SERIES: Jonah: God’s Heart For The City
TEXT: Jonah 1:17-2:10
MESSAGE: “The Depths of God’s Love”
What is Jonah chapter 2 about?
“…the deeper work of God took place, not in the belly of the fish but in the heart of the prophet; not in the realm of nature, but in the realm of grace.” – Sinclair Ferguson
“Nineveh was not some random city to which Jonah had been sent. At the time of Jonah, Nineveh was on its way to becoming the largest city in the known civilized world, with the city population hitting 100,000 the century after his preaching. It was also the capital of the Assyrian empire, then the world’s largest and most powerful. Just like Athens and Rome centuries later, Nineveh would have embodied the Gentile world…” — Stephen Beale
TEXT: Jonah 1:17-2:10
v. 17: “And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.”
“It is the author’s belief that this miraculous event did occur, and he asks the reader to accept his testimony to that effect…The account of Jonah’s unique rescue is not embellished with vivid descriptions of either the fish or Jonah’s stay therein. Indeed, the fish is mentioned in only two verses, and even then briefly.” — Desmond Alexander
VISION: “To be a church for our city that seeks new life in Jesus.”
- Church IN the City
- Church AGAINST the City
- Church OF the City
- Church FOR the City
“Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying, ‘I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.”
“In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.” – Psalm 18:6
“The point of this good-day-bad-day comparison is this: Regardless of our performance, we are always dependent on God’s grace, His undeserved favor to those who deserve His wrath. Some days we may be more acutely conscious of our sinfulness and hence more aware of our need of His grace, but there is never a day when we can stand before Him on our own two feet of performance, when we are worthy enough to deserve His blessing.” ― Jerry Bridges
2. Sends (v. 3-7)
“For you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all your waves and your billows passed over me. 4 Then I said, ‘I am driven away from your sight; yet I shall again look upon your holy temple.’ 5 The waters closed in over me to take my life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head 6 at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God. 7 When my life was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple.”
Desmond Alexander says, “On the brink of passing out for lack of oxygen, Jonah’s thoughts suddenly turn to God.”
3. Saves (v.8-9)
“Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. 9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!”
“Let us hear what the Bible says and what we as Christians are called to hear together: By grace you have been saved.”– Karl Barth
TAKEAWAYS: How can we see God’s work in our lives? By knowing that…
• God can reveal deep truths in our lowest moments
“Being brought low may ruin our plans, but not God’s better, wiser, kinder plans for us. If we will learn how to be brought low, we will one day testify, “I want you to know, brothers, that this bankruptcy has really served to free me from money’s stranglehold.” Or, “I want you to know that this betrayal has really taught me how to forgive.” Or, “I want you to know that this sickness has fueled my hope for heaven like nothing else.” – Scott Hubbard (Desiring God – Learn How To Be Brought Low)
• God knows the best way to bring us back to Him
“God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.” – Charles Spurgeon
“And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.” – Jonah 2:10
“For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” – Matthew 12:40