Rebellion and Repentance

​Jonah 3:10 ~ “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”
 
The prophet, Jonah, brought to the city of Nineveh a great warning against their sin and wickedness before the LORD. The message was simple: “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown” (Jonah 3:4). There was no mistaking the warning, for Jonah delivered it across the vast city for three days (see Jonah 3:3). Yet what a grace that God gives when He sends His word to warn us of the impending judgment against our sin. And it was His will to give Nineveh such grace. But the warning also came with a deadline, and that must give us pause to understand that the LORD will not always strive with man. He will bring judgment, and it will come soon. Let us then strive to proclaim the warning of God to a world that is in rebellion against Him that they also would hear.
 
And what was Nineveh’s response? Jonah 3:5-6, “And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.” The first statement is the key—the people believed God. Without a real sense that God will do exactly as He promises, people will continue to rebel and forsake His ways. They will hear the words but they will not do anything about it. Many today are in such a state, always hearing but never acknowledging the truth (see 2 Timothy 3:7). Though they claim to believe in God, they don’t believe God and continue to venture down paths of wickedness without any fear of God. Just as it says in Romans 3:18, “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
 
But the city of Nineveh did believe God, and in that conviction, responded in the only way they could—they repented. Consider what the king of Nineveh ordered in Jonah 3:8, “Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands.” And this brings us to the first statement of our text today—that God saw their response to His warning. But, take heed to this truth: God watched their actions more than listened to their words. True repentance, beloved, always comes with a response. Lip-service sorrow will fall upon deaf ears, but a true turning away from sin and the rejection of that which is evil, God will see. Let me ask: do you suffer from a sin that seems to be on repeat? Is there a continual striving against a persistent wickedness? Then, dear Christian, continue to repent—daily if you have to, hour by hour if needed. Jesus commanded that we repent (see Matthew 4:17). Confess your sin before the LORD and with determined resolution, flee that sin until it dies.
 
And what is the LORD’s response? For Nineveh, the LORD God Almighty relented from sending destruction. He withheld His judgment against that city because they believed and repented and proved their repentance in their actions (see Acts 26:20). One of the reasons Jonah initially ran from the call to preach to Nineveh was for this very reason. He said as much in Jonah 4:2, “For I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.” Jonah wanted God to punish the great city, God had other ideas—He wanted to pardon them. But God does not dole out His forgiveness upon the unrepentant. God warns, time and again He warns against rebellion. We see it in His word, from Genesis to Revelation, there is a constant warning from God to reject evil and pursue righteousness—a righteousness that is found through faith in Christ.
 
As in the case of Nineveh, it is often true that the first cause of our repentance from sin is a healthy dose of the fear of God’s retribution. We fear punishment, so we fly from wickedness. But that is merely the initial stage. Let your love for Christ grow with such depth that you will flee from sin and rebellion merely to please the LORD. His will becomes your delight and His ways your path to follow.
 
And so, today, we see a city of rebellion become a city of repentance. Let it be said of our hearts as well that we have forsaken our sinful ways and are a people of repentance and faith in Christ.
 
In His Grace,
Pastor Michael

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