What Can One Person Do?
Jonah 3:1-10
The Bible is filled with stories of what one person can do to change their world. After Moses heard God speak from a burning bush, he went back to Egypt and led his people out of bondage. After Nehemiah heard about the destruction of the walls of Jerusalem, he left his job and led the efforts to rebuild the broken walls.
What can one person do? Let’s look at Jonah. Now remember, Jonah chose to disobey God’s call in his life and I’m sure their were some doubts, at least in his mind, as to whether or not God would ever use him again. But one of the greatest revivals in history came to the city of Nineveh, and it all began with Jonah, who repented and got right with God.
I want to tell you this morning that you are important. You could be the key to revival in your home, your community, maybe even our nation. You might look around your place of work, seeing everyone live such ungodly lives, and wonder what could you ever do in such an environment. Young people at school, overwhelmed when everyone else is going the way of the world, ask themselves that same question, “What can one person do?”
Again, let’s look at Jonah and continue to use him as our example as we see what one man can do. First of all, we need to understand that we can’t change our world until we…
Correct our Ways
Sometimes it’s easy for us to forget that we can choose to correct our ways. Let’s talk about how. First, we have to…
a.) Seize our Opportunities (v. 1)
God doesn’t just deliver us from the belly of our fish, He gives us a second chance. And when He gives you a second chance then do something with it. Jonah was given a second chance and he seized the opportunity. It’s comforting to realize that even the best of God’s servants have made foolish mistakes, and they were given a second chance:
Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree. But God provided the opportunity for a second chance to fix their broken fellowship.
Lot selfishly chose the best land for himself. But God provided the opportunity for a second chance before Sodom was destroyed.
David was the king who had it all before he tried to hide his sin when his lust had gotten the best of him. But God provided the opportunity for a second chance and David went on to the most effective years of his life.
Samson also had a lot going for him until he fell into sin. But in his last days God provided the opportunity for a second chance, allowing him to correct his ways before it was too late.
Peter denied Jesus not once, but three times. Jesus later meets him on the shore and provides the opportunity of a second chance.
We could go on and on throughout the Bible. If God could use people like that again, surely He can use us again. God’s not through with us yet! But it’s not enough that He provides the second chance, we have to seize the opportunity when it’s presented.
Many of us are here today because the Word of God came to us a second time, or a third, or a fourth, or a tenth time. Maybe you’ve gone your own way in life. Like Jonah you’ve disobeyed God and gotten out of His will. God is giving you a second chance today. Nothing you’ve done is unforgivable, except continuing to refuse to receive His grace.
What can one person do? We can begin by correcting our ways. How? First by seizing our opportunities; second, we can…
b.) Sense our Obligations (Vv. 2-4)
As Christians, we are obligated to take the Word of God to the world. Jonah could’ve gone to Nineveh and compromised the Word of God by proclaiming some watered-down version of the truth. But Jonah recognized his obligation to proclaim God’s message. This message wasn’t a popular one, and it certainly wasn’t meant to make people comfortable. But the greatest revival in history came to Nineveh because Jonah proclaimed God’s message, not what the people wanted to hear.
There’s a fine line when it comes to the Word of God. Yes, there’s second chances. Yes, the gospel contains a redemptive message. Yes, God can forgive our past. But these truths must be shared in a way that someone who’s contemplating a life of sin wouldn’t say, “Oh, I’ll just go out and sin and God will forgive me for it later.” If that’s your attitude then you’re abusing the grace of God and your understanding of repentance is shallow.
Notice Jonah’s message: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” God could’ve leveled Nineveh without any warning and He would’ve been completely justified. But in His love and mercy He warned them first. He gave them time to repent. He gave them a final opportunity.
For the most part, men and women of God today have not seized their opportunities and sensed their obligations. We haven’t changed our world because we haven’t corrected our ways. What can one person do you say? Well, we’ve seen what one person can do in a negative sense. A woman by the name of Madelyn Murray O’ Hair was able to get prayer out of public schools almost singlehandedly because she set her mind to it. It’s my prayer that Christians will be just as committed to Christ as she was to atheism.
So again, “What can one person do?” We can correct our ways and then we can…
2. Change our World (Vv. 5-10)
A.) Faith “the people of Nineveh believed God” (v. 5)
It’s amazing what can happen when just one person gets right with God. When Jonah corrected his ways, then he changed his world. A lot of times I wonder if it’s possible that we are surrounded by people who want to believe, but the problem is with us. Yes, God could bring people to salvation in whatever way He chooses, but He chooses to use us. When we get our own lives right with God, then we are able to proclaim God’s message to the lost in a way that will attract them. All it takes is for one person to be the spark that leads multitudes to Christ. Other examples:
The woman at the well got a taste of “living water” and she brought the whole town of Sychar to Jesus.
Peter seized his opportunity of a second chance, and three thousand people got saved at Pentecost.
B. Fasting “proclaimed a fast” (v. 5)
The first thing the Ninevites did after they were saved was fast. They had just experienced this great revival and now they were consumed with spiritual matters. That’s was true revival does, it involves a change of heart.
Fasting seems to be a lost word in our Christian vocabulary today. Fasting can be defined as the voluntary denial of food in order that the face of God might be sought in earnest, definite, persistent, and believing prayer. Fasting and prayer are inseparable.
Why should we fast? Jesus Himself said that some things happen only as a result of prayer and fasting. In addition to this instance with the Ninevites, we can look all throughout the Bible where people have fasted in order to meet with God.
Moses fasted and prayed for forty days and forty nights when he met God and was given the Ten Commandments.
When Nehemiah heard about the broken-down walls of Jerusalem he said, “I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven” (Neh. 1:4).
Jesus was “led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry” (Mt. 4:1-2).
The early church fasted. “As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away” (Acts 13:2-3).
Why is it that so many churches today completely neglect this truth of Scripture? Whatever happened to prayer and fasting?
Another question should be: “When should we fast?” We should fast when our walk with God needs to be deepened and our faith restored. We should fast when victories need to be won. We should fast when decisions need to be made. We should fast when revival needs to be experienced.
Where should we fast? Should we fast privately or publicly? There are needs for public fasts. We see it here in the book of Jonah. However, I believe that our basic need today is for private fasting. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:
“Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly” (Mt. 6:16-18).
C. Forsaking “let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands” (v. 8)
When the people heard the message that God had delivered through Jonah, conviction set in.
It’s interesting to me that all of them, “from the greatest to the least”, turned from their evil ways. Sometimes people try to convince themselves that the message of God’s wrath and judgment is only for the people they think they’re better than. They sit comfortably in their pews looking down at those who may be a little different than them. But in Nineveh, all the people believed.
Here’s the thing, we’re all on the same level. We’ve all sinned. Repentance is a universal need. In fact, the one who took the lead in Nineveh was the greatest of all, the king. It was personal sin that they were each turning from. It’s one thing to talk and pray about the sins of others, but it’s another thing to come before God and say “Are my hands clean? Is my heart pure?”
This is how we experience true revival, through repentance. The problem is that some people aren’t sure what repentance is.
Some think it’s being sorry about their sin. Being sorry may lead to repentance, but being sorry is not repentance. The rich young ruler was sorry about his sin, but he didn’t repent.
Some think repentance is the same as regret. There’s a lot of people who may regret their sin but they’ve never repented. Pontius Pilate regretted his actions against Christ but he never repented of them.
Some think repentance means to turn over a new leaf. That’s what Judas tried to do. After betraying Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, he went back to the temple and tried to give the money back. The problem is that he went to the wrong people.
Here’s what true repentance is. Repentance is a change of mind that results in a change of heart that results in a change of action. We see a clear picture of it here in the life of the Ninevites.
D. Forgiveness (v. 10)
This was the result of it all. “God saw their works,” and He sent a mighty revival. A lot of people today want to see revival but very few want to pay the price. What can one person do? Look at Jonah. Revival in Nineveh started with one man. It spread to the people, and they in turn influenced the leadership. This is why it’s so important for the church to correct its ways and begin to change its world. It’s extremely important for the church to take the message God has given us and become salt and light in the world instead of simply in the church. We can change our world just like Jonah changed Nineveh.
