The greatest miracle that happened in the book of Jonah did not involve a fish.
It happened in the middle of a city.
And Jonah was upset about it.
Jonah 4 2 He prayed to the Lord , “O Lord , is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. 3 Now, O Lord , take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
The greatest miracle was that the entire city repented and came under the authority of the King of the Universe.
And Jonah, a great prophet, saw that coming from a mile away. And a people, who were probably Jonah’s enemies, came to know the only thing that could save them.
I truly believe that Jonah was justified in his hatred.
He probably had been betrayed.
He probably had great human justification for his anger.
He probably could have won in a court of law.
But Here’s The Thing:
The law of the land was taken captive by Jesus Christ. And in the greatest law book ever written, God tells us this:
Romans 323 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
We all, like Jonah, want to accept the righteousness that Jesus gives us but then forget that we had nothing to do with it. We ARE the Ninevites. We are the very people that Jonah hated.
And, yes, we are as guilty as they were.
And instead of sitting over feeling sorry for ourselves and asking God to take our lives … we should be walking around the city in repentance.
Because Here’s The Thing: Without Jesus, we are sitting ducks for Hell.
In The Name of the Father and the
Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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The greatest lawyer in the history of the world (besides Jesus) wrote Romans. And Romans 5 is the greatest passage in the Bible (besides all the others).
Romans 5 1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Romans 5 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Romans 5 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5 20 The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more
One of my favorite movies (for adults) is A Few Good Men. And if I am to be fully transparent, I love a great “lawyer” or “court room” show. I love how a lawyer can “work the room”, and whether it is this way in reality or not—it is very appealing in a well written drama. There is a particular moment in A Few Good Men that is an iconic Hollywood moment:
(The Lawyer) Caffee says: “I want the Truth.”
(The Marine Colonel) Jessup responds with: “You can’t handle the Truth! I live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Who’s gonna do it?
You? (to Caffee)
You, Lieutenant Weinberg?” (another attorney)
The movie continues and certainly captures the viewer’s attention as the drama continues right up until the ending scene.
Today, I want to go a bit deeper. The issues that come up in A Few Good Men bring us to an interesting intersection of who we are and where we might be going in life (and thereafter). As we go through our lives, one could ask: What can we hang our hat on?
If we hang our hat on the Legal System or The Law ALONE, we operate in a system of rules with no regard to the situation and, in fact, with no regard to the truth. As is boldly proclaimed in the movie: “It doesn’t matter what the truth is, it only matters what we can prove.” In God’s world, the Truth means everything.
If we hang our hat on Grace and Mercy ALONE, we get lawlessness, a lack of respect, no honor, and, eventually, complete rebellion.
If we hang our hat on Absolute Power ALONE, we get what Satan has been petaling since the beginning of time. We get only the idea of power and, ultimately, unadulterated evil.
In the legal courtroom, we are trapped with no hope of escape. But take a look at what the incredible lawyer Paul tells us.
Romans 5 1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
In Jesus, we are Justified
Romans 5 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but
In Jesus, we have Access to God
Romans 5 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
In Jesus, God Demonstrates His love for us
Romans 5 20 The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more
In Jesus, we have Unlimited Grace
The plea deal is this:
In Jesus, you get:
Justified Access from a God who DemonstratesUnlimited Grace
That’s the best deal you’re ever going to get.
John 1 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God– 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
Take the deal.
In The Name of the Father and the
Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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