(You in) THE CITY – Jonah Part 5 – Wolfi's View from London

Part 5 of our Jonah series is called THE CITY, because finally the focus of this epic story shifts to the city and its people whom God had in mind all along. This episode (Ch 3v5-10) starts in chapter 3v5 with these words “And the Ninevites [Londoners] believed God…”. Here we see how the people of the city responded to the message of God, and how God responded to the people as they repented and turned to Him. We are reminded that God is a God of mercy. He is the father waiting for prodigal sons and daughters to return to Him.

My focus in this message is on 3 things we can do to ensure that the message gets to the people of the city, that they may hear, respond, and that God’s purposes will be fulfilled – put on your seatbelt, because this is straight talking to mature believers as I share 3 things its going to take from you to impact the city God has sent you to:

GET OUT OF THE WAY. Until this point, Jonah has hijacked the story with his own issues. The story is about him, rather than about God and His mission. Like John the Baptist said: “He must increase, and we must decrease.” The purpose filled life begins with: “It’s not about you.” When you give up your life, you will find it… So get your issues out of the way… let go your offence, unforgiveness, I’ve-been-hurt, etc, and make your story about God, Jesus, and His great Story…
GET OFF YOUR THRONE & GET DIRTY. the king of Nineveh hears the message, gets off his throne, takes off his robe, gets dirty, and amplifies the message. Our King Jesus did the same to rescue us, and as His kings positioned for His purposes in His city, we must be willing to get of or thrones, take off our robes/rights/preferences/ and get involved in the dust /dirt of the people of this city, that through our actions and through our witness Gods message will be amplified to the people of this great city. How will they hear, unless we tell them… We have a big God vision for this great city – see this 2 minute video as a reminder of what we believe God has positioned us in this city for:
LET GOD BE GOD. Ultimately, the end of every story is determined by God. The king of Nineveh shows us what humility before God looks like. He doesn’t demand from God, but humbly seeks God in obedience, and trusts that God will have mercy and not give them what they deserve. “Evangelism is simply sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit, and leaving the results to God.” We can and must sow and water, by only God gives the increase…