Second Presbyterian Church Sermons

Big Idea:

The Church of Jesus Christ (a particular people in a particular place) is the refuge from our worst enemies: our personal sin, a fallen world, and ungrateful idolaters. Not only are these enemies displeasing to God, they are ultimately dehumanizing. That means that attachment to a local people and place not only helps us to please God, but it also causes us to flourish as human beings.

When we left Jonah in the last study, he had been saved by the great fish whom God “provided” (v. 17). This prayer of praise in chapter 2 proves that Jonah viewed this strange conveyance as a gracious rescue by God; not as a judgment. God loves us too much to allow us to continue in our rebellion for long, so he graciously sends “storms” in our lives to bring us to repentance. 

Not only did memories of corporate worship provide equilibrium for Jonah in his distress over personal sin, but it also anchored him when he was literally at the mercy of natural forces trying to kill him. 

Perhaps the greatest enemy anyone faces is ingratitude to God and the idolatry that produces. For Jonah, he had lost his gratitude for salvation. Jonah reinforces what the Bible teaches elsewhere—ingratitude leads us to serve idols (Ro. 1:21-23; cf. Ps. 120; 31:6; 69:1-15). Idols require constant feeding and only give temporary satisfaction. An idol promises to make you happy if you will give it what it demands, but you will always give more than you get. 

Discussion Questions: 

Big Idea:

The book of Jonah shows numerous miracles of God’s sovereign grace. From the outset, we encounter a God whose tenacious redemption creates joyful ironies of sovereignty. From chapter one, we must believe that God loves sinners (ourselves and others), because he proves it through the perseverance of his sovereign grace.

I. Finding while Fleeing (vv. 1-6)

The first irony exposed is that we will find God to be everywhere we are trying to flee from him.  The climax of this first irony is found in v. 3, “But Jonah ran away from the Lord.” It is important to realize that the ironic elements in this little book are not mere literary flourishes.  They illustrate a theological maxim that must be learned in life; disobeying the Lord is always personally irrational because God is sovereignly redemptive. What is God calling you to do?  Whatever it is, however great or small, if you are his child, you will not run away from it successfully.  He is already in that place—a vocation, person, relationship, addiction, comfort— you are trying to run to or hide in.  He has found you and we will see that there is nothing he is unwilling to do to call you back to obedience.  Your soul is more precious to him than any of your comforts, enjoyments, even your health. And his Kingdom agenda is infinitely more important than your personal one.     

II. Evangelizing while Rebelling (vv. 7-10)

Next, God’s sovereign grace is proven through the sailors’ conversion.  God used an angry rebellious prophet to lead pagans to faith in and worship of the one true God!  And they knew he was rebelling, because for some reason he told them when he boarded the ship.  It was not as if they embraced his faith not knowing the hypocritical life underlying his testimony.  God brought them to faith despite the suffering they experienced as a result of Jonah’s sin and despite Jonah’s personal testimony which contradicted his verbal profession.

III. Confirming by Denying (vv. 11-17)

The final irony is that Jonah’s denial confirms the steadfast lovingkindness of God. Jonah is so set on fleeing God that he would rather be tossed into the sea to his death than call on God from the ship and repent and go to Nineveh. In a stunning display of his grace, God still saves Jonah by having a fish swallow him and save his life.  

Discussion Questions: 

Big Idea:

The pouring out of the gift of the Spirit does not merely liberate us from fear and unworthiness but does so in order to set us on the infinitely great mission of expanding the borders of the kingdom of God. God’s grace draws us out of the corner and sets us mission for him. 

God demonstrates his loving care for us by the way he takes note of those who seek to harm us. Three particular ways the devil tries to keep us in a corner are by scattering us, dividing us, and dehumanizing us. As Christians, we have an eternal home in Heaven, so we can afford to root ourselves here on earth by loving the place where we live. We can be vigilant against anyone or anything that causes division among us, and we can stand up for the vulnerable who are oppressed and dehumanized.   

We can also be encouraged to come out of our corner and join in God’s mission by the fact that God will be victorious. We work in the power of a God whose weapons are infinitely more powerful than any used by the devil against his kingdom. 

Ultimately, every event in history, every phenomenon in nature, and every aspect of reality, seen and unseen, is for this purpose: “that we may know that Christ is Lord.” Whatever setbacks we face, and whenever it seems that evil has won, we must remember God’s zeal for his glory and that no other power will ever prevail against his kingdom. With that confidence, we can come out of our corner and join him in his kingdom work. 

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Big Idea:

The pouring out of the Spirit on the Church of Jesus Christ, of which you are a member if you have become a Christ-follower, removes our excuses for being involved in the work of God’s Kingdom. This passage reveals three specific excuses and shows how the Spirit’s power can conquer them as enemies of Kingdom advancement. 

Timidity comes from an attitude that says, “I can’t do what you’ve called me to do. There is too much opposition. It is too difficult.” Our fears can shut us down and sideline us from following the call God has given us. Pentecost marked the beginning of what the Scriptures call the Last Days.  And the Last Days are primarily characterized by the Spirit’s manifest work. The Old Testament prophets said that this age will be distinguished from previous ones by a more obvious obedience from the heart out of love for the Lord as opposed to an outwardly imposed obedience to the written law (Ezek 36:26–27). It will be distinguished by a new community which will come together voluntarily and from various walks of life as opposed to strict guidelines imposed by government and bloodlines (Is. 32:14–18; 44:3–5). And it will be marked by the ability by a broad array of ages and social standings to understand and apply the word of God in everyday life (Joel 2:28-32 in contrast 1 Sa. 3:1; cm. Num 11:24–30). The Spirit was always the one who regenerated children and slaves and women and the poor and gentiles. But religious and cultural structures obscured and hindered that work. God obliterates those hindrances by “pouring out” his Spirit voluminously on his Church.  

The second excuse for not rising to the Lord’s call to extend his rule in and through your life is the feeling of unworthiness. It is to believe that labels or prejudices are meaningful as opposed to living in your new identity as a child of God. The only one who has permission to tell you that you are unworthy is God. But if you are a believer in Christ, he calls you his beloved child with whom he is well pleased and whom he has given the honor of being his ambassador. 

The final word of this text is to non-followers of Jesus Christ. After hearing what you have, there is no excuse for refusing to commit your life to him, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit who removes fear and unworthiness, and failing to experience eternal life. While we have encountered this violent language about the “Day of the Lord” before, our text now links it with salvation and the gifts of the Spirit. The fire and columns of smoke are traditional images of theophany (as in the pillars of cloud and fire in the exodus; Exod 13:21–22; 14:19–24; cf. also 19:16, 18; 20:18; 2 Cor 2:16).  The Day of the Lord was God’s showing up to deal with those created in his image. Those who are his rejoice when he does; those who are not are terrified. If non-followers respond to the threats of judgment with belief and repentance, they will live. It is that simple. They will be spared judgment as were the Israelites who were spared by blood rather than punished by the shedding of it (Ezek 32:6–8; Rev 8:7; Exod 7:14–24).  

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Big Idea:

God’s commands are intended not merely for our survival, but for abundant life. Left to our own, we would never experience as much as our good Father wants to give us. If you want the blessings that only an infinite God can provide, you must obey the Gospel. Two commands, both of which lead to our good, from the Gospel are included in this text: fear not and be glad.

To benefit from the Gospel, one must obey God.  

To obey the God’s Gospel command, “Fear not!” means to draw near to him, and he will draw near to you, and his felt presence will calm your anxious heart.      

Just as God’s presence removes all excuses for being afraid, so God’s provision of himself as our God removes all excuses for spiritual depression. God refers to himself in v. 27 as “the Lord your God” which is the same two-fold name he provided in the preface to the Ten Commandments. Before he reveals the most basic duties we owe him and our neighbor, he reminds us of the sovereign grace of his person, the one who redeemed us. Look at how those three qualities of God’s person provide restoration for those who repent and remove all excuses for spiritual depression.  

Discussion Questions: 

As Christians, we can tend to see commands like “fear not” and “be glad” as tests of our devotion. In reality, God both commands these things and supplies what we need to keep them. 

Augustine once prayed, “God, command what you will; only grant what you command.” Use this as a guide to your own prayer regarding fear and joy. Name specific things in your life that make keeping these commands challenging, and ask God to supply everything you need to obey them. 

Big Idea:

The Westminster Confession of Faith concludes from Scripture that while repentance is not a cause for salvation, “it is of such necessity to all sinners, that none may expect pardon without it” (15.3; Lk. 13:3-5; Ac. 17:30-31). If there is no possibility of salvation and pardon without repentance, it is critical for us to know what the marks and motives of true repentance are as they are alluded to in our text. 

The marks of true repentance are alluded to with three brief lines in vv. 12, 13.  

Just as there are marks of true repentance, we need a powerful motivation to wake us out of our sin and move us towards repentance.

Discussion Questions: 

Big Idea:

God is loving and loves us too much to allow us to continue on in our self-destructive materialism. To liberate us requires violent love. That violent love erupts from a Father’s gracious heart and calls us to wake up and cry out. 

Joel’s name means “God is Yahweh,” and his father’s name, Pethuel, means “sincerity of God.” Yahweh is speaking with forceful sincerity to his people whose hearts have forgotten him. When Joel describes the loss of “grain, wine, and oil,” he is saying that Israel’s way of life is totally devastated. In the Mediterranean, grain is the staple of life, wine is daily drink, and oil is essential for everything from cooking to lighting, from cleansing to skin care. God’s people were being forced to recognize that he provides these blessings. God deprives in order to restore our relationship. God is a good Father, so those he loves he disciplines. God gives and he takes away—but whether he gives or takes away, the agenda is the same: to produce loving children. Repentance brings joy and stewardship. Obedience that is worshipful and grateful causes all life to flourish as a testimony to future restoration.   

It is the love of God personified in Jesus Christ and prophesied by Joel that demands that sinners run to him for liberation from their bondage to materialism. It is the Lord’s passionate love for his people, described later (2:18), that must draw forth love from his people, which is the ultimate sign of Christian maturity. But the Lord does not require maturity before he saves, just a cry for mercy (2:32). In our walk with Christ, we move from orthopraxy (right behavior) to orthodoxy (right practice) to orthopathy (right ordering of what we love), as Danish theologian Søren Kierkegaard said. This is not a linear process but the general way in which we come to know and apply the gospel.

Discussion Questions