GENERATION JONAH
Explanation
- People who study the culture like to come up with names for certain generations/time periods
Illustration
- 1900-1924 – G.I. Generation
- 25-45 – silent generation
- 46-64 – baby boomers
- 65-79 - Generation X
- 80-2000 – Millennial or Generation Y
- 2000 – present – new silent generation or Generation Z
Application
- If we were to give this generation of the church a name, I believe it would be GENERATION JONAH – read text
Transition
- I want to use 3 simple truths from Jonah to show you how the vast majority of how this generation of the church
is just like Jonah
- First of all, our generation is like Jonah in the fact that
1. WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A SIMPLE COMMAND
Transition
- Notice Jonah’s command in…
Vs. 1-2 – Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and
cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.”
Explanation
- Jonah has been given the simple command to warn people of judgment
- Cry out against it – go preach/proclaim/make the people aware [aware of what…]
- Their wickedness has come up before [God]
o Their guilt/wrongdoings/breaking of the law is before God/on the docket
o God’s mercy is wearing thin
Illustration
- I don’t have to spend a lot of time letting you know that we have been given that same command
- Jude 23 puts it this way – but others [speaking of other lost people] save with fear, pulling them out of the fire
- Paul says it like this
o Colossians 1:28 - Him we preach, warning every man…
o 1 Thessalonians 5:14 - Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly…
- May we never fail to mention Jesus’ expression of this simple command
o Mark 16:15 - And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
o Matthew 28:19 - Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
o Acts 1:8 - But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be
witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Application
- Just as God gave Jonah the simple command of warning Nineveh
- He give us/this generation the command to
o Pull the lost from the fire
o Warn them of the wrath to come
o To be His witness and make disciples beginning at home and reaching to the world
o WE ARE GENERATION JONAH, b/c we have been given the same simple command as Jonah
- People who don’t have a Biblical worldview often say
o There are lost people in Holly Pond, why do you have to go to another country
o B/C
 We are generation Jonah and have been given a simple command
 Vast majority in Holly Pond know the Gospel
 Why plead with those who reject, when there are others of have never heard
 A slow sinking cruise ship… Who would you give a life jacket too?
 There are just 4 of us going… can ya’ll not share the gospel while we are gone
Transition
- So we see 1st of all that we are generation Jonah b/c we, like Jonah, have been given a simple command
- But there is a 2nd reason I call this generation of the church the Jonah generation, and it is b/c
2. WE HAVE A SINFUL CONDITION
Vs. 3 - But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going
to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
Transition
- This verse makes us aware of Jonah’s sinful condition
- His sin is at least two-fold… 1st of all, Jonah…
a. Did not cooperate with the Lord
Explanation
- The Bible says he
o arose to flee to Tarshish
 Now Nineveh is Northeast and Tarshish is west/God said go right and he went left
o He went down to Joppa
 Joppa is south, so he is going southwest when he should be going northeast
- Jonah is doing the exact opposite of what God has commanded
Illustration
- That is exactly what this generation of the church is doing
o God says – Go and tell
o We say – Come and hear [the EXACT opposite]
 Come hear our preacher
 Come to V.B.S./watch this movie/eat this meal
Application
- Nothing wrong with saying come and hear [would not have been wrong for Jonah to invite folks to Tarshish]
- But we are FOOLS! FOOLS! FOOLS! If we think we are obedient to God when we ARE NOT sharing the gospel
o I know not everybody can go overseas and share, but everyone can share here
- You know what we need to do:
o Repent for not cooperating with the Lord/trying to cut corners/for being GENERATION JONAH!
Transition
- Now there is a 2nd aspect of Jonah’s sin that is often overlooked
- Not only did Jonah sin by not cooperating with the Lord, but Jonah…
b. Did not care about the lost
Transition
- Jonah knew that Nineveh would soon be a victim of God’s wrath/suffer greatly b/c of their sin
- Look what he says in…
Jonah 3.4 - And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, “Yet forty days, and
Nineveh shall be overthrown [destroyed/crushed/done away with]!”
Explanation
- Jonah was aware of their fate, but DID NOT CARE!
- He knew it would be good/best for Nineveh to hear the message of judgment, but WAS SELFISH/SELFCENTERED!
Illustration
- Listen to what the Bible says about those who know to do good, but don’t
- James 4:17 - Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
o Sin is not limited to what you actively do, but also sin is committed by what you avoid doing
o Everybody look at me… Do you understand that?
- Jonah was perhaps a man who
o Didn’t cuss/drink/gamble/have premarital sex/enjoy trashy entertainment/disrespect or slander
o But he lived in sin b/c of what he wasn’t willing to do
Application
- This generation of the church is just like that… WE ARE GENERATION JONAH!
- Christians are
o known more for what they avoid doing/stand against then they are for what they actively do
o too selfish/egocentric to actually care that people are going to hell
Illustration
- I would go on a mission trip, but
o I’m a homebody/not comfortable in a foreign country/scared to fly
o But those same people would be on a plane to Cozumel, Aruba, Bahamas, or some other 5 star resort
tomorrow
- Truth is you are
o Just selfish/not concerned with others/AND YOU ARE A VICTIM OF GENERATION JONAH
Transition
- There is a 3rd reason we can call this generation of the church GENERATION JONAH [command/sin condition]
3. WE HAVE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES
Explanation
- It is a biblical fact that sin has consequences/you cannot get away with it/you will reap what you sow [no crop
failure!]
- As a result of this generations disobedience to
o Cooperate with the Lord and Be concerned with the lost
o There are 2 sets of consequences… 1st of all
a. The Consequence of Surrendering God’s Presence
Explanation
- Let’s be honest… Rarely do we sense God’s presence in a corporate setting
- Most often there is no sense of
o Excitement/passion/Ps. 122.1 - … I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the
Lord.”
o Awe/reverence for the Lord/speechlessness over His splendor
o Brokenness over sin/a desperate hunger for righteousness or God’s Word
- And it is all b/c our disobedience is the kryptonite of God’s Presence
Transition
- Notice this in Jonah’s life as we look again at…
Vs. 3 - But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going
to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
Explanation
- Jonah forfeited the presence of God, by being disobedient
- Sin does it every time
Illustration
- Listen to what Jesus says in…
- Matthew 5:8 - Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
o Who gets to see God/sense His presence? [The pure in heart]
o Is a heart pure when there is obvious sin in it? [No]
Application
- The presence of God WILL NOT be made manifest where disobedience dwells
- And b/c we are GENERATION JONAH we don’t have the privilege of God’s presence
Transition
- I want to point out one more serious consequence of disobedience
- Not only is there the consequence of surrendering God’s presence, but also…
b. The Consequence of Spreading God’s Punishment
Transition
- Notice what happened as God began to punish Jonah for his disobedience
Jonah 1:4-5 – But the LORD sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that [Jonah
was about to be broken up? No…] the ship was about to be broken up. Then the mariners were afraid;
Explanation
- The consequences of sin are not just limited to Jonah, but this punishment is spreading to other people
Illustration
- When Israel battled Jericho they were given specific orders to not take what the Bible calls the accursed things
[certain garments/treasures]
- But one man, by the name of Achan took those things. But listen to who God holds
o Accountable – Josh 7.11 – Israel has sinned
o Punishes – Josh 7.12 –The children of Israel could not stand before their enemies [36 died b/c of Achan’s
sin]
o When there is sin in the camp the whole camp suffers
- Listen to this verse
o Numbers 14:18 - ‘The LORD is longsuffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression;
but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and
fourth generation.’
Application
- The disobedience of one can bring consequences on many
- Our current GENERATION JONAH is impacting the next generation
- I don’t know about you, but I don’t want my children growing up
o In a Jonah Generation
o Where there is not an overwhelming significance on the Gospel
o Where there is not an overwhelming passion for the presence of God [cold/dead/lethargic]
- And think about this
o If there is not
 A significance on the message of God
 The presence of God,
 Then what makes us think we and our children will escape the punishment of God
CLOSING
- So what do you need to do tonight…? Do you need to
o Repent for not [cooperating with the Lord/caring for the lost
o Rejoice that God has given you a desire to preach His gospel and pursue His presence