Leading The Way

Guest (Male): Listen a little closer to the prayer of Jonah on this episode of Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Youssef.

Dr. Michael Youssef: Jonah's prayer is a powerful reminder that even when Jonah was not willing to obey the living God, God was not willing to let Jonah away from his loving hand. It's a powerful reminder that even Jonah was on the run from the Lord, the Lord was on the run after Jonah.

Guest (Male): Welcome to Leading the Way with international Bible teacher and author Dr. Michael Youssef. Today experience how God led Jonah from disobedience and rebellion to obedience and repentance as Dr. Youssef continues his transformational series, Surely Not Me and Definitely Not Them. You'll see how Jonah found restoration with God through humble prayer, and you can too. In the life-changing pages of Jonah, here's Dr. Michael Youssef.

Dr. Michael Youssef: Nothing brings you closer to the Lord than when you are in the belly of the whale. Nothing that bring you to the point of obedience like being in the belly of the whale. You see, being in the belly of the whale brought Jonah to the Lord, to his senses in a hurry.

But look, you don't have to be there to sympathize with Jonah to understand what he was going through. Any of us who have been through a storm in life and ended up in the belly of our whale, whatever that may be, any of us who have experienced inexplicable suffering, any of us who have been and experienced the consequences of our own disobedience can relate to Jonah's prayer and indeed learn from it.

And that is why I really don't want to focus too much time on what was happening in the belly of the whale or inside the whale. I want to focus on what was happening inside Jonah because that's really what matters. Because Jonah's prayer in Jonah chapter 2 is a model prayer for anyone who's going through a storm in life whether it's of your own making or not.

Jonah's prayer is a powerful reminder that even Jonah forsook God, God did not forsake Jonah. It is a powerful reminder that even when Jonah was not willing to obey the living God, God was not willing to let Jonah away from his loving hand. It's a powerful reminder that even Jonah was on the run from the Lord, the Lord was on the run after Jonah.

But the Lord also wanted to teach us several things from this prayer. If you look at Jonah chapter 2, you find that this is a prayer of a man who said to God, "Surely not me, and definitely not them. I will not go where you want me to go." That was over. Now, in the belly of the fish, he comes a full circle in his relationship with the Lord, in his encounter with the loving God.

Now I want you to look at that prayer very closely. I have four things I want to tell you about Jonah's prayer. First, you're going to discover that it is a probing prayer. Secondly, you're going to find that it's a penitent prayer. And thirdly, you're going to discover that it is a praiseful prayer. And fourthly, you're going to notice that it is a promise claiming prayer. All you need to remember is four words: Probing, Penitent, Praising, and Promise.

First, Jonah began with an honest probing of the situation. He realizes that he ended up there because of his disobedience. I want you to look at verses 2 all the way to 6. Now, as you look at the verses, I want to tell you something of utmost importance because in our modern day, we have failed to understand the language of the scripture. We really have. We don't understand the language of the word of God and you need to understand that.

Because when Jonah said, "You thrust me, you did it," it does not mean that he was pointing an accusing finger at God like we do today. He was not blaming God as we do today. He was not accusing God of injustice, he was not accusing God of vindictiveness, he was not accusing God of being arbitrary. No. This saint of God, like all the saints in the Bible, they believed in the total sovereignty of God.

They believed in the total control of God over all things, something that 21st-century Christians have rejected and refuse to believe. They believed that God is in total control, that He is sovereign over all, so much so that even the consequences of their disobedience was under the control of God. Do you remember in the book of 1 Samuel chapter 16 verse 14? It says there that the Lord sent an evil spirit upon Saul.

And you would say, "Wait a minute. Does God send an evil spirit?" No. What is happening, and this is why I'm telling you, you need to understand the language of the Bible. When Saul rebelled against the word of God, when Saul refused to obey God, he basically disinvited the Holy Spirit from working in him, with which Samuel had anointed him. And whenever the Holy Spirit departs, evil spirits will come and take His place.

Listen to me, this is very important. We must understand the language of the Bible because, beloved, I want to tell you our nation in the past 40 to 50 years have rejected God from the schoolhouse to the courthouse, from Wall Street to Main Street. They have rejected God from the public life and the private life. And the inevitable consequence of this rejection is that evil spirits will come in and they will occupy the places where the Lord's Spirit was.

Listen to me, this is of vital importance. That's why you and I come in, wherever we are. When we take our call seriously as intercessors, as we plan to stand in the gap and pray for our nation, for our world, and for our neighborhoods, and for our schools, and for our workplaces, God's Holy Spirit begins to work again. It is of vital importance. That's why our call at this period of time is of utmost importance. And I pray that every one of you would respond to that call.

What does it mean that evil spirits were sent from God? No. What Saul did, whenever he rejected the Holy Spirit of God, whether he would invite an evil spirit even himself or not, that's the inevitable consequence. When the Holy Spirit does not dwell, an evil spirit comes in. Jesus said that when a person kicks out an evil spirit from his life and is not filled with the Holy Spirit, what happens? That evil spirit goes out and he brings seven more, and they come in and stronger than ever.

And that is why you must understand the language of the Bible. When Jonah said, "You thrust me," he was saying, "I know that I got myself here, but I know you also permitted. You're trying to get my attention." Listen carefully. Jonah was not accusing God of unfairness in this passage, not at all. Jonah was not maligning God like we do in this culture. He was honestly saying, "Lord, I got what's coming to me. Lord, I know it's my sin brought me to this place. Lord, I know that it is my disobedience that landed me where I am. Lord, I know that you are dealing with me so lovingly."

But there's something else I don't want you to miss in this prayer. It's very important. Jonah was not trying to explain his misery. Jonah was not trying to parade his horrible condition in which he found himself. Jonah was not trying to hold a pity party and said, "Feel sorry for me." Jonah was not trying to show us how rough he's got it. Jonah was not trying to give us all the gory details of the slimy environment in which he found himself.

No. Do you know why? Because Jonah was done with rationalizing. Jonah was done with technicalities. Jonah was done with explanations. Jonah was done with excuses. Jonah was done with blaming others. Jonah was done of being in love with his own opinion. Jonah is done away with trying to be an adviser and a consultant to the Lord. Have you ever tried to be a consultant to God?

I've tried many times, I promise you. And every time I try to advise God and be a consultant to God, I hear the sweet voice of God saying, "Michael, I'm not interested in your opinion, I'm interested in your obedience." Jonah was saying, "How shall I again look up to your holy temple? How shall I again worship you with all of my being? How shall I again serve you with all that I am? How do I again obey you with all of my heart? How shall I again testify from my heart and from my life?"

It was a probing prayer, but secondly, it was a penitent prayer. Penitence is an Old English word which we don't use very much in our common day-to-day language, but it's a magnificent word. The only thing I can come close to it is repentance, but really repentance doesn't even do justice to the magnificence of that word. And what Jonah was saying, "I know that my disobedience brought me here. I know that my disobedience got me where I am, and I know that it's only my obedience going to get me out."

Why is this so important? Because there are some people who feel remorse over their disobedience. They feel sorry over their disobedience. But then they don't do anything about it. Listen, I have seen people, I've sat with people who literally cried buckets over their sin and over their disobedience. But then they wouldn't do anything about it.

And I was thinking about this, and I think of my own experience. Many of you know I have no sense of direction. And I remember many a time I'll go on the freeway and I'll miss my exit. And I could sit in the car and say, "Oh, I missed the exit. I feel sorry that I missed the exit. Oh, it's so bad that I missed the exit." And I sit there in sorrow and remorse and never get off the freeway, get on the other side and come back to my exit.

There are so many people who are doing this in their spiritual life. They're going in their happy-merry way. They are sorry for their disobedience, but they stay where they are. They never get up and turn around and come back. And that's what Jonah is doing here. Penitent means that you get off the freeway and you get on the next exit and get out and come back.

Look at verse 8. He said, "I will not hold on to worthless idols because they will make me forfeit the grace of God." Listen, this is so powerful. This whole verse is so incredible. You know what? Let's say it together. Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.

When you allow idols, whatever they may be, and listen, your idols are different from mine and mine are different from yours, but whenever we allow idols to dominate our thoughts and dominate our actions, whenever we allow idols to derail us from serving the Lord with all of who we are, whether it be in your workplace, in your neighborhood, in school, in Jerusalem, in Samaria, or the uttermost parts of the earth, you could forfeit so much of the blessing that God has only in store for you and for me in the place of obedience.

Until Jonah says, "It's me, Lord, and I go where you send me," he knew that he was not going to experience the peace of God. Not only Jonah's prayer was a probing prayer, not only that it was a penitent prayer, but also it was a praising prayer. Beloved, it's one thing to be able to praise and thank God when He answers your prayer. And it's a whole different ballgame when you're able to praise God and thank God before you have any evidence of answered prayers.

It is one thing to praise and thank the Lord when the sun is shining and the sky is blue, and it's a different thing altogether to be able to praise and thank God in the middle of the storm. It is one thing to be able to praise and thank God when you have experienced success, and it's another thing altogether to be able to praise and thank God when you have no evidence of having success. It is one thing to praise and thank God when you are on top of the mountain and everything is fine, and it's a different thing altogether to praise and thank God when you're in the valley.

Look at verse 9. "But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you." Not just with his lips, but with his pocketbook, with his life, with his time, with all that he is. You see, Jonah was not sure that he was going to be delivered or not. Jonah was not sure if he's ever going to get out of this sushi food all the time. I keep repeating sushi because I can't stand the stuff. The younger generation, I don't know, they love this thing. If it's not well cooked, I'm not going to eat it. That's why I feel bad for him more than anything else, having to eat this stuff.

Look at verse 7. "When my soul fainted within me." In other words, when I came to the place of utter helplessness, when I came to the place where I lost all hope, I was praising nonetheless. But there's something else I don't want you to miss right here. Jonah never asked God to deliver him. Now I got news for you. I would have. I mean, I would have cried my eyes out to God, "Get me out, God. Get me out, God. Get me out, God."

But it's not a single evidence here that he was pleading with God to be released or be delivered. He simply started praising God in the midst of his trouble, in the midst of his miserable condition, in the midst of his tough situation. You know, if you have never read my book, Empowered by Praise, let me encourage you to go and get it. I'm not here to sell books, but I can tell you it will encourage you because God taught me how to praise Him in the midst of the tough time.

And something else God taught me, and that's what the book comes out of, God taught me that the victory and the secret of victory is in being able to praise Him in the midst of the storm. In the book of Acts, Paul and Silas were singing. Where were they? In a big stadium with 50,000 people praising God and hands up in the air singing songs? No. Was it in the middle of the congregation where everybody having nice music and sing-along? No.

They were in the cell of the prison after they had been beaten and bleeding. They were praising God and their praise in the middle of the prison caused the earth to shake and caused the prison to be open. You know, I've heard people say to me, "Well, I just don't have much to be thankful for. I don't have much to praise God for." Give me a break. I'm not going to go there.

But when you begin to praise God for who He is, you will unlock the doors to blessings, to joy, to peace, to contentment, to faith, to effectiveness in ministry, and yes, even to deliverance. Jonah's prayer was an honest probing prayer, it was a genuine penitent prayer, it was a true praising prayer. And fourthly, it was a prayer of claiming the promises of God. Look at the second half of verse 9. He said, "I will sacrifice unto the Lord. Deliverance belongs to the Lord."

Do you know what Jonah's saying here? He's saying, "Lord, I will not come to you again telling you about how much I've done for you. I'm never going to come back to you and tell you how much I sacrificed for you, Lord. I'm never going to come back to you and tell you all the things that I've done for you. I'm not going to come and tell you how much you owe me, Lord." Let me tell you something, if you ever get in that mindset, remember this, you will never grow in the faith with that mindset.

But if you come acknowledging that you have nothing to point to except for His grace, when you come to Him with nothing to claim from Him except His promises, when you come to Him with nothing in your hand to bring except His unconditional love, watch out because God loves to fulfill His promises to His faithful children.

I'm going to tell you this story as I conclude. Back in 1788, there was a man by the name of William Cowper. Now, Cowper had a great ministry both to John Newton and to William Wilberforce. He was a writer. He wrote beautifully, not only poems but also prose, and many of his work was published in the newspapers. So he was a gifted man, but he also suffered from depression.

And at a moment when everything was caving on him and he felt that he was not serving God as he should and he's not as effective as he could, he wanted to commit suicide. So he called a cabbie. Back then, of course, the cabbies were horse-drawn carriages. And he asked the cabbie to take him to the London Bridge because that's where he was going to jump off.

But then after he's been in the cab for about two hours in the very thick London fog, the cabbie looked back and he said, "Sir, I have to confess to you, I am totally lost. I can't see and I don't know where I am." And Cowper got irritated, he got annoyed, and been wanting to get there and get his deed done and over with. And so in anger, he got out of the cabbie and he walked a couple of steps, and there he looked and he was in front of his house.

For two hours, the cabbie's been going around in circles in that thick London fog. For two hours going around and around. And so he began to see the hand of God in saving him. He went back to his house and in the early hours of that morning, he wrote the following words: "God moves in mysterious ways, His wonder to perform. He plants His footsteps in the sea and rides up the storm."

And out of the depth of despair, out of the depth of this feeling of insufficiency, came that magnificent hymn that blessed millions of people in the past 200 years. Wherever you are, whatever your situation might be, only you know, you need to know one thing: God wants to use you. He really does. He did not save you so that you sit in the pew of salvation Sunday after Sunday.

That would make a mockery of the Lord of glory leaving the splendor of heaven and dying on a cross so that believers can come and sit in the pew of salvation day after day. The one thing you can be sure of that God wants to use you. Yes, you. God wants to bless His kingdom through you. And God longs for you to say, "Lord, I will go. I will do. I will sacrifice. I will give. Surely it is me and definitely whatever you say and wherever you send me."

Guest (Male): Thank you for joining listeners across six continents for Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Youssef. In addition to radio, you can listen to Dr. Youssef via podcast, via the app, and with your smart home devices. Learn about all of these including ways to consume video content as well at ltw.org.

You know, Leading the Way has declared the truth of God's word for well over 35 years through multiple media technologies. The first broadcast was a radio outreach in the city of Atlanta. It was a creative effort to use media to connect with those who were disconnected from church, to introduce them to Jesus. And that mission and passion continues today using technologies across six continents into some of the most difficult areas to share the same gospel, including the Middle East.

Now, obviously, there's a cost to this ministry and that's why we are so thankful for Leading the Way's Frontline Mission Partners. Those who support Dr. Youssef on a regular basis, usually monthly, with prayers and generosity. This empowers the team to make strategic decisions about current and future opportunities and to respond quickly when God opens doors for gospel ministry.

If you're not already, may I encourage you to consider becoming one of Dr. Youssef's Frontline Mission Partners. Details and benefits at ltw.org. L-T-W dot O-R-G. Representatives at Leading the Way's Ministry Call Center can also assist with details on giving opportunities. Reach out to them at 866-626-4356. This program is brought to you by Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Youssef.