in the words that I speak, in Jesus' name, amen. We'll start by reading our text, which is Jonah chapter one, verses four through 10. 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. Then the mariners were afraid and cried, every man unto his God, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship, and he lay and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God. If so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not. And they said, Every one to his fellow come, and let us cast lots that we may know, for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is come upon us. What is thine occupation, and whence comest thou? What is thy country, and of what people art thou? And then he said unto them, I am a 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 had fled from the presence of the Lord because he had told them. You know, God never sits idly by while we make wrong decisions. One man said, sometimes the devil sits on my shoulder and he's even wondering what I'm doing. God is our loving father who cares greatly for us and doesn't want us to get hurt by our sins. What you allow in your life will continue. The wise person will make a U-turn at the first warning sign he gets. The problem is we don't always like the narrow path that we have to follow. We like the wide path, the one with all of the world's temptations that will lead us to destruction. We need to be listening for our Father's voice. Proverbs 15, five says, a fool despises his father's instruction, but he that regardeth reproof is prudent. If we don't listen to God, if we keep going down that path that will lead to our downfall, if we don't hear and learn from the reproof that God gives, the Bible says in Proverbs chapter 13, verse 18, Poverty and shame shall be to him that refuses instruction, but he that regardeth reproof shall be honored. One young man said, I realized that I was acting like a young brat, but before I knew it I was in too deep. I couldn't stop. Well stop, get back on the right path. Rebellion and stubbornness are wicked sins according to 1 Samuel chapter 15 verse 23 it says, for rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. You know we all make bad decisions in life but how we respond to those decisions is important. When God speaks to us after a decision's been made, do we dig in our heels to prove that we can handle this without God? Or are we attentive to God's correction? Hebrews chapter 12 verse six says, for whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. God will chasten you. David was the king and he nonetheless was chastened by God. The Bible says that God is no respecter of persons. Even though God had forgiven him of his sins, David had to reap the earthly consequences of his wrongdoing. He suffered many sorrows. He had a son that was born to Bathsheba and he died. One of David's sons was murdered. Another son led a rebellion against David and was killed in battle. It must have been heartbreaking to not only know that it was your son that was battling against you, but to see him killed. How true it was that God had said in 2 Samuel chapter 12 verse 10, now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house because thou has despised me and has taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. If we do not heed God's warning about our sinful condition, he may just take us home before we're ready to be there. The sin unto death is willful, continuous, unrepentant sin. God is holy. He has called us to holiness and he corrects us when we sin. We are not punished for our sin in the sense of losing our salvation, but we will be disciplined. God will not let you down without a fight. His intense love for you will go the extra mile to keep you from ruining your life as well as the lives of others. Remember in one of the previous lessons I said we never sin alone. Our sin always affects other people. No one likes to be told that they're wrong or worse yet to be chastened in the process. Hebrews chapter 12 verse 11 says, Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous. Nevertheless, afterward, it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. Anyone who has ever experienced discipline knows that it's much more painful than it is pleasant. But the beauty is what the Bible is teaching us. Discipline, when done in love by a good father in heaven, yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness. In David's case, he stated in Psalm 51, my sin is ever before me. God has a way of reminding us that we are going in the wrong direction. It is the Holy Spirit's job to reprove the world of sin, and he is certainly capable of reproving or correcting us. At this point Jonah is not very sensitive to the reproof or the rebuking of God. He has been saying no to God for quite some time. His conscience has become dulled and his sensitivity to the still small voice of God has been lost. Now it's time for God to get out the big stick. Deliberate disobedience calls for drastic discipline. So what did the Lord do? Well, he sent a storm. Jonah chapter one verse four states, but the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea and there was a mighty tempest in the sea. Some storms we have in life might be chastisement for an ongoing sin in our lives, a sin that we need to get forgiveness for and then forsake it. Not every storm or every trial in our lives is a result of sin. Some storms, the enemy sins. Some storms are just a part of life. And other storms may be those that are sent by God. All of these build and refine our character. They strengthen us, and they set us on the path to be more like what God wants us to be. We love bright, sunny days. They have no stress or worry in them. But we need storms to bring the rain. God can and does instruct us and move us toward a fulfilled life apart from the storms, but these are times when the trials we have to go through increases our faith. And while we try to avoid these trials, there are some we just can't avoid. We need to remember that God will never leave us alone. He is always present. He's always watching over us. and he will help us through every trial that we face. Jesus has never sinned, but he suffered as no man ever has, not because he was wrong, but because he was right. Job, Daniel, Joseph, and Paul all endured great trials with no evidence that it was because of sin in their lives. You and I both know there is nothing that gets our attention faster than a bad doctor's report a financial crisis, a terrible family problem, or any other trial that we may endure. It is often during these times that our only hope, our only hope is to turn back to God. God is willing, because of His immeasurable love for us, to use a storm to bring us back to Him. God is omnipresent, He is omniscient, and He is omnipotent. Notice the phrase, but the Lord, in the first line of our text. Just as Jonah had paid his fare and was on his way to Tarshish, God sent the storm. It happens to us sometimes that way. Did you ever decide just not to go to church? It didn't feel like it today. I'm not going to church. So you just decide you're gonna go fishing instead. Well, the lake's only 30 miles away. So you get your tackle box, you get in the car, and you realize you got a flat tire. You fix that, you go back and get the lunch that you almost forgot, and you head out. Since you were in a hurry to get there, you got stopped by Connor for speeding. Finally, you get to the lake. You get your lunch and you get your tackle box, you start to go fishing and you realize you've forgotten your fishing pole. Well, this has been a busted trip. So you start home and lo and behold, what do you have? You got another flat and now you've got no spare. God works that way sometimes in our lives when we decide not to do what we're supposed to do. Aren't you glad that God still loves you even when you go astray? Revelation chapter 4 verse 11 says, For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. When our lives no longer bring pleasure, honor, and glory to God, He is willing to do whatever is necessary to bring us back to a place where we can be pleasing to Him. To do that, to bring us back to a right place with God, He has all of creation at His disposal. Psalm chapter 119 verses 90 and 91 says, thy faithfulness unto all generations that has established the earth and it abideth. They continue this day according to thine ordinances for all are thy servants. At best, our faithfulness is inconsistent and it's very deficient. The Bible says if we have broken one commandment, we've broken all of them. God knows nothing of inconsistency or unfaithfulness. He is God and he changes not. The last part of verse 91, for all are thy servants. Everything that God made is his servant. He can make a rooster crow at the right time to convict Peter. He can make a donkey balk to convict Balaam. He can make a whale swallow Jonah. His disciples said of Jesus, what manner of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey him? You know, I'm sure that most of you, if not all of you, including me, have fought against God. God says, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, in other words, go to church. He says that we should tithe. We say, well, I'm a little short on money this month. He says, we should read our Bibles more. We should pray more. We should witness to people. We will always fall short somewhere. Hannah's prayer in 1 Samuel 2, verses two through nine, reminds us of God's authority and his power. There is none holy as the Lord, for there is none beside thee. Neither is there any rock like our God. Talk no more so exceedingly proud. Let not arrogance come out of your mouth. For the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumble are girded with strength. They that were full have hired out themselves for bread, and they that were hungry ceased. so that the barren hath born seven and she that hath many children is waxed feeble. The Lord killeth and maketh alive. He bringeth down to the grave and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor and he maketh rich. He bringeth low and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust and lifteth up beggar from the dunghill to set him among princes. and to make them inherit the throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, and he hath set the world upon them. He will keep the feet of saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness, for by strength shall no man prevail. In chapter nine, verse four, Job asks, who hath hardened himself against him and prospered? And the warning in Isaiah chapter 45 verse 9 is sufficient here. Woe unto him that striveth with his maker. If Jonah had been on the deck of that ship, he could have heard the wind and felt the falling rain. But Jonah wasn't on the deck. He was sat on his disobedience so it would take more than a storm to get his attention. If the storm had got his attention, All that would have been broken was his will, but now the damage was much more severe. Verse four of our text ends with this phrase, the ship was like to be broken. So where was Jonah? He wasn't with the mariners looking for a break in the weather. Was he seeking advice from the captain of the ship? No. Verse five says, but Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship and was fast asleep. It was obvious that Jonah knew what was happening. He simply didn't care. He found refuge in his disobedience and was resolved to ride out the storm and its consequences. You know, man thinks that he is happy without God. That should be obvious to us when we look at the condition of the world today. But the psalmist advises us to taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man that trusteth in him. The lost sinner finds refuge in his religion, in his good works. Titus chapter three, verses five and six tells us that it is not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior. As Christians, we may find refuge in our ways and in our thoughts, but God declares, my thoughts are not your thoughts. Neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord, for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts your thoughts. The sailors of that ship that was on its way to Tarshish realized that they're in big trouble. Verse 5 in our text says, Well, here we go again. We're trying to solve our problems without God. Paul poured his heart out to God concerning his people. In Romans chapter 10 he says, for they being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness have not submitted themselves unto righteousness of God. Like we do at times, the children of Israel were trying to solve their own problems. They and we don't submit to God. That's what it takes to be obedient to God is submission. Proverbs 3, verse 5 and 6 says, Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lead not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. It's pretty simple, but it seems to be human nature to wait till a few boards come off that ship before we wake up. The world would probably say it's hard to live the Christian life. There are times for all of us when we're subjected to the temptations that surround us, and there are times when we give in to sin. Sin has a lot of heavy baggage. The Bible says in Matthew 11, 28 through 30, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. But God also declares, the way of the transgressors is hard. Isaiah 57, 20 and 21 says, but the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, unto the wicked. We talked about in one of our other lessons about being complacent or being indifferent. That describes Jonah. He's fast asleep in the sides of the ship. He is indifferent. I've seen in my 76 years of life on this earth the way the world has changed. I've seen not only the way my sin, but the sin of others has caused heartache. It's caused sorrow, maybe sickness, maybe even death. And the world, most of it doesn't care and it's getting worse. Sin has a way of blinding us to the truth. Paul reminds us that our understanding of spiritual things can be diminished by sin. Ephesians 4, 18 says, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their hearts. Like the Laodiceans, we can assume that we are rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing. And knowest not that thou art wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. Iniquity is costly, but carelessness never eliminates the cost. You can stick your head in the sand and hope God won't see it. Like I've said before, our sin affects others. In verse 6 of Jonah, chapter 1, So the shipmaster came to him and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we not perish. Jonah's carelessness and indifference affected everyone aboard that ship. Jonah's disobedience could have cost some men their lives. It could cost wives their husbands and little children their fathers. It's a steep price to pay for a boat ride to Tarshish. Because of our selfish nature, we only think of the personal ramifications of our sin. What escapes our minds is the effect that our sin has on God. We are God's people. We should give Him praise for saving our souls. We need to abstain from the temptations of the world around us. Most people never read a Bible, but they watch and they read your life every single day. If we call ourselves Christians, we need to live like a Christian. We're not sinless, but we need to sin less today than we did yesterday. In verse 9, Jonah finally gets honest. I am in Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Every time that we turn to God, we must start with honesty. And we might as well be honest because God already knows everything. You've heard the old saying, honesty is the best policy. 2 Corinthians 8, verse 21 says, providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men. And Paul asks us in Hebrews 13, 18, pray for us, for we trust we have a good conscience in all things, willing to live honestly. When Jonah reveals to those men who he is, they have a hard time understanding his disobedience. Then were the men exceedingly afraid and said to him, why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord because he had told them. Years ago, Dr. Bill Rice was preaching a revival meeting at Small Town. He and his family were staying near a church and one night after the preaching his wife informed him that they needed a couple of items from the store. He grabbed his wallet and his list and headed to the corner market which was just a couple of blocks down the street. He entered the store and grabbed a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk and placed them on the counter. The lady at the register reached down under the counter and pulled out a Playboy magazine and set it up on the counter in front of him. She said, would you like anything else, sir? Dr. Rice seeing the magazine and realizing what it was quickly fixed his eyes on the lady and said, no ma'am. She pushed the magazine just a little closer to him and said, are you sure? Without changing his gaze, he emphatically said, yes, I'm sure. How much is the bread and milk, please? The lady placed the magazine back under the counter, added the price of the groceries together, and gave him the total. He paid her the money, received his change, grabbed the bag of groceries, and headed for the door. As he reached the door, the lady said, have a good evening, Evangelist Rice. She had been in the service that night and had heard him preach and decided to put him to the test. Thank God he passed. But I wonder how many times we failed a test like that and no one's ever told us our grade. They just chalked it up as another Christian hypocrite. Once again, if we call ourselves Christians, we should act like Christians and not hypocrites. Okay. Thank you all very much for listening to me. Chad will take over in the next couple of weeks. He'll be continuing with the book of Jonah. Would you dismiss us?