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Today is Friday September 24, 2010 and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Jonah. If you would like to read today's chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this link onto your browser: http://www.imfollowingjesus.com/bible-september-24

Today's Message: All Who Call
As Christians, we are commanded to love one another and at the same time we are also commanded to separate ourselves from those who live in the world. So, how do we love one another yet remain separated from the worldly people? Jesus said, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” - Matthew 5:43-45. Jesus died for every one, that means regardless of who we are, every person has the right to know how He can save them. God does not want us to do the things that they do nor does He want us to blend in with them, but if we show love toward them too then they also have the opportunity to see how amazing Jesus is and that He can save them too. You know, we can get into the habit of judging people by their behavior, but the Bible says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” - Romans 3:23. We have all done things that God hates, but we can praise Him for His love for us and that He never gave up on us. Praise God!

The book of Jonah is the thirty-second book of the Old Testament/Bible and contains four chapters. The author of the book is Jonah and it was written to the nation of Nineveh. The purpose of the book was to to warn them of the consequences of their disobedience to God and to document for Israel and all nations that salvation was not for the Jews only. What we are to learn from the book is that salvation is not restricted by race, culture, or other barriers, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

As I said yesterday, as Christians, it is our duty to tell the Gospel to all who are not saved. When God calls upon us to do something for Him He means business and He will do whatever it takes to get us to obey His command. Jonah was a native of Galilee, God commanded him to go the Nineveh to warn them of their destruction if they did not repent and turn to Him. “Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.” -Jonah 1:1,2. Jonah believed Nineveh was a threat to Israel and deserved to be destroyed so instead of doing what he was told, he ignored God's command and took off on a ship. “But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.” - Jonah 1:3,4. Jonah thought that he could escape from the presence of God, he soon found out that no one can run from God. Is there a storm going on in your life? Maybe it is because you have been trying to run from God?

Did you know that when we are not doing what God commands everyone around us suffers as well? Jonah fell asleep on that ship thinking that he was leaving his troubles behind, the longer he laid there the worse the storm got. The other people on the ship were scared and trying to figure out what was going on, they finally approached Jonah. “Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him. Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.” - Jonah 1:8-12. Jonah was so selfish that he would rather be cast into the sea and let thousands of other people die instead of follow God's command. We may not like those who hurt us, but it is not our call to choose who will live or die. God hates the sin, not the sinner. We are commanded to give all the opportunity to get saved.

To make Jonah understand this, God did not let him die, but allowed him to be swallowed up by a big fish. For three days and nights, Jonah sat in the belly of a fish. “Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish's belly, And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.” - Jonah 2:1-4. After three days and nights of soul searching, a repentant Jonah was vomited onto dry land. He then became the greatest evangelist of his day, and saw the entire city of Nineveh repent of its wickedness. God could have chosen another prophet and let Jonah sink to the bottom of the sea, but God was merciful, demonstrating His love toward both the prophet and the repentant people in Nineveh. The willingness of God to forgive even the greatest of sinners who repent was made known when Nineveh's king and his people repented and were spared from the destruction prophesied by Jonah.

Incidentally, Jesus used this historical event as an illustration to tell of His death, burial, and resurrection. “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.” - Matthew 12:40,41. When we are saved and get baptized we too illustrate the likeness of His death, burial, and resurrection. “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” - Romans 6:4-6.

Jonah's plan gave him an opportunity to escape, but favorable circumstances when ignoring the will of God never lead to a successful end for any one. We are more diligent in working toward our ruin than in seeking to do the will of God. However, Jonah soon discovered that ignoring the God is always expensive and eventually leads to suffering that could have been avoided. “But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.” - Jonah 2:9. Jonah discovered that God's love was not limited to Israel, but open to everyone. God will do whatever it takes to get us to follow His will. Remember, no matter who we are or where we have come from Jesus saves all who call upon Him, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” - Romans 10:13. Praise God!

Enjoy the rest of your day/night and have a great weekend.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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