You Were Made for More - Running from God, Part 1

Are you tired of your life, your job, and even some of your relationships, and right now you just want to shift gears and make a really big change but don't know how to do it or where to go back to stare around. Help is on the way, welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with the mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians the Bible to get a brand-new series called you were made for more facing Jonah all thought by Chip's online for the next several programs that teach by forcing important lessons learned. But before we begin, let me encourage you to try using all message notes series contain a brief outline of each message Scripture references and much more will really help you remember what you hear and maybe even share what you're learning to download these message notes go to the broadcast Living on the Edge.helplessness tab in notes. If you have a Bible heavy turnout.

Jonah chapter 1 as Riley kicks off this series message running from God when I was 16 I was driving our family car. It was a four-door Subaru not real cool but got you from point A to point B.

Not real fast either, which is a great thing for 16-year-old driving my older brother who was in college at the time he had what I thought was a much cooler car is a Nissan dancing as the year that they connect merged as 1981. Like fire, orange hatchback this thing. You'd open the door and it talk to you.that was amazing right and then I had this digital � and is like a man. This is the coolest car is probably cool just because my older brother drove it to be honest and I wanted to be like him and so you know there is this moment where he was in school in Arizona and I was up here, but that car though. It was cool.

It did have air conditioning, so I wasn't really all that coincides, and he said hey why don't we switch cars because the Subaru had a C is a fantastic one of the coolest things and so I remember the day he was home from breakage driven the car up and were switching cars not only problems the Subaru was an automatic and in the Nissan dancing was a, you know, manual a stick shift and I never driven a stick before and this is the interaction that we had.

This is the way brothers doing by the way is were out there.

I hand him the keys and like all hey man I don't know how to drive a stick any literally tosses me the keys I catch them says is easy you just put your foot on the clutch down for those who don't know a stick. There's three petals and not just to you put your foot on the clutch and put it into gear and then he just go opposite like this. Your good. That was the extent of the training that I had and how to drive a stick shift.

Now today if you have something that's you know today you just have little buttons right but back then you had three petals you had no a gearbox and a stick shift and all the sort of things and so here I am spending months trying to learn how to drive a stick shift and this is how it went for me.

I remember getting it into gear. Finally getting going and then I'll send you know I try to get it out of you know in the first movement of energy completely shut down. How fair is seen is that as a 16-year-old. These were the days. Obviously then you could drive your friends around the stop that, for good reason as well, but I'm in the car with my friends were at the stoplight and trying to going the enemy completely stalled out, cars honking behind you frustrated.

And then, like when you do shift you ever done this before.

Those who driven company. By the way, how many of driven a stick shift for fantastic. How many have an idea of even what I'm talking about. Okay, I and and if you don't get the clutch all the way and you do something called grinding the gears and you get it and as I help and you're just like ruining the cures there and so I spent months trying to figure this out broken, you know, stalled out care.

I finally realized the way that I could get out of first specialist friends in the car was to gun its so that's what I did and I you know I get at the stoplight and I just like on the gas until out at every stop sign every stoplight and that 16 you can can act like you did that on purpose. You know, it might be discard realities. I couldn't do anything else that was no other option is the reality, here's the reality is often here's how we fill in life is like we just got from the keys to life and there's no instruction manual is no way you like hey you go figure it out and were like trying to shift through life and figure things and and you can a habit of drawing some of you feel stalled out in life don't you or maybe you're making some different shifts in their decisions. He just like your grinding the gears of life where you're just stuck in one gear but you have to go faster and faster and you just can't change it or or you just like like okay the only way I know to do this is to gun its and we live in the space of trying to navigate alive, and here's what I know to be true inside of all of us that there's this deep sense in our soul that knows and understand there's more to life than what were currently experiencing in the busyness a contender crowded out Canon and yet there is still that whisper of the soul. This says there's more you have, purpose and meaning that your life matters. How do you shift how do we shift to the more were made for how to stop grinding gears and maybe stalled out in life is a wonderful reality and is that God didn't just toss us the keys and said figured out life he he in fact went to great detail in his word to say I I I actually want to help you encode your income onset. I want the very best. I want to help you live, and so all that I created you to be. And so I'm not just going to talk a good luck know I'm going to teach you and show you and help guide to I would actually first could help give you backgrounds of the entire book of Genesis were spending so much time is of you got your notes open mop.

Let me give you just a backdrop to this book. First, John is the fifth of the book of 12 or the minor prophets and and here's what in the if you got your Bible in the Old Testament or the Hebrew Scriptures you flip to the end of the Old Testament. What you find is these books of prophecy of Isaiah and Jeremiah had their major prophets and there called major prophets is because they wrote will honk you know books if you will and and there's minor prophets and there called minor because they're just shorter and in fact it was all condensed in one book is called the book of 12 and so you'd have one scroll that had all 12 of these books and that was Jonah is the fifth of that book and is unique among the prophetic books as is primarily narrative.

It is telling the story of Jonah and his call to prophesy to the city of Nineveh, let's talk about who is this Jonah character he's Jonah the prophet when you think of a prophet. A lot of times we think about foretelling the future, and certainly that was some of the work.

The prophets in the primarily what a prophet did was they proclaim for us the word of God. It would proclaim for the very words of God to the people of God in general to call them back to the heart of God in the ways of God. That is what a prophet did and Jonah. His name was son of literally son of Emma Ty is from gas heifer in Galilee. Just know that it's real close to Nazareth so he he lived in the region. Later on, where Jesus grew up as well. He prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of Jeroboam the second, who was a wicked and evil king and we see some of the story and second Kings 14 where you know this is where we get a picture of John and like hey, maybe there's some interesting parts about Jonah.

We want to keep our eye on is he prophesied to this evil wicked king in Israel that the borders were going to be extended and they were, but he had no problem with that and even calling Israel to repentance through that and he's like very happy. Hey, our borders are being extended and I gave him a great life because he's giving this good news will later on, a contemporary of his Amos said yes the borders are going be extended but because of your wickedness because of the way you've treated people because of the way you've been unjust to others. They're not gonna last and is going to actually come back upon you, and so Amos and Hosea were contemporaries of the prophet and God specifically will be looking at is Jonah's call to preach to Israel's archenemy the Syrians will talk about them in just seconds. Now something unique about Jonah is how Jesus identified with Jonah Jesus quoted and spoke of four different prophets from these books in his earthly ministry, but there is only one prophet that he identified with and that was Jonah and what he did is he identified himself with Jonah's three day sojourn in the six belly of this great fish is a foreshadowing of his own death, burial and resurrection is be honest, as we start this conversation is part of the hangup of Jonah and the lower Jonah and the fish is Jonah and the fish you like, come on, could that really happens. In fact, some people right now is probably just you know us allegory or you know of a made up story with applying to just try to make this really good meaningful points.

Now there's been several occasions where people actually have been swallowed by fish and survived as a whole another story for another day.

But here's was fascinating. Where a group of people who gather around a resurrected Savior who died predicted his death row and was buried, and then rose again from the grave case of so if Jesus rose from the grave is not too big or too big of a jump to think that Jonah could survive a couple days in a well by God's grace into area and then the other side of it just for me and when I read this book is if Jesus took this is historical. I want to take Jesus's word on it.

That's just my my thing. Like if you predicted your own death, burial and resurrection, and then actually did it. I'm gonna be pretty confident on whatever you said and go with what you said on that. So this is who Jonah is or who are the Syrians or the city of Nineveh who is called to preach against Nineveh was the capital city of Syria. The Syrian Empire is ancient superpower located on the east bank of the Tigris River modern-day Iraq about 550 miles east of Jerusalem. Think about this. Imagine this hundred foot high walls 50 feet thick. And when we think about that thickness. There are also homes in different things built in the city walls so wasn't just like straight. You know the stone 50 feet thick. This is an immense huge massive city in the ancient day and unfortunately this Syrians were renowned well-known for their cruelty and brutality that one historian says it this way. It is his glory, and a bloodcurdling a history as we know, like the things that you watch I feel like today and whatever kind of TV show. I feel like things got especially gory, and especially you know brutal and this makes it look PG fact, let me just read just a little bit because it's going to set the context for the entire book. One historian writes this records Brad of live oh sorry this is going to be gruesome.

I just want to give your warning records Brad of live dismemberment, often leaving one hand attached so they could shake it before the person died they made parades of heads requiring friends of the deceased to carry them elevated on poles that boasted of their practice of stretching alive prisoners with rope so they could be skinned alive. Human skins were then displayed on city walls and on poles. The commission pictures of their post-battle tortures were piles of heads, hands and feet and heads impelled on poles eight heads to a stake were displayed they would burn young ones alive. This was their common practice and they boasted their Kings Road boasting about this. Those who survived the sac of the city were tied in long lines of enslavement and deported to the Syrian cities to labor on building projects tens of thousands and hundreds of cities suffered this fate over the 250 years of the Syrian rain of terror. This is the city. Jonah was called to preach to all we do know is that 50 years later after Jonah Syria then does conquer the northern kingdom and they suffer this fate. What is the purpose of Jonah for us all.

One is, it reveals an incredible seeing this woven from the very beginning of Scriptures all the way to the end and a reveals God's expansive love and mercy for every single person on the planet, especially those we field do not deserve mercy and then when we see Jonah and his life and his response is the reluctant as a rebellious as the antihero profit is so often acts as an your forearm as we see it in the word, we get to see ourselves and how we respond and is a clarion call for us to shift our lives on to God's purpose for this planet. So that's the history that's the foundation that the background of the book of Jonah. You ready to dive in. How do we shift to the more you are made for you got your Bibles would you open up to Jonah chapter 1 will dive in and begin Jonah chapter 1 begins this way, the word of the Lord came to Jonah, son of MSI like God came up and said I'm speaking to you have a call for you.

I have something to say and I think we get excited about that.

In fact, a new oversight of my small group and the other night and they're saying, you know we so want God to like reveal his will, like in just such clarity wouldn't be great.

But then this is what God says to Jonah go to the great city of Nineveh.

I'm sorry come again but we just talk about what the city is go to that city. The arch enemies of Israel Syria, which borders the northern border of Israel, the ones who are constantly accrued, encroaching on our territory.

You want me to go there. Are you kidding me, and then preach against it, or literally the text in Hebrews just proclaim as you speak forth its use under this because it's wickedness has come up before me and John is gone like no kidding, are you yeah thank you. About time God you caught up with where were at on this. This is the call of God on Jonah. The prophets, and I think he responds exactly the way we respond when we when we experience God's clarity or God's word, an area that we particularly disagree with or dislike and don't want to do says, but generally never good. The way is the butts in Scripture. Some of them are very good, but this one is not. But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarsha starches is like exactly opposite. If Syria, Nineveh's Northeast Tarsha Southwest. We don't really know the exact identity, but somewhere in Spain across the sea and he's gone as far away as he possibly can. He had for Tarsha as he went down to Joppa where he found a ship bound for that port and after paying the ferry went aboard and sailed for Tarsha's to flee from the Lord is like God got a call in his life.

He shows up, but he doesn't like the calling he doesn't like the direction he disagrees with God's direction in his life to go to a people that he hates and that hate him. And so what is he do. He runs the opposite direction and says well I don't want to do that so I'm not going to do that.

In fact, I'm going to get as far away from there so that you can't make me do that.

That didn't work out on to say something is so obvious, but we have to say something that we would I think intuitively we know this, but we don't really lives this when we run from God we shift away from the more were made for when you run from God is shifting that gear and is sifting to a direction from the more you're made for when when you say you know I don't like that assignment. I don't like that call. I don't like the direction I don't like the way you tell me to do relationships. I don't like the way you tell me about go about my finances.

I don't like the way you're calling me to engage and be at my workplace. When we shift away from God. Here's what happens.

We are shifting from the more you're made for this get this because if God made you designs you created to my men's morning group were talking about this in Ephesians 2, where it says that you are God's workmanship grief, there's Co. Emma D�rer's masterpieces poem designed with the intention, created in Christ Jesus to do good works like like he has just some incredible things for your life and the calling isn't always what you want. The calling is always the way you think it should have been the calling isn't like I am a man, but all I just going to live my best self is like not calling you the Nineveh good don't want that one. See, any time we run from God were shifting away from the more were made for no in the taxes said that he went down to Joppa. Remember that and then something that didn't get translated maybe some of years the translation has is when it says it went aboard the ship. You know what Hebrew word that is down, and then in verse five. Again, do you know it says that he went down into the ship and the reason in the English down translated because, encores.

You don't go down and down, but here's what the author and the writers trying to help assist say is that when you run away from God or when you shift from God when you say that is not neutral. I think that's what some of us think is like not just in neutral is not a big deal.

I'm just going to close and is not a big deal in my seam like you know best in this season best in that relationship. Best, how do we run from God think it's in the areas where his will doesn't make sense thinks. Honestly, most the time don't don't don't we have a better plan than God.

I know you. I created the universe and all that stuff seem like you have some pretty good Old Testament plans, but I got a pretty good plan with guest teacher Ryan Ingram's message running from God. From our series, you were made for more facing the Jonah and all of us ship android will join us shortly to share some additional thoughts revert. Have you ever thought you could or should be doing more with your life, but because of past mistakes or current circumstances you feel unworthy or unmotivated to make a difference with you wrestled with that series is for you as chipping guest speaker Ryan Ingram teach through the book of Jonah Hill revealed we were all made for more. Discover how to shift your ambitions, relationships and life to the greater purpose God has for you to learn more about the series go to LivingontheEdge.org the chipping roadmap or call AAA 333-6003 trips with me in studio that would ship I'm really looking forward to this new series from you and your son Ryan wanted you guys team up to preach on Jonah and what are you hoping your listeners will learn from this familiar story will thanks Dave, absolutely I can tell you exactly why I was excited about teaching this in teaming up with my son you know when you have a relationship with one your adult kids and they ask you to do something is one of the most special things ever to get to do it in my son's a real student in the Scriptures, and we were out hanging out together and talk in and he was studying Jonah and we were talking about it and I had just recently read a book on Jonah hadn't really studied it in depth, but is by Dr. Mark Yarborough, the present Dallas seminary and a member getting it in the mail and seeing the cover. The book I thought you because I know Mark. I thought he has a little strange into the present of the seminary. I mean really a book of Jonah because in my mind it was like you know the story about you know the great fish and you know Joan and swallowed, and all that stuff and then I read his book and the insights were just so penetrating like wow this is a book for today. There's so much Jonah in all of us and and were living in a Nineveh world and was like wow I got excited and so you know we started meeting together and starting to do the unit exegesis of the book and dividing who would do which parts and I just have to tell you date it was a blast studying it together. Team teaching it together and then God really speaking to me and I think were in a in a time where we need to make a major shift for the way my son says it are we experiencing the more were made for and to do that we need to make a major shift in Jonah had some big shifts in his life as God sovereignly worked in him and then through him and I think that's what we need and that's why I'm excited about Living on the Edge family. Hearing this teaching, thanks to all.

I hope this setup motivates you to join us for every part of this new series of you do have Alyssa program you can catch up any time through the Chip Ingram map will hear again is Chip thanks Dave while I'm joined by our co-teacher for the series.

My son Ryan, first of all Ryan, thanks for allowing me to teach and awakening where you're the pastor.

I really enjoyed it and I gotta say I really learned a lot and today you gave us a good backdrop to Jonah story including God's call on his life.

Why was it so hard for Jonah to follow God's calling and may be just as important. What are some ways we as 21st century Christians struggle with that today absolutely data and what a joy it was for me to get to teach with you on this series and I want to thank you for partnering with me in serving our community awakening in the series. You know why it's so hard for Jonah to follow God's calling on his life I think is the same reason is difficult for many of us to follow God's call first. I think for Jonah God's calling didn't make sense to him. Why would he warn this people whom he hated and who were a threat to his own safety that they don't deserve a heads up and I think for many of us God's call in our life just simply doesn't make sense why we love our enemy.

Why would we make every effort to keep peace with all people as long as it depends on us. Why should I forgive someone who really doesn't deserve it and at the heart of it. We got asked the question what if God's ways are higher than our ways and what if God who created all that there is actually knows what's very best for us and his plans are best.

What if his calling on our life is actually the path to true flourishing.

Secondly, I think John was comfortable right where he was that Jonah was content was following God's long as it fit in with his comfortable way of life going and then of it would've pushed him way out of his comfort zone. In fact, he would become unpopular back in Israel.

How often we miss out on the purposes and plans God has for our lives because we simply want to stay in our comfort zone. My friend Kevin Queen says it this way, the most dangerous place on the planet is often your comfort zone. It's there. Your most at risk of missing out what you were created for.

What if God's version flourishing is better than your version flourishing. What is God's plan and purposes for your life better than your plans and purposes, what if it is your comfort zone. My comfort zone that is keeping us from experiencing what were created for challenging reminder Ryan thanks as we close are you looking to get even more plugged in with living on the agenda resources then let me encourage you to check out the chipping roadmap. There you can listen to our most recent series sign up for daily discipleship and so much more would help you grow in your walk with Jesus and the chipping room up is a great way to immerse yourself in godly content will join us again next time. As we continue our new series will be for more until then this is Dave saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge