In the Belly of Grace [Part 1]

Calibri using pastor Bible teacher and author of his latest book, the power to bless, I think it is great reassurance to me that the word of the Lord came to Jonah verse one of chapter 1 and then Jonah 31 Jonah the second time second word second land excited for you to hear the teaching today.

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More on that later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is God. He never feels like given up on him if you've ever had, now I need a cell iPhone Alitalia is fellow too tired ministries sure you guys not tired yet I was not ever going to stop loving you, pursuing you and all the gifts and calling the God in your life are irrevocable, no matter how much you have missed it or messed it up. We're talking these weeks about getting our second wind. After a long, long pandemic year and many people been through very dark valleys.

Some people have been experiencing just rather painful ongoing inconvenience, but everybody is been called upon the perseverance of what a good time to talk about idea persevering idea of flack when an athlete gets when feel like the muscles are locking up. You know, and then something happens physiologically and there's a second wind that Condon you feel renewed energy.

So we been talking about how those who wait expectantly upon the Lord shall renew their strength and mount up with wings like eagles we been talking how in the spirit there's something that might be very much like what goes on in our bodies when the weightlifter lifts the way to actually actually hurts him with uncomfortable and and and and is creating some kind of little micro tears in muscle tissue and then restore them when they were restored they come back stronger than they were before and and Paul said in Romans that suffering produces perseverance and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope, so that our lives don't become like ships without a runner, no anger, but that there's character within us that's been through some stuff and seeing God.

Be faithful and can hold on, knowing that he's going to continue to be faithful. That's what hope is all all about that, there's a there's a bright future, no matter what we have gone through.

We've we've seen that there is a way in which God is carrying us through so that we don't give up one day to early one step too early and I can't think of anymore power for poignant story in the Bible about how God empowers us for perseverance by his grace and the remarkable story of Jonah very very important prestigious profit who becomes depressed. Who wants to run away from God and yet God will not give up on Jonah. It is story. I wish we could just sit and read the whole story but I'm to give you some excerpts here as we began I when I come back to a number of scriptures in Jonah as we talk about what it means to be in the belly of grace Jonah 1 verse one. Now the word of the Lord came to Joan of the Senate amortized saying, arise, go to Nineveh that city and call out against it for their evil has come up before me.

But Joe's arose. Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare and went down into it that were going down program appears over and over in Jonah by which one of the most beautiful literary pieces in the Bible is full of thematic elements, repetitious phrases that tie it all together and this is one of them going down because it's a picture what's happening to Jonah's spirit so he paid the fee. The fair and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord a bit of an irony because the whole story teaches that you can't get away from the presence of the Lord, but he wants to run from the presence of the Lord. Verse five. A great storm has arisen at sea that the Lord himself appointed and Mariners on the ship were afraid it verse five, and each cried out to his God, and they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep not because he was at peace but because he was depressed. He just didn't care anymore. The other sailors find out that he's a Hebrew and they're asking them what should we do basically to appease your God, and it verse 12 Jonah said to them, pick me up and hurled me into the sea, then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me this great tempest has come upon you, so they did throw them into the sea. The sea was quieted and were 17. Famously we remember the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

We will take time today to read the prayer like a small Jonah praise lies in the belly of the fish. It is a prayer of gratitude for God saving him at verse 10, the Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land, so this is where you got to envision a wayward prophet who had done all he could to run away from God wanted to give up on God. Give up on the ministry give up his calling abandon his prophetic anointing and now he is sitting on dry land. With greasy whale God's still on him having been in the belly of a fish, humiliated and nearly bad but alive again. And what happens when most beautiful verses in the whole Bible Jonah 3 verse one than the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, arise, go to Nineveh, that great city and call out against it. The message that I were the Lord came to Jonah, he ran away, got swallowed by fish nearly died tried to abandon his calling and then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second challenge right will have more teaching moment from today's important series. Glad you heard about it with you. You believed in my experience it in the hypothalamus to the left, but lover of myself as a love story from beginning to and spiritual bride of Christ, the perfect bike.

The Bible tells not just on time and miles and the links to walk with her anymore and it's gonna mother the woman tasted the sweetness but God's love for you is like you asserts for 2554 can only be found fully and after the five love languages size incredible reality that God pursues us in life comes to a lover of myself. Ancient biblical accounts exploding the extent this proposal and showing his embrace of gravel in his live after the match made in heaven, lover of my soul right.

The gospel is shared when you get Alan Wright Ministries.

This broadcast is only possible because of listener financial support. When you get today. We will send you a special offer that we are in our final days of offering the special product, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor and data like today's teaching now you once again is not the story is people that look like they failed, and end up not being a failure.

Spencer silver died this week from heart ailments. He was 80 invented something that we all use. In fact, became part of everyday life.

In 1968. Silver was working for 3M Corporation was given the task of creating a superstrong adhesive they wanted this scientist to invent the most powerful glues that it ever come to pass something that could just hear anything sticking last when he came up with was a failure. In fact, what he produced is weaker than a child's school glue but he realized that it had an unusual characteristic.

It could be attached to a surface pulled off that surface and reattached without damaging the surface or losing its own stickiness under a microscope. Silver said it look remarkable like tiny crystal and little Super Bowl and it was just such a cool thing. But, as Dr. Silver said later it was a solution waiting for a problem they didn't know what to do with this failed attempt to make a superstrong glue. The idea actually came from his colleague Dr. R. Fry, who saying in the choir at the local Presbyterian church and he marked each week's musical selections in his music book with a little piece of paper that inevitably is there going through the songs would fall out and fluttered to the ground and he one week was sitting there, having lost his place because his market fell out and had to look over at a fellow choir member to see what page they were on, and while he was doing that he thought wouldn't it be wonderful if somehow the marker could stick to the page and yet not ruin the page and he remembered Dr. Silvers failed glue experiment and the two of them conspired and and pretty soon a lease by the 80s they had come up with the prototype for the Post-it note is love these stories where it looks like you've absolutely blown it and then it ends that by some grace, it actually becomes better than you thought.

That's God.

That's the way it is with us. I think it is great reassurance to me that the word of the Lord came to Jonah verse one of chapter 1 and then Jonah 31 the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time second word. Second, when to the power of perseverance and our lives depends on this that we know that at every point.

Even if we have blown it miserably. God had given up on us with the mission because if you think for even a moment that you've messed up too much or missed it too much, or been to face Liz been to sad or been too depressed or to anything from God to continue his loving presence and his powerful anointing for your life to keep moving forward. According to his call. If you ever begin to doubt that the devil will work you hard to give up because of his long as we know that God hasn't given up on us.

Something inside of us can keep on the story of Jonah, so he was told by God to go to Nineveh, but he decide to go to Tarshish, it's like if God say no to Alaska and you decide to go to Florida. It is more than that.

Actually we don't really know what Tarshish is. We just know it's far less, it may be as far west as Spain was as far as Jonah could think of getting away from Nineveh, which is in the opposite direction. He goes down.

The job gets onto a boat and he started trying to get away from God as he possibly could you interestingly, this verse three just emphasize this on, the literary quality of the book of Jonah verse three Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord went down the drop of a ship going to Tarshish there. He paid the fare went down to go with him to Tarshish. It's Tarshish, Tarshish, Darcy's lawyers and go to Nineveh and does it Tarshish, Darcy Starkey is a go to Alaska and he's in Florida Florida Florida it is the intent of his heart to get far away. We learned in second Kings something about Jonah. He's mentioned there Jonah, the son amortizing Jonah where he prophesied prosperity for Israel during King Jeroboam the second's reign, so it proves that Jonah was well known, a very powerful profit who had access in the royal court, so he was a highly regarded spokesperson for God. Nineveh was this bastion of the Assyrian Empire. That was the arch enemy of Israel, the Assyrians would be the first ones to overrun Israel. The northern part of their kingdom in 722 and destroy much of their homeland and deport many of their people. So Syria is the is the enemy and God had said I want to go prophesied to them. Well, we wonder why would he mind going to prophesy say the Lord to bring judgment on you. Well it's all explained to us later in the book of Jonah. Jonah chapter 4 verse two. Because what happens is after Jonah is spewed from the belly of the whale and the word of the Lord come to a second time he goes to Nineveh he prophesies the world and the people of Nineveh repented and God has mercy God's grace has mercy, even on Israel's arch enemy, and this is what we learn.

Jonah gets mad about it. Verse two of chapter 4, he pray the Lord is Lord is not this what I said when I was yet in my country. That's why I made haste to flee to Tarshish, I knew that your gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and relenting from disaster he had known that if he went and prophesied to Nineveh. There was a real chance Nineveh would repented and that God would relent of his judgment against them. Jonah didn't want God to show grace to his enemy make you more tired and more depressed in your whole life than to try to run away from the grace of God you can get away from the grace of God and his will. Who God is and so you might as well just give into it and let them flow his grace through but Jonah became depressed.

Here's what happened in Jonah 1 verse five word hurled a great wind upon the sea, so this was this was one of those storms. It wasn't designed to kill Jonah or anyone.

It was designed to get their attention.

And there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so the ship threatened to break up in the Mariners were afraid age cried out to God.

They hurled the cargo to try to lighten the load, but Jonah gone down in her ship laying down was asleep. This is a story about an Arabian man who been born into the family of God called to the ministry by the grace of God. When given a word that can unleash the grace of God to their enemy didn't want that grace to go and so he became depressed and he was just weary of it all and didn't care anymore. You can see here. What emerges in the story is really the the language the voice of shame. It is the way that hell wants us to think. I Jonah's chapter 1 verse seven when they said to one another.

The Mariners come let us casting lots that we may know this evil plan is to the cash lot lot alone.

Jonah, he's a problem birthday. They said on whose account as he was come upon us. What is your occupation where you come from, what is your country. What are your people and Jonah admitted to say this is about me on the Hebrew and then they said to me, what shall we do to you. Verse 11 that the sea may quiet down to see more more tempestuous. He said to them, take me early into the sea suicidal at this point care anymore and in the seal quiet down.

I know it's because of me this great tempest's complaint. Also, should I just want to spend a few moments talking about this. The logic of shame, hellish logic it it it flows like this. The storm proves listen this is going on in his soul. Storm proves that God condemns me.

It's all my fault my failures of doom for me. I must pay for my mistakes in my suffering and sacrifice.

I'm sure will please God, let me tell you why every one of those things is a hellish lie first July. The storm proves that God condemns me all is the story actually about how God set a storm that ended up leaving to Jonah's outpatient and to the salvation of Nineveh. The truth is, a storm wasn't occurs. It was a blessing. Alan Wright. Today's good news message in the belly of grace in our series 2nd wind. Pastor Alan is back with us in the studio as he shares his parting good news thought for the day in just about glad you heard about it with you believed in mind while experiencing the left but never of myself as a love story from beginning to and spiritual bride of Christ, the perfect bike.

The Bible tells my mom's in the links to walk hand-in-hand for any man who is found in mother the woman tasted the sweetness of God's love for you is like pretty woman who asserts for to have put you long for can only be found fully and after the five love languages size incredible reality that God pursues us in life comes to lover of myself. Ancient biblical accounts explode in the extent this proposal and showing his embrace of gravel in his live after the match made in heaven. It's lover of my soul right. The gospel is shared when you get Alan Wright Ministries. This broadcast is only possible because of listener financial support. When you get today.

We will send you a special offer.

We are happy to send this to you as I thanked him Alan Wright Ministries. We are in our final days of offering the special product, seven 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website Pastor and got a whack on the street as your Pastor Alan sporting good news thought for the day and I have to say I was excited when you started preaching this message Pastor Alan and I could see the twinkle in your eye that this wasn't one of these passages that you thought all this is an overused piece of the Bible. We all preach about a new bottom right quickly. You took time and I love the book of Jonah's well it's about love story. It's a story. Every child seems to know and this profit getting swallowed up by the swale and but this is a story about God's commitment to Jonah so that his prophetic gaffe would not be stripped from him. Even though Jonah wanted to run away from God and run away from his call were talking about being able to persevere about finding a second wind and Dana. I just love this verse of Scripture, the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time so we want to say to our listeners. You know if you think you've blown it. If you think God's given up on you look at Jonah.

He tried as hard as he could to get as far from God as he possibly could.

And yet God swallowed them up with grace, put them on dry land and gave him the prophetic word. Again, God's not done with us he's pursuing us and that's how we persevere is by his grace.

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