Going Overboard On Dry Land

In this Sunday's message we find Jonah going overboard again! This time though it is on dry land. Just as he was ready to be thrown into the sea and die before going to Nineveh, now he is exceedingly displeased and angry that God has shown them mercy after he preached throughout the city! We find out that Jonah has a right view of God but a wrong view of himself. He believes that he (and Israel) are entitled to God's grace while the Gentiles in Nineveh are completely underserving. However, we find out that in the Scriptures grace is never merited or earned - otherwise it would not be grace.

The challenge in this concluding message from our series on Jonah is that we must have a right view of God, self, sin, and others. When we do, we approach witnessing with an attitude of boldness and confidence and hope. Instead of fear and doubt, worrying about how people will react or respond to the gospel we must focus on what God is able to do! We must learn that when we witness it is not what people do but what God can and promises to do with His Word that is important.

Too often we think and act like God cannot save sinners. But the truth is that God can and does save sinners! And Jonah is proof of what God can do - and of what kind of attitudes we should avoid while witnessing.

The message is titled Going Overboard On Dry Land and is taken from Jonah 4:1-10.

~pastorway