What Did Jonah Know?

What Did Jonah Know?

When my life was ebbing away, I remembered You, O LORD, and my prayer rose to You, in Your holy temple.

Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.

But I, with a voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you.

What I have vowed I will make good.

Salvation comes from the LORD.  Jonah 2:7-9

                  "With a voice of thanksgiving..."

What did Jonah have to be thankful about?

Here he was in the belly of a great fish, in the midst of a great ocean, facing certain death.

Jonah was not thankful because God had delivered him from his dire circumstances, because God had not yet delivered him.

He didn't even know that God was going to deliver him.

What Jonah was thankful for was that God had turned him from rebellion and had caused him to return to Himself  - to call on His Name once again.

He was thankful for salvation and for the abiding presence of God.

Jonah had recognized his sin, had repented, and turned back to God.


He 'did not forfeit the grace that could be his'....

In the first part of his prayer he had said, "In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and You listened to my cry"  (Jonah 2:2).

Jonah had re-discovered grace in the midst of his terrifying circumstances.

"I have been banished from Your sight; yet I will look again toward Your holy temple," he says (verse 4).

It is at this point that great miracles are performed.

Not just when something catastrophic happens and history is altered and redirected. Not just when bodies are brought back to life or when plagues are averted.

The greatest miracles occur when a person comes to the knowledge, and acknowledges, his sin and confesses it to God, and when, God, in response, restores that person to His Creator-creature, covenant relationship.

"Salvation comes from the LORD," Jonah confidently cried, knowing that no matter what the outcome he would see the salvation of the Lord.

The story of Jonah is well-known. It is the story of a man who was sent on a special mission by His God and King, and he disobeyed, received punishment and re-direction, and then became obedient.

Read his entire (short) prayer from the belly of the fish in the Old Testament, the book of Jonah, chapter 2.

It's also my prayer, and perhaps yours, too.

Don't 'forfeit the grace that could be yours'.....





The Vilest Offender Who Truly Believes!

 A great hymn we used to sing - To God Be The Glory!

            Great things He has done! 

            So loved He the world that He gave us His Son! 

A truly joyful hymn of praise!

But right now I am singing this line from the second verse: 

          The vilest offender who truly believes, 

              that moment from Jesus a pardon receives!

That moment -- that moment -- no probation time -- no application to fill out and get signed -- no deposit -- no 10-day trial with money-back guarantee -- no internship required -- that moment!

  Remember the jailer in Acts 16? He asked Paul and Silas, "What must I do to be saved?" The answer: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved!" That moment!

And the thief at the cross? "Today you will be with Me in Paradise!" Now! Today! Not tomorrow!

Still the greatest mystery of all -- why does He care about us so much? Why did He first love us?

Everything important in life starts right then -- at that moment!

Nothing else is important -- everything is about that moment!

Have you experienced that moment? 

Have you started living -- really living?

It's A Hallelujah Day!

Want to make this  a Hallelujah Day?

Make it your goal to please God today -- not to finish your "to do list" for the week...not to schedule more activities for the weekend --- but to, in every way, all day -- seek to please God!

Psalm 147:11 tells us: "The LORD delights in those who fear [hold in awe and adore] Him, who put their hope in His unfailing love."  Fearing Him and trusting in Him pleases Him. No matter the circumstances ...acknowledging that we know He is faithful pleases Him. Just as an earthly father delights in his children when they trust him.

Then it gets even better -- Look at Philippians 2:9. "For God is working in you giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him." Not just the desire...but the POWER to do what pleases Him. He shows us what He wants us to do,  and then helps us do it! What an amazing God we have!

It's going to be a Hallelujah Day for sure!

Charles H. Spurgeon - What is Satan's Work?

                     

                       What is God's work?  what is Satan's work?

It is always the Holy Spirit's work to turn our eyes away from self to Jesus.

But Satan's work is just the opposite; he is constantly trying to make us look at ourselves instead of Christ.

He insinuates, "Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you do not have the joy of His children; you have such a wavering hold on Jesus."


All these are thoughts about self, and we will never find comfort or assurance by looking within.

But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self: He tells us that we are nothing, but that Christ is everything.

Remember, therefore, it is not your hold of Christ that saves you--it is Christ. It is not your joy in Christ that saves you--it is Christ; it is not even your faith in Christ, although that is the instrument--it is Christ's blood and merits.

Therefore, do not look so much to your hand with which you are grasping Christ; do not look to your hope, but to Jesus, the source of your hope; do not look to your faith, but to Jesus the founder and perfecter of your faith.


We will never find happiness by looking at our prayers, our deeds, or our feelings; it is what Jesus is, not what we are, that gives rest to the soul. If we are to overcome Satan and have peace with God, it must be by "looking to Jesus."

Keep your eye simply on Him; let His death, His sufferings, His merits, His glories, His intercession be fresh upon your mind. When you waken in the morning look to Him; when you lie down at night look to Him.

Do not let your hopes or fears come between you and Jesus; follow hard after Him, and He will never fail you.

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and

righteousness

I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus'

name.

A day in the life of Jesus - John 9

A day in the life of Jesus, from The Gospel of John, chapter 9.

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth....he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes.

"Go," he told him, "Wash in the Pool of Siloam."

So the man went and washed, and came home seeing....

When his neighbors saw him they asked,

"How then were your eyes opened?"

He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed and then I could see."

The religious leaders questioned him. They told him:

"Give glory to God. We know this man is a sinner."

He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"



The angry religious leaders threw him out of the synagogue.

Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

"Who is he?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."

Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you."

Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshipped him.



This treasured story in the life of Christ is one of the only 7 miracles recorded by John, the beloved disciple.

Some thoughts:

1. After the man was healed, the text says he went "home seeing." He did not come back to talk to Jesus. So he had not seen Jesus. He simply referred to Christ as "the man they call Jesus."

2. We see a growth in the man's eyes of faith. Who Christ really was became clearer and clearer.

At first, he spoke of Jesus as "the man they call Jesus."

Then, in verse 17: "He is a prophet."

Finally, in verses 35-38, he asks, "Who is the Son of Man that I may believe in him?..."Lord I believe," and he worshipped him.

A man... a prophet...a God to worship...

From a man who had not seen to the God he worshipped - a progression of giant steps of faith mirrored in our own lives.

3. Why did Jesus come back to find him?

In verse 12 we are told the man did not know where Jesus was.

But Jesus knew right where he was!

Jesus had seen the blind man, had healed him and so that story would appear to be over!

But there was more. Jesus was not finished with the man. There was more to do! More healing! So he sought him out to complete the job - the real goal was not restoring the blind man's eyesight, but restoring the man's position with God - through faith in His Son!

Many years ago we had a trendy sentence we often used -- even had it put on tee-shirts!

PBPWMGINFWMY - Please be patient with me, God is not finished with me yet!

That's our story, too! God is not finished with us.

He is still working on us!

Being confident of this, that he began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

The Day of Jesus Christ! That's the Day we look for!

We know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3:2


We shall see Him - really see Him - our eyesight will be perfect!