Signs of Spiritual Rebellion (Part 2)

Pay attention to signs, all kinds of signs.

For an example, here's a body language sign.

That's the first of 13 definite signs

he's not serious about you.

Ladies, if you ever go out with a guy and he does that,

smack him upside the head with a menu, then leave.

Don't tolerate that.

Here's a relational sign.

All men are idiots.

I married their king.

Both of my daughters-in-law bought and wore that T-shirt

at the beach this past week.

My wife bought me a T-shirt.

But I was too embarrassed to wear it, so.

For the 2% of people who thought I was serious

in those two slides, I wasn't.

But after seeing that on the screen,

I'm going to guess at least one of my daughters-in-law

will get that and wear it.

On a more serious note,

health signs.

This could be especially appropriate right now

if you're working outside.

Signs of a heat stroke.

My point here is that all around us,

there are signs that we need to take note of.

Signs that can help us to understand things about ourself.

We can even see that in people.

And we're going to look back in Jonah

and see some of the signs in his life

that we can learn from.

Turn, if you would, Jonah.

We're going to stay in chapter 1 a little bit longer.

We'll pick up steam as we move into chapter 2.

But this morning, I want us to look at verses 1 through 6 again

as we continue the thought,

signs of spiritual rebellion.

And we'll read the first six verses.

Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah,

the son of Amittai,

saying, Arise, go to Nineveh,

that great city,

and call out against it,

for their evil has come up before me.

But Jonah rose 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

away from the presence of the Lord.

But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea.

There was a mighty tempest on the sea

so that the ship threatened to break up.

Then the mariners were afraid

and each cried out to his God,

and they hurled the cargo

that was in the ship into the sea

to lighten it for them.

But Jonah had gone down

into the inner part of the ship

and had lain down and was fast asleep.

So the captain came and said to him,

What do you mean, you sleeper?

Arise.

Call out to your God.

Perhaps the God will give a thought to us

that we may not perish.

Let's stop there for right now.

I want us to do a little bit of review,

but add on to what we looked at last week

to start with.

We began looking at this passage last time

and thinking about these signs.

There's some signs in life

that can be misleading.

And we see some in Jonah's experience.

Look first with me at deceptive signs

of spiritual wellness.

Some people like to interpret

what happens to them

or what's happening to them

as a sign.

If all's going well,

it's a good sign that

maybe God's pleased with me

or that just life is good right now.

If there's some bad things happening,

some difficulties,

I think maybe, well,

God's trying to get my attention

or it's just a negative time in life.

All these kinds of signs

don't really indicate the reality.

Jonah shows us that some signs

can be misleading.

Let's look at two.

Everything seems to be falling in place for you

is not necessarily a sign

that all is well.

When Jonah rebelled against God,

you understand,

Jonah was a man of God.

We're not talking about an unbeliever here.

We're talking about God's man,

God's prophet.

He had been used by God.

He had served one of the

northern kingdom's kings.

He's talked about in 2 Kings 14

in a positive way.

Jonah heard God's call.

He understood what God wanted him to do.

Go and preach to these evil,

wicked, ruthless people

who are the enemies of Israel.

Go and preach to them.

What did Jonah do?

He went in the opposite direction.

You look in verse 3.

He went,

found a ship

that was going in the opposite

of where God called him to go.

He found a ship going

as far away as he knew

he could go

at that point in history,

the west coast of Spain.

He paid his fare.

He got on the ship

and all was well to start with.

We don't know how long it was,

but some people think

it could have been many months

from the time

Jonah first heard God's call

till he got on the ship

and the storm struck.

So what I want us to see here is

Jonah knew what God wanted him to do,

but he said,

no, I'll not do it.

He rebelled

and he literally went away

from where God was calling him to go

and for a time

all was well.

But as you know the story,

the smooth sailing didn't last long.

The second sign,

a deceptive sign,

nothing seems to bother you.

You sleep well.

You know,

you may be at a point in life

where,

you know,

you just sort of,

you're just relaxed,

you're at ease,

not stressed,

and you think life is good.

Well,

it may or may not be.

The storm that terrified

these seasoned sailors,

it didn't bother Jonah.

He was able to sleep

in the midst of it.

But as we just read,

God worked through

the captain,

these sailors,

God worked through others

to wake Jonah up

and got his attention

both physically

and spiritually.

The storm eventually

got Jonah's attention

is what I want us to see.

Now,

let's,

I want to add something

from the last time

when we went through this.

What God did to Jonah

helps us to see

that there is always

some kind of storm

attached to

our willful sins.

There's always

some kind of storm

attached to

our

willful,

intentional sins.

look at something

Tim Keller

writes about this.

He says,

every act of disobedience

to God

has a storm

attached

to it.

But then he clarifies,

we must be careful here.

This is not to say

that every difficult thing

that comes into our lives

is the punishment

for some particular sin.

The entire book of Job

contradicts the common belief

that good people

will have lives

that go well

and that if your life

is going badly,

it must be your fault.

The Bible does not say

that every difficulty

is the result of sin.

But it does teach

that every sin

will bring you

into difficulty.

The Bible speaks

sometimes about

God punishing sin.

For example,

in Proverbs 16,

16,

the Lord detests

all the proud

of heart.

They will not

go unpunished.

God's going to punish

the prideful.

In the book of Acts,

Acts 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5,

God actually killed

two church members

who lied

to him,

about him.

You can read about that

in Acts 5.

The Bible sometimes

talks about

God punishes sin

specifically,

directly.

But there are other times

when the Bible

speaks of sin

itself

punishing us.

The violence

of the wicked

will drag them away

for they refuse

to do

what is right.

I saw how that works

firsthand

and you can probably

think of your own

examples.

When I was in high school

in the 10th grade

in a P.E. class,

there was a guy

who for whatever reason,

I don't remember why,

he got so angry

he just totally

lost control

and he punched

a steel door

twice

with his fist.

I mean,

I just saw it.

He just came unglued,

went berserk

and bam, bam.

The next day,

maybe it was

a couple of days later,

I don't remember

the exact time frame

on this,

but the next time

I saw him,

he had a cast

from right here

all the way

to his elbow.

His own anger

was the cause

of his suffering.

So what I want

to see in this is,

as the scripture says,

as my example,

and you've probably

got your own examples,

sometimes

just the stupid

things that we do

or the blatantly

sinful things we do,

it bites us.

There's no one

to blame.

We just

reap what we sow.

Paul talks about that,

what we call

the law of the harvest

in Galatians 6.

Look at it.

He says,

do not be deceived.

God is not mocked

for whatever one sows,

that will he also reap.

For the one who sows

to his own flesh,

that is his sinful nature,

will from the flesh

reap corruption.

But the one who sows

to the Spirit

will from the Spirit

reap eternal life.

If we're wise,

as we read

what happened to Jonah,

we will learn

that God does not

overlook

our willful rebellion.

Right this moment,

if you are refusing

to obey God

about something

he's made known

to you very clearly,

maybe you've read it

in his Word.

Maybe there's something

that you just know

you ought to be doing

or not doing.

Maybe it involves

an attitude.

Maybe it involves

a relationship.

But right now,

if you are willfully

refusing to obey God

in something

he's made clear to you,

and all is well,

you're sleeping soundly,

don't think

that God has decided

to let it go.

Don't think

he's going to give you

a free pass.

Remember what Keller said,

every act of obedience

to God

has a storm

attached to it.

As Christians,

we need to think

of such storms

as God's

fatherly discipline.

Sooner or later,

God disciplines

his rebellious children,

and God does that.

We saw another message

a few weeks ago.

God does that

because he loves us.

Every parent here,

every child here,

who had a good,

positive,

Christian home

experience,

even if it wasn't

a Christian home,

every good,

positive home experience,

child and adult,

as a parent,

you know

parents that truly

love their children,

don't let them get by

by just whatever

they want to do.

We go,

we die on many hills

as parents

because we love

our children enough

to go through

the whatever,

to teach them

what's right,

what's wrong,

teach them consequences,

to try to help them.

what kind of child

of God are you?

Are you a foolish one

who has to learn

everything the hard way?

You have to experience

God's discipline

over and over

and over again

because you're just

so hard-headed.

You're foolish.

Or,

are you a wise child

who understands

how important it is,

how good it is

to obey God

the first time,

every time

because it will enable you

to avoid a lot of heartache,

a lot of discipline

and punishment.

Let's look now

at the definite signs

of rebellion

that we see in this chapter.

As I want us

to understand,

Jonah is a believer.

Jonah is like us.

Jonah is not some

unbelieving pagan

who doesn't care.

But in chapter one,

he acts worse

than unbelievers.

So here's the first sign

of someone rebelling

against God.

You have less

spiritual awareness

than unbelievers

around you.

That's a certain sign

that you're rebelling

against God.

When the people

you know

are not Christians,

they're more

godly

than you.

They're more wise

than you.

They're more concerned

about other people

than you.

The sailors

on Jonah's ship,

they believed

in multiple gods.

They were idol

worshipers,

we would call them.

They didn't know God,

but yet,

what they did know,

they cried out to.

They sought

what they thought

was help

from above.

Jonah had a real

relationship with God.

But when the storm

struck,

he did his best

to ignore God.

Instead of praying,

he slept.

it's a shame

when we

as Christians

who know God

through his son,

Jesus,

it's a shame

when we show

less spiritual interest

and commitment

than, say,

Muslims

who do not know God

because they reject

Jesus as God's son.

They wouldn't

think of him

thinking of him

as their savior.

Yet,

faithful Muslims

pray five times a day.

How often do you pray?

How sincerely

do you talk to God?

Faithful Muslims

take what they call,

what we would call

their Bible seriously,

the Koran.

They take the study

and understanding

of it very seriously.

how seriously

do you take

God's word?

In that it shows up,

you actually do read it.

Try to understand it

and apply it

to your life,

in your home.

Signs of rebellion.

When unbelievers

around you

are more spiritually minded,

it appears,

than you are.

Number two,

you're unfazed

by God's obvious discipline.

I don't want to spend

any time here,

really.

We've looked at it,

but don't you just

note,

a sign of real rebellion

is when

God's discipline

has no effect on you,

at least at the first.

You try to ignore God

as he attempts

to get your attention,

like Jonah

when he slept.

or you try to ignore

how your sin

is affecting

other people.

Look back

at verse six.

So the captain

came and said to him,

what do you mean,

you sleeper?

Arise,

call out to your God.

Perhaps the God

will give a thought

to us

that we may not perish.

You see,

other people

were suffering

because of Jonah's

rebellion.

They'd already lost

part of their cargo,

their income.

they're fearing

for their lives.

But Jonah just

doesn't seem to care

how his sin

is hurting

other people.

Let's go to the next one

because here's where

I want us to focus

for a little bit.

A sign that you are

really in full-blown

rebellion against God

is this.

You don't try

to cover up

your rebellion.

You don't try

to cover up.

You don't care

who knows it.

You're not ashamed.

Look at verse 10.

Then the men

were exceedingly afraid

and said to him,

what is this

that you have done?

For the men knew

that he was fleeing

from the presence

of the Lord

because he had told them.

Verse 12.

He said to them,

pick me up

and hurl me

into the sea.

Then the sea

will quiet down

for you

for I know

it is because of me

that this great

tempest

has come upon you.

Jonah

is running

from God

and for whatever

reason

he's told

these people.

He doesn't care.

He makes it clear.

All this is happening

because of me.

And it seems

this attitude

in verse 12,

he's more willing

to die

than to repent

at this point

in time.

Jonah

deliberately

rebelled

against God

by running

from God's call

to go to Nineveh

and preach.

And he wasn't ashamed.

He didn't try

to hide it.

And so here

is where we need

to make this

real personal.

Are you

deliberately

disobeying

something that

God has made

clear in his

word

and you don't

care who knows

it?

Truth is

you flaunt

your sin.

I'm thinking

about maybe

at home.

At home,

you as a boy

or a girl,

a young person,

you profess

to be a Christian.

Yet,

it's real obvious

in the way

that you talk,

your attitude

towards your parents,

you know

you're disobeying

what God says

about your attitude

towards your parents.

But you don't

seem to care.

You're not ashamed.

Or maybe

husband,

wife,

as parents,

you profess

to be a Christian.

You know

how God

says

you are

to

be

towards your spouse,

towards your children.

But you don't

give a rip.

You as a man,

the last thing

in the world

that you're thinking

about is how

to love your wife

like Christ

loves the church.

And as a wife,

rather than

having a submissive

spirit,

you've got to

I'll show you

spirit

towards your husband.

But you know

what the Bible

teaches.

You know what

a Christian husband,

wife,

parent,

child,

you know what

God expects.

And everybody

in the family

knows what

God expects.

But you live

day in and day out

in front of one another

ignoring it,

suppressing it,

rebelling against it,

disobeying it.

It's like you are

flaunting your sin

there before other

people.

That's a sign of a

hard heart.

That's a sign of

calluses developing.

That's a sign of

you're rebelling

and you don't give a rip.

Who knows it?

That's dangerous.

That is very

dangerous.

You know,

we do some things

today

in the church.

We're involved

in some things

today

in the church

that

that shows

that we don't

really

care

what the Bible

teaches

and where I'm

going this time

now

is in terms

of sexual

ethics.

In this

country today

in most

communities

premarital

sex

is just

a given.

Everybody

does it.

People who

go to church

who profess

to be Christians

a lot of times

live together.

not married.

Or if they

don't live

together

they

spend a weekend

together.

Take trips

together.

And everybody

knows they're

sleeping together

and they

don't care

who knows

it.

In the

context here

they're

flaunting

their sin

and if that's

you you're

flaunting

your sin.

some

professing

Christians

do this

and stay

active in

the church.

My favorite

TV show

is Blue

Bloods.

I like Tom

Selleck.

He's the

star.

Well in that

show and a lot

of you are

familiar with it

he is a

widower.

Well in one

episode

he spent the

night with an

old girlfriend

in a hotel

room.

The next

morning there's

a scene

showing him

up getting

dressed and

his girlfriend

asks him

where are you

going so

early?

And his

reply was

to church.

That scene

was obviously

intended to be

funny because

it was so

blatantly

hypocritical.

you see Tom

Selleck's

character

Frank

Reagan

he is a

staunch

Roman

Catholic.

He goes to

church every

single Sunday.

But in that

episode

Tom's

character

the strong

Roman Catholic

is getting

ready for

church

after a

night of

deliberate

intentional

sinful

behavior.

sin.

And that's

just not

on TV.

That is

rampant

in the

south

among

Baptists

and among

many families.

But it's

flaunting

sin.

And that's

not the

only one.

I want to

ask you

what do

you know

that you

deliberately

disobey

God about

but you

don't make

any bones

about it.

You just

do it.

That is

a dangerous

position for

you to be

in.

We cannot

turn up our

nose to

God and

the truth

of His

word

without

consequences.

And Jonah

learned it

in the

context

storm.

Now I

want to

make

something

real

clear

here

real

quick.

Over

the years

especially

in days

gone by

when I

pastored

in Seneca

from time

to time

we had

young

couples

come to

our

church

who were

living

together

and not

married.

And a

couple

about three

or four

times

they expressed

interest

these couples

in joining

our church.

And I

would go

to visit

with them.

Go to

their home

where they

were living

together.

And we'd

have good

talk and

I'd say

now listen

to say

that you

want to

join our

church

means you're

saying two

things.

Number one

I am a

Christian.

And number

two I'm

seeking to

live a

faithful

Christian

life.

And I'd

look at

them and

I'd say

you're

not married.

You're

living

together.

Sleeping

together.

You know

you're not

living a

faithful Christian

life.

And all

but one

looked at

me and

said I

know.

We know.

And I

would tell

them I'm

glad you're

coming to

church.

I want

you to

keep on

coming to

church.

But if

you really

want to be

right with

God and be

serious about

your relationship

with Him

you need to

separate now.

Date.

Get

married.

Just don't

continue in

this kind of

relationship.

But as long

as you continue

in this kind

of relationship

you cannot

join the

church.

But I

want you

to keep

on coming.

All but

one.

The ones

that lied.

All but

one came

back at

least one

time.

And one

of those

couples years

later one

of the ladies

came up to

me and

said you

don't remember

me probably

and I

didn't but

she said you

came to

our home.

My boyfriend

and I were

living together

and you

talked about

that.

And I

really got

under conviction

and I didn't

do it as soon

as I should

have but I

did separate.

We did

separate.

We did

separate.

And we're

no longer

together.

It's important

for us to speak

the truth in

love.

I did it in

love.

I didn't

offend.

I spoke the

truth.

They heard

the truth.

They believed

the truth.

They just

weren't living

it and they

even came

back.

No matter

what anybody's

condition is in

here or if

you've got family

and friends,

you bring

everybody under

the sun here

to hear the

truth of

God's word.

And my

prayer will be

that the

spirit of

God will

use the

word of

God to

change

people's

hearts.

That should

be all of

us our

goal.

But I want

to go back

to Tim Keller's

description of

sin or bring

up his

description of

sin that I

think helps us

to see the

serious nature.

I'm talking

about you.

I'm talking

about me because

we do sinful

things.

And it's a

serious thing

when I do it

and when you

do it.

Look at what

he says.

Sin is a

suicidal action

of the will

upon itself.

It is like

taking an

addicting drug.

At first,

it may feel

wonderful,

but every time

it gets harder

to not do it

again.

Sin always

hardens the

conscience,

locks you in

the prison

of your own

defensiveness

and rationalizations

and eats you

up slowly

from the

inside.

All sin

has a mighty

storm attached

to it.

The image

of a storm

is powerful

because even

in our

technologically

advanced society,

we cannot

control the

weather and

we cannot

control sin

or its

consequences.

as some

wise person

said one

time,

sin will

take you

further than

you want

to go,

keep you

longer than

you want

to stay,

and cost you

more than

you want to

pay.

It will,

you or me.

Sin is

serious

wherever it's

found.

However,

we should

not be

surprised

when people

who do not

even profess

to be

Christians,

when they

do sinful

things.

When they

do sinful

things without

being ashamed,

what do you

expect?

There's a whole

different story

when we,

professing

Christians,

deliberately

disobey

God's

word.

There's

something

terribly

wrong if

we can

willingly sin

without shame

or guilt.

It's a sign

that we're

either in

full-blown

rebellion

against God

and that

our heart

has become

hard,

or it's a

sign that

we aren't

a Christian.

If either

of those

signs are

present in

your life

right now,

the first

thing you

need to do

is admit

your sin

to God

and change

your mind

about it,

turn from

it,

repent.

If you're

not a

Christian,

put your

trust in

Jesus,

call upon

Him to

save you.

When He died

on the cross,

He paid the

penalty for

that sin.

Trust Him

now.

If you

are a

Christian,

not only

repent of

your sin,

turn from

it,

but humble

yourself before

the Lord

right now.

and commit

yourself anew

to Him

as the

real

Lord,

boss

of every

aspect of

your life.

Live to

honor Him

and please

Him.

Let's pray

together.

Father,

make it

clear how we

should respond,

every single

one of us,

and give us

the grace

to do that

right now.

And let's

just in an

attitude of

prayer,

respond to

the Lord

as He

speaks.

I would

be happy to

pray with you

during this

time right

here at the

front.

But I just

want you to

take a few

minutes to

act on what

God has made

clear to you

throughout this

message.

Let's just

pray together

in silence.

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