Manly Men: Ephesians 5:22-6:4

What does it mean to be manly?  Our culture is filled with presuppositions (in all directions) about manliness.  A manly man is strong, has an impressive beard that he can grow overnight, can chop a tree down with a single stroke, can win any fight he gets into, has a job where he makes a lot of money, and in his spare time is a ladies man, right?  But is this what it means to be manly?  Then there is the increasing popularity of the “omega male” characters in many movies and television series today.  These are guys who are celebrated (sometimes, not always) for the fact that they are doing nothing with their life and are going nowhere, and seem to really be happy with that.  Is that what it means to be manly? 

The Bible presents a higher view of manliness that those we just mentioned.  Simply put, in the Bible, being manly is being like Jesus Christ.  God made man in His own image and likeness, but we have fallen and distorted the image of God upon the earth.  Jesus Christ, however, “is the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15).  Therefore the more Christ-like a man is, the manlier a man is, because Jesus was the manliest man to every walk the earth.  In Ephesians 5:22-6:4, Paul seems to be making this very point in tying a husband and a father’s role in the home to Christ (5:23, 25, 29, 32).  Let’s consider what manliness is from this passage.    

[5:22] Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. [23] For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. [24] Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

[25] Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, [26] that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, [27] so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. [28] In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. [29] For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, [30] because we are members of his body. [31] “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” [32] This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. [33] However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

[6:1] Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. [2] “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), [3] “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” [4] Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 5:22-6:4 ESV)

I.              Being Manly Men

I’ve already mentioned some of this, but before we dive into this text in Ephesians, let’s review some foundational ideas that we want to promote in this church concerning manhood and womanhood.  When it comes to manhood and womanhood, the view that the Bible puts forth is one of complementarianism, which basically means that both men and women bear the image of God and are therefore equal in their personhood and worth, but differ in their distinct roles, which complement each other.  It celebrates both equality between men and women and the beneficial differences between men and women.  These beneficial differences are rooted in our Creator’s design, not in culture. 

On Mother’s Day, I gave you Wayne Grudem and John Piper’s definition of mature womanhood in their book, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, so today I want to give you their definition of mature manhood: “At the heart of mature masculinity is a sense of benevolent responsibility to lead, provide for and protect women in ways appropriate to a man’s differing relationships.”[1] Now this description falls short in that it doesn’t address men’s responsibilities toward children, so that is something we need to add.  However, it’s a very helpful definition because though not all men are husbands and not all men are fathers, all men can be manly.  A man may not be a husband or a father, but he can still care for and lead women and children in appropriate ways.  He can still be a person who is responsible and takes initiative to serve and sacrifice for the good of others.  It is also helpful because this description implies that mature manhood affects how we think, talk, and act towards and about women and children. 

II.            Being Manly Husbands (Ephesians 5:22-33)

Here we will focus upon the instructions to men in these verses.  In Ephesians 5:22-33, Paul deals with the husband/wife relationship and in Ephesians 6:1-4, Paul deals with the parent/child relationship.  These instructions flow out of the doctrinal foundations that Paul has laid in Ephesians 1-3, and are examples of the practical application of that foundation (i.e. how we are supposed to live together as a community of faith) given in Ephesians 4-6. 

The first thing we learn about manliness in this passage is that to be a man is to be a leader (5:22-24).  To be a husband is be the “head” that the wife submits to.  This does not imply inequality, for there is equality of being but differentiation of function even in the relationships within the Trinity (1 Corinthians 11:3).  Notice also that the pattern for the kind of leadership he is to give is “as Christ is the head of the church” (22).  This is not dictatorial, domineering, or any other kind of worldly leadership that Paul has in mind.  Manly leadership is Christ-like leadership, and if you know anything about the Bible, Christ-like leadership is servant leadership (Mark 10:42-45).  It doesn’t involve barking orders from your recliner; it involves humble, loving service that washes feet. 

Another thing we need to notice about Christ-like leadership is that godly, manly leaders accept primary responsibility for those whom the lead and as a result take initiative.  Christ took responsibility for the sins of His bride upon the cross and took the initiative to do what was necessary to reconcile her to God.  We see this truth all the way back in the Graden of Eden.  When the fist man and woman fell, God called out for Adam first (Genesis 3:9), and men, if there is a problem in your home, know that you would be the first person God would want to talk to if He knocked on your door.

The second thing that we learn about manliness here is that to be a man is to be a lover (5:25-32).  Now when I say that, I don’t have in mind romantic love, although that would certainly be expected from a godly, manly husband towards his wife.  Some of you need to understand that many of those things that your buddies would call “girlie” are actually very “manly,” and many of those things that your buddies would call “manly” are actually very cowardly.  That being said, the love that I have in mind here is sacrificial, covenant love for the good of another, because the pattern is “as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (25).  A godly, manly man is a leader and a lover who lays himself down for the good of his wife & children, and whoever else he is leading.  His leadership is anything but self-assertion. 

Notice that the goal of this kind of love is to present his wife (and family) to Christ in splendor (5:26-27).  He isn’t primarily trying to make her what he wants her to be but what Christ wants her to be.  The goal of his love is her spiritual growth and holiness.  Notice also that this kind of love is a profound form of loving one’s neighbor as himself.  Loving like this means treating my wife like a member of my own body (28-30).  Again, this is “just as Christ does the church” (29).  He nourishes and cherishes the church because we are members of His body.  A godly man understands that family relationships are the most necessary place to consistently show this type of love. 

Also, don’t miss the significance of Paul quoting Genesis 2:24 in Ephesians 5:32.  According to Paul, God created marriage to be a picture of the covenant love between Christ and the church.  That is what is at stake men, when you accept or reject this charge to godliness and manliness today.  The glory of God in the display of the gospel is at stake when you fail to be godly, manly men. 

III.         Being Manly Fathers (Ephesians 6:1-4)

Here Paul deals with the parent/child relationship.  Notice the shift from “parents” in verses 1-2 to “fathers” in verse 4.  Children are charged to honor and obey their mother and their father, but Paul singles out “fathers” when it comes to the responsibilities of the parents.  The implication again is that fathers bear primary responsibility for seeing their children raised in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.  This gives us a third truth about manliness: to be a man is to be a teacher and trainer of others.  Men, especially fathers, are called to take the initiative here.  You are to initiate the discipline process when both of you are home.  You are to enforce the commands to children found in verses 1-3.  You should be the one initiating family devotions.  You are called to initiate spiritual conversations in your home.  You are to initiate the family’s commitment to be a part of the local church.  And if you are not a father, let me challenge you to accept the same responsibility for other children in the church who may not have a dad or may not have a dad who will be a dad like this to them.    

Before we move on, I do want to point out this very important phrase: “do not provoke your children to anger” (4).  What does this mean?  It obviously doesn’t mean that you are to never make your children angry.  That would be impossible!  I think this simply means that we should not provoke anger in our children in unnecessary ways.  It means we father them in ways that minimize the potential for anger in them.  How do we do this?  The Bible helps us here with amply instructions and examples, but I want to give you two practical ways that have helped me in seeking to obey this command. 

First, we must seek to conquer anger in our own hearts.  Don’t forget that these instructions come after Ephesians 4:26-27: [26] Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, [27] and give no opportunity to the devil.  They also come after Ephesians 4:29-32: [29] Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. [30] And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. [31] Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. [32] Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.  These are the behaviors and attitudes that you are supposed to model before your children, even in disciplining them.  The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God (James 1:19-20). 

Second, we must seek to avoid hypocrisy at all costs. Hypocrisy is a sure way to provoke anger in your children.  I think this is why the great parenting passage in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 begins with a charge for parents to love Yahweh alone with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.  This means that men need to become genuinely passionate for God and that we also need to be humble when we do fall short and model confession, repentance, and Biblical efforts at reconciliation. 

IV.          Being Manly Christians

A message like this tends to sting a little because it exposes many places in which we do fall short as men, husbands, and fathers.  But that sting of conviction is meant to drive us to our knees in desperation before our God.  If we were honest, we need to admit that it stings because we are all selfish men who struggle to be as manly as Jesus.  Many of us have abused our leadership by being passive, overbearing, or short-tempered morons.  Many of us have bought into cultural ideas about manhood and in trying to be manly men we are actually looking less and less like Jesus.  If you find yourself in that category like me, I want you to know that the gospel gives us hope today in two ways.   

First, the gospel helps us get back on our feet today by reminding us that Christ has borne our failures upon His cross.  We must remember that even as men, we are part of the bride that Jesus died for.  Each and every way in which I fall short of being a godly, manly man was nailed to the cross of my Lord Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:13-14).  He bore our punishment for failing to be godly, manly men.  This should cause us to run to the cross in confession and repentance for shelter when we are made aware of our failures.

Second, the gospel is news that through faith in Christ, we receive new hearts and the help of the Holy Spirit to become these kinds of men.  It doesn’t mean we will ever completely get there, but it does mean that there is hope to look more and more like this throughout our lives.  This process of spiritual growth is a miracle, but it is one that we actively take part in.  It is a process in which we work out our salvation as God works in us both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:12-13).  May we resolve to do our part today with all our hearts and may we resolve to never go down without a fight.  I love Thorin’s line in Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug.”  When the dwarves realize that there will be no escape from Smaug the dragon, he resolves, “If this is to end in fire, then we shall all burn together.”  That is the kind of resolve that I am calling you men to today: a resolve that doesn’t retreat from the fight for godly manhood, even if it looks like certain defeat; a resolve that will not go down without a fight.  God give the church men like that! 

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[1] Wayne Grudem and John Piper, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, 35

The God Who Loves: Jonah 4:1-11

Today we conclude our incredible journey through the book of Jonah.  What’s interesting is that this book could have ended in chapter 3.  This book began with Jonah running from God’s call to go to Nineveh chapter 1.  God then came after Jonah in power and in mercy and Jonah broke at the bottom of the sea.  God then appointed a fish to swallow Jonah and kept him alive in that fish for three days until he was vomited up on the shore.  God’s call then came to Jonah a second time and this time he obeyed his God and a massive pagan city turned to God as a result.  You can almost hear the music and see the credits rolling, right? 

But this is not how the book of Jonah ends.  As in any good story, a plot twist comes in the last chapter that is meant to drive the message of this little book deep down into our hearts.  Rather than end, “and they lived happily ever after,” the book ends on a question that we are all supposed to answer.  Watch how this happens: [4:1] But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. [2] And he prayed to the LORD and said, “O LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. [3] Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” [4] And the LORD said, “Do you do well to be angry?”

[5] Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. [6] Now the LORD God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. [7] But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. [8] When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” [9] But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” [10] And the LORD said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. [11] And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?” (Jonah 4:1-11 ESV)

In Jonah 4:1-11, Jonah’s anger is contrasted with Yahweh’s compassion in order to call God’s people to share Yahweh’s compassion for and with all peoples, even those we consider our enemies.  This is a message that the church desperately needs to hear today.  If we are going to reach a world that desperately needs God, then we are going to have to learn the lesson of the book of Jonah: that God’s people must share His compassion for and with all peoples.  My prayer this morning is for the way this book ends to stir us up to ask God for a heart like His and to pray for grace to show His compassion to all peoples, even our enemies.  Let’s consider two ways in which this passage beckons us to know and share the love of God. 

I.              We Must Repent of Our Prejudices (4:1-4)

Jonah is not happy about the revival in Nineveh.  Their repentance and God’s turning away from His “fierce anger” (3:9) “displeased Jonah exceedingly,” and cause him to become “angry” (1).  Jonah then prays an angry prayer (2-3) in which he expresses his anger over God’s mercy to the Assyrians (contrast with chapter 2, where Jonah praises God for His mercy towards him).  In Jonah’s anger prayer, he supplies the reason for His anger and His initial attempt to run from Yahweh.  He tells God “I told you so!” and says that he “made haste to flee to Tarshish” because he knew that God was “a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.” 

What’s interesting here is that Jonah is quoting Exodus 34:6-7, which is a crucial passage in the Old Testament for understanding God’s character.  This is the passage where Moses asks God to show him His glory and when the Lord passes by and declares Who He is, here is what He says about Himself: [6] The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, [7] keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7 ESV)

There is a lot of irony in the fact that Jonah’s ACCURATE view of God caused him to run.  The irony is that though he knows his theology, he still doesn’t know his God very well.  His view of God is accurate, but what he knows about God has not caused him to recognize and submit to God’s sovereign right to extend mercy to whomever He will (Exodus 33:19).  His view of God also hasn’t made him a person who is like Yahweh in his compassion for others.  Rather than submitting to God and becoming more like God, Jonah is playing God, because that’s what we do when we start telling God whom He has the right to show mercy to.

At this point, Jonah asks Yahweh to take his life, saying, “it is better for me to die than to live” (3).  He would rather die than see the Assyrians’ live.  Most commentators see a contrast here with Elijah in 1 Kings 19:4, where he too wanted to die.  If so, we again see the use of contrast and irony: Elijah was distraught with failure, but Jonah is distraught over his success.[1]

Now you will want to pay attention to Yahweh’s questions for Jonah in this chapter because they are the keys to the chapter.  God asks Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry?”  Notice that Jonah does not answer.  The reader is meant to supply the answer.  The answer is NO; Jonah is NOT doing well to be angry over God’s display of compassion towards the Assyrians.  He is in the wrong. 

Rather than sharing God’s compassion towards the Assyrians, Jonah acts like the elder brother in the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32).  Why does Jonah act this way?  He does so because he hates the Assyrians.  As we have said in this series, they were notorious for being a wicked and ruthless people.  They were also the nation that God had warned the Israelites in the Northern Kingdom (where Jonah is a prophet) about.  They would eventually take the Northern Kingdom into captivity.  The last thing Jonah wants is to see them live long enough to take his own people into captivity. 

Now before we are too hard on Jonah, let us remember that we all have our prejudices.  It may be skin color, gender, social status, family, or some other category (like homosexuals).  We could ask these questions: Who are the Assyrians in your life?  Who are the people that you have the hardest time caring about?  Who are the people that, though you would not say it out loud, are really undeserving of God’s mercy in your mind?  Like I said, we all have our prejudices, and we must recognize them and repent of them if we are going to share the love of God with a world that desperately needs it.  Remember that one of the greatest miracles of the gospel is that God now gives us new hearts and calls us to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:38-48).  Watch how Jonah teaches Jonah this lesson.

II.            We Must Contemplate the Great Compassion of Our God (4:5-11)

In this section we are going to see God showing His compassion to Jonah (5-9) and declaring His compassion towards the Assyrians (10-11).  Jonah leaves the city, sits to the “east,” and makes “a booth for himself there” for shade in order to “see what would become of the city” (5).  He still has hopes that Yahweh will “come to His senses” and change His mind!  It is Jonah, though, who needs to come to his senses, and God displays His sovereign power over His creation three times in the next three verses in order to get him to.  First, Yahweh “appointed a plant” to shade Jonah’s head in order to “save him from his discomfort” (6).  Now here is another major point of irony.  This phrase can also be translated, “to deliver him from his wickedness.”  Wow, God is not only trying to make Jonah comfortable with this plant, He is also at work again to save Jonah from his own stubbornness and rebellion.  God is being compassionate to Jonah even in his hatefulness.

Jonah becomes “exceedingly glad” because of this plant, but his gladness soon withers like the leaves of this plant!  The next day, “God appointed a worm” to attack the plant so that it “withered.”  Once the sun comes up, “ God appointed a scorching east wind” and the sun beats down upon Jonah’s head, causing him to be “faint.”  He then asks again that he might die: “It is better for me to die than to live” (7-8).  So God then asks Jonah again, this time concerning the plant, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?”  This time Jonah answers! “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.”  Wow!  Have you ever been that mad? 

What is really going on here?  I think that, rather than actually pitying this plant, Jonah is pitying himself and projecting his self-pity onto this plant.  Don’t we do this?  We get angry or throw ourselves a pity party and then totally project that and exaggerate something else.  But watch how God uses Jonah’s pity party here.  God has set Jonah up, right?  First Jonah questions God’s right to deliver, and then through raising up and destroying the plant, God gets Jonah to question His right to destroy.  That’s when God drops the hammer.  God in effect tells Jonah that since he pities “the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow (he doesn’t have the relationship that a gardener would with this plant), which came into being in a night and perished in a night (he doesn’t have a very extensive relationship with this plant),” then certainly God should pity a mass of people who are spiritually ignorant and in need of His mercy, whom He did create and care for every second of their lives. 

It is monumental to see that this book ends in a question.  We are again meant to supply the answer.  YES, God should pity the Assyrians.  This is the author’s way of declaring God’s great love for the wicked Assyrians.  And what about their animals (11)?  I think this highlights the greatness of God’s compassion.  He even cares about the livestock in this city.  According to Psalm 145:9, God cares for all of His creatures.  God is a God who even takes notice when a single sparrow falls to the ground (Matthew 10:29).

Another reason that this book ends on a question is because it seeks to do in our hearts what God was seeking to do in Jonah’s here.  It is meant to invite God’s people to join this great God in His great compassion for all peoples.  We’re meant to answer this question, “Yes, God, You should pity the Assyrians, and so should we.”  We should share Yahweh’s great compassion for and with all peoples.  Also, be careful here, because some of us are getting as mad as Jonah about God’s compassion and patience with Jonah!  We need to ponder God’s great love here for a stubborn & hateful prophet, a wicked people, and even their animals.  Yahweh’s compassion is great indeed! 

“Could we with ink the ocean fill,

and were the skies of parchment made;

were every stalk on earth a quill,

and every man a scribe by trade;   

To write the love of God above

Would drain the ocean dry;

Nor could the scroll contain the whole,

Though stretched from sky to sky.

O love of God, how rich and pure!

How measureless and strong!

It shall forevermore endure

The saints’ and angels’ song."

We also need to ponder His great love in our own lives, because we have all been Jonah’s and Assyrians’ at some point in our lives.  The gospel is the good news of how much God loves His enemies.  [6] For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—[8] but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [9] Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. [10] For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. (Romans 5:6-10 ESV)

Finally, in pondering God’s great love for all peoples, we also need to ponder how we can reflect that love for and with others.  We all know Jonah’s and Assyrians don’t we?  We cannot ignore them.  John says that if we do not love, then we do not know God (1 John 4:7-21).  We cannot properly reflect God’s character without sharing His compassion for and with others.  The gospel calls those who have experienced God’s love to share that love with all peoples, even their enemies (Matthew 5:38-48).  Will you seek out ways to share His greatest expression of His compassion (the cross of Jesus) with the nations so that they can be saved?  What about your enemies? As we said at the beginning of this series, Jonah is not mainly about a man and a great fish but is about a man and an infinitely great God.  Do you know Him today?  If so, will you show His love to a world that desperately needs it? 

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[1] Leslie Allen, NICOT: Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, & Micah, 229

A Great Awakening: Jonah 3:1-10

I’d like to begin today by asking you some very basic questions.  In all honesty, are you as close as you could be to the Lord right now?  Are you satisfied with where you are?  Are you satisfied with where our church is spiritually?  I ask you these questions because I think a desire of all of God’s people should be for Him to move in power in our lives and in our churches.  I think every child of God should long for revival in their lives and in their church and community.  I know I do.   

In Jonah 3:1-10, the city of Nineveh experiences genuine revival as God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed and humbly received.  The miraculous power of God’s Word is unleashed as God’s servant proclaims it and sinners receive it in faith and repentance, resulting in an outpouring of God’s compassion.  Now let me be clear: I don’t think this passage is necessarily a “recipe for revival.”  We cannot force God’s hand in any way.  I do, however, believe that we can raise the sails and pull up any anchors that may be down so that we are ready when the winds of revival may blow.  So my prayer today is that God would ignite a great desire for revival in our hearts and move us to express that desire in appropriate ways.  Let’s consider from this passage this morning how God brings about genuine revival.

What we have seen so far is Jonah running from God in chapter 1 and then turning to God in chapter 2.  We now see Jonah begin to run with God in this chapter: [3:1] Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, [2] “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” [3] So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. [4] Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”

[5] And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. [6] The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. [7] And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, [8] but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. [9] Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” [10] When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. (Jonah 3:1-10 ESV)

I.              God Brings about Revival Through the Faithful Proclamation of His Word (3:1-4)

The first thing that should strike us is how much the first few verses of Jonah 3 sound like the first few verses of Jonah 1:1-3.  This is intentional on the part of the author: he is contrasting the old Jonah with the new Jonah and showing God to be a God of second chances.  Rather than running, Jonah is now obeying God.  We certainly don’t need to gloss over the fact that this was a very courageous move on the part of Jonah.  Not only is he the only prophet ever sent to preach to a foreign land in the Old Testament, he is sent to the Assyrian capital of all places!  The Assyrians were a most cruel and ruthless people.

According to our passage, Nineveh was a vast city, requiring a three-day journey to cross (3).  I’m not sure if that means three days simply walking or three days preaching, but the point is that it is a very large city.  An interesting observation is that this Hebrew phrase literally says that the city was “great to God,” meaning that the city not just very large, but was also was very important to God.  Yahweh cares about these wicked and ruthless people.

One thing that should strike you in this passage is the power of God’s Word when proclaimed.  As Jonah “began” to go into Nineveh, only “going a day’s journey” and only speaking a very brief message (only 5 words in the Hebrew), the entirety of the city responds!  In other words, Jonah’s job is finished on day one of a three-day job!  There’s also an interesting wordplay on the Hebrew word for “overthrown” here.  It can mean both “overthrown” or “to turn around.”  It is a word of judgment, but notice how it ironically came to pass in Nineveh’s being turned around by God’s Word! 

Brothers and sisters, we should never underestimate the power of God’s Word.  God’s Word is alive and powerful (Hebrews 4:12).  It never returns void (Isaiah 55:10-11).  The universe came into existence by the power of God’s Word (Hebrews 11:3) and is also upheld by the “word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3).  God’s Word brings His people into existence: [16] For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16, see also Romans 10:17)  God’s Word not only brings His people into existence, it also builds them up: [32] And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. (Acts 20:32)

We need to ponder a convicting question here.  If God’s Word is so powerful, then why are we so reluctant to share it?  If the gospel is the power of God to salvation for all who believe, then why are we not sharing the gospel with everyone we can?  Our reluctance reveals a lack of faith in either God’s Word or in ourselves in proclaiming it.  I hope that Jonah’s example shows us that if God can work through a man like this and in a people like this, He can certainly use us!  If God can speak through donkeys, rocks, and even unwilling servants, He can speak through you too!  God make us a people with an unshakeable confidence in the power your Word!    

II.            God Brings about Revival Through the Humble Reception of His Word (3:5-8)

The people of Nineveh responded to God’s word of judgment in faith and repentance.  This is the response that Scripture consistently calls for: to respond to God in faith and repentance.  And when God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed and people humbly receive it in faith and repentance, revival takes place.  Notice first the immediateness of the response of both the people and the king (5-6).  Verse 5 says, “the people of Nineveh believed God.”  This is the same terminology used for when Abraham believed Yahweh in Genesis 15:6.  The text also seems to imply that the king didn’t even hear Jonah preach, but rather word simply “reached the king” (6).  Believing God, taking Him at His Word, is the essence of faith.  And true faith, because it genuinely does take God at His Word, always bears the fruit of repentance and obedience.  This is why we also see that the king and the people also responded in repentance.  Repentance is a turning away from sin and self and to God, and it proves the genuineness of our faith or lack thereof.  The people (in response to the king’s decree) turned away from their “evil way” and the “violence” that was in their hands and turned to God through prayer, fasting, & mourning (they put on sackcloth).  This was a genuine display of humility: the proud Assyrians humbled themselves before their Creator and their king exchanged his royal throne and robes for sackcloth and a seat in the ashes.

Notice also the totality of the response of the people and their king (5-8).  From “the greatest of them to the least of them,” the city turns to God.  The king passes a decree that everyone must take place in this demonstration of repentance.  Not only do the people fast and put on sackcloth; they make their animals do so as well!  This is drastic, desperate repentance on the part of these people.  Many scholars question the genuineness of the repentance that takes place in this chapter, but the text seems to go to great lengths to state that is was genuine.  Jesus viewed their repentance as genuine as well (Matthew 12:38-41; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32).

This passage is meant to call those who read it to genuine faith and repentance as well.  The way that the people of Nineveh are responding is exactly how God had told His people to respond to His warnings that they had ignored.  As a matter of fact, this passage about the people of Nineveh’s repentance has been the afternoon reading every year when Jews celebrate the Day of Atonement since A.D. 200.[1]  It is read as a call to true repentance.

Whether you are a Christian or a non-Christian today, this is the way God expects you to respond to His Word: in humble faith and repentance.  How desperate are you for revival in your life?  Are you willing to fast and pray the way these pagans did?  Too many people talk about wanting God to move but are unwilling to get desperate before God or change anything in their own life.  They want to serve God on their own terms and then wonder why the power of God at work in their lives.  It is because they have not yet learned the secret of humble, desperate faith and repentance.  We cannot force God’s hand, but we can demonstrate our desperation for Him by fasting, prayer, repentance, time in Word, etc. 

III.         God Brings About Revival by the Sovereign Pleasure of His Will (3:9-10)

An interesting parallel between Jonah 1 & 3 is how both the ship’s captain and the king of Nineveh make similar statements about the sovereign prerogative of God (1:6; 3:8).  This is a crucial point.  God told Moses in Exodus 33:19 that part of what it meant for Him to be God was possessing the right to show grace and mercy to whomever He willed.  This is why I said that this passage should not be viewed as a “recipe for revival.”  Revival is the sovereign prerogative of God.  God would be absolutely just and right to go ahead and level Nineveh.  However, He doesn’t, and what’s more is that He has spoken in His word and promised to exercise His sovereign right to show mercy to any people who respond to Him in faith and repentance:

[18:1] The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: [2] “Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words.” [3] So I went down to the potter's house, and there he was working at his wheel. [4] And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.

[5] Then the word of the LORD came to me: [6] “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. [7] If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, [8] and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. [9] And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, [10] and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. [11] Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the LORD, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds.’ (Jeremiah 18:1-11)

God’s extends His mercy to anyone who will repent and believe.  Even a word of prophecy is not simply a proclamation of what will come, but is also the warning of a merciful God as to what will come if those addressed do not respond to God in faith and repentance.  That is why we can say that Jonah’s prophecy didn’t fail here.  God is simply being true to His nature, having no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:32) and not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). 

I alluded to this earlier, but a preacher once stated that revival was like sailing.  We cannot make the wind blow our boat, but we can set the sails and pull up the anchor, etc.  Since revival is the sovereign prerogative of God, all we can do is set the sails.  That is what we are saying today: we must be faithful to proclaim God’s Word and must constantly make sure that we are responding to Him in humble faith and repentance.  From there we simply fast and pray and trust God to send the wind into those sails.

As members of the human race, we too live under a word of judgment (Romans 3:23). God has sent someone greater than Jonah, not only speak a better word than Jonah, but also to bear our judgment upon Himself on the cross.  Will you respond to Him today in faith and repentance?  His “sign” is also greater than Jonah’s: He was not simply preserved in the belly of a fish for three days, He was brought back from the dead after three days in the grave!  Will you respond to Jesus today the way the Ninevites did to Jonah? 

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[1] James Bruckner, NIVAC: Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 97