And so Jonah chapter number 2, we're going to look at one verse back in Jonah chapter
1 and verse number 17.
So a very famous story in the Bible that we're going to be looking at this evening,
which is the actual event of this fish swallowing Jonah.
If you look at verse number 17, and this is very fitting because I'm actually going fishing
tomorrow.
But anyway, no, I really am.
But anyway, so Jonah chapter 1 and verse number 17, look what the Bible says.
It says, Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in
the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
So the first thing is, we're going to look at this situation with this fish or this whale
in Jonah chapter 2 that is detailed.
In the entire chapter of Jonah chapter 2, he's literally inside the fish, okay?
That's what we're dealing with in Jonah chapter 2.
So why do people think, the Bible says here in verse number 17, in verse number 1, it
says that he's in a fish's belly, so why do people think that it's a whale?
Well turn to Matthew chapter 12 and look at verse number 40.
Jesus actually references this story in Matthew chapter 12 and verse number 40.
So it's not a Bible version thing, alright?
So the Bible actually says in Matthew 12, Jesus says in Matthew 12, verse 40 says, For
as Jonas, talking about Jonah, was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so
shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
So the first thing to point out here is that's where we get the idea of the whale, that's
kind of a side note, but the first thing to point out is that Jonah chapter 2, the event
of the whale is a, of Jonah inside the whale for three days and three nights is a parallel
prophecy of Jesus Christ, okay?
Talking about Jesus and we know, well we'll look at where Jesus was for three days and
three nights in the heart of the earth, which Acts chapter 2 in verse 31 says he was in
hell for three days and three nights while his body was in the tomb, alright?
So now let's go back to the whale or the fish, okay?
Now this is one of those stories that a lot of people that don't believe the Bible will
come out and they'll say, and I'm gonna show you how silly this is in just the first couple
of minutes before we even get into the sermon, but people are like, oh yeah, you really think
that like some guy got swallowed by a whale and was in a whale for three days?
Well yes, that's what the Bible says, that's what the Bible is telling us, so you get all
kinds of, you know, people that have studied this, right?
People that have, I'm gonna quote some Answers in Genesis stuff tonight, I don't endorse
Answers in Genesis, they've got a false, Ken Ham has a false gospel, but it is like one
of the most popular apologetics ministries out there, so I'm gonna quote some explanations
that they have on how this could have actually happened and then we'll talk about that in
a little bit, but I mean there are whale types out there, there's like blue whales, sperm
whales, you know, some people even think that like it could have been a great white shark,
we'll get there in a second, alright, but here's some Answers in Genesis plausibility
studies on Jonah or a man being swallowed by a whale, could this be possible, alright?
This is a quote from Answers in Genesis right here, it says, are there great fish large
enough to swallow a man whole, that's the question, the answer is this, of course, keep
in mind that modern animal classification systems weren't exactly in use at the time
of Jonah, at the time of Jonah, we know that there are whales, blue whales and sperm whales
and even sharks, the great white whale sharks, that can swallow a man whole, the sperm whale
grows to up to 70 feet long, its esophagus is approximately 20 inches wide and whales
don't chew, so they just swallow things whole, also they think that there's actually, this
surprised me, there's two marine scientists from SeaWorld in San Diego that hypothesized
that it was a great white shark that probably swallowed Jonah, clearly these guys didn't
grow up in the 80s, because the great white sharks weren't swallowing people, you know,
they're chewing them up into tiny little pieces, but anyway, could, Answers in Genesis continues,
could someone survive three days, so they say like could a man be swallowed by a whale,
the whales that exist today, the answer is yes, okay, now could someone survive three
days and three nights in a whale's belly, the answer from Answers in Genesis, this is
the difficult part of the question, so now they're starting to have problems, right,
there are fish species that surface from the sea and gulp down air into their lungs, like
the lung fish for example, but there's no explanation for how air might have been transferred
to the stomach, another problem, I won't read you anymore, but another problem they have
is that digestive juices would, you know, eat away the body and all these types of things,
you know, that's a nice thought, right, but the point is that they kind of run out of
explanation, right, they run, they're like I don't know how the air could have gotten
there and how he could have survived, you know, another thought, if we're just thinking
about how this could be possible, you know, this was 2800 years ago, you know, and it
was 2800 years ago, it's possible, you know, they say species go extinct all the time,
if you go and Google, this is really interesting, if you go and Google how many species go extinct
every single year, this will tell you the accuracy of scientists today, you go and Google
how many species go extinct every year, today, and the answer you will get will be anywhere
from 100 species every year to like 200,000 species, so if a scientist gives you, well
it's somewhere between 200 or 100 and 200,000, the real answer is they have no idea, okay,
so they don't know how many species are going extinct, but all that to say this, lots of
animals have gone extinct, lots of species have gone extinct since 2800 years ago, alright,
so this could have been something that was 100 times the size of a shark or whatever,
right, we just don't know, but here's what we do know, it was a special fish that God
sent, alright, and this is really, the only reason I read the Answers in Genesis stuff
to you is because this is really the problem with getting too involved in apologetics and
getting too, you know, deep into that, I used to, before I was saved, I used to be really
interested in that type of stuff, like when I was in my 20s, I used to be like really
interested in like, oh did we find Noah's Ark on Mount Ararat and they've got this shape
and did, you know, there's this guy, this crazy guy looking for the Ark of the Covenant
and all this kind of stuff, like his whole life he spent looking for these things, right,
and I was, I kind of thought when I was, you know, when I was younger, like man, if we
could just find Noah's Ark or we just find, you know, some of these things, like everyone
will believe in God, you know, no one will not believe the Bible if we could just find
these things that the Bible says, but ultimately it's a hard issue, you know, you could find
all these artifacts, you could find all this evidence, and certain people, if you're a
soul winner, you know this, you know that somebody that accepts the Gospel and somebody
that doesn't want to hear the Gospel, it's not because the Gospel isn't good, it's not
because the Gospel isn't the same Gospel, it's because their heart isn't willing to
receive it, it doesn't matter what evidence is presented, they just don't want to hear
it, because of the condition of their heart, right, so the problem with apologetics, when
you get down to the brass tacks of it, is really a great example of what I just showed
you in Answers in Genesis, is they're trying to use science, remember I did a whole sermon
on scientism, which is this teaching that everything can be explained through science,
that's just not true, the Bible, everything in the Bible can't be explained through science,
you say why, because we are not God, that's why, because science is the recreation and
the experimentation to prove a hypothesis, but I can't go and do supernatural things,
because I am not God, so science just can't explain everything, so that's a false teaching,
this idea of scientism, that we can just figure out an explanation, these are the people that
are like, oh the Red Sea, and the reason they crossed the Red Sea is because there was a
land bridge, and they were just really walking across the land bridge, you know, no, God
parted the sea, the Bible says, what it really ends up doing if you get too involved in apologetics,
is it really starts removing the power from God, is what you end up doing, like, oh I
need a natural explanation for a supernatural God, and we just need to kind of steer clear
of those types of things, look, science is never going to disprove the Bible, we know
that, we know that for a fact, but science can't explain everything in the Bible because
we can't recreate what only God can create, you know, apologetics leads down this road
of like, oh intelligent design, and all these types of things, that we know that it must
be some intelligent species that created all of this, because we see patterns and we see
all this, it removes the glory from God, if you get too involved in these things, alright,
so kind of, I mean, can we raise men from the dead, can we recreate that, can we recreate,
you know, raising somebody from the dead, how about this one, how hard is it, think
about it, these people that come up and say, well, oh yeah, you think Jonah really got
swallowed by a whale, well God created the world in six days, by speaking it into existence,
so yeah, I think that he could have made that happen, you know, it's a supernatural
thing, either he had some supernatural, you know, thing keeping Jonah alive, or he had
some fish there, I mean, I don't know how he did it, I'll ask God when I get to heaven,
I don't need those answers, I just need, you know, faith in what the word of God says,
that's all I need, because I know that science can't explain everything in the Bible, let's
look inside the fish, look at Jonah chapter 2 and verse number 1, Jonah chapter 2 and
verse number 1, so I'm just gonna preach through this very quickly, and then kind of go back
and give you a couple of points on Jonah's experience inside the whale, okay, look at
verse number 1, alright, now here we're pretty down on Jonah, you know, all we really know
about Jonah at this point is that God told him to do something and he just ran away,
he just took off in the other direction, and he went from, you know, he went from Joppa,
which is basically the, let me get my direction, he's on the east side of the Mediterranean
Sea, you know, from Israel, and then he went all the way on his way, we don't know how
far he got to Tarshish, but Tarshish is like over on the south coast of Spain, it's like
all the way across the sea, so he's trying to get as far, and Nineveh's the other way,
by the way, so he's supposed to go northeast and he goes southwest, so he's going exactly
the opposite way, that's all we know of Jonah at this point, but verse number 1, he starts
to kind of redeem himself a little bit here, says then, he's been swallowed by the fish,
by the whale, then Jonah prayed unto the Lord God, Lord his God, out of the fish's belly,
and he said, and said, I cried by reason of my infliction unto the Lord, and he heard
me, out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou hurtest my voice.
So now we're looking at, just remember, this is a parallel, this is a parallel prophecy
of Christ, but this is also what's happening to Jonah, he's sitting here and he's not having
a good time here, and he's praying to the Lord, why?
The Bible tells us why he prays to the Lord, the reason of mine affliction, he's like,
he's in torment, he's in pain, he's suffering, so he prays to the Lord.
God got his attention, it worked.
And he heard me, out of the belly of hell I cried, and thou hurtest my voice.
So I mean, he tells us why, you know, let that not be us, the only time we pray is when
we're in affliction, the only time we pray is when, you know, God has to put us in some
situation, that's what we're gonna talk about tonight.
But needless to say, he's praying now, look at verse number 3, for thou hast cast me into
the deep, into the midst of the seas, and the floods compassed me about, and all thy
billows and thy waves passed over me.
We're gonna mark that verse right there, we're gonna come back to that one at the end, but
just a matter, what was happening when they threw him in the water?
What was happening when they threw him in the water was there was a terrible storm on
the sea.
There was a terrible storm on the sea, and the Bible says that Jonah is in the belly
of the whale, and all this is happening around him.
We're gonna go back to that verse.
Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight, yet will I look again toward thy holy temple.
Now he's starting to say, you know what, God, I'll go back.
The waters compassed me about, even to the soul.
The depth closed me around about, the weeds were wrapped about my head.
I went down to the bottoms of the mountains.
The earth with her bars was about me forever, yet hast thou brought my life, up my life
from corruption, oh Lord, my God.
Turn to John chapter three and verse number 36.
John chapter three, and look at verse number 36.
John chapter three and verse number 36.
This is such a great verse here in verse number six, he says, I went down to the bottoms of
the mountains, and then look at this next verse, he says, the earth with her bars was
about me forever.
That right there is a great analogy, a great explanation of somebody that's not saved right
there.
That reminds me of John chapter three and verse number 36.
John chapter three and verse number 36, many of you that have gone soul winning with me
know that this is, especially the first part of this verse, is probably my favorite soul
winning verse.
I think it's just such a profound verse to explain to someone the gospel.
He that believeth on the sun hath everlasting life, but he that believeth not the sun shall
not see life, but what?
But the wrath of God abideth on him.
Now you look at that in verse number six of Jonah chapter two, the earth with her bars
was about me forever.
All these people that are not saved out here, the earth with her bars is about them forever.
They are eternally damned as they're walking around.
Why?
The wrath of God is upon them now.
The wrath of God is upon somebody that you knock on their door and they don't want to
hear the gospel.
The wrath of God is currently on that person at that point.
Those bars of the earth are about them forever.
Look, it's an eternal problem that they have.
Every unsaved person, just like you are eternally saved and I'm eternally saved, every single
unsaved person has these bars that are about them forever and there's only one way to escape
that prison and Jonah actually talks about that, about salvation is from the Lord, but
I mean that's just a really interesting parallel with John chapter three and verse number 36.
Talking about the everlasting state of the wrath of God and what that has upon somebody
that is not saved.
Yet thou has brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God.
And of course this is a prophecy of Christ.
If you look at Acts chapter two, I'll just read it for you.
Acts chapter two verse 31 says this, he's seeing this before, spake of the resurrection
of Christ that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
And I'm gonna explain to you what he's talking about saying that thou has brought up my life
from corruption.
Look, if Jonah would have died, his body would have been corrupted, but Jonah didn't die.
Jonah didn't die and God made sure of that.
Look at verse number seven, verse number seven.
When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord.
That's a great verse too, and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
When your soul, you know, it's when his soul fainted, when he was humbled is when he finally
started listening to what God wanted him to do.
Verse eight, they that, but, this is kind of a proverb here, he says, they that observe
lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
So Jonah's not doing this, he's saying those that are self-focused and will not humble
themselves and just keep going with their own vanities, their own worthless, you know,
pursuits in their life, he's saying they forsake their own mercy, he's like they will get no
mercy in situations like this.
These are the people that don't acknowledge their sin is what Jonah is talking about in
verse number eight.
He said, look, what the Bible is saying here is in moments like this, in chastising moments,
your actions matter, is what Jonah is saying.
Look at verse number nine, he says, but I will sacrifice unto thee with a voice of thanksgiving
and here it is right here, I will pay that that I have vowed.
He gives up, he waves the white flag, he says, I will pay that that I have vowed and you're
sitting there like, well, maybe he shouldn't have vowed, but guess what, you've all vowed.
You have all vowed, look at the word right before where he says, I will pay that that
I have vowed.
Look, if you are saved tonight, you have vowed.
If you are saved and you got saved and you were thankful that you got saved, I guarantee
you in part of your prayers to God or your speaking to God, you pledge to follow God's
word.
You pledged to serve God with your life, you pledged to read the Bible, you pledged to
do this.
We've all vowed if we want to be honest with ourselves and here Jonah finally admits, he
says, I will pay my vow and what happens, and then look what he says, salvation is of
the Lord.
Focus that back on verse number seven, talking about the earth, the bars of the earth.
Look at verse number 10.
Right after he says, I will pay my vow, the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited up
Jonah onto the dry land.
Over.
Jonah waves the white flag and he says, you know what, I'm getting right, I'm done with
this, I'm going to focus back where I was supposed to, I'm going to go back there and
I'm going to pay what I promised that I would do and immediately the chastisement ends.
Ah, that we could all get to this point this quickly.
This is a short chapter.
Of course this was three days and three nights, but Jonah gets right, right away and God says
it is enough.
Just like he stayed the angel over Israel when, you know, the angel was slain when David
had the census.
He says, finally it is enough.
So I want to give you two main points on the situation with Jonah in this whale.
First of all, the first point is this, God's chastisement is terrible.
A lot of people will, you know, just put off God's chastisement as nothing, but Jonah chapter
2 and the chastisement of Jonah inside this fish is, it just shows, look he's comparing
it to hell.
He's comparing it to hell, the chastisement of the Lord can be terrible and I'm going
to show you the lengths that the Lord will go to in just a few minutes, but the chastisement
of God is nothing to shake a stick at, is the first thing that we need to point out
from this story.
See, a lot of people think, a lot of people think when you go out and you find someone
who grew up Catholic or grew up in some other religion that teaches you have to work your
way to heaven or work has something to do with it, a lot of people will say to you,
you go out preaching the gospel, they'll say, you know, when you start preaching eternal
security to people and they'll say, you can't tell people that.
You can't tell people that they can just trust on Jesus and then go out, because people will
go crazy, people will go nuts, they'll just go out and start drinking and just partying
all the time and just going into fornication, they will just fly off the handle.
This is how people that are unsaved, that have grown up in works-based salvation religions,
which is every other religion, by the way, this is how they will take the gospel at first,
many of them.
You can't tell people that, they'll go crazy.
You have to go to church and have the priest or the whatever stand up and tell you that
you have to stop doing what you're going to do and try to scare you every Sunday to shake
the Etch-a-Sketch and make it clean or whatever, but if you tell people that they just have
to trust on Jesus has nothing to do with their works, they will go crazy and just go into
massive sin.
But the problem is this, the problem is this, trusting in Jesus is taking, what they don't,
they can't understand it because they really have no true fear of God.
They have no true fear of God because the fear of God comes from the same place as the
trust in God.
So somebody that doesn't trust on the Lord, look, they're trusting in themself.
They're completely focused on themself, that's why they think that because they're focused
on themself and they're sitting there looking at themselves saying, if I didn't have this
fear in me, if I didn't have this fear of hell and damnation hanging over my head, I
would go crazy because they have no trust in God, which means they don't have true fear
of God.
Look, it is only the person that has truly put all of their trust, taken it off of themselves
and focused it all on Jesus that can truly trust and truly fear God because now they
are focusing completely on the Lord and not themselves.
And that's why you see people that have trusted on Jesus that just want to serve Him with
their life, out of love, out of loyalty to the God that saved them.
But there's no fear of God without that trust in God.
But the thing that we need to realize in verses like this, turn to Hebrews chapter 12, is
that God's chastisement, God's chastisement is very real and it can be very extreme up
to and including your physical death on this earth.
That's the first point.
You're turning to Hebrews chapter 12, I'm going to read for you Jonah chapter 1, I'm
going to go back and I'm going to read for you Jonah chapter 1, if I can, I turned away
from it here, just one second.
You're going to Hebrews chapter 12, I'm going to go and read for you Jonah chapter 1 and
verse number 14.
The second point is this, God's chastisement actually saves us, I mean physically.
God's chastisement saves us physically.
Yes, the whale offered chastisement for sure, bad chastisement, but it was also the only
way that Jonah could be physically saved from dying.
I'm going to read for you verse 14 of chapter 1.
It says wherefore, these are the ship, the people on the ship, it says wherefore they
cried unto the Lord, they found out why the storm was happening because Jonah told them
what he had done.
It says they cried unto the Lord and said we beseech thee O Lord, we beseech thee, let
us not perish for this man's life and lay not upon us innocent blood for thou O Lord
thou has done it as it pleased thee.
They're saying they did not want to throw him overboard because they knew he would die.
They're saying don't put this innocent blood on us, we get it.
Jonah said throw me overboard and they said no because they didn't want the innocent blood
on them because they likened it to murdering him.
So in all circumstances they were thinking this guy goes over, he's dead.
But he didn't die, why?
Because of the whale.
He didn't die because God sent a great fish to chastise him but it also saved him.
It saved his life.
The chastisement saved his life despite his sin.
Now look at verse number 6 of Hebrews chapter 12.
Now this makes a little bit more sense, right?
So God wasn't just being mean and just punishing Jonah, he was literally saving him from dying.
Look at verse number 6.
It says, for whom the Lord, well here it is, whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and
scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
So God loved Jonah and he was showing Jonah that he loved him.
If he endured chastening, God dealeth with you as sons, for what son is he whom the father
chasteneth not?
So if you are saved, you should be watching for this in your life.
You say when?
All the time in your life.
If you are saved, you should be watching for the chastisement of God in your life because
if you are saved, God loves you.
God loves you and he is going to chasten you.
So be watching for it.
But if you be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then you are bastards and
not sons.
So this is why people are confused.
They're like why do bad people get away with everything and all these wicked people get
away with everything.
It's because God is not going to chastise them on this earth.
He's going to burn them in hell for eternity.
You're going to be chastised on this.
The rules are different.
Yes, the rules are different for you than somebody that's unsaved.
Because somebody that's unsaved is not going to endure the chastening of God because if
they die unsaved, they're going to go to hell and they're going to be punished literally
for eternity.
That's the most terrible thing that could ever happen to anyone.
Look at verse number nine.
Furthermore, now he compares it to a father.
We've had fathers of our flesh which corrected us and we gave them reverence.
Shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the father of spirits and look at this.
And what?
And live.
He's not going to about physically live.
He's not going to about be alive still.
Meaning the chastisement can kill you.
Look at verse number 10.
For they verily for a few days, talking about our earthly fathers, chastened us after their
own pleasure, but he for our profit.
Again, the whale profited Jonah.
The whale saved his physical life that we may be partakers in his holiness and not only
got him right, but it made it so he didn't die.
Now no chastening.
Now here it is.
This is Jonah's experience right here.
No chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous but grievous.
Nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are
exercised thereby.
So if you allow it to work in your life, it's going to bear fruit through you is what it
is saying.
But look, it's painful.
It's grievous.
It's not fun to go through chastisement.
It's not fun.
Just like he's comparing it to earthly fathers, look, your kids won't think it's fun.
When your kids are being chastised, turn to Proverbs chapter 13.
That's why, just talk about kids for a second, since the Bible makes a comparison to God
our Father to fathers on this earth.
People have a real problem with this today.
People have a real problem because they don't want to go and they don't want to spank their
kids.
Why?
Because their kids cry and their kids are upset and people today, they can't stand to
see their kids upset, which is completely ironic because the most upset kids that you'll
ever see are kids that are not spanked by their parents.
They're miserable.
They're the most miserable kids.
Spoiled kids are miserable kids.
They're insecure kids.
If they're not chastened by, and you know why?
Because the Bible compares chastening to love.
This is why.
Look at Proverbs 13.
Look at verse number 24.
Proverbs 13, verse 24.
The Bible says, he that spareth his rod, hateth his son.
But he that loveth him, there it is, just like Hebrews chapter 12, he that loveth him
chasteneth him betimes.
You know what betimes means?
Early.
It means chastens him when he's young.
It means talking about, you know, somebody that's getting, you know, you better start
this soon.
You better start this right away.
I'm not going to just raise my kids and then when they're 20 be like, all right, I'm really
cracking down on you now.
It's not going to work.
You have to chasten them betimes, chasten them early on in their life.
And you know what?
Those kids, just like, just like a mother, just like a mother nurturing a baby, this
is what, you know, the Bible is saying that spanking your children, they will know that
you love them.
Like, what?
Why don't you just listen to the Bible?
People just listen to the Bible, but people, they can't, what they do is they, they're
emotionless and they just run off their own emotions.
And they're like, oh, it, it makes me sad to see my, my child cry.
But then all their kid does is cry and scream and throw temper tantrums constantly.
Like, you just must be sad all the time.
Turn to Proverbs chapter 23.
It's because that child is insecure.
It's because that child is not feeling the love of their parents.
The Bible says this in Proverbs 23, verse 13, withhold not correction from the child,
for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
This is not talking about child abuse here, okay?
This is talking about spanking your children.
The Bible says he will not die.
Thou shall beat him with the rod and shall what?
Shall deliver his soul from hell.
You know what's not guaranteed?
The Bible is literally relating chastising your children, spanking your children, disciplining
your children, especially starting this when they are young.
It's relating this to whether or not they get saved.
I mean, does it get any more serious than that?
Thou shall deliver his soul from hell.
What was Jonah comparing his chastisement to?
Literally being in hell.
The chastisement of God, the chastisement of a child, will lead that child to salvation.
A child that is properly disciplined and grows up.
You know what?
They're disciplined.
They know their parents love them.
They grow up respecting their parents' authority.
Now guess what?
Guess what you get to use that authority for?
That authority, you get to use that to open the Bible and start teaching them.
They have no authority.
They have no respect for any authority in their life.
They spit in your face.
They say no to you.
They just say no!
No, go clean your room.
No!
Boy, that happened one time.
I think with one of my kids.
You know, this should never happen.
Your kids should never say no to you.
They should never say no to you.
Especially when they're, they'll do it when they're two.
They'll do it when they're three.
They'll say no.
You have to stop that.
That's what the Bible is saying.
You have to stop that.
You have to learn to respect your authority because your authority will be used to preach
the Gospel to them.
The authority will be used to sit down with them and teach the Bible to them.
Your authority will be used to tell them what the truth is in this sick and twisted world.
When they have people trying to feed them garbage in one ear, they need to hear the
truth from somebody and they need to know where their authority is and it comes from
properly disciplining them beat times when they're young, early.
It's a big deal.
It's a really big deal, folks.
So chastisement is not pleasant, but it is good.
It is good.
It will literally lead your children to the truth in their lives.
It'll lead them to salvation.
It's God's formula.
Go back to chapter 2 of Jonah and look at verse number 10.
Jonah chapter 2 and verse number 10.
And the last thing I wanted to say is this.
Look at verse number 10 of Jonah chapter 2.
Jonah impresses me in this chapter because he gets right right away.
He gets swallowed by the fish and he starts just begging God for mercy right away.
He gets right.
He says, I'll go back.
I'll do what you want.
I will pay my vow.
Look at verse number 10 where the Bible says, and the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited
out Jonah upon the dry land.
Look, chastisement can be your beginning or it can be your end is what you need to understand
from this story.
Chastisement can be the beginning of a new Christian life for you or it could literally
be the end of your life on planet earth.
See King Saul.
I mean, what would have happened?
And you think about the chastisement of God.
You think about the chastisement of God with this whale.
And you think about if Jonah's soul would have never fainted.
Yes, he was in a whale and he thought he was in hell and it was terrible and I'm sure it
was dark and scary and all this.
But what was outside if his soul would have never fainted and if you're under the chastisement
of God and your soul never faints, you know what?
The sea of sin will kill you or the whale of chastisement will kill you.
I've seen some Christians go through some terrible chastisement in their lives.
And it all comes from the fact that they were under chastisement and their soul never fainted.
Instead, it was just lying vanity after lying vanity and I think that a lot of them or a
couple of them know that they're under chastisement or knew that they were under chastisement.
And they're just like, no, I'm going to go into the sea of sin deeper.
I'm going to go into the sea of sin deeper and deeper and deeper.
Think about the situation that Jonah was in.
In verse number three, it says, thou said, cast me into the deep in the midst of the
seas.
The floods encompass me about all thy billows and I wave past over me.
That's what was outside the whale.
If he's outside the whale, he's dead right away.
But people that don't soften their hearts to the Lord in God's chastisement, they'll
die in the chastisement or the sea of sin will kill them.
Look, folks, we are not just because we are saved.
We are not immune to the sea of sin that's out there.
We are not some kind of superheroes here that can just go and just do whatever we want because
God's sending a whale on top of us.
But the reason he's sending the whale is because he doesn't want us to drown in that out there.
So he's going to try to send the whale.
But if Jonah wouldn't have got right, he'd have died in the whale.
He'd eventually died in the whale.
But instead, what does God do?
He doesn't allow Jonah to drown in the sea.
He sends the whale, which is terrible for Jonah.
And I don't know how far he got to Tarshish, but the Bible says that by the time he was
spit out on dry land, he was only three days from Nineveh, meaning he was on the right
side of the shore again.
So God sent the whale to chastise him while taking him home.
It's better to be in the whale and get right right away.
That's the answer.
Look, I believe that we will all deal with God's chastisement in our lives.
You say, you?
You're the pastor.
I believe that we will all run into cracks in our Christian life, and God will have to
step in.
But the key, the trick is you.
The trick is how we react.
The trick is how quickly we, number one, recognize it.
Jonah recognized it right away from what I'm reading here.
And how quickly we melt our heart.
We faint our soul.
Don't you burr up against God.
And if you do, God will use the chastisement to take us back, to take us home.
It's a wonderful story.
It's a wonderful story about somebody that just totally just rejected God's command,
which we will do in our lives.
We will get caught up in this world at some point, and God will step in, and it's just
a great example of how right away we need to recognize it, pray, get right, and God
will take us home because he wants us home.
He wants us back here because other people need us back here.
He needs us to be fruitful because there's all these people out there that still have
those everlasting, those forever bars around them, and we are the ones that use God's
word to free them from that.
So just recognize every single time in your life that God is stepping in and chastising
you.
Anytime something's going wrong in your life, step back and say, is God trying to tell me
something here?
Is God trying to show me something?
Because the quicker you can figure that out, the sooner the whale will spit you out on
the dry land.
Let's bow our heads and have a word.