A. Jonah is called to preach to Nineveh (1:1-2)
B. Jonah tried to run away from God (1:3-16)
C. Jonah and the great fish (1:17-2:10)
D. Jonah’s second chance – he goes (3:1-4)
E. Nineveh’s repentance (3:5-10)
F. Jonah’s displeasure with his success (4:1-5)
II. The object lesson
A. Jonah’s gratitude (4:6)
B. Jonah’s misery (4:7-8)
C. God’s question (4:9-11)
III. Lessons for us today
A. The contrast between man’s vindictiveness and God’s compassion (John 8:2-11)
B. The love of God (John 3:16; Mark 16:15; Romans 5:8)
C. The longsuffering of God (Hebrews 12:6, 11)
D. The mercy of God (2 Peter 3:9)
A. David (2 Samuel 23:2)
B. Paul (1 Corinthians 2:13; 2 Timothy 3:16)
C. Peter (2 Peter 1:20-21; 3:16)
II. Can we trust it?
A. The unity of the Bible
B. The brevity of the Bible
C. Scientific foreknowledge (Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3; Genesis 15:5; Leviticus 17:11; 13:45-46)
D. Archaeological discoveries
III. Inspiration makes the Bible profitable
A. For doctrine [teaching] (John 12:48)
B. For reproof [evidence] (Hebrews 11:1; Romans 10:17; Acts 17:2-4)
C. For correction [straightening up again] (Hebrews 4:12; 12:11)
D. For instruction in righteousness (Proverbs 1:7; 10:17; Matthew 5:6)
A. The Pharisees’ “testing” question (Mark 10:1-2; cf. Matthew 19:3)
B. Jesus answers with a question (Mark 10:3)
C. The Pharisees’ answer (Mark 10:4; cf. Deut. 24:1-4)
II. Jesus shows God’s original intent
A. “From the beginning it was not so” (Mark 10:5; cf. Matthew 19:8)
B. God’s intent from the beginning (Mark 10:6-9; cf. Matthew 19:4-6)
III. Back to the question of divorce
A. Divorce regulated through the Law “because of the hardness of your heart” (Mark 10:5; cf. Matthew 19:8)
B. One exception for acceptable divorce and subsequent marriage: fornication (Matthew 19:9)
C. Jesus acknowledges the difficulty of this doctrine but that does not change the truth of it (Matthew 19:10-12)
IV. God’s view of children
A. Jesus took time for children (Mark 10:13-14)
B. Jesus touted the trusting nature of children (Mark 10:15)
C. Jesus touched to bless children (Mark 10:16)
D. Should we not view our children in the same way as we “bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4)?
A. For mercy and grace (Hebrews 4:14-16)
B. For peace (Philippians 4:6-7)
C. For forgiveness (1 John 1:8-10; Psalm 51)
II. Our circumstances call for specific prayers
A. When illness befalls us (James 5:13-16)
B. When facing persecution (Acts 12:12; Acts 16:25)
C. When making important decisions (Luke 6:12-13; Acts 6:1-6)
D. When preparing for and engaging in a new work (Nehemiah 2:1-5; Acts 13:2-3)
A. From the beginning (Ephesians 1:3-6)
B. Through sanctification by the Spirit (2 Timothy 2:19-21)
C. Through belief in the truth (John 3:36)
II. Called (2 Thessalonians 2:14-15)
A. By the soul-saving gospel (Romans 1:16)
B. For the obtaining of the glory of Jesus (1 Peter 5:10)
C. Hold to the apostolic traditions (1 Peter 1:13-16)
III. Comforted (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)
A. The love of Jesus and the Father (Romans 5:6-8)
B. Everlasting consolation (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)
C. Good hope (Acts 24:15; Galatians 5:5; Titus 1:2)
D. Established for every good word and work (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
A. A proof of prophecy (Ezekiel 24:1-2; 2 Kings 25:1-4; Jeremiah 52:4-5)
B. The objects of the parable allude to the people’s own self-confident proverb (Ezekiel 24:3-5; 11:3)
C. Punishment was to come to the entire city (Ezekiel 24:6-12; Jeremiah 6:15; Leviticus 17:13)
D. God’s longsuffering had reached its limit (Ezekiel 24:13-14; Jeremiah 6:16)
II. Application
A. The people who were supposed to follow God had become a “rebellious house” (Ezekiel 24:3; 1 Peter 1:13-16; 4:3)
B. God offers cleansing (Ezekiel 24:13; 1 John 1:7-10)
C. God’s longsuffering has its limits (Ezekiel 24:13-14; 2 Peter 3:9; Hebrews 3:8)
A. Temporary in nature (Galatians 3:19, 24)
B. Carnal in practice (Hebrews 9:8-10)
C. National in scope (Leviticus 26:46; Psalm 78:5)
II. The need for change
A. The fault found in the people under the first covenant (Hebrews 8:7-13; Acts 15:10)
B. Jesus abrogated the first covenant (Hebrews 10:9; Colossians 2:14; Ephesians 2:15; Romans 7:1-6)
III. The New Covenant—the gospel of Christ
A. Eternal in nature (Hebrews 13:20)
B. Spiritual in practice (Hebrews 13:15; 1 Peter 2:5, 9)
C. Universal in scope (Galatians 3:28; Romans 1:16-17)
A. The kingdom was prophesied (Dan. 2:44; Matt. 3:2; 4:17)
B. The kingdom was prayed for (Matthew 6:10)
C. The kingdom was promised (Matthew 16:18-19)
D. The kingdom was preached (Acts 2; 8:12; 19:8; 28:23-31)
E. This same kingdom still exists today (Mark 9:1; Acts 2; Colossians 1:13)
II. Yours is the power…forever
A. The “mighty works” of Jesus (Matt. 11:20-23; 13:54, 58)
B. It was by God’s power that…
1. Jesus was conceived (Luke 1:35)
2. Jesus was raised from the dead (Philippians 3:10)
3. The soul-saving Scriptures were written (Romans 1:16; 2 Peter 1:3)
C. Why do so many deny the power of God? (2 Tim. 3:5)
III. Yours is the glory…forever
A. Glory shines in the life of Jesus (John 1:14)
B. Glory shines in the resurrection of Jesus (Romans 6:4)
C. Glory shines in the ascension of Jesus (1 Timothy 3:16)
D. Glory shines in the foreverness of Jesus (Colossians 3:4;
2 Timothy 2:10)
A. When He comes, we will be “gathered together to Him” (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18)
B. The falling away must first come (Acts 20:29-30; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Peter 2:1-3)
II. The man of sin (2:3-10)
A. “Exalts himself…so that he sits as God in the temple” (2:3-4)
B. Restrained in Paul’s day (2:5-7)
C. When the man of sin is revealed, the Lord will destroy him (2:8)
D. Deception and rejection (2:9-10)
III. Strong delusion (2:11-12)
A. Confusion (Isaiah 5:20)
B. Rejection of the truth (John 12:48)
C. Pleasure in unrighteousness (Hebrews 11:24-26)
A. The lioness represents either Judah or the royal family (19:2; cf. Psalm 89:3-4)
B. The first cub is Jehoahaz [Shallum] (19:3-4)
C. The second cub is Jehoiachin [Coniah] (19:5-9)
D. The third king lamented is Zedekiah [Mattaniah] (19:10-14)
II. A closer look at Jehoahaz
A. The son of Josiah, the last good king (2 Kings 23:25)
B. Taken into captivity into Egypt by Pharaoh Necho
C. The first Judean king to die in exile (2 Kings 23:31-34; Jeremiah 22:10-12)
D. Pharaoh Necho places Jehoiakim on the throne – Jehoiakim is not the second cub; he was despised by the people (Jeremiah 22:18-19)
III. A closer look at Jehoiachin
A. Carried into Babylon (2 Chronicles 36:10)
B. The hope was for him to return, but Babylon brought him out of prison and made him comfortable in that land (2 Kings 25:27-30)
IV. A closer look at Zedekiah
A. Another son of Josiah; uncle to Jehoiachin
B. Made king by Nebuchadnezzar (2 Chronicles 36:10)
C. The last of David’s dynasty to sit on the throne in Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:1-7)
V. Lessons for today
A. We must not put our trust in any person, but especially an evil person (2 Kings 23:32; 24:9, 19)
B. The people trusted in the house of David rather than God – do we trust in the White House more than God’s house today?
C. Let us pray for the nation’s leaders—whoever they are—that their decisions do not hinder the work of the Lord’s church (1 Timothy 2:1-2)
But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. (Acts 8:12)
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