Is God Really Good? Week 4
Jonah 3 (NKJV)
Jonah Preaches at Nineveh
3 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to 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, [a]a three-day journey in extent. 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!”
The People of Nineveh Believe
5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying,
Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?
10 Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.
TRUE REPENTANCE IS:
– Crying out to God
– Turning from evil
– Throwing yourself on God’s mercy
TAKEWAYS:
1. Sin demands judgment.
Romans 6:23 (NLT)
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
The good news is that God’s wrath and His love intersect at the Cross!
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV)
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2. No one is beyond the reach of God’s mercy.
John 3:16 (NKJV)
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
Romans 10:13 (NLT)
13 For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Romans 2:4 (NKJV)
4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?
3. Repentance is for believers too.
The truth is, every sin starts to put distance between us and God.
1 John 1:5-10 (NLT)
Living in the Light
5 This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. 6 So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.
COMMUNITY GROUP MEETING OUTLINE
Where your faith intersects with real life!
Connect:
Each person shares a recent high and low from their life.
Explore:
Use the following questions to explore what God may be saying to you through this message.
Big Idea: God responds to our sincere repentance.
Choose one or two questions for your group to discuss as time allows.
▶ Read Jonah 3:5. What does repentance look like in our hearts and actions in today’s world?
▶ Read Romans 6:23. Why does sin demand judgment?
▶ Read 2 Corinthians 5:21. What is God’s remedy for the judgment we deserve?
▶ Read 1 John 1:5-10. What are some sins believers may find difficult to see or acknowledge?
Activate:
Spend a moment in silence to consider your response, then share your decision with the group.
Read Psalm 139:23-24. Ask God if there is anything in you that He would like to gently show you?
Pray:
Thank God for the highs shared and lift up the lows.
Pray God guides us all to be in an honest and forgiven relationship with Him.