Is There hope for the United States?

                                  

                                    

                                         

"And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not." (Jonah 3:10) 

                      Yesterday, we read about how a nation turned to God. We saw how Jonah went through a series of circumstances in his life that impacted him. God, in his wisdom, manipulated those circumstances in his favor to "break" Jonah's will. In spite of this, he, still, had free will to choose. I believe that when he was in the belly of the whale, that was Jonah's last chance to say yes to God. Yes, God is merciful and full of grace, but there comes a time when grace ends and judgement comes. Jonah's decision in the belly of the whale was a death or life choice. 

                       Perhaps many reading this are saying "NO" to a calling of God in your life. It may be something as simple as telling your neighbor about Jesus. Whatever it is, don't harden your heart. It may not cause you to die, but a hardened heart will, eventually, stop hearing from God. When this happens, wrong choices will be made and you can be in the wrong place at the wrong tiime! In this day, take some time to examine your heart. Keep the flow of the Holy Spirit in your life and harden not your heart.

                       It is interesting that in the midst of testings and trials, God will dredge up what is in our hearts. When Jonah was persuaded to obey God, he preached God's message. It was a hard message, but God looked out for his prophet. It is my personal belief that when he got out of the belly's whale, he had lost his hair and was bald. As he obeyed and preached, God used this unfortunate incident to calll the people's attention. Can you imagine their reaction---"We are getting invaded by aliens!"

                       Yes, this was an invasion, a holy invasion and God was the mastermind. I believe that while Jonah preached, God was healing him on the spot which caused them to fear and experience the power of God. Friends, we may be called to preach a hard message, but let's not forget God's power in demostration! It is interesting that when the people repented, Jonah's true motive for not obeying is revealed. Look at the following verse----

                       

  " But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew  that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.  Therefore now, O Lord, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live." (Jonah 4:1-3)

                Notice that Jonah did forsake his calling for the following--He knew that God was a gracious God, merciful and slow to anger. In effect, he was expecting judgement. Why did he hate the Ninevites? Perhaps since they were a violent people, he remembered what they did to his nation and even to his family. (II Kings 19:36) Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. Assyria was the nation that oppressed Israel as a result of God's judgement. (II Kings 17:22-24) 

                So. you can see why Jonah acted this way. The question I want to ask is this---If there was hope for Nineveh, can there be hope for the United States? In my next devotional, I will address this subject. God bless. 

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A nation turns to God!

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"And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee." (Jonah 3:1-2)

                     In our last study, we saw how Jonah ran from the call of God. His hardness of heart was reflected when he took a ship to Tarshish (Modern day Spain) and fell asleep along the way, not caring nor being convicted of fleeing from the call of God. God, in his love, did not give up on Jonah. He allowed a storm to come his way to call his attention, but still, Jonah was asleep. 

        It was not until one of the men woke him up and called upon him to pray. This would have been a wonderful opportunity for Jonah to preach the word and win souls. The sad thing was that he kept silent and did not care to share his faith. It wasn't until by the hand of God that he was found out. 

         The incredible thing was that, even, when he was found out, he preferred suicide than be obedient to God. It was not until a fish, most likely a whale, swallowed him that he was faced with reality. Instead of a fast death, Jonah was facing a slow and painful death inside of the whale's belly.

         God knows how to get our attention and praise be to his name that he never gives up on us. Jonah was facing a last call...a last chance and then all bets would be off. He would face eternal damnation because of his disobedience.When faced with this, he cried out to God in his"hell". He repented, trusted and praised him in the midst of his "hell". Friend, God can deliver you from your "hell", if you trust and praise him. We, all, know what happened---The whale had heartburn and vomited him out. 

               Tradition has us thinking that Jonah came out nice and fresh and went out to preach, but nothing could be further than the truth. I have read reports of people that had been swallowed by a whale. Their skin turned pure white and, in some cases, they lose their hair. Can you imagine how Jonah looked when he came out?

                    Notice in the above verse. God give him a command for the second time. Thank God for second chances. God is willing to give us all the time of the world if it would make a difference. Jonah was smart and walked out to Nineveh. Can you imagine the spectacle that Jonah caused? His condition called the people to attention. 

                      What does that tell us? When we go to preach, we need to trust God because he has a plan. We hear of street preachers preaching gloom and doom but without no demonstration of God's power. Brethren, I am not against preaching gloom and doom and if that what God has called you---more power to you! The thing that concerns me is that God's word is preached with signs and wonders. 

                   Jonah was a wonder in his condition, but God did not leave him  that way. I believe that during his preaching, his skin started to change colors and that amazed the people. They saw a demonstration of his power! No wonder they took heed and repented. They saw signs and wonders. 

               Recently, our church went out to evangelize near a store. God gave our Senior Pastor favor and we were allowed to put tables and chairs near the entrance. As the people entered the store, all we asked them was if they needed prayer. The reaction was mixed, but we had some good results. Friends, the word says he that winneth souls is wise. 

              The world is looking for answers and if they can get a taste of God with signs and wonders, your church will be full. Jesus demonstrated this principle when he preached to the multitudes through signs and wonders. So, friend, as you share your faith, be open to the gifts of the spirit.

            You will be surprised at the results you can get. In Russia, they were cases of churches being formed overnight, just like in the book of Acts. Who knows if the Lord might raise you up to form a church? So, the word in this day is to preach the word with signs and wonders following...A world is waiting for good news! 

                

                

                 

To Hell and back!

                         "For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." (Matt 12:40)


                            In our last devotional, we saw how sin had hardened Jonah's heart. How he was so comfortable in his disobedience that he fell asleep and did not notice a storm coming his way. In spite of the circumstances of life, Jonah was hard headed and would not repent. To make a long story short, he was thrown overboard from the ship where he was traveling and swallowed by a fish (Most likely a whale).
                            It is interesting that our Lord Jesus compared himself to Jonah. Jonah was in the belly of the whale 3 days and 3 nights. Can you imagine the "hell" that he was going through? A world of darkness and his skin decaying with the digestive juices inside the whale's belly? No doubt, Jonah was in constant pain and agony. 
                     In the midst of his agony, he cried out to God. He made his peace with him and God gave the whale heartburn and he winded up spitting  Jonah out to shore. Our Lord Jesus went through a similar experience but on a most intense level. He was in hell 3 days and 3 nights. The fact of the matter is that Jesus was not buried underground as some would conclude in Matt 12:40 because he was buried in a cave, but this speaks of hell.(1) Jesus went into hell. Why? To pay for our sins and rescue the Old testament saints 
                   My favorite boxer is Muhammad Ali. He used the power of confession to his advantage. He would talk and intimidate his opponents on a consistent basis. After a while, he would wind up beating them. When he fought George Foreman, he used the technique called rope-a-dope. George Foreman, who was the most feared fighter of his time, was punching at Ali's body constantly until he got tired. Ali had taken all of his punches and now it was his turn. Brilliantly attacking a worn out Foreman, Ali made his move and decked him to win the Heavyweight championship of the world! 
                       Rope-a-dope is nothing new. Our Lord Jesus did a "rope-a-dope" with the devil. He took his best punches in hell. When the time was up, Jesus attacked and defeated Satan and his legions of hell,but that was not all. The saints had a front row seat on the fight of the millennium and winded up leaving with the champion, but not before Jesus paraded them on display showing their defeat. It was better than the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade! (2)
                          In looking at the life of Jonah and Jesus, what was their secret? What brought them out of their hell and agony? Praise and thanksgiving! In both cases, they used the power of praise to blast the hell out of their lives!  Glory to God! So, friends, rejoice. I don't know what private "hell" you are going through, but Jesus can get you out of it. Just ask the Father to deliver you and start thanking him for the victory! Your test will be your testimony and God will be glorified in your life. God bless! 

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Bible references: Jonah 2 and Ps 16: 9-11

(1) Eph 4:9 and Eph 4:8
(2) Col 2:15 
                     

Are you asleep?

                                          Awake thou that sleepest--Eph 5:14


" Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep." (Jonah 1:5)

                           We, all, like to hear the story of how Jesus slept when he was in the midst of a storm. How he was awaken by his fearful disciples. I like to think of Jesus as the King of "Cool"----He was not fearful but spoke that word and calmed that storm. Jonah on the other hand was not "cool" with God. 
        Jonah was a prophet, but he was backslidden. Why? He was given a command to go to Nineveh and speak out against their sins. Nineveh was a dangerous place to be. These people would kill you and think nothing of it. I used to remember some years ago, not far from my neighborhood, we had some Christians standing on a corner and speaking out against sin. They did it for years and all of a sudden, it stopped. 
             Perhaps many people were glad to see them go. Maybe the city pressured them to stop. Whatever the reason, they stopped but thank God they did not get roughed up or killed. Now in this day and time, people do not like to hear about sin. If you are not careful, you could get killed. Maybe Jonah had his reasons. Maybe he thought about his life. Maybe he hated the Ninevites, but whatever the reason, he ran away and went to the other side.
               The word says that he went the other way and departed from the presence of God. (1) Bad mistake. Never run from the presence of God. It is your life source. Second, he paid a fare on a ship to get away from the presence of God. Never sell out the anointing of God in your life. I remember in years past, Motown records had some great talents. A lot of these groups and singers started in the church and some of them ended in drugs and tragedy. The world offered them fame, as well as fortune and what they got was death and disaster. 
                  When you depart from your calling and duties, you wind up affecting people. Jonah got on a ship and because of his disobedience, the word said that God sent out a storm. People who were in the ship feared for their lives. Jonah's disobedience affected a group of people, but notice what was his reaction. HE WENT TO SLEEP! Bad choice. 
                    God was calling his attention. Why? Because he loved Jonah. God loves you and me and sometimes, when we walk in disobedience, he calls our attention allowing the storms of life to shake us. Unfortunately, Jonah's heart was so hardened to sin that he fell into complacency and was asleep, but not for long. He was awakened by his shipmates.
                      Jonah tried to hide the fact that he was a believer. He was not interested in repentance nor reaching out to the people in the ship. His heart was hardened, but God says your sins will find you out(2). There is a saying---You can run but you can't hide. When it was found out that Jonah was a believer and his disobedience caused the storm, the Jig was up! 
                      Notice to what extent his heart was hardened. He missed the opportunity to repent, he missed the chance for God to calm the storm and he missed the chance to get new converts for the Lord God Almighty. What did he do? He said---Throw me overboard and the storm will calm down. A spirit of suicide came upon him, but the sad case is that Jonah did not care.
                    Brethren, God will forgive sin and disobedience. He is merciful, but a constant pattern of sinning without repentance will cause indifference and harden your heart. If God has called you to do something, harden not your hearts. Your life and the lives of your loved ones can be at stake. Tomorrow, we will look more at the life of Jonah--God bless. 



Bible references: (1) Jonah 1:3, (2) Numbers 32:23 and Jonah 1
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