Out of a Gracious Heart

from Jonah 4:4-6

Have you experienced receiving a blessing or a gift from somebody whom you are mad at? This is a giving out of a gracious heart. In spite of what we did to that someone, s/he still gets to give us a present. It is a common scenario where people give something to those whom they have sinned against. That something is a form of peace offering. But it is rare that someone whom we have sinned against is the one who will give something to us.

This is what God did to Jonah. Remember that in previous verses, Jonah got mad at God because He forgave the Nenivites and He relented from destroying them because of their sins. Despite the sins they committed against Him and against His chosen people, the Israelites, God forgave them and spare them from His destruction. Because of this, Jonah was so angry with God to the point that he just wanted to die (Jonah 4:9).

But despite this reaction, God provided Jonah with a leafy plant (v. 6) to provide him with shade and comfort. Indeed, he was so delighted.

This is an act out of a gracious heart. This is God's heart, filled with immeasurable, unfathomable, glorious grace. According to Romans 5:8, Jesus died for us while we were still sinners. What does this mean? As sinners, we are enemies of God. We are bound for destruction in hell. Our normal reaction to our enemies is to retaliate or plan to destroy them. That's normal human behavior. But this is not the case of God. Instead of leaving us behind for His destruction, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us while we were still sinners, i.e. while we were still His enemies. Jesus' death brings forgiveness for us, and reconciliation with Him. You see. It is God Himself who made a way for our reconciliation with Him, in spite the fact that we are the ones who sinned against God. How glorious is His grace for us!

But this forgiveness and reconciliation will only come to us when we believe in Jesus Christ, accept that we are a sinner, repent from our sins, and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Without which, there will be no forgiveness and reconciliation.


Useful Links

Reconciled to God by John Macarthur

Sovereign Grace by D.L. Moody

Limited Understanding

from Jonah 4:1-3

Sometimes, some people tend to believe that they knew everything. When this happens, it is difficult for them to listen to others. They tend to believe that nobody can teach them something, especially for the things that they knew already.

Unfortunately, man's mind is very limited. In fact, it is so limited that it can only see based on what it can comprehend. The common saying can best exemplify it: "To see is to believe." For things beyond its comprehension, the human mind has difficulty of making sense of them.

This is what Jonah experienced in these verses. When God forgave the Nenivites, he could not believe it. Despite the evil deeds these people had done to God's chosen people, the Israelites, God still relented from destroying them. This created an anger inside Jonah's heart. He could not comprehend why God has to do it.

If you try to look at his argument in verses 1 and 2, we can see a very limited perspective of the situation, and of the plans of God. In fact, it shows a self-centered perspective that tries to demean God with His characters of being compassionate and gracious. What Jonah could not understand is that God has relented from destroying the people who did a great havoc among His chosen people. This perspective shows a revengeful spirit.

But God's mind is not like ours'. His thoughts are far beyond our comprehension. We have a very limited understanding of His character, of His thoughts, of His plans, and of His heart. When He does things that are beyond our understanding, we tend to disagree with Him. Worst, we tend to get mad at Him as what Jonah did, instead of just trusting His wisdom.

That is why, people could not believe that salvation is by faith alone. Many people wanted to add more to this by making sacrifices, doing good works, or even crucifying themselves in a cross in order to lessen or reduce their sins. But this is not what God designed for His salvation. His salvation is a free gift (Romans 6: 23), and could only be attained through faith in Jesus Christ, which is a grace from God (Ephesians 2:8-9). What does this mean? It simply means that you don't do anything to gain it; you just believe, trust, and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. In the process, you accept that you are a sinner, and need to a Savior. You repent from your sins, and confess in your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord. This is the only way; you don't need to beat your body or bring lots of offerings in order to obtain salvation.

Though as simple as this is the salvation of God, many people complicate it. Why? Because of their limited understanding of God's character and His salvation.


Useful Links

How to be Saved

The Greatest Thing in the World is to be Saved by John Pipe

Once Genuinely Saved Always Saved by Carmelo Caparros

The Importance of Influence

from Jonah 3: 7-10

Most of the time, when a man of influence (the one whom everyone looks up to) says something, everybody follows and believes. In these verses, we see that when the king proclaimed and published everyone in Nineveh followed him. They repented from their sins; they put on a sackloth, and cried out mightily to God according to the king's decree. The result? God relented from His decreed destruction of the city. He forgave them from their sins, and gave them salvation.

This truth is important in sharing the gospel. Though salvation comes from God alone (Psalm 62:1), sharing the gospel will be easier when the man who has an influence over others is the one who receives it first. In a family, it will be easier for the other members of the family when the father or the mother or anyone who has influence over the other members receives the gospel first. If we try to look at the history of Israel, we will see that a nation-wide spiritual revival depends on whether or not the king has a fear of God. It was easy for Hezekiah to impose revival through God's power and grace over Israel because he was able to reach out those people who have influence over other Israelites.

This whole thing brings to the fact that people of influence tend to be the voice of others. And other people put their trust on these individuals. That is why, if you were a man of influence, and you have received the gospel of Jesus Christ, you can use it to share the gospel to your subordinates. But you need to maintain your integrity in the face of the gospel so that your influence over them will continue to produce respect and honor to God.


Useful Links

The Influence of My Life by Tom Sexton

Power and Influence by Kenneth Boa

Transformation

from Jonah 3:6

When I read this verse, one lesson came to my mind: when God moves, man is transformed. The process of transformation is not by human effort. I heard a lot of stories from both strangers and friends that it is very difficult to change. Changing one's habit is not only difficult, it is impossible if done by one's own effort. Why? It is clearly stated in the Bible that everyone is a sinner and is controlled by sinful nature (Romans 3:10). Since the nature of a person is sinful, it will be easy for him or her to commit sin. It is the same situation with butterflies. Their nature is to fly, not to walk. Thus, when someone comes near to it, butterfly flies, instead of simply walks. Fishes by nature swims; thus, in all their lives they will swim. Man is sinful by nature; thus, in all his life, he will sin. Unfortunately, no one has no sin; no one is righteous.

With this, changing one's life becomes difficult; a person will have to go against his/her nature when s/he does it. Going against the natural course of life is like walking uphill. At the end, such person will become tired of doing it; and bang! He goes back to who he was before.

But when God moves in one's life, He will cause the transformation by setting that person free from his sinful nature (Romans 6:17-18). God will set a person free from his sinful nature through His Son, Jesus Christ (Romans 7:25). Once the person is freed from his sinful nature, he is no longer a slave to unrighteousness, or simply, live in sinfulness; Rather, he is now aware of his sinfulness, and thus comes to God for repentance every time he sinned.

A good example of this transformation is St. Paul. He was the church persecutor during his time. But when God moved in his life, he was totally changed. Instead of being the church persecutor, he has become the Christ's "promoter." I also heard testimonies of transformation among friends and pastors. Many of them confessed that they had difficulty transforming their lives; but when God moved in them, the transformation just came; and they were amazed how they changed through time.

Thus, just as the king in this story did, when God moves in one's life, transformation is not impossible.


Useful Links

The Legalistic Son by John Macarthur

How to Change Yourself by David Pratte

Producing Fruits

from Jonah 3:3-5

There is only one way that each Christian can produce a fruit. This way is to do God's will. As implicated in these verses, doing God's will can produce the fruit that God desires from His children. Outside God's will, we cannot expect Him to do mightily in our midst. We believe that God chose Christians for certain purposes, not just a reason. God chose Jonah to be His messenger of deliverance for the Ninevites. When Jonah obeyed His will, God's purpose was fulfilled. In these verses, we see that the Ninevites believed and were saved.

This leads to the second point of these verses. Obeying God's calling immediately will not delay the revelation of His mercy, grace, and love. There has been no delay in revealing God's power to save, His immeasurable love, unfathomable mercy, and glorious grace if Jonah has obeyed Him immediately. But because of his disobedience, such revelation has been delayed; but thanks be to God. His calling and gift are irrevocable. And thus, the Ninevites still received such great salvation at the time Jonah has obeyed God's calling.

In application, when God has called us to do something, we should obey it immediately. Otherwise, we will be delaying the revelation of His love and the salvation of other people.


Useful Links

The Lord's Work by Dwight L. Moody

Knowing and Doing God's Will by John MacArthur

After the Deliverance

from Jonah 3:1-2

This is a story about Jonah who has been called by God to proclaim His message of destruction and salvation to the people in Nineveh. Unfortunately, he ran away from God, and took a ship to Tarshish. Along the way, God commanded a storm to hinder him; As a result, he was thrown into the sea where he experienced death. But God in His great power saved him by way of sending a big fish to swallow him. He was in the belly of the fish three nights and three days. And later, he regained his life, and gave thanks to God for his life. In Jonah 3:1-2, God has reminded Jonah once again of His calling.

There are two important lessons that can be learned in these two verses. These are the following:

1. God's calling as well as His gift is irrevocable (Romans 11:29). Remember that Jonah was called to preach God's message to Nineveh. Though he has disobeyed God, and later experienced God's discipline, it didn't change the fact that God called him to Nineveh. It didn't change what God has appointed him to do. And in these very verses, God has reminded him once again of that unfinished business.

What is the relevance of this truth to us? It means that God is unchanging or immutable. If this is so, then His decision to destroy every sin in this corrupted world will never change through time. This is recorded in the book of Revelation. It will remain regardless of what invention, technology, innovations, etc. that this present generation (or the generations to come before Jesus' second coming) will discover or develop. Thus, if you are sinning against Him, His decision to put you into the lake of fire will never change (Revelation 20).

On the other hand, if you have been called by God to become His own child, you will remain to be His child forever. And when His perfect time comes, you will enjoy His presence forever (Revelation 21). In effect, you will never lose your salvation because God will not change His decision of choosing you. This is the reason why Jesus Christ rose from the dead through the power of God in order to become a High Priest who intercedes the believers forever (Hebrews 7:23-25). And this is a good news for every believer. Why? Because though they may fall into sin after they received God's glorious grace of salvation, they will continue to inherit it because Jesus is continually interceding for them.

But this should not be an excuse for them to go on sinning. Because everyone who has seen and accepted God's salvation will not continue to live in sin (1 John 3:6).

2. After God's deliverance there comes God's purposes and great responsibility. Again, in Jonah 3:1-2, we see that Jonah was already being delivered from death. He experienced life through God's intervention. Though one has enjoyed God's salvation, s/he has to fulfill God's purposes of choosing him/her, and do his/her responsibility as God's child. In Ephesians 1:11-12, Paul expressed that believers were predestined that they may become praise to God's glory. In Matthew 28:19-20, every believer has been called to make disciples and teach everything that Jesus taught to His apostles; that they may be handed down from one generation of believers to another. And there are other purposes that God has given to everyone who has believed Him.

Galatians 5 has also shown the believers' responsibility. But they can be summed up in what Jesus said as the greatest commandment, as follows: Love God above all, and love your neighbors as your self." It means that everything that a believer must do or must not do will be founded on love. Love must precedes every good work that s/he does. Without it, everything will just be senseless and in vain. That love must be directed to God. When s/he has love for God, s/he will learn to love others. And all good works that s/he will do will not be burdensome. Good works are fruits of the faith that a person has for God (James 2:14-25). They are not for the attainment of his/her salvation but a manifestation of it. Every believer does good works according to God's words.


Useful Links

A Believer's Assurance: A Practical Guide to Victory over Doubt by John MacArthur

The Absolute Necessity of Accountability by Pastor Carmelo Caparros II

When Calamity Strikes

from Jonah 2:1


Background

God called Jonah to go to the Nineveh to preach God's word encouraging the Ninevites to repent from their sins, otherwise, He will destroy them. Unfortunately, Jonah ran away from this calling. He boarded on a ship going to the opposite direction. While sailing on the sea, God caused a great storm. The ship was almost destroyed while the crews panicked. They casted lots and it fell on Jonah. They inquired about his sin, and he told them to be thrown into the sea. Jonah sunk into the depth; but God gave him a big fish that swallowed him. He was in the fish for three days and three nights. After regaining his life while inside the fish belly, he prayed and gave thanks to God.


Lessons Learned

In the first verse of Jonah chapter 2, we see that Jonah prayed. This is a humble act before God. remember that Jonah ran away from God's call. Now, he is coming before God in prayer. In the succeeding verses, we will see what Jonah uttered to the Lord. But the focus of this exhortation is on the first verse, Jonah's act of coming to God in prayer.

Why did he do that when at first he ran away from God's presence? He did it for simple reason. He was in the midst of a calamity. It seems that he has no choice but to come before the God of all creations, the Almighty who has a full control over everything. he knew that it was God who caused the storm because of what he did; he was also aware that it was God who calmed the sea after he was thrown into the sea. He was also aware that it was God who provided him with a big fish that took him out of the deep. Witnessing all these amazing events, he accepted now the fact that he cannot run away from the God who called him. No choice? Maybe. Or he might have accepted the fact that there is a God who can help him with his predicament. Or, he has repented from what he did, and now coming to God in humility.

Two lessons that we can learn from here: one, let us not await a calamity to strike us before we come to God in repentance. Why do we have to experience such "great storm" before we confess our sins to Him, and seek His forgiveness. We know that God is slow to anger, loving, and relenting to send calamity when we rend our hearts to Him (Joel 2:13). We should not wait God's anger to strike us because we know that we are nothing before Him.

Two, in our distress, we have a God who can help us mightily. There is a God who is Almighty (Exodus 6:3)! So, where shall you go in your troubles? A wise person will not trust his/her life to anyone who is also governed by the forces of nature. A wise person will put his/her trust on a God who can deliver him/her from all troubles (Psalm 34:17).

If you are wise, remember these two lessons. But then again, do not wait when calamity strikes you before you come to God.


Useful Links

The Attributes of God by A. W. Pink

When Tragedy Strikes by Jeff Miller

A Truly Repentant Heart

from Jonah 1:11-17

God hates sin. That's a truth. In fact, even the creation of the world, He has already prepared a place for the sinners. The last book of the Bible, i.e. Revelation, God reveals His wrath over the sinfulness of this world. This world is destined for destruction. No matter what people may do, they will not be able to thwart God's plan for this sinful world.

In these verses of the book of Jonah, we see that Jonah had understood, and accepted that he has sinned against God; and that God wanted him to obey His command to preach God's words to Ninevites. As we consider the event in this part of the book, we can learn three important lessons:

1. A truly repentant person who understands his sin against God knows what he should do.

Understanding his disobedience from God, we see that Jonah remorse on what he did. He understood that it is God who caused the storm because of what he has done. In addition, he understood that the only way to stop the storm is to throw him into the sea.

Here, we see that any person who has truly repented from his sins knows the things that s/he needs to do. In Jonah's case, he should be taken out from the ship in order to avoid others to be affected by God's discipline on him. In the same manner, a person who repents from her/his sins knows that s/he should come to God for forgiveness. S/he should face the consequence of her/his sins. Only God can forgive sins. God promises that anyone who comes to Him in faith will seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). And Jonah experienced this when he came to Him in humility and repentance.

2. There is only one solution to calamities caused by sins: God's solution

In this story, we see that the solution to stop the storm is for Jonah to be thrown into the sea. That's the only way so that the crews may be spared of the consequences of his sins. Knowing that it is the only way, Jonah told this to the crews. Unfortunately, the crews did not believed him; instead, they rowed strongly the boat. But it did not work. Thus, they have no choice but to follow God's solution. And we see that after they threw Jonah into the sea, the sea calmed, and the storm was gone.

In the same manner, there is only one way to solve life's troubles because of sin: following God's solution. What is God's solution? Coming to Him in repentance regardless of what needs to be surrendered. In Jonah's case, it was his life. In other cases, it may be a sinful relationship; it may be a career; wealth, or a person or thing that you cherished the most. But if they caused you to sin, you have to surrender them to God; and come to Him in repentance, asking His forgiveness, and obey His will in your life. That's the only way.

3. Even in the midst of God's discipline, He still blesses His children.

As you can see, even Jonah received God's blessing when he accepted God's way of dealing with Him. In verse 17, God provided Jonah a big fish to save him from the corruption of his body. Though he died for three days, God did not allow him to decompose; instead, he allowed him to be resurrected after three days. The big fish swallowed him, and brought him to land. This is a big blessing for a sinning person.

This is great! The bible tells us that God disciplines the ones He loves (Hebrews 12:6). And because God loves the person though He disciplines him/her, He still pours upon His blessings upon him/her. Look at Jonah. There was God's protection on him, and most importantly, He brought him back to life; this was Jonah's second life.

When you survey the Bible, it was not only Jonah whom God blessed in spite of what they did to Him. There was Paul, who persecuted the early Christians; Peter, who denied Jesus for three times; Moses, who killed an Egyptian; Abraham and Isaac, who denied their wife, etc. All these individuals received God's blessings, in fact, mighty blessings despite of what they have done. But of course, they also experienced God's discipline in their life.


Useful Links

The Painful Discipline of Our Heavenly Father by John Piper

Salvation is by Faith Alone by Pastor Carmelo Caparros

When You Speak

from Jonah 1:9-10

When a Christian speaks about God to others, people will know about His character, and this brings fear and reverence in them. As the Bible says, faith comes from hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). The word of God must be spoken so that other people may know who God is. As the verse in Jonah 1:9 says, God is the creator of all things. As creator of all things, He owns everything. This is the reason why He has full control of the seas, weather, and all other events in this world. This truth should create fear in the hearts of people especially those who have no Christ in their lives. Because the absence of Christ in one's life means that s/he is under God's wrath. Everyone is sinful before God because of the sin of the first man and woman. This has corrupted the natural character of man. According to Romans 3:23, everyone has sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 6:23 indicates that the wages of sin is death. This death is not only in terms of physical sense but also in spiritual terms. But the spiritual death is not similar with the physical where there is separation of the soul and physical bodies. Spiritual death is the eternal torment in the lakes of fire. Revelation 20:11-15 explain this second death, and show the kind people who will experience this kind of death.

Thus if we try to dissect this truth, it simply indicates that anyone who is sinful will pay the wages of sin, which is death, which is both physical and spiritual.

The condition of man appears at first hopeless because everyone is sinner as the bible says. Nobody is holy. Therefore, everyone is bound to experience the second death, which is the lake of fire. But because of God's mighty love (John 3:16), He sent His only begotten Son to die as payment for the wage of sin. In effect, His Son became a substitute for us who are supposedly the one who will pay the wages of sin. Because the wages of sin had already been paid by His Son (Jesus Christ), anyone therefore who has the Son will no longer pay the wages of sin because the Son had already paid it for him/her.

This is what Christians, who have received this gift from God, ought to speak to other people. This is the good news that everyone should know and understand. Though different from what God has called for Jonah, the principle is the same. God forgives sinners. In Jonah's time, the forgiveness is direct. In our time, the forgiveness is mediated by His Son, Jesus Christ. As Jesus claimed in John 14:6, there is no other way to be with the Father except through Him.

Though there will be two things that might happen when each Christian speaks about this, the seed of salvation might be planted in the hearts of their listeners. The two things will be either the person will accept the message or reject it. Nevertheless, each Christian ought to speak that others may know God and His gift of salvation.


Useful Links

An Introduction to Lordship Salvation by John MacArthur

The Importance of Knowing Our Sin by John Piper

Repentance, Forgiveness, and the Gift of the Spirit by John Piper

When Calamity Strikes

from Jonah 1:8

When I read this verse, I remembered the times when I experienced some calamities in my life. While I was still a young boy, our place always experienced flooding. Sometimes the destruction is so great that many people have to move to other places. The greatest of these calamities was the one that almost wiped out the city, and killed more than 8,000 people. My family was one of those affected; my father, two sisters, and a niece died while another niece and a nephew were missing. Many of our neighbors were also killed because of that tragic event. Our house was totally wiped out. After the calamity, I received several help from friends and strangers alike. Bridges of friendship were made with strangers; help from people whom I don't know was poured upon us as if they were so close to us.

I have similar observation with what the victims of Typhoon Sendong experienced recently. I sympathized on their situation. But I do believe that bridges of friendship were also established during this moment.

When I read Jonah 1:8, those things that happened in my life returned. Remember that the people inside the ship were panicking, and now on the verge of dying because of the storm. And here comes the crew coming to Jonah; and asking all these things: “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” These are same questions that people under this circumstance will ask. Though in this case their circumstance was due to Jonah's disobedience of God and these people were trying to figure out what Jonah has done, these questions might be able to start building bridges of friendship. All victims of a calamity, whether great or small, rich or poor, come together and talk about their situation. The moment a door is opened an opportunity to establish friendship is made.

Unfortunately, in Jonah's case, this is not what happened. Because of his disobedience, people are now looking at him as someone who has brought the calamity. And indeed, it is true. He was now facing a pressure from these people, most especially when the lot was casted, it fell on him. The questions that the people asked him put him under pressure instead of establishing a bridge of friendship. And this is the case when a Christian is holding a sin in his/her life. S/he cannot escape from feeling the pressure that comes from the people surrounding her/him. And this will bring her/him back to God.


Useful Links

Jonah 1:8-10 by John Calvin

The Tragedy of an Unwilling Missionary by John Macarthur

You Can't Hide

from Jonah 1:7

Sometimes, we are so skilled at hiding our sins from other people, even from our loved ones. Sometimes, husbands or wives are so good in hiding part of their salary from their partners; or they are so skilled in hiding their adulterous life from their family and/or friends.

Jonah was one of the many people who are skillful at hiding their sins. If you recall, Jonah received God's call to preach His word to the Ninevites but he ran away from God. He took a ship going to the opposite direction. The crews of the ship did not know about this sin; and Jonah was so good in hiding it. Even in the midst of a great storm, he deeply slept down the ship until such time that the captain of the boat confronted him, and asked him to call upon his God.

In this verse, however, God has revealed his sin to the crews. When they casted lots, it fell on Jonah. Great! Maybe, at this time, Jonah was so ashamed and/or fearful, not because the lot fell on him, but because he was not able to successfully run away from God.

What's the lesson here? First, we cannot escape from the godly eyes of God. No matter how skillful we are to hide our sins, God has a way to reveal it to other people. He did this not to destroy us, but to let us understand that He loves us, and He wants us to walk in holiness with Him. Proverbs 3:12 reveals that the Father disciplines everyone that He loves. But who are those whom God loves? Does He love everyone?

God's love is for everyone. John 3:16 says that God so loved the world. That means that He loves you and me. And the expression of this love was the sending of His only beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins. But unfortunately, everyone neglects this love, and neglects God totally. It means again that you and I neglect this love. This is the reason why God chose people to believe in His Son, and will receive Him as their Lord and Savior. And it is these people whom God will discipline or train to live the godly life that He gave them through His Son so that when His perfect time comes, He will be perfected in their character, become blameless, and perfectly holy. But those who have no Christ in their lives, He will not only discipline them but they will be destroyed in the lake of fire, together with the devil and his cronies.

Going back to our character, God chose Jonah. In fact, He called him to bring the good news of salvation to the people of Nineveh. But because of Jonah's disobedience, God disciplined him. He allowed Jonah to experience a terrible storm while he ran away from God. And God again, revealed Jonah's sin to the ship's crews. In the succeeding verses, we will see that Jonah was thrown into the sea, and in fact experience death for a short while. But God in His great mercy and love, and because His calling is irrevocable, He brought him back to life.

So what's the point in this verse? Very simple. No sin can be hidden before God regardless of who committed it.


Useful Links


God's Amazing Love by Pastor Carmelo Caparros

The Painful Discipline of Our Heavenly Father by John Piper

The Skeptical Grumbling and Sovereign Grace by John Piper

God Will Never Give Up!

from Jonah 1:6

God's ways are amazing! I don't know if you have experienced a situation in your life, a situation that you thought you cannot get out. But when you lifted it up to God, you're just amazed that you were able to face it.

In reading Jonah 1:6, I have found another amazing way of God in dealing with Jonah's disobedience. The crews confronted Jonah because in the midst of their stormy situation he was down the ship and sleeping deeply. If we try to look at this situation, it seems that Jonah did not bother himself on what is happening outside. And it also shows how he deliberately ignored his sin of disobedience. Sleeping deeply in the midst of a storm is something else. It is like sleeping deeply while your father is shouting at you because of a work you did not fulfill.

But despite this, Jonah did not escape from God's confrontation. He used the captain and the crews of the ship to confront him. And what we see in this verse? "The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish” (Jonah 1:6).

Isn't it amazing to have a God who will not give you up until you will be transformed, and obey His will? The keywords are "not giving you up." Despite of who or what you are, God will not give you up when He predestined you to become His'. Romans 11:29 emphasizes that God's gift and calling are irrevocable. When God gives, He gives it.

Going back to the verse, God did not give up Jonah. He used the captain to confront Him of what he did against his God. The captain did not know what he did as indicated by the verse; but he said something that can put the sin back into Jonah's mind and heart. "Call on your God!" The captain has voiced this out to him. But how can he call on his God when he is hiding a sin? And in fact, he was running away from God! So, how can he call on Him?

But then again, God has a mysterious way of confronting us with our sins, i.e. using people and situation. By saying "call on your God," Jonah was reminded of what he has done against God. And through this, he understood that his disobedience has caused them trouble. And so, he has to face it.

In our life, we are like Jonah. We do things that displeased God, and in the midst of it, we simply ignore God's promptings in our hearts. But God will never give up on us. He will use situation and people so that we might be able to open our hearts and minds to the sin that we are holding on to our lives. These people don't know about what we have done. But they will say or do things that will bring us back to God, and face that sin. They will say or do things that will bring us down to our knees, and seek God's forgiveness. They will say or do things that will bring us to humility, and acknowledge that God is sovereign, and powerful. They will say or do things that will allow us see how great is His love for us. That is God's amazing ways!

I have several experiences about this. From the time I became a Christian until now, God has proven His unconditional love for me. He saved me from being a slave to sin again. He brought me out from a sinful bondage. And despite all the things that I did against Him, He continues to do this for me. HE NEVER GIVE UP ON ME! But sad to say, I suffer the consequences of my sins. And I don't want to experience them again!


Useful Links

Blessed are They Whose Inquity is Forgiven by John Calvin

Eight Steps to Biblical Forgiveness by Bill Fields

God is in control

from Jonah 1:4

Reading this verse in the book of Jonah, I learned four lessons in life. How significant indeed is this verse to us! With just one verse, you will get four important lessons..

1. The first lesson is God is in control of everything on and in earth. If you read this verse in relation to the previous ones, you will see that God has control over nature and natural forces. He can command the wind to blow or the nature to pour out its forces. This is possible given that God is the Creator of all the things that we can find not only on earth but also throughout the universe. As their Creator, He can simply cause them to move or do according to His words. For people who loved God so much, this all-powerful character of God is their strength and encouragement because they know that the God whom they loved and believed in is a God who can do all things according to His perfect will. But for God's enemies, those people who don't believe in God and have no personal relationship with Him, this character should terrify them. Because in an instance, they will be destroyed. Similar character is seen in Jesus Christ since He is the Son of God, and is perfectly God Himself. Read Matthew 8:27. In this verse, the apostles were amazed because the winds and waves obeyed Him.

2. When God moves, nobody can stop Him. According to God's perfect time, He fulfills His plans, and nobody can thwart them. Even God's plan with you, no one can stop Him to fulfill it. If His plans for you is to give you salvation, nobody can stop it; not even your sins. This is evident in the life of the Ninevites. In my previous post (God's Unusual Way), you have seen that regardless of the greatness of Nineveh's sin against Him, God still forgave them when they humbled before Him, and acknowledged and turned away from their sins. And when He did it, nobody was able to stop Him; not even Jonah or his disobedience, or the greatness of Nineveh's sins. On the contrary, God's enemies will not be spared of His wrath in His perfect time. And when He will do this, nobody can also stop Him.

3. The consequence of sin will not only affect the sinner but even the innocents are affected. The crews of the boat did not know that Jonah was fleeing away from God. He disobeyed God's call for him. Unfortunately, it was not only Jonah who was affected by his disobedience. Even the innocent crews were not spared of the fear of the storm. They too suffered loss and were affected both physically, mentally, and emotionally. Again, they were innocent. Similar cases we can see everywhere. How many innocent people died because of the sinfulness of one or two or three men. This only shows that the sin of one man will affect many. And this is actually what happened to us when Adam sinned against God. By his sinned, death reigned over us (Romans 5:17). But God did not allow this to go on uncorrected. In His great love for us, He sent His only Son Jesus Christ so that by His death, those who will believe in Him will have life (Romans 5:18). This is how great the love of God for us. While we were still His enemies because we are sinners, Jesus Christ His only beloved Son died for us (Romans 5:8).

4. Never underestimate God's anger. Though God is slow to anger and forgiving (Numbers 14:18), His anger is tremendous. You can find the culmination of His anger against satan and his followers in the book of Revelation. But just to provide you a picture of what it looks like, I have enumerated below some of the expression of His anger:

• hailstorm and fire mixed with blood - A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up (Revelation 8:7)
• something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea - A third of the sea turned into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. (Revelation 8: 8-9)
• a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter (Revelation 8:10-11)
• a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark - A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night (Revelation 8:12)

The Book of Revelation reveals all these things to come. God has revealed what He will do to this corrupt world in His perfect time so that each of us may come to Him in humility, and accept His gift of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ. If you are truly wise, you should prepare your life for the things to come instead of giving it all to the things that will just be destroyed.

Do not harden your heart when you read this. Rather, think about it, and do the right thing to do. Do not wait when there is no more time for you to act on what is right.


Useful Links:

Being Loved by Christ by Pastor John Piper

Unconditional Grace by Pastor Carmelo Caparros

The Reality of God's Wrath by Pastor John MacArthur

Do You Go or Run Away?

From Jonah 1:3

Jonah 1:3 shows the typical reaction of people who have been called for a service to bring the good news of salvation to sinners. As it is indicated in the verse, there are two opposing responses that a typical individual will make: either he goes and obey God's call to preach His gospel for the salvation of the sinners or ran away from God's call. Jonah took the latter response by running away to the opposite direction.

Nonetheless, any person who has no committed relationship with God will always take the latter response. "Committed" means an intimate and faithful relationship with God. This can only happen however if s/he has a personal relationship with God, i.e. s/he believes in Jesus Christ, turns away from her/his sins, and accepts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of her/his life. Jesus called this as the "born again" experience (John 3:3).

This is how it will happen. When Adam and Eve fell into sin, the consequence of it was the death of their spirit. Man's spirit is the one who communicates with the spirit of God. When man's spirit is dead, there is a gap between him and God. This is the reason why it is difficult for a person who is dead in spirit to understand the matters of God. Have you experienced reading the bible, and yet don't understand what it means? Or, you don't feel reading the bible? This is actually the reason why you feel like that.

But when a person accepts Jesus in his life, his spirit is made alive again. This is why it is known as "born again" or "born from above" because this power comes from God alone. As s/he has a living spirit, s/he now understands the things about God. S/he has a desire to meditate upon the word of God, and craves for more of God.

This is the reason why a person who truly loves God will take the former response, i.e. s/he will go and preach the gospel of salvation no matter what people may say about her/him. This is the reason why Jesus' apostles were passionately preaching the word of God regardless of the risks that awaited them. The risks included the possibility of being whipped, killed, murdered, mocked, beheaded, etc. They were truly loving God even if it took their own life.

Shocking but that is the truth. Everyone who truly loves someone will do everything for her/his loved one. But to balance this however, the apostles were able to offer their lives as living sacrifices to God because of God's grace alone. Not by their own effort because truly they were not seeking God just like any other persons (Romans 3:10-11). But because of God's grace and power through His Holy Spirit (Acts 2), they were able to stand before a throng and preach the good news that Jesus brought.

Again, as indicated in Acts 2, a person can only overcome the power of fear when s/he has the Holy Spirit. But s/he can only have the Holy Spirit when s/he has a personal relationship with God. And because of this, s/he will go and obey God's call in his/her life.


Useful Links:

Is being born again up to us?

What happens in the new birth part 1?

What happens in the new birth part 2?

Men of the Bible: The Call of Moses

God's Unusual Way

From Jonah 1:1-2

When I read these two verses in the Book of Jonah, I learned two important lessons:

1. That some of the unusual ways that God uses in order for us to see our sins is the use of other people. He did this because most of the time we don't bother ourselves on the sins that we did against Him. Also, God uses people to show us our sins because He wants to give us a chance to repent. According to Psalm 86:15, the Lord is slow to anger, compassionate, abounding in love, and faithful. Numbers 14:8 adds to this list, forgiving sins and rebellion. This is who God is!

Unfortunately, people don't bother about this. Rather, they continue to ignore God, and continue to follow their selfish desires. Galatians 5:19-21 enumerate the fleshly desires of every man who is controlled by sinfulness.

Yet despite of this, God helps us see what we've done against Him by sending people to our lives. They show us where we sinned against God; they reveal to us our weaknesses that need to be surrendered to God; they unravel the deep secrets of our sinfulness. Aside from Jonah, God also did this in King David's life through the Prophet Nathan. King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, and ordered the death of Uria, Bathsheba's husband. King David kept this as a secret; but nothing can be hidden from the eyes of God. Thus, He sent Prophet Nathan to rebuke King David, and that, he might turn away from his sins, and come to God in repentance. And this happened.

In the same way, we too experienced this blessing from God. Since He does not want us to suffer from His wrath, He sent forth people to show us our sinfulness so that we might come to Him in repentance, and accept His forgiveness through His Son, Jesus Christ. He did this to give us life since the payment for sins is death (Romans 6:23).

2. That our wealth, power, fame, or successes cannot save us from God's wrath because of sins. If we try to look at the verses in Jonah, you see that regardless of the richness of the city of Nineveh, God's wrath is still upon them. The city of Nineveh is a flourishing city of the Assyrian Empire (Wikipedia). But despite their wealth, fame and power, they were still subject to God's wrath because of their sinfulness. You may click on this link,http://www.enduringword.com/commentaries/3403.htm, to learn the greatness of Nineveh's sinfulness, However, if you try to look at the entire book of Jonah, you will see God's mercy towards its inhabitants. In fact, this is the very theme of Jonah's book, i.e. God's plan to save Nineveh from His wrath. Likewise, you will also see how God's heart was changed when Nineveh repented from their sins. This is what God will do for those who will come to Him in repentance. Repentance means "turning away from sins."

Regardless of who you are or what you are, God will forgive you from your sins when you come to Him in repentance. However, regardless of who you are or what you are, God will judge you and destroy you in His perfect time because of your sins.


Useful Links:

1. Justified Sinners by Pastor Carmelo Caparros
2. The Sovereignty of God and the Sin of the Believer by Pastor John Piper
3. When Mercy Obliterates Unrighteousness by John Calvin
   

You Should Know That...

From the Book of Obadiah

When you meditate upon the words in Obadiah, you will find three important lessons (though God may also give you insights that are more than what He showed me.) The following are the insights I learned from this book.

1. Pride can destroy one's life. God hates pride. It brings one to forget about God, the Giver and Creator of all things. Once a person is on the peak of his/her success, s/he tends to forget God, follow his/her selfish desires. Wealth, fame, and success may replace God's place in one's heart. And this is the reason why such person begins to operate his/her life without regarding if it glorifies God or if it is the right thing to do. When a person starts receiving praises from people, s/he begins to forget that such praises should be pointed to God. In most cases, people are destroyed because of pride.

2. You ought not to rejoice over the failure or destruction of others. Sometimes, people rejoices over the destruction of other people especially if they are their enemies. But in Obadiah, God reminded us that we should not rejoice over their destruction or failures, lest we too may suffer from it. I remember a very important biblical principle, which Jesus Himself told to His disciples: "Whatever you sow, you reap." Or, as Jesus puts it "Do unto others what you would like others do unto you" (Matthew 7:12). Even God Himself becomes merciful and sympathetic towards us when Adam and Eve fell into sin or had disobeyed His commandment. He even immediately offered a way to save them (Genesis 3).

3. The Lord sees the works of the wicked and repays them. God is omniscient. He sees everyone, knows their hearts, and what is in their mind. That's how God is. It is for this reason that He knows each one's work, either bad or good. For those whose works are outside His will, He repays them with His wrath. For the Christians who continue to live a life of sinfulness or who have fallen down into sins, He disciplines them. But whatever it is, God hates sin, and He will repay to everyone who committed it. But thanks be to God, He has offered a way out from it.

To learn more about:

1. Pride and its consequences, you may click on this link: http://www.letgodbetrue.com/sermons/pdf/pride.pdf
2. Sowing and Reaping Principle, you may click on this link: http://www.consumed.ca/en/law-of-sowing-and-reaping.asp
3. God's Character of Omniscience, you may click on this link: http://www.gty.org/resources/Sermons/1353

Other Useful Materials

The Love of Human Praise As the Root of Unbelief

He Knew What is in Man

Covetousness Equals Idolatry