Jonah Sermon Outline - The Anchored Life

 
• Introduction:
 
 Have
 you
 ever
 tried
 really
 hard
 to
 change
 something
 about
 yourself,
 but
 you
 
never
 could?
 
 That
 agony,
 that
 pain
 of
 defeat,
 knowing
 that
 you’ve
 tried
 for
 the
 longest
 time
 
to
 change
 something
 about
 yourself,
 but
 nothing
 ever
 changes?
 
o Illustration
 on
 change?
 
o Tonight,
 we
 are
 going
 to
 talk
 about
 Grace.
 
 Specifically,
 how
 God
 can
 change
 us
 
through
 his
 grace
 in
 our
 lives.
 
o Get
 a
 look
 at
 Grace
 Jonah
 chapter
 3
 
• Summary
 of
 Jonah:
 
o Things
 we
 know
 about
 him:
 
 Prophet
 a
 few
 hundred
 years
 before
 Jesus
 
 He
 was
 an
 Israelite.
 
 
 
 Israel’s
 enemy:
 Nineveh
 
o Things
 we
 know
 about
 Nineveh:
 
 They
 were
 a
 huge
 military
 power
 
 Jonah
 didn’t
 like
 them
 
o Chapter
 1
 
 God
 calls
 Jonah
 to
 go
 preach
 in
 Nineveh
 
 This
 is
 almost
 like
 God
 calling
 a
 Bears
 fan
 to
 preach
 at
 Lambeu
 Field
 
 
 Jonah
 says
 no,
 goes
 the
 other
 way
 on
 a
 boat
 
 God
 causes
 this
 huge
 storm
 to
 come
 
 The
 other
 guys
 on
 the
 boat
 kick
 Jonah
 off
 
 A
 big
 fish
 swallows
 up
 Jonah
 
 Not
 a
 whale.
 
 Don’t
 be
 hating
 on
 whales
 because
 of
 this
 book.
 
 The
 
Hebrew
 says
 great
 fish.
 
 
 Jonah
 chills
 out
 in
 the
 belly
 of
 the
 fish
 for
 3
 days,
 and
 eventually
 says
 he’s
 sorry
 
to
 God
 
o Chapter
 2
 
 At
 the
 end
 of
 Chapter
 2,
 we
 see
 that
 God
 “commanded
 the
 fish,
 and
 it
 vomited
 
Jonah
 onto
 dry
 land.”
 
o Chapter
 3
 
 Again,
 God
 tells
 Jonah
 to
 go
 to
 Nineveh
 and
 preach.
 
 
 
• Passage:
 
 Let’s
 pick
 up
 in
 Chapter
 3,
 Verse
 3-­‐9
 
o “Jonah
 obeyed
 the
 word
 of
 the
 Lord
 and
 went
 to
 Nineveh.
 
 Now
 Nineveh
 was
 a
 very
 
important
 city—a
 visit
 required
 3
 days.
 
 On
 the
 first
 day,
 Jonah
 started
 into
 the
 city.
 
 
He
 proclaimed:
 “Forty
 more
 days
 and
 Nineveh
 will
 be
 overturned.”
 
 The
 Ninevites
 

believed
 God.
 
 They
 declared
 a
 fast,
 and
 all
 of
 them,
 from
 the
 greatest
 to
 the
 least,
 put
 
on
 a
 sackcloth.
 
 When
 the
 news
 reached
 the
 king
 of
 Nineveh,
 he
 rose
 from
 his
 throne,
 
took
 off
 his
 royal
 robes,
 covered
 himself
 with
 sackcloth
 and
 sat
 down
 in
 the
 dust.
 
 
Then
 he
 issued
 a
 proclamation
 in
 Nineveh:
 
 By
 the
 decree
 of
 the
 king
 and
 his
 nobles:
 
 
Do
 not
 let
 any
 man
 or
 beast,
 herd
 or
 flock,
 taste
 anything;
 do
 not
 let
 them
 eat
 or
 drink.
 
 
But
 let
 man
 and
 beast
 be
 covered
 with
 sackcloth.
 
 Let
 everyone
 call
 urgently
 on
 God.
 
 
Let
 them
 give
 up
 their
 evil
 ways
 and
 their
 violence.
 
 Who
 knows?
 
 God
 may
 yet
 relent
 
and
 with
 compassion
 turn
 from
 his
 fierce
 anger
 so
 that
 we
 will
 not
 perish.”
 
 
 

 2
 Reasons
 to
 fast:
 
 Mourn
 the
 loss
 of
 a
 loved
 one
 
 Dire
 emergency
 
• Since
 king
 called
 for
 massive
 fast,
 including
 the
 animals,
 this
 is
 
serious
 
• They
 are
 fasting
 and
 praying
 like
 crazy.
 
 So
 what
 happens
 next?
 

• Passage:
 Verse
 10
 
o “When
 God
 saw
 what
 they
 did
 and
 how
 they
 turned
 from
 their
 evil
 ways,
 he
 had
 
compassion
 and
 did
 not
 bring
 upon
 them
 the
 destruction
 he
 had
 threatened.”
 
 
o Timeline:
 
 Jonah
 goes
 to
 Nineveh,
 says
 that
 the
 city
 is
 going
 to
 be
 destroyed
 in
 40
 days
 
 The
 city
 fasts
 
 God
 sees
 the
 fasting
 and
 repentance,
 and
 forgives
 them
 
o False
 Conclusion:
 
 Fasting
 can
 bring
 us
 salvation.
 
o But
 what
 about
 that
 verse
 that
 says
 “I
 am
 the
 way,
 the
 truth
 and
 the
 life,
 no
 one
 comes
 
to
 the
 father
 except
 through
 me”?
 
o Here’s
 the
 thing:
 
 God
 did
 not
 forgive
 the
 Ninevites
 because
 they
 fasted.
 
 
 

•
 Omniscience:
 
o Let
 me
 explain
 this
 a
 little
 bit.
 
o One
 of
 the
 really
 cool
 things
 about
 God
 is
 what
 we
 call
 “omniscience.”
 
 Which
 means
 that
 God
 knows
 everything.
 
 He
 knows
 everything
 that’s
 
happened
 in
 the
 past,
 everything
 that’s
 happening
 right
 now,
 and
 everything
 
that
 will
 happen
 in
 the
 future.
 
 Beyond
 that,
 God
 knows
 all
 of
 the
 possible
 outcomes
 of
 the
 choices
 we
 make.
 
 
 
 He
 knows
 what
 would
 have
 happened
 if
 I
 had
 worn
 a
 blue
 shirt
 today
 
instead
 of
 a
 black
 one.
 

 He
 knows
 what
 would
 have
 happened
 if
 you
 had
 asked
 that
 one
 girl
 out
 
in
 high
 school.
 

 He
 knows
 everything
 
o So,
 even
 before
 Jonah
 preached
 to
 the
 Ninevites,
 God
 knew
 that
 the
 king
 could
 have
 

ignored
 Jonah’s
 warning.
 
o God
 knew
 that
 there
 was
 an
 option
 for
 Nineveh
 to
 receive
 this
 grace
 and
 receive
 

God’s
 compassion.
 
 
o And
 therefore,
 God
 gave
 them
 grace,
 compassion,
 and
 forgiveness
 not
 because
 they
 

fasted,
 but
 because
 He
 wanted
 to.
 
 
 
• When
 we
 fast:
 

o So
 what’s
 the
 connection
 to
 when
 we
 fast?
 
 What
 should
 we
 learn
 from
 this
 story?
 
o Fasting
 does
 not
 change
 God’s
 mind
 (repeat)
 
o Instead,
 what
 it
 does
 is
 that
 it
 puts
 us
 in
 a
 position
 to
 receive
 grace
 from
 God.
 
• Sun
 analogy:
 
o Vacation
 in
 Mexico
 
o I
 had
 an
 amazing
 time
 laying
 out
 in
 the
 shade
 of
 an
 umbrella,
 reading
 books,
 taking
 

naps,
 and
 just
 enjoying
 the
 sounds
 of
 the
 ocean.
 
o I
 noticed
 something
 at
 the
 end
 of
 the
 week
 

 Because
 I
 spent
 so
 much
 time
 underneath
 the
 shade
 of
 an
 umbrella,
 I
 was
 
hardly
 any
 tanner
 than
 when
 I
 had
 left
 Chicago.
 
 
 

 Even
 though
 we
 had
 sunshine
 for
 almost
 the
 entire
 week,
 I
 stayed
 underneath
 
the
 umbrella
 and
 never
 tanned.
 

o Isn’t
 God’s
 grace
 is
 the
 same
 way?
 
 His
 grace
 is
 constantly
 flowing
 down,
 we
 just
 need
 
to
 put
 ourselves
 in
 a
 position
 to
 receive
 that
 Grace.
 
 
 

o The
 sun
 was
 shinning
 down
 in
 Mexico,
 but
 I
 was
 underneath
 the
 umbrella,
 and
 my
 
skin
 couldn’t
 soak
 it
 up.
 

o So
 if
 God’s
 grace
 is
 constantly
 flowing
 down,
 what
 are
 you
 doing
 to
 get
 out
 from
 
under
 the
 umbrella
 and
 soak
 it
 up?
 

• Types
 of
 grace:
 
o There
 are
 a
 lot
 of
 different
 types
 of
 grace
 
o There’s
 grace
 that
 allows
 us
 to
 believe
 in
 God,
 and
 that
 type
 is
 given
 to
 all
 of
 
humankind.
 
 
 
o Once
 you
 choose
 to
 believe
 in
 God,
 then
 there
 is
 a
 type
 of
 grace
 that
 saves
 us.
 
 Or,
 as
 
the
 “theological,
 academic
 world”
 puts
 it:
 
 saving
 grace.
 
 When
 you
 repent
 of
 your
 sins,
 choose
 to
 believe
 in
 Christ,
 and
 make
 a
 decision
 
to
 follow
 him
 for
 your
 whole
 life,
 then
 you
 receive
 saving
 grace.
 

 Your
 sins
 are
 forgiven
 
 You’re
 no
 longer
 guilty
 in
 God’s
 eyes
 
 And
 you
 get
 to
 go
 to
 heaven.
 
o There’s
 another
 type
 of
 grace
 that
 happens
 simultaneously
 with
 saving
 grace.
 
 This
 
particular
 type
 is
 called:
 changing
 grace.
 
 
 
• Changing
 Grace:
 
o Here’s
 the
 awesome
 thing:
 
 What
 Christ
 did
 on
 the
 cross
 is
 only
 one
 part
 of
 the
 story,
 
and
 we
 often
 forget
 about
 the
 second
 half.
 
 Yes,
 he
 died
 on
 the
 cross
 to
 forgive
 our
 
sins
 
o On
 top
 of
 that,
 he
 died
 on
 the
 cross
 so
 that
 we
 might
 stop
 sinning.
 
 
o Before
 Christ
 died
 on
 the
 cross,
 Satan
 had
 a
 stronghold
 on
 sin
 in
 the
 world.
 
 
 
 The
 analogy
 that’s
 often
 used
 is
 that
 of
 chains,
 as
 in
 the
 “chains
 of
 sin
 are
 

holding
 me
 back.”
 
 
 
o But
 after
 Christ
 died
 on
 the
 cross,
 those
 chains
 of
 sin
 were
 broken
 for
 all
 who
 believe
 

in
 him!
 
 
 
 Titus
 3:5
 says
 “He
 saved
 us
 through
 the
 washing
 of
 rebirth
 and
 renewal
 by
 the
 
Holy
 Spirit,
 whom
 he
 poured
 out
 on
 us
 generously
 through
 Jesus
 Christ
 our
 
Savior.”
 
 
 
 By
 the
 power
 of
 the
 Holy
 Spirit,
 we
 have
 been
 renewed
 and
 given
 victory
 over
 
sin.
 

o Hear
 me
 on
 this,
 I
 am
 not
 saying
 that
 Christians
 never
 sin.
 
 In
 no
 way,
 shape,
 or
 form
 
is
 that
 what
 I’m
 saying.
 

o But
 what
 I’m
 saying
 is
 this:
 the
 power
 that
 sin
 held
 over
 us
 before
 we
 believed
 is
 
broken
 once
 we
 put
 our
 faith
 in
 Christ.
 
 
 

o By
 the
 power
 of
 the
 Holy
 Spirit
 living
 in
 each
 one
 of
 us,
 we
 can
 overcome
 any
 sin
 in
 
our
 lives.
 
 This
 is
 not
 something
 that
 usually
 happens
 overnight.
 
 We
 can’t
 just
 pray
 and
 
stop
 sinning.
 
 But,
 by
 the
 grace
 of
 God,
 we
 are
 able
 to
 overcome
 that
 sin
 over
 time.
 
 It’s
 often
 painful,
 and
 takes
 the
 help
 of
 strong
 accountability
 partners
 
and
 good
 Christian
 friends,
 but
 that
 sin
 can
 be
 broken
 

o So
 saving
 grace
 isn’t
 just
 salvation
 from
 the
 punishment
 for
 our
 sins,
 but
 salvation
 
from
 the
 sins
 themselves.
 
 [pause]
 

o But
 how
 do
 we
 allow
 ourselves
 to
 be
 changed
 by
 the
 Holy
 Spirit?
 
 How
 can
 we
 get
 out
 
from
 under
 the
 umbrella
 and
 be
 changed
 by
 God?
 

• Spiritual
 Disciplines
 

o One
 way
 is
 through
 the
 practice
 of
 spiritual
 disciplines.
 
 
 
o What
 a
 spiritual
 discipline
 is,
 is
 some
 kind
 of
 action
 that
 can
 put
 us
 in
 a
 position
 to
 

receive
 God’s
 grace.
 
 This
 isn’t
 really
 a
 physical
 position,
 like
 walking
 out
 from
 
underneath
 the
 umbrella,
 but
 a
 spiritual
 position.
 
o It’s
 when
 we
 do
 certain
 actions
 in
 order
 to
 draw
 ourselves
 closer
 to
 God.
 
 
o Like
 what
 it
 says
 in
 James
 “Draw
 close
 to
 me,
 and
 I
 will
 draw
 close
 to
 you.”
 
 As
 we
 
draw
 ourselves
 closer
 to
 God
 through
 spiritual
 disciplines,
 he
 will
 come
 closer
 to
 us.
 
• Fasting
 
o One
 spiritual
 discipline
 we
 have
 already
 looked
 at
 is
 that
 of
 fasting:
 
o When
 we
 intentionally
 stop
 doing
 something
 in
 order
 to
 keep
 our
 dependence
 on
 
God.
 
 
 
o This
 doesn’t
 have
 to
 be
 food:
 

 It
 could
 be
 a
 fast
 from
 TV.
 
 It
 could
 be
 a
 fast
 from
 facebook.
 
 It
 could
 be
 a
 fast
 from
 using
 your
 cell
 phone
 at
 all
 

 My
 parents
 would
 be
 the
 first
 ones
 to
 tell
 you
 that
 I
 have
 a
 mild
 
addiction
 to
 my
 phone.
 

 I
 send
 something
 like
 4000
 texts
 a
 month
 
 So
 for
 me,
 fasting
 form
 my
 phone
 would
 be
 a
 great
 idea.
 
o Whatever
 it
 is
 that
 sometimes
 becomes
 our
 main
 focus
 point,
 we
 should
 fast
 from
 it
 to
 
make
 sure
 our
 hearts
 are
 set
 on
 God
 and
 not
 on
 other
 things.
 
o If
 you’re
 struggling
 with
 any
 kind
 of
 idolatry:
 whether
 you
 focus
 more
 on
 TV
 or
 if
 you
 
focus
 so
 much
 on
 Facebook
 that
 you
 talk
 to
 your
 friends
 more
 online
 than
 you
 do
 in
 
person,
 then
 maybe
 it’s
 a
 good
 time
 to
 fast
 from
 one
 of
 those
 for
 a
 little
 while.
 
 
 
o Now,
 what
 I’m
 saying
 here
 may
 seem
 to
 contradict
 what
 I
 said
 earlier.
 
 But
 let
 me
 
remind
 you:
 fasting
 doesn’t
 bring
 us
 closer
 to
 God.
 
o Fasting
 brings
 us
 out
 from
 the
 umbrella
 and
 into
 God’s
 grace.
 
 And
 it’s
 only
 God’s
 
grace
 that
 can
 change
 us.
 
 
 
• Reading
 the
 Bible
 
o One
 of
 the
 most
 important
 spiritual
 discipline
 is
 that
 of
 reading
 the
 Bible.
 
 
 
o While
 there
 may
 be
 hundreds
 of
 spiritual
 disciplines,
 this
 is
 one
 of
 the
 most
 direct
 
ways
 that
 God’s
 grace
 can
 come
 into
 our
 lives.
 
o The
 Bible
 truly
 is
 God’s
 letter
 to
 us.
 
 
 
o 2
 Timothy
 3:16
 says
 “All
 scripture
 is
 God-­‐breathed
 and
 is
 useful
 for
 teaching,
 
rebuking,
 correcting
 and
 training
 in
 righteousness,
 so
 that
 the
 man
 of
 God
 may
 be
 
thoroughly
 equipped
 for
 every
 good
 work.”
 

o The
 Bible
 can
 teach
 us
 things,
 can
 be
 used
 to
 rebuke
 and
 change
 us,
 and
 can
 be
 used
 
to
 train
 us
 to
 be
 righteous.
 
 
 

o There
 are
 a
 lot
 of
 different
 ways
 to
 read
 the
 Bible
 
 You
 can
 study
 it
 really
 deep,
 looking
 back
 to
 the
 original
 Greek
 or
 Hebrew
 and
 
trying
 to
 figure
 out
 the
 original
 meaning
 
 or
 You
 can
 try
 to
 connect
 everything
 you
 read
 to
 your
 own
 life
 and
 try
 to
 pull
 
out
 practical
 applications
 for
 the
 entire
 Bible
 
 Both
 of
 those
 ways
 of
 reading
 Scripture
 are
 great
 and
 should
 be
 done!
 
 
 

o But
 let
 me
 tell
 you
 this,
 I
 have
 found
 that
 the
 times
 that
 God
 most
 often
 changes
 me
 is
 
when
 I
 just
 read
 the
 Bible
 to
 read
 the
 Bible.
 
 
 
 Not
 to
 study
 it
 like
 some
 kind
 of
 text
 book,
 or
 self-­‐help
 book
 
 But
 just
 to
 read
 it
 as
 God’s
 letter
 to
 me.
 
 
 

o We
 need
 to
 keep
 in
 mind
 that
 reading
 the
 Bible
 doesn’t
 actually
 change
 us.
 
 I
 know
 
people
 who
 study
 the
 Bible
 for
 a
 living
 as
 an
 academic
 book,
 and
 it
 doesn’t
 change
 
them.
 
 

o But,
 when
 we
 read
 it
 with
 an
 attitude
 that
 is
 expecting
 God
 to
 move,
 he
 will.
 
 We
 just
 
need
 to
 get
 out
 from
 under
 the
 umbrella
 and
 let
 God’s
 grace
 rain
 into
 our
 lives
 
through
 Scripture.
 
 
 

• INTERVIEW
 WITH
 MAGGIE
 (Video)
 
o It’s
 amazing
 to
 hear
 stories
 like
 this,
 and
 to
 see
 how
 God
 can
 change
 people
 through
 
His
 grace
 
o Maggie
 was
 heading
 down
 the
 completely
 wrong
 direction
 and
 was
 addicted
 to
 drugs,
 
alcohol,
 and
 was
 even
 involved
 with
 self
 abuse.
 
o But
 through
 prayer,
 and
 through
 great
 friends,
 God’s
 grace
 came
 into
 her
 life
 and
 
transformed
 her
 into
 a
 new
 person.
 
o In
 a
 sense,
 through
 prayer,
 Maggie
 stepped
 out
 from
 under
 her
 umbrella
 and
 received
 
God’s
 grace.
 
 
 

• Communion:
 
o Really
 though,
 
 there
 are
 hundreds
 of
 ways
 to
 put
 ourselves
 in
 position
 to
 receive
 
God’s
 grace.
 
 But
 there’s
 one
 more
 that’s
 especially
 important
 to
 tonight’s
 Re:Discover
 
that
 I
 wanna
 focus
 on
 right
 now:
 communion.
 
o During
 the
 Last
 Supper,
 Jesus
 says
 in
 regards
 to
 the
 bread
 “this
 is
 my
 body
 given
 for
 
you;
 do
 this
 in
 remembrance
 of
 me.”
 
 
 
 Communion
 is
 about
 remembering
 what
 Christ
 did
 on
 the
 cross.
 
 It’s
 about
 remembering
 that
 we
 are
 sinners
 and
 fall
 short
 of
 His
 glory,
 but
 God
 
still
 loved
 us.
 
 
 

 He
 loved
 us
 so
 much
 that
 he
 sent
 His
 son
 to
 die
 for
 us,
 that
 we
 might
 be
 
reconciled
 to
 the
 Father
 and
 become
 adopted
 into
 his
 family.
 
 

o It’s
 remembering
 that,
 by
 Christ’s
 death
 on
 the
 cross,
 the
 chains
 of
 sin
 have
 been
 
broken
 in
 our
 lives!
 
 When
 we
 take
 communion,
 it’s
 remembering
 everything
 that
 Christ
 did
 for
 us.
 
 
 
 Including,
 sending
 the
 Holy
 Spirit
 to
 dwell
 within
 us
 and
 give
 us
 the
 power
 to
 
overcome
 sin.
 

• Challenge:
 
o So
 here’s
 my
 challenge
 for
 us.
 
 The
 worship
 team
 is
 gonna
 come
 up
 here
 and
 play
 a
 
song,
 then
 Thomas
 is
 going
 to
 come
 up
 and
 lead
 us
 through
 communion.
 
 Before
 we
 eat
 the
 bread
 and
 drink
 the
 cup,
 let’s
 each
 take
 a
 minute
 in
 prayer.
 
 
 
 Think
 about
 the
 sins
 that
 are
 still
 reigning
 over
 our
 lives.
 
 Whatever
 that
 might
 
be.
 
 Jealousy.
 
 Hatred.
 
 Selfishness.
 
 Lying.
 
 Alcoholism.
 
 Pornography.
 
 Sexual
 
sin.
 
 Whatever
 it
 is,
 we
 should
 pray
 and
 ask
 the
 Holy
 Spirit
 to
 help
 us
 overcome
 
those
 sins.
 
 
 
 It
 may
 not
 happen
 over
 night.
 
 It
 might
 take
 months
 or
 even
 years.
 
 
 
 But
 let
 me
 say
 this:
 
 If
 we
 believe
 in
 Christ,
 and
 put
 ourselves
 in
 a
 position
 to
 
receive
 God’s
 grace,
 then
 he
 will
 one
 day
 break
 down
 those
 strongholds
 of
 sin
 
in
 our
 lives.
 
 By
 the
 power
 of
 the
 Holy
 Spirit,
 I
 believe
 through
 and
 through
 
that
 He
 will
 set
 us
 free
 from
 our
 sin.
 
 
 
 
 
 Before
 you
 eat
 the
 bread
 and
 drink
 of
 the
 cup,
 humbly
 ask
 God
 for
 help.
 
 He
 
will.
 
 By
 His
 power,
 he
 will
 give
 us
 the
 grace
 to
 do
 it.
 
 We
 just
 gotta
 step
 out
 
from
 under
 the
 umbrella
 and
 receive
 that
 grace.
 
 
 
 
 

2/12/11 12:09 PM

2/12/11 12:09 PM