To Do or not to Do!!
Jonah 1:1-16
1Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
2Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
3But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
4But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
5Then 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.
6So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.
7And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.
8Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?
9And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
10Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him. Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
11Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous.
12And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.
13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them.
14Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee.
15So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.
16Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows.
God is interested in what is happening here in our Church and our community.
In this story we find that Jonah was sent to preach in Nineveh but he decided to go to Tarshish.
My question to you all is this… How many of you are running from what God has called you to do?
Is anyone here living in the belly of a whale??
Are you going in the direction that God is sending you or given you, or did you think you had a better idea?
Mark 16:15
15And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
We are commissioned to go but have we gone?
What would be the circumstances if we were to cast lots… would they fall on you for not going or not doing what the Lord directed?
Many ask… Why isn’t our church growing?
Well are you doing anything about it?
Are you living in the will of God?
Are we playing church and are we just going through the motions?
The answer could be that someone is running from God instead of going in the direction that He has directed!!
God said…Arise, go to Nineveh!!
Have you left yet, are you going, and where is your Nineveh? And who does the Lord want you to bring the Word to?
Matthew 10:7-8
7And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
8Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give
Let me ask you a few more questions!!!
What is thine occupation?
and whence comest thou?
what is thy country?
and of what people art thou?
For Me…
1. I’m a Teacher of the Word.
2. I’m from Tacoma, Wa.
3. I’m a Sanctified Christian in the USA.
Now who are you and of what people are you and what is your occupation?
What is your Christian JOB? Are you working or are you still on break?
When you get to thinking about it, it could be a shameful thing to ask what your occupation is. If someone is living right, we would not have to ask what your occupation is. But the obvious conduct had not given any positive indication that you were a servant of God.
Now I wonder should I ask you these last questions?
1. Why hast thou done this?
2. What shall we do unto thee?
Maybe we will let you and the Lord work out the details!!!
You know more about what would be satisfying to God than any of the rest of us. And you don’t need the advice of any one outside the body of Christ to guide you in the way you should live your life.
Luke 9:56-62
56For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.
57And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
58And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
59And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
60Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.
61And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.
62And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
And now as Pastor I am asking you to seek the face of God and ask Him to give you Divine direction in every area of your life so that you can fulfill His will in your life.
