Pastor Cal Lord's Recent Sermons
"Failure Is One Stop On The Road To Forgiveness"
Jonah 3:1-10 January 25, 2009
What if you had one chance to get it right? What if the thing you were doing today mattered so
much that if you got it wrong, the rest of your life would be irreparably tainted so that you could
never hope to get another chance to do it right?
That happened for John. He wasn’t your typical high school football player. He loved the game and
tried out for the team. He wasn’t very big and he wasn’t particularly fast. He could kick the ball and
so he decided to try out for the position of punter. He figured he could help the team and get in
plenty of playing time. On the day kicking tryouts were held, he stood in line with a dozen or so
other guys. Each player got one kick; if the coach liked what he saw, the player was called back to
kick a few more times.
John was reasonably confident in his skills as a kicker. He thought maybe he had a chance of
making the team. When it came his turn to kick, he took the ball in his hands, extended his arms,
swung his foot forward and --the ball went off the side of his shoe and landed about six yards away
from where he was standing. The coach shook his head and yelled, "Next!” Needless, to say, he
was disappointed in his performance. He waved and said, "Hey coach. That one went off the side of
my foot. I can do better than that. Give me another shot at it.” The coach looked at him for barely
more than a second and said, "Next!” John knew right then and there that he had blown his shot and
his career as a kicker ended before it started.
Life is like that. It is often unforgiving. We know that. Everyday we run up against situations where
you either get it right or you lose out on an opportunity.
- If you borrow money from the bank (or from a friend) and don’t pay it back, you probably won’t
get another chance to borrow. If you mess up, you lose your credibility and no one will give you a
second chance.
- If your job promotion is tied to a certain project that you are doing at work, and you mess up the
project, you probably won’t get another chance to do the job right, and you’ll miss out on the
promotion.
- If you invited all your friends to your house for a big party, and then when everyone showed up
you said, "I decided I didn’t feel like having a party tonight, why don’t you come back another
time.” I doubt if any of your friends would come to another one of your parties.
- In any of these cases, if the appeal was made, "I’ll do better next time," more than likely no one
would listen and you wouldn’t get a second chance.
That is the way life is. We don’t get too many second chances.
Today, I have one chance to deliver the message I worked on this week. What if, after I finished
preaching this morning, I were to say, "Gee I messed that up, but I think I can do better. Why don’t
we all stay an extra 30 minutes and let me preach his message again?" How many of you would
stay? Since we came in two vehicles this morning, Lori and Rachel would probably lead the
Exodus. Everyone pretty much expects me to get it right the first time, and if I don’t you shake my
hand, smile on the way out and say it was good to be here.
I don’t have to tell you that life keeps moving and we rarely get a second chance. But thank God for
grace. You see the Good News is that God doesn’t follow the world’s lead. He is the king of second
chances and third and fourth chances as well.
Which brings me to our text today: A lot of people like to debate the story of Jonah. They think it is
silly to put any stock in a story about a big fish that swallows a man. It’s like a fairy tale. They don’t
take it seriously. That’s a mistake.
You see there is an important message to be taken from this story. It shows exactly how God works
and reminds us of how expansive his grace really is. As to the whale: I think the God who put the
stars in the sky is capable of making just about anything happen he wants to. So let’s not debate
about that. Let’s focus on what God is telling us.
You see here is the story in a nutshell. Jonah was a prophet. He was a good man. He did everything
God asked him to until one day when God asked him to do something he didn’t feel comfortable
with.
Here is where the story touches you and me. Our faith is a blessing. It gives us comfort, strength,
encouragement and a feeling of being connected to the God. We love coming to church it makes us
feel good. But the truth is that this is only one part of our faith. There is another part. That’s the part
that can get pretty uncomfortable. God told Jonah to go and preach to the Ninevites. He tells us to
go out and preach to the poor, the sick, people we don’t even know, people who scorn God and
make fun of him. Well, actually, that is exactly the same thing God asked of Jonah.
You see the Ninevites were crude, godless people who were cruel and did everything they could to
taunt Israel. They were worse than Hamas. They were feared and hated. It would be like sending
you or me into Al Quaida territory to preach the love of God and his forgiveness. Who wants to do
that? It isn’t what we signed up for. Give me coffee and a donut and after a service in a warm
church.
Not surprisingly, Jonah did what you or I might have done. He got on a boat headed for Tarshish,
which is in the other direction. God gave him a job and he rejected the offer. Not me Lord. Find
someone else.
And you know the story. A storm came up and Jonah got tossed overboard. A big fish comes along
and swallows him. Three days later he gets spit up and lands on the shore where God speaks to him
and gives him a second chance.
Don’t miss this. Jonah had failed at what God asked him to do. Yet, here is God giving him a second
chance. He didn’t deserve it. God gives it none-the-less. The good news is that God does the same
for you and me. He gives us a second chance, a third chance and even more. That is God’s radical
mercy. It shows how much he loves us. He won’t give up on us when we fail.
• Your boss may not give you a second chance,
• Your coach may not give you a second chance,
• Your spouse may not give you a second chance,
But God will— because he is the God of the second chance. His mercy is greater than our mistakes
and our sin. This story tells us that if you or I have been running from God, and we are now ready
to come back, God is willing to pick up where we left off. He will forgive our failure and our sins,
forgive us and move on.
Here is the truth about God. First, God is more interested in seeing his plans accomplished than he is
in being vindicated. Yes God is righteous and holy, but he is also compassionate and purposeful and
he wants to see all of creation redeemed. He has his eyes on the goal.
When the Arizona Cardinals won their NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles last
week, they didn’t gloat and point fingers at all the people who said they didn’t deserve to be there.
They set their eyes on the prize and began preparing for the Super Bowl.
When God comes to Jonah a second time, he gives him the same job he gave him originally. Go to
Nineveh and preach. Jonah’s disobedience didn’t change God’s plan for his life. Ninevah still needed
to hear the word of God, and Jonah was still God’s man for the job. Once Jonah got his heart right,
God was ready to put his plan back into action.
Repeatedly in scripture we see how God is able to use people even after they committed "major" sins.
- Abraham tried to get his wife to commit adultery, and God used Abraham.
- Moses committed murder, and God used him.
- King David committed adultery and murder, and God used him again.
You may fail, you may stumble, you may even try to run away from God at some point in your life---
but once you stop running, God’s plan for your life goes back into effect. Do you remember our
Bible verse from a couple of weeks ago from Jeremiah 29?
“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
You know my story. I felt the call of God to go into ministry when I was in high school. I struggled
with it. Then I got to college was getting ready to go in another direction. Talk about being
swallowed up in the belly of a whale… I got bounced from school and for three semesters I was
sidetracked. I did a lot of soul searching. I thought my life was over. The burden of that failure
weighed on me. But I got back on track. Doors opened again and I came back to UCONN and
followed that up with seminary.
You see God had a plan for me and he gave me a second chance. He does the same for all of us.
Here is a second truth: Your Failure, Your Sin Doesn’t Change God’s Power. Given the second
chance, Jonah went to Ninevah and did as he was supposed to do. He walked through the streets of
Ninevah and proclaimed the word of God. As a result... (v. 5) The Ninevites believed God. They
declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. Just because Jonah
disobeyed God doesn’t mean God’s word lost its power. Once he got back into the place God
wanted him to be---he began pursuing God’s plan for his life---he was able to experience God’s
power.
Think about this: The Apostle Peter abandoned Jesus and left him to die all alone. He was his best
friend and yet not once, not twice, but three times he was asked if he was a disciple of Jesus, and
each time Peter denied ever having known Christ. Peter was supposed to be a leader; and look at the
example he set.
How could he expect to have any credibility as a leader ever again? How could he expect to
experience God’s power ever again? How could he expect to be anything other than a second-class
Christian, banished to some sort of spiritual exile, never to be seen or heard from again? And yet,
even after Peter failed and denied Christ, he experienced the power of God in his life in a dramatic
way. On the day of Pentecost, Peter spoke and 3,000 people were saved.
The power of God was so evident in Peter’s life that people brought the sick into the streets where
Peter walked so at least his shadow might pass over them (Acts 5:15). Peter’s sin didn’t change
God’s power. When Peter got back on track, he was again able to experience God’s power in his
life.
It was the same with Jonah, and it is the same with you and me. Just because we have failed God in
some area of our lives doesn’t mean we have forever lost the ability to experience God’s power.
God’s mercy is greater than our sin.
Finally, here is a third truth you can hang onto: Our failures don’t affect God’s Promises. We can
stand on them forever. They are Nineveh was a sinful city, and God was ready to destroy it. He was
willing, however, to give them another chance. He sent Jonah to Nineveh to make them a promise: If
you repent, your city won’t be destroyed. The people of Nineveh repented, and the Bible says...
(v. 10) When God saw that they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion
on them and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.
God’s promise is: If you repent, you will be saved. Nothing can change that; it is God’s promise.
There are times in life when all of us are beaten down by our failures and you or I may think, "I don’
t deserve to be forgiven.” Yet, God’s promise is just as true for us then as it is for everyone else: If
we repent, we will be forgiven.
Jonah found that running from God was not a pleasant experience
He wound up in the belly of a whale---Not a pretty sight. But when he came back to God He saw the
power of God working through him. He saw God keep his promise. He learned that when you run
from God it doesn’t mean God is finished with you. When you’re ready to stop running, God will
help you pick up where you left off. God’s mercy is greater than your sin. It isn’t based on what
you deserve to receive; it’s based on what God is willing to give.
If you’ve ever run from God, listen closely to me today. The word of God is coming to you a
second time. Please, hear it today, and respond with your heart.
Our memory verse for today comes from the book of Psalms. I can almost imagine David, one of
God’s favorites, racked with guilt and thinking he can never be right with God again. It is then he
offers up this fervent prayer.
Let’s read it together.
“Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and
renew a right spirit within me.”
We all fail. But the good news is that when we ask God to renew our heart, he does it in a flash. It
is one of his best promises and its one we can stand on. God never gives up on us. He will give us a
clean heart and a renewed spirit so that we can go out again and share his love and his word of
grace with all we meet. Praise God. Amen.
Jonah 3:1-10 January 25, 2009
What if you had one chance to get it right? What if the thing you were doing today mattered so
much that if you got it wrong, the rest of your life would be irreparably tainted so that you could
never hope to get another chance to do it right?
That happened for John. He wasn’t your typical high school football player. He loved the game and
tried out for the team. He wasn’t very big and he wasn’t particularly fast. He could kick the ball and
so he decided to try out for the position of punter. He figured he could help the team and get in
plenty of playing time. On the day kicking tryouts were held, he stood in line with a dozen or so
other guys. Each player got one kick; if the coach liked what he saw, the player was called back to
kick a few more times.
John was reasonably confident in his skills as a kicker. He thought maybe he had a chance of
making the team. When it came his turn to kick, he took the ball in his hands, extended his arms,
swung his foot forward and --the ball went off the side of his shoe and landed about six yards away
from where he was standing. The coach shook his head and yelled, "Next!” Needless, to say, he
was disappointed in his performance. He waved and said, "Hey coach. That one went off the side of
my foot. I can do better than that. Give me another shot at it.” The coach looked at him for barely
more than a second and said, "Next!” John knew right then and there that he had blown his shot and
his career as a kicker ended before it started.
Life is like that. It is often unforgiving. We know that. Everyday we run up against situations where
you either get it right or you lose out on an opportunity.
- If you borrow money from the bank (or from a friend) and don’t pay it back, you probably won’t
get another chance to borrow. If you mess up, you lose your credibility and no one will give you a
second chance.
- If your job promotion is tied to a certain project that you are doing at work, and you mess up the
project, you probably won’t get another chance to do the job right, and you’ll miss out on the
promotion.
- If you invited all your friends to your house for a big party, and then when everyone showed up
you said, "I decided I didn’t feel like having a party tonight, why don’t you come back another
time.” I doubt if any of your friends would come to another one of your parties.
- In any of these cases, if the appeal was made, "I’ll do better next time," more than likely no one
would listen and you wouldn’t get a second chance.
That is the way life is. We don’t get too many second chances.
Today, I have one chance to deliver the message I worked on this week. What if, after I finished
preaching this morning, I were to say, "Gee I messed that up, but I think I can do better. Why don’t
we all stay an extra 30 minutes and let me preach his message again?" How many of you would
stay? Since we came in two vehicles this morning, Lori and Rachel would probably lead the
Exodus. Everyone pretty much expects me to get it right the first time, and if I don’t you shake my
hand, smile on the way out and say it was good to be here.
I don’t have to tell you that life keeps moving and we rarely get a second chance. But thank God for
grace. You see the Good News is that God doesn’t follow the world’s lead. He is the king of second
chances and third and fourth chances as well.
Which brings me to our text today: A lot of people like to debate the story of Jonah. They think it is
silly to put any stock in a story about a big fish that swallows a man. It’s like a fairy tale. They don’t
take it seriously. That’s a mistake.
You see there is an important message to be taken from this story. It shows exactly how God works
and reminds us of how expansive his grace really is. As to the whale: I think the God who put the
stars in the sky is capable of making just about anything happen he wants to. So let’s not debate
about that. Let’s focus on what God is telling us.
You see here is the story in a nutshell. Jonah was a prophet. He was a good man. He did everything
God asked him to until one day when God asked him to do something he didn’t feel comfortable
with.
Here is where the story touches you and me. Our faith is a blessing. It gives us comfort, strength,
encouragement and a feeling of being connected to the God. We love coming to church it makes us
feel good. But the truth is that this is only one part of our faith. There is another part. That’s the part
that can get pretty uncomfortable. God told Jonah to go and preach to the Ninevites. He tells us to
go out and preach to the poor, the sick, people we don’t even know, people who scorn God and
make fun of him. Well, actually, that is exactly the same thing God asked of Jonah.
You see the Ninevites were crude, godless people who were cruel and did everything they could to
taunt Israel. They were worse than Hamas. They were feared and hated. It would be like sending
you or me into Al Quaida territory to preach the love of God and his forgiveness. Who wants to do
that? It isn’t what we signed up for. Give me coffee and a donut and after a service in a warm
church.
Not surprisingly, Jonah did what you or I might have done. He got on a boat headed for Tarshish,
which is in the other direction. God gave him a job and he rejected the offer. Not me Lord. Find
someone else.
And you know the story. A storm came up and Jonah got tossed overboard. A big fish comes along
and swallows him. Three days later he gets spit up and lands on the shore where God speaks to him
and gives him a second chance.
Don’t miss this. Jonah had failed at what God asked him to do. Yet, here is God giving him a second
chance. He didn’t deserve it. God gives it none-the-less. The good news is that God does the same
for you and me. He gives us a second chance, a third chance and even more. That is God’s radical
mercy. It shows how much he loves us. He won’t give up on us when we fail.
• Your boss may not give you a second chance,
• Your coach may not give you a second chance,
• Your spouse may not give you a second chance,
But God will— because he is the God of the second chance. His mercy is greater than our mistakes
and our sin. This story tells us that if you or I have been running from God, and we are now ready
to come back, God is willing to pick up where we left off. He will forgive our failure and our sins,
forgive us and move on.
Here is the truth about God. First, God is more interested in seeing his plans accomplished than he is
in being vindicated. Yes God is righteous and holy, but he is also compassionate and purposeful and
he wants to see all of creation redeemed. He has his eyes on the goal.
When the Arizona Cardinals won their NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles last
week, they didn’t gloat and point fingers at all the people who said they didn’t deserve to be there.
They set their eyes on the prize and began preparing for the Super Bowl.
When God comes to Jonah a second time, he gives him the same job he gave him originally. Go to
Nineveh and preach. Jonah’s disobedience didn’t change God’s plan for his life. Ninevah still needed
to hear the word of God, and Jonah was still God’s man for the job. Once Jonah got his heart right,
God was ready to put his plan back into action.
Repeatedly in scripture we see how God is able to use people even after they committed "major" sins.
- Abraham tried to get his wife to commit adultery, and God used Abraham.
- Moses committed murder, and God used him.
- King David committed adultery and murder, and God used him again.
You may fail, you may stumble, you may even try to run away from God at some point in your life---
but once you stop running, God’s plan for your life goes back into effect. Do you remember our
Bible verse from a couple of weeks ago from Jeremiah 29?
“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
You know my story. I felt the call of God to go into ministry when I was in high school. I struggled
with it. Then I got to college was getting ready to go in another direction. Talk about being
swallowed up in the belly of a whale… I got bounced from school and for three semesters I was
sidetracked. I did a lot of soul searching. I thought my life was over. The burden of that failure
weighed on me. But I got back on track. Doors opened again and I came back to UCONN and
followed that up with seminary.
You see God had a plan for me and he gave me a second chance. He does the same for all of us.
Here is a second truth: Your Failure, Your Sin Doesn’t Change God’s Power. Given the second
chance, Jonah went to Ninevah and did as he was supposed to do. He walked through the streets of
Ninevah and proclaimed the word of God. As a result... (v. 5) The Ninevites believed God. They
declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. Just because Jonah
disobeyed God doesn’t mean God’s word lost its power. Once he got back into the place God
wanted him to be---he began pursuing God’s plan for his life---he was able to experience God’s
power.
Think about this: The Apostle Peter abandoned Jesus and left him to die all alone. He was his best
friend and yet not once, not twice, but three times he was asked if he was a disciple of Jesus, and
each time Peter denied ever having known Christ. Peter was supposed to be a leader; and look at the
example he set.
How could he expect to have any credibility as a leader ever again? How could he expect to
experience God’s power ever again? How could he expect to be anything other than a second-class
Christian, banished to some sort of spiritual exile, never to be seen or heard from again? And yet,
even after Peter failed and denied Christ, he experienced the power of God in his life in a dramatic
way. On the day of Pentecost, Peter spoke and 3,000 people were saved.
The power of God was so evident in Peter’s life that people brought the sick into the streets where
Peter walked so at least his shadow might pass over them (Acts 5:15). Peter’s sin didn’t change
God’s power. When Peter got back on track, he was again able to experience God’s power in his
life.
It was the same with Jonah, and it is the same with you and me. Just because we have failed God in
some area of our lives doesn’t mean we have forever lost the ability to experience God’s power.
God’s mercy is greater than our sin.
Finally, here is a third truth you can hang onto: Our failures don’t affect God’s Promises. We can
stand on them forever. They are Nineveh was a sinful city, and God was ready to destroy it. He was
willing, however, to give them another chance. He sent Jonah to Nineveh to make them a promise: If
you repent, your city won’t be destroyed. The people of Nineveh repented, and the Bible says...
(v. 10) When God saw that they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion
on them and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.
God’s promise is: If you repent, you will be saved. Nothing can change that; it is God’s promise.
There are times in life when all of us are beaten down by our failures and you or I may think, "I don’
t deserve to be forgiven.” Yet, God’s promise is just as true for us then as it is for everyone else: If
we repent, we will be forgiven.
Jonah found that running from God was not a pleasant experience
He wound up in the belly of a whale---Not a pretty sight. But when he came back to God He saw the
power of God working through him. He saw God keep his promise. He learned that when you run
from God it doesn’t mean God is finished with you. When you’re ready to stop running, God will
help you pick up where you left off. God’s mercy is greater than your sin. It isn’t based on what
you deserve to receive; it’s based on what God is willing to give.
If you’ve ever run from God, listen closely to me today. The word of God is coming to you a
second time. Please, hear it today, and respond with your heart.
Our memory verse for today comes from the book of Psalms. I can almost imagine David, one of
God’s favorites, racked with guilt and thinking he can never be right with God again. It is then he
offers up this fervent prayer.
Let’s read it together.
“Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and
renew a right spirit within me.”
We all fail. But the good news is that when we ask God to renew our heart, he does it in a flash. It
is one of his best promises and its one we can stand on. God never gives up on us. He will give us a
clean heart and a renewed spirit so that we can go out again and share his love and his word of
grace with all we meet. Praise God. Amen.
| Welcome to the First Baptist Church of Norwich 239 West Main Street Norwich, Connecticut Phone: 860-889-0369 |
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