39.759 --> 00:02:46.319 you came to know the Lord? Each and every one of us have a story, no matter how 00:02:46.319 --> 00:02:53.479 significant or insignificant we may think it is. It is important. It is your story. 00:02:53.479 --> 00:03:00.719 And ask yourself, have you recently shared in your testimony on how you came to 00:03:00.719 --> 00:03:06.680 know the Lord? Today I'd like to open with a question here and it's the question 00:03:06.680 --> 00:03:16.120 of do you know about God or do you know God? You see there's a difference between 00:03:16.120 --> 00:03:23.759 head knowledge and heart knowledge. Every single one of us, we have a story that we 00:03:23.759 --> 00:03:28.560 can share. We can reach and speak to different people, to different personalities 00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:38.719 and different situations. Every person that we sit next to has a story and how 00:03:38.719 --> 00:03:44.879 you share that story with someone may, it may speak to someone. I can't speak to 00:03:44.879 --> 00:03:50.719 everyone, but certainly your story can speak to someone. That's the beauty of 00:03:50.719 --> 00:03:57.280 our testimony. And this takes us into the story of where we are in Jonah and today 00:03:57.280 --> 00:04:03.080 we are going to learn about the sailors conversion story and I'm titling this 00:04:03.080 --> 00:04:11.680 sermon, Storms and Surrender. It's a conversion story. So this, we have been 00:04:11.680 --> 00:04:17.959 going over Jonah, right? We've gone over how God called Jonah and Jonah fled. He 00:04:17.959 --> 00:04:22.840 was fleeing to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord. During this series 00:04:22.839 --> 00:04:29.239 we've gone over how God called Jonah, right? Jonah fled. God hurls the 00:04:29.239 --> 00:04:34.519 storm in the efforts of Jonah running away. The sailors pray to their God and 00:04:34.519 --> 00:04:40.079 the captain rebukes him. And last week we learned about how the sailors learned 00:04:40.079 --> 00:04:47.279 about who Jonah is and the God that he worships. The sailors began to have 00:04:47.279 --> 00:04:53.399 respect and reverence the fear of the Lord. And that leads us today where we are 00:04:53.399 --> 00:04:59.959 at Jonah chapter 1 verse 11 through 16. If you turn to page 920 in your Bibles or 00:04:59.959 --> 00:05:06.639 if you're not using the ESV Pew Bible it's Jonah chapter 1 verse 11 through 16. 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:19.919 So page 920, go ahead and turn there with me. Then they said to him, what shall we do 00:05:19.919 --> 00:05:27.279 to you? That the sea may quiet down for us. For the sea grew and grew. He said to 00:05:27.279 --> 00:05:32.800 them, pick me up and hurl me into the sea. Then the sea will quiet down for you. 00:05:32.800 --> 00:05:38.439 For I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you. 00:05:38.439 --> 00:05:44.560 Nevertheless the men they rode hard to get back to dry land. What? What just 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:48.720 happened? He just told them but they keep rowing. What just happened there, right? 00:05:48.720 --> 00:05:54.400 To get back to dry land. But they could not for the sea grew more and more. 00:05:54.400 --> 00:05:59.879 They grew harder right against them. Therefore they called out to the Lord, 00:05:59.879 --> 00:06:05.839 oh Lord let us not perish for this man's life and lay not on us innocent blood. 00:06:05.839 --> 00:06:13.199 For you, oh Lord, have done as it pleased you. So they picked up Jonah and they hurled 00:06:13.199 --> 00:06:18.240 him into the sea and the sea ceased from the raging. Then the men feared the Lord a 00:06:18.240 --> 00:06:24.519 little bit. No, they feared the Lord exceedingly and they offered a sacrifice 00:06:24.519 --> 00:06:31.399 to the Lord and made vows. These are the verses. We start off these verses knowing 00:06:31.399 --> 00:06:37.039 that the sailors began to fear God. They began to have this sense of reverence, 00:06:37.039 --> 00:06:43.319 this sense of awe and wonder for who God is. They recognized that they need God. 00:06:43.319 --> 00:06:49.519 And boy oh boy don't we all need God. This is the part where the sailors they are 00:06:49.519 --> 00:06:54.399 wondering what can we do to be saved. Okay Jonah you have revealed who you are and 00:06:54.399 --> 00:07:00.079 the God that you worship. So what can I do about this? Let us not forget that once 00:07:00.079 --> 00:07:05.879 this question is asked we find that the storm is increasingly it is getting 00:07:05.879 --> 00:07:12.479 worse and worse. The time is now to make a decision. The time is now to act. There 00:07:12.479 --> 00:07:18.639 is some pretty descriptive language to use and it's there's not much more time. 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:25.000 It's interesting that Jonah says that I know why the storm is happening. He knows 00:07:25.000 --> 00:07:29.959 exactly what's going on and the sailors they want to know how do I get out of 00:07:29.959 --> 00:07:35.399 here? What must I do to get out of the storm? What an interesting response that 00:07:35.399 --> 00:07:40.399 you need to throw me into the sea so that the storm will stop? Well if we go to 00:07:40.399 --> 00:07:45.959 verse 13 we find that it says what does it say? It says that the men threw Jonah 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:51.399 into the sea and then the storm calmed down right? Is that what it says? No what 00:07:51.399 --> 00:07:56.439 does it say? It says that okay Jonah is saying you need to throw me into the sea 00:07:56.439 --> 00:08:02.719 and the storm is gonna stop and they keep rowing. Well wait a minute you just 00:08:02.719 --> 00:08:07.159 wanted you were asking the question what must I do for the storm to stop but they 00:08:07.159 --> 00:08:13.599 keep rowing. It says the word in scripture nevertheless and that word is 00:08:13.600 --> 00:08:21.120 used. It can be Jonah told them but they kept rowing on. Jonah told them what 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:26.800 needs to happen and they decided to keep going their own way or you can think of 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:32.040 it as so then they decided to go their other way and when you read through this 00:08:32.040 --> 00:08:35.840 in your Bible you cannot help but think of the question okay the storm is 00:08:35.840 --> 00:08:39.200 getting worse and Jonah is telling us what we need to do so why are they 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:44.000 rowing harder when they were just told what they need to do? It's very 00:08:44.000 --> 00:08:50.360 interesting. I think sometimes the word of God is funny. It just shows us instead 00:08:50.360 --> 00:08:54.840 of listening to Jonah and throwing him into the sea they decide to take it upon 00:08:54.840 --> 00:09:00.120 themselves and try to get to dry land on their own. My goodness doesn't this 00:09:00.120 --> 00:09:07.040 sound familiar? Doesn't this sound like our own lives when we try to row harder? 00:09:07.039 --> 00:09:13.599 Let me tell you something. If a storm is getting worse or if there let's say 00:09:13.599 --> 00:09:18.079 there's a tornado that's going on and you see it on the news you guys have seen 00:09:18.079 --> 00:09:24.439 those tornado chasers before. Now those people have got some thick skin right 00:09:24.439 --> 00:09:30.679 those people are pretty borderline courageous and crazy I don't know but 00:09:30.679 --> 00:09:35.480 it's somewhere walking the fine line. If you see a tornado do you go towards it? 00:09:35.480 --> 00:09:42.000 I sure hope not. I sure hope you don't go towards it. If there's an earthquake are 00:09:42.000 --> 00:09:48.639 you gonna go into a tall skyscraper? Absolutely not. If there's a storm that's 00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:53.920 approaching you normally want to get away from the storm or seek shelter or 00:09:53.920 --> 00:09:58.399 something but these sailors are not doing that. In fact the verse says that they 00:09:58.399 --> 00:10:03.039 are digging in and I think that's a very interesting word. I want to bring up 00:10:03.039 --> 00:10:07.799 that next slide here that says to dig in and this is going to be in your notes. It 00:10:07.799 --> 00:10:13.120 means to dig in or to row. What's interesting about that choice of words 00:10:13.120 --> 00:10:19.240 right when they're rowing harder it's the word dig in which is actually used 00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:24.799 eight times in the Old Testament and every time that verse that wording is 00:10:24.799 --> 00:10:30.879 used there is physical labor or in this case in your notes physical efforts and 00:10:30.879 --> 00:10:36.960 spiritual truth here. For example we're not going to open our Bibles I put it in 00:10:36.960 --> 00:10:42.399 your notes here for you to reference is that in Job chapter 24 it's about 00:10:42.399 --> 00:10:47.559 feeling guilty in the morning after doing wrong at night right so they're 00:10:47.559 --> 00:10:51.879 physically breaking into someone's house but they feel guilt and shame after it 00:10:51.879 --> 00:10:58.120 right the physical labor and the spiritual reaping if you will. In Jonah 00:10:58.120 --> 00:11:02.279 right we see that the sailors are fighting against the storm physically 00:11:02.279 --> 00:11:08.000 right they're fighting against that storm but they're learning it's their 00:11:08.000 --> 00:11:14.159 struggle against God that's what we as Bible believers as Christians or even as 00:11:14.159 --> 00:11:20.440 anyone who picks up a Bible can learn. In Amos chapter 9 verse 2 it teaches us 00:11:20.440 --> 00:11:25.480 that we cannot physically run away from the Lord we can't hide that it 00:11:25.480 --> 00:11:31.840 emphasizes that we cannot escape God's presence and God's judgment and Ezekiel 00:11:31.840 --> 00:11:38.320 the word is shown up the same word to dig in or to row hard right against the 00:11:38.320 --> 00:11:44.759 sea. Ezekiel is talking about uncovering the hidden sins of Israel it's shown 00:11:44.759 --> 00:11:51.399 symbolically it's showing physically digging to uncover evil so there's kind 00:11:51.399 --> 00:11:55.720 of like this connection here with the physical labor and the spiritual truth 00:11:55.720 --> 00:12:01.399 that's uncovered it reveals the spiritual truth such as the exposure of 00:12:01.399 --> 00:12:06.720 sin the struggle against God's power the inability to escape God's presence and 00:12:06.720 --> 00:12:11.840 the consequences that lead into exile is found in those later Ezekiel passages. 00:12:11.840 --> 00:12:19.120 So the sailors pray to not their gods but they pray to the Lord they're putting 00:12:19.120 --> 00:12:24.039 their hands together if it as it were they're calling out to the Lord and 00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:29.200 they're praying to him and this is the part where the sailors are proclaiming 00:12:29.200 --> 00:12:35.440 they're calling out remember for those of us who have been here before we've I've 00:12:35.440 --> 00:12:41.519 mentioned the idea of calling out to God versus crying to their gods right the 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:45.840 sailors previously were crying to their gods for help they're saying help me I'm 00:12:45.840 --> 00:12:51.879 struggling now they are proclaiming they're calling upon the Lord in the 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:58.560 same way that God wants Jonah to proclaim to the city of Nineveh I find it 00:12:58.560 --> 00:13:05.759 very interesting that the same word is used in this case they are calling upon 00:13:05.759 --> 00:13:13.000 the one true God the God that we believe in the sailors pray their prayer and I 00:13:13.000 --> 00:13:16.639 mentioned a couple weeks ago where there's a connection between the Gospel 00:13:16.639 --> 00:13:22.759 of Mark and the story of Jonah I mentioned the sea stories the disciples 00:13:22.759 --> 00:13:30.600 say save us Lord we are perishing it's almost the exact wording oh Lord let us 00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:35.759 not perish and save us Lord we are perishing it's the same language that's 00:13:35.759 --> 00:13:39.879 being used between the Old Testament and the New Testament I find that very 00:13:39.879 --> 00:13:44.159 interesting in both instances the sailors and the disciples they're calling out to 00:13:44.159 --> 00:13:48.200 the Lord that they do not perish and it's just I love how in the word of God 00:13:48.200 --> 00:13:53.439 there's that interconnection this and this leads us to another point so I'd 00:13:53.439 --> 00:14:01.639 like to make clear that when we call out to Jesus Jesus saves us in Jonah chapter 00:14:01.639 --> 00:14:05.679 1 verse 14 right they called out to the Lord right we are just going over that 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:12.399 verse in Psalm 69 save me oh God this is in your notes the waters have come up to 00:14:12.399 --> 00:14:17.639 my neck I sink in the deep mire where there is no foothold I have come into 00:14:17.639 --> 00:14:25.039 deep waters and the waters sweep over me in all of these passages we see that it 00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:30.399 is the calling out to God and that our Lord God saves us when we call upon 00:14:30.399 --> 00:14:37.000 him we are calling upon him how often do we call upon the name of Jesus Christ to 00:14:37.000 --> 00:14:43.159 save us when we are in trouble I hope that we all do in those times of crisis 00:14:43.159 --> 00:14:48.679 or in those critical times the language may be different but the exact 00:14:48.679 --> 00:14:54.039 wording is not there but the sailors are calling out to God so they end up what 00:14:54.039 --> 00:14:59.240 do they keep Jonah there on the boat longer or do they eventually throw him 00:14:59.240 --> 00:15:04.159 out they throw him out into the sea right and then what happens the storm 00:15:04.159 --> 00:15:12.560 continues right no eventually it says here that these storm calms they give 00:15:12.560 --> 00:15:20.080 their life to God this is the part where the sailors they make sacrifices the 00:15:20.080 --> 00:15:24.320 sailors do not wish to perish so they call upon the Lord it is at this moment 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:29.879 where they are saying Lord have it done as it pleased you it is there they're 00:15:29.879 --> 00:15:36.280 basically saying Lord have it your way this is the sailors surrendering to the 00:15:36.280 --> 00:15:42.520 Lord I don't think they had much of a choice if you ask me but sometimes we 00:15:42.520 --> 00:15:48.120 need to be in a storm like that to realize that our God is here with us 00:15:48.120 --> 00:15:53.920 this is part of submission it is the part of letting go and allowing for God 00:15:53.919 --> 00:16:01.319 to be in your life it is recognizing that God is in control and he will have 00:16:01.319 --> 00:16:08.279 his way there are many verses in your notes here Psalm 115 verse 3 our God is 00:16:08.279 --> 00:16:13.639 in the heavens he does all that he pleases Psalm 135 verse 6 it says 00:16:13.639 --> 00:16:17.679 whatever the Lord pleases he does these are verses that are referring to that 00:16:17.679 --> 00:16:26.000 God is going to have his way he's gonna do what he has to do they picked up Jonah 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:32.120 and they threw him into the sea this is where the sailors they feared the Lord 00:16:32.120 --> 00:16:38.399 the storm had calmed and the sailors were saved both from the literal storm 00:16:38.399 --> 00:16:45.559 and from the spiritual storm of not knowing the Lord and this we can't help 00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:50.239 but think about us for a moment here this is a story that we can take away we 00:16:50.239 --> 00:16:56.079 can learn from and we can also realize how similar is our life to these sailors 00:16:56.079 --> 00:17:01.759 do we identify with them this story is a conversion story and I believe that many 00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:08.399 of us can relate to the sailors do you know the Lord or do you just know about 00:17:08.399 --> 00:17:14.759 the Lord there's a difference between head knowledge right I may know who I 00:17:14.759 --> 00:17:22.240 may know about Tom Cruise but do I actually know Tom Cruise I may know 00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:27.000 about Beyonce and you know I let's say read about her in the tabloids or 00:17:27.000 --> 00:17:32.359 whatever but do I actually know her you see there's a difference between knowing 00:17:32.359 --> 00:17:36.680 of or knowing about somebody compared to actually knowing somebody and having 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:43.559 that intimate deeper relationship many people in churches throughout the world 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:49.279 they know about God from reading scripture right we can have that deeper 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:54.639 relationship with Christ by opening our Bibles and turning through the pages of 00:17:54.639 --> 00:18:00.319 God's Word we can see how the Old Testament is pointing to Christ we can 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:05.599 learn about how Jesus's ministry his death his burial his resurrection his 00:18:05.599 --> 00:18:11.279 miracles that he performed I don't know about you I'd love to see Christ when he 00:18:11.279 --> 00:18:17.240 walked on water I would love to see the feeding of the five thousand I would 00:18:17.240 --> 00:18:24.480 love to see someone whose death be healed to hear again that would be 00:18:24.480 --> 00:18:29.960 incredible and we hear stories about this we hear about the stories in the 00:18:29.960 --> 00:18:35.319 Word of God some of us know about God from hearing testimonies of other people 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:41.599 but again knowing about someone is different than actually knowing someone 00:18:41.599 --> 00:18:48.599 do you actually know the Lord do you have that relationship with him do you 00:18:48.599 --> 00:18:54.359 know him personally it's the difference between head knowledge and heart 00:18:54.359 --> 00:18:59.159 knowledge knowing God personally is making the decision to have Christ at 00:18:59.159 --> 00:19:04.839 the center of your life it is recognizing the power and the might of who God is 00:19:04.839 --> 00:19:10.720 it is realizing it is that sense of awe and wonder I love how the Old Testament 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:17.679 uses the fear of the Lord to be in awe and wonder if you look at the stars in 00:19:17.679 --> 00:19:26.480 the sky on a clear night and you see all the countless stars and you're like just 00:19:26.480 --> 00:19:31.240 making one star would be difficult enough I mean yeah we have technology but we 00:19:31.240 --> 00:19:36.640 can't make a star let alone millions of them or think of the microscopic 00:19:36.640 --> 00:19:40.640 organisms from the deepest parts of the sea they're quite ugly creatures if you 00:19:40.640 --> 00:19:46.279 ask me but still part of God's creation can we build a mountain like Mount 00:19:46.279 --> 00:19:55.279 Everest no we can't but the thing is it is being in awe and wonder of who God is 00:19:55.279 --> 00:20:02.440 knowing the Lord Jesus is choosing to have Christ in your heart by believing in 00:20:02.440 --> 00:20:10.319 him it is through faith many of us in this life crave for something more than 00:20:10.319 --> 00:20:17.599 the superficial the shallowness there's a lot of shallowness in our culture a lot 00:20:17.599 --> 00:20:23.920 of us crave depth to be a part of something bigger and I got to tell you to 00:20:23.920 --> 00:20:29.000 know God to be a part of the family of God to be a child of the Lord to be a 00:20:29.000 --> 00:20:35.680 part of the body of Christ that is where we find purpose that is where we find 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:43.800 life that is where we find truth when we seek God we are seeking to know and to 00:20:43.800 --> 00:20:51.200 be known by God this is a part of how we love God by seeking him in your notes 00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:58.279 here I've played that to know God is to be known by God there's many versions 00:20:58.279 --> 00:21:06.519 Galatians 4 9 now that you have come to know God or rather to be known by God 00:21:06.519 --> 00:21:12.039 how can you turn back on to the weak and the worthless elementary principles of 00:21:12.039 --> 00:21:16.519 this world in other words the shallowness or the superficial things of 00:21:16.519 --> 00:21:21.319 this earth right it's like how some people make their entire life and they 00:21:21.319 --> 00:21:27.799 build it upon their occupation or they I don't know they just find some little 00:21:27.799 --> 00:21:34.200 thing that's they seek the created but not the Creator we worship the Creator 00:21:34.200 --> 00:21:41.440 the living God first Corinthians chapter 8 verse 3 if anyone loves God he is 00:21:41.440 --> 00:21:49.160 known by God John chapter 10 verse 14 I am the good shepherd I know my own and my 00:21:49.160 --> 00:21:59.440 own know me that is why we should know the Lord and not know about the Lord or I 00:21:59.440 --> 00:22:06.559 know Jesus he's a cool guy he's a great teacher how many of us know someone who 00:22:06.559 --> 00:22:10.480 says things like that right Jesus a good teacher well yes that's true 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:16.000 Jesus Christ is a great teacher or some of us say oh yeah Jesus was a pretty 00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:20.960 cool pretty cool hippie had long hair you know just walking with his sandals 00:22:20.960 --> 00:22:27.240 there's so much more to Jesus Christ than a man with long hair wearing sandals 00:22:27.240 --> 00:22:32.319 we're talking about the Savior of humanity we're talking about someone 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:37.920 who gave salvation through his death his burial his resurrection the fact that 00:22:37.920 --> 00:22:43.560 he fulfilled so many prophecies that we find and discover in the Old Testament 00:22:43.560 --> 00:22:48.240 Christ is a great teacher but he's so much more than that that's actually how 00:22:48.240 --> 00:22:54.240 we can reach out to other people in conversations in relationships when 00:22:54.240 --> 00:23:00.279 someone says Jesus is a great teacher that's an invitation to speak to that 00:23:00.279 --> 00:23:07.560 that Christ is more than just the great teacher he's the Savior of humanity 00:23:07.559 --> 00:23:12.599 so what can we conclude here what can we take away what in the world does all of 00:23:12.599 --> 00:23:19.240 this mean to us well there's so much parallel there's so much connection that 00:23:19.240 --> 00:23:25.039 we can find in the Word of God salvation in the storms of life I'd like to show 00:23:25.039 --> 00:23:31.279 you there's gonna be a few slides here I want to show you number one the storm 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:38.799 is life without God the storm in Jonah's story it symbolizes the storm that we 00:23:38.799 --> 00:23:44.079 face in a life without God you see Jonah was running away and God hurled the 00:23:44.079 --> 00:23:49.039 storm and in the same way when we live a life without God there is a storm that 00:23:49.039 --> 00:23:57.359 is there that needs to be calmed Jesus Christ gives us peace he gives us new 00:23:57.359 --> 00:24:03.639 life and that storm that spiritual storm in this case is gone a life without God 00:24:03.639 --> 00:24:11.439 is a life lost almost like a life lost at sea with this storm we are all lost 00:24:11.439 --> 00:24:18.399 without Christ but it's like that famous song I once was lost but now and found 00:24:18.399 --> 00:24:26.639 was blind but now can see the second one is Jonas message is the gospel message 00:24:26.640 --> 00:24:31.800 Jonah speaking to the sailor represents the gospel message shared with those 00:24:31.800 --> 00:24:36.440 who do not believe yet there's many verses we don't have time to go through 00:24:36.440 --> 00:24:41.280 all of the verses but those verses in your notes is for you to read and study 00:24:41.280 --> 00:24:51.880 yourself when Jonah is saying I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord that is 00:24:51.880 --> 00:24:58.600 no different than us sharing I am a Christian and I worship Jesus Christ the 00:24:58.600 --> 00:25:05.800 son of the living God it's just sharing your faith it gives us a framework like 00:25:05.800 --> 00:25:11.080 I mentioned last week the third one is question and answer which is seeking and 00:25:11.080 --> 00:25:16.680 finding Christ the sailors are asking Jonah for a solution and Jonah responds 00:25:16.680 --> 00:25:23.320 it's much like how if a someone who doesn't know Christ who doesn't know the 00:25:23.320 --> 00:25:30.480 Lord says how do I come to salvation how do I come to know the Lord what must I 00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:37.519 do to be saved well we must respond by speaking to them and pointing them to 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:46.039 Christ now this next one is the sailors struggle is our struggle now it's a 00:25:46.039 --> 00:25:49.480 little more difficult because when you read that on the surface I want the 00:25:49.480 --> 00:25:53.879 world I'm not rowing harder on a boat what do you mean by that the sailors 00:25:53.879 --> 00:25:58.799 fail the temp to save themselves by rowing harder are much like our own 00:25:58.799 --> 00:26:04.440 efforts to live this life without the Lord I am reminded this is in your notes 00:26:04.440 --> 00:26:10.480 about Proverbs chapter 3 verse 5 through 6 right trust in the Lord with all of 00:26:10.480 --> 00:26:17.920 your head no trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own 00:26:17.920 --> 00:26:23.480 understanding what's so interesting is that God is the firm foundation in which 00:26:23.480 --> 00:26:28.039 we build our lives right like the wise man who builds his house upon the stone 00:26:28.039 --> 00:26:32.599 right when we are leaning on our own understanding it's like we're building a 00:26:32.599 --> 00:26:37.920 wall a nice fancy wall instead of a firm foundation in in the Lord it's just a 00:26:37.920 --> 00:26:43.560 very interesting how the language is like that so the sailors are trying so 00:26:43.560 --> 00:26:52.400 hard to what do it on their own they are fighting the storm right can you really 00:26:52.400 --> 00:26:57.920 fight can you row upstream my friends can you do it I mean I guess you could 00:26:57.920 --> 00:27:01.720 kind of do it for a little bit but at the end of the day the current will take 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:07.600 you down further down the river that is like when we are trying when we attempt 00:27:07.599 --> 00:27:15.519 or we think that we can go against the Lord our God our efforts well it's not 00:27:15.519 --> 00:27:19.480 gonna work and that's unfortunately what the sailors had to learn but maybe it's 00:27:19.480 --> 00:27:28.319 not so unfortunate because it shows us in scripture later we learn they couldn't 00:27:28.319 --> 00:27:34.719 do it on their own so do you really think you can let's think about that we 00:27:34.720 --> 00:27:40.799 can't do it on our own the next slide is crying out to God it represents our 00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:48.319 need for God like the sailors we need to realize we need to come to God for 00:27:48.319 --> 00:27:52.759 salvation when the sailors like I said they're rowing harder and harder 00:27:52.759 --> 00:27:57.720 eventually there comes a point where they get it they're like oh it's not 00:27:57.720 --> 00:28:06.480 working I can't do this I need God instead because when they turn to God 00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:14.000 this the calm sea happens much like in our own lives when we turn to God that 00:28:14.000 --> 00:28:22.519 storm is no longer Jonah overboard is a representation of Christ's sacrifice now 00:28:22.519 --> 00:28:27.000 this is very interesting the sailors throwing Jonah into the sea it is a 00:28:27.000 --> 00:28:33.519 foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice on the cross to calm the storms in our 00:28:33.519 --> 00:28:42.559 lives right there was a command by from Jonah to throw out Jonah right if you 00:28:42.559 --> 00:28:49.759 will but think of it like this think of you need to get rid of your own way so 00:28:49.759 --> 00:28:57.319 that you can receive salvation you need to throw out your pride you need to throw 00:28:57.319 --> 00:29:03.920 out this old belief in other words in more simplistic terms you need to turn 00:29:03.920 --> 00:29:08.359 to Jesus instead of trying to do it on your own it's just a nice little 00:29:08.359 --> 00:29:14.079 representation here perhaps it can mean turning away from your sin as well 00:29:14.079 --> 00:29:20.839 throwing the sin overboard if you will now mind you we're all sinners we need to 00:29:20.839 --> 00:29:27.359 turn to Christ first and foremost but we do need to turn from our sin as well the 00:29:27.359 --> 00:29:34.839 next one is the calm sea and peace in Christ the calming of the storm 00:29:34.839 --> 00:29:41.159 symbolizes the peace and security that we find in accepting Christ do you 00:29:41.160 --> 00:29:47.000 realize that by accepting Christ your life will no longer be the same do you 00:29:47.000 --> 00:29:53.360 realize that God is going to mold you he is going to form you he's going to 00:29:53.360 --> 00:29:58.160 lead you on a path of righteousness all you need to do is follow his will and 00:29:58.160 --> 00:30:05.600 his way and continue with following in his footsteps and that final one is 00:30:05.599 --> 00:30:13.519 prayers and sacrifices which equals living for God they cried out to God and 00:30:13.519 --> 00:30:20.319 they threw out Jonah all right I'm good I confessed to the Lord and you know I 00:30:20.319 --> 00:30:30.399 asked for repentance I'm good I don't need to do anything anymore no you make 00:30:30.400 --> 00:30:40.000 a decision for Christ you accept Jesus into your heart you then live for Christ 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:48.040 you are on a path of righteous living exhibiting Christ's likeness to others 00:30:48.040 --> 00:30:54.120 you go on a walk with the Lord so it doesn't say in the verse like oh they 00:30:54.120 --> 00:30:58.600 threw out Jonah and wet their hands clean they're on their way it's saying 00:30:58.599 --> 00:31:06.679 they lived for the Lord because that is part of our story when you make a 00:31:06.679 --> 00:31:11.559 decision for Christ that's the most important step but you know what's 00:31:11.559 --> 00:31:17.879 after that step is living for God it is sharing in the word of God with others 00:31:17.879 --> 00:31:24.439 it is sharing your testimony it is praying for others it is inviting people 00:31:24.440 --> 00:31:30.120 it's inviting people to church it's inviting them how can I pray for you 00:31:30.120 --> 00:31:36.960 how can I be present with you you know that's I think that's one thing that 00:31:36.960 --> 00:31:42.920 gets missed often the most important thing for us to do is to make a decision 00:31:42.920 --> 00:31:50.960 for Christ that's we can't argue with that but certainly we need to live for 00:31:50.960 --> 00:31:56.160 the Lord not just take advantage of God by by seeing that the storm has come okay 00:31:56.160 --> 00:32:02.840 well I'm good I'm gonna roll after the fact no did you not just learn turning 00:32:02.840 --> 00:32:06.680 your life around for God means living for him and I just want to make that 00:32:06.680 --> 00:32:12.160 point very clear because you know you have this image here of people ideally 00:32:12.160 --> 00:32:17.200 they're in the mountains or whatever praying to the Lord but the sailors prayers 00:32:17.200 --> 00:32:23.600 and sacrifices it represents our commitment to live for God once we are 00:32:23.600 --> 00:32:32.200 saved I want to say this and I want you guys to remember this we are saved by 00:32:32.200 --> 00:32:42.519 faith right we are not saved by works we are saved for works we don't want to get 00:32:42.519 --> 00:32:49.480 that order wrong because so often in other religions if you will it's about 00:32:49.480 --> 00:32:55.680 doing the good works first and then you'll get saved but when Jesus died on 00:32:55.680 --> 00:33:02.920 the cross because he saved you wouldn't you want to do things because of that 00:33:02.920 --> 00:33:07.200 salvation does that make sense there's there's a much there's a difference and 00:33:07.200 --> 00:33:11.319 unfortunately people get into that habit of saying well you need to do more you 00:33:11.319 --> 00:33:18.399 need to do more certainly do good in the world by all means but first seek Christ 00:33:18.399 --> 00:33:24.119 make that decision have that relationship we can come closer to God to 00:33:24.119 --> 00:33:28.759 know him right we can pray to the Lord we can read scripture we can study it we 00:33:28.759 --> 00:33:33.240 can experience nature we can give our time and our talent and treasure as well 00:33:33.240 --> 00:33:39.700 but the most important thing is deciding to have Christ at the center of your 00:33:39.700 --> 00:33:44.759 life receiving the gift of salvation accepting Jesus Christ into your life 00:33:44.759 --> 00:33:51.360 that is the most important decision and by all means because of that salvation 00:33:51.360 --> 00:33:58.160 go out into the world and do good I think of the famous James passage which 00:33:58.160 --> 00:34:05.759 always gets a lot of people argue over it it's faith without works is dead 00:34:05.759 --> 00:34:12.519 certainly we are saved and we should go out and do because of the faith so my 00:34:12.519 --> 00:34:15.320 friends as we have gone through this critical part of the story of the 00:34:15.320 --> 00:34:20.239 sailors conversion we can see ourselves in a similar way aren't we going to face 00:34:20.239 --> 00:34:26.880 many storms in life sometimes it's by our own doing sometimes it just happens 00:34:26.880 --> 00:34:32.119 will you be open to hearing the good news of the gospel will you cry out to 00:34:32.119 --> 00:34:36.759 Jesus will you call upon his name asking that you do not perish but have 00:34:36.759 --> 00:34:41.239 everlasting life and for those of you that know the Lord are you going to 00:34:41.239 --> 00:34:45.519 share in your faith with your neighbor with your friends with your family with 00:34:45.519 --> 00:34:53.559 the people that you interact with may you come to know God may you come to 00:34:53.559 --> 00:34:58.839 experience the peace that surpasses all understanding may you grow closer to God 00:34:58.840 --> 00:35:06.120 whose way is higher God's way is much simpler than man's God's way is holier 00:35:06.120 --> 00:35:12.440 and God's way is good it is not enough to simply have head knowledge about God 00:35:12.440 --> 00:35:19.320 yeah I know God he's a cool guy it's much more than that he's a cool guy oh 00:35:19.320 --> 00:35:26.000 he's a cool guy he's a very cool guy buddy but it's so much more than that we 00:35:26.000 --> 00:35:31.320 must know the Lord personally we do this by having this relationship with Jesus 00:35:31.320 --> 00:35:39.079 Christ and by submitting to Christ come as you are to the table but let God work 00:35:39.079 --> 00:35:44.519 in and through you let me repeat myself here we invite people as they are 00:35:44.519 --> 00:35:51.639 wherever they are out in life and we ask that God transforms them from the 00:35:51.639 --> 00:35:57.599 inside out let God work on them you never know where you're at in your 00:35:57.599 --> 00:36:04.879 spiritual walk or your spiritual life or where you're at in life period come to 00:36:04.879 --> 00:36:13.920 the Lord come to the table and let God work in you God transforms us he gives 00:36:13.920 --> 00:36:20.359 us purpose in in this life he provides salvation just as we took communion 00:36:20.360 --> 00:36:29.240 today we remember Jesus Christ for what he did may we never forget Jesus Christ 00:36:29.240 --> 00:36:39.360 may we remember him first Corinthians chapter 8 verse 3 says if anyone loves 00:36:39.360 --> 00:36:45.960 God he is known by God and it's my prayer today my friends that you all come to 00:36:45.960 --> 00:36:54.760 know God may you be known by God and the closing slide that I have for you it's 00:36:54.760 --> 00:37:02.280 the same question we opened with do you know about God or do you know God do 00:37:02.280 --> 00:37:08.920 you only have the head knowledge of God or do you have the heart knowledge let's 00:37:08.920 --> 00:37:20.159 pray father we unpacked a lot today may we come to understand that yours you are 00:37:20.159 --> 00:37:26.680 the true God you are the sovereign God overall creation you made each and every 00:37:26.680 --> 00:37:32.039 one of us in your image and we've gone over the very idea that we cannot do 00:37:32.039 --> 00:37:37.320 things we cannot do this life without you we can row against the storms we can 00:37:37.320 --> 00:37:43.480 row against your way we can fight it all day long but at the end of the day we 00:37:43.480 --> 00:37:54.920 need you may we come to know you may we seek you may we draw near to you may we 00:37:54.920 --> 00:38:03.600 have that relationship with you and in so doing may we grow in Christ may we be 00:38:03.599 --> 00:38:11.480 encouraged to study your word and pray for others and be present let us all come 00:38:11.480 --> 00:38:18.719 to know you you are a good God you are a holy God you are not an evil God in fact 00:38:18.719 --> 00:38:27.159 your way is far better than and any man can create we thank you and we praise 00:38:27.159 --> 00:38:37.079 you and as we are doing our closing song today we just ask that we we come 00:38:37.079 --> 00:38:57.599 closer to you today we love you in Jesus name that we pray