In Jonah 1 we see the God of Scripture call Jonah to extend biblical compassion to the people of Nineveh, and Jonah runs in the opposite direction.  Jonah ends up on a ship heading to Tarshish, and the God of Scripture hurls a great wind and a great storm to draw Jonah back to Himself.

But, instead of Jonah responding to the God of Scripture in repentance, awe, and obedience, we actually see the sailors responding in repentance, awe and obedience. What!

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Jonah 1:10-11, “10 the men became extremely frightened and they said to him, “How could you do this?” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. 11 So they said to him, “What should we do to you that the sea may become calm for us?”—for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy.”

• In verses 10-11 the focus of the story pivots toward the sailors on the ship in the storm, and we need to remember the chaos of the storm.I  f you look back to verse 4 we see the ship is falling apart in the storm.  In verse 5 the sailors are afraid, throwing cargo overboard, and in verse 8 the sailors ask Jonah, “Why is this happening?”
• In verse 9, “Jonah says, ‘Because I am fleeing from the presence of the Lord.’” So that in verse 10 the sailors say, “How could you do this?” Do you see the progression?

Now, you need to know these sailors do not know the God of Scripture. They are worshipping rocks, clouds, statues, and animals, and all they have as a reference to the God of Scripture is Jonah’s profession of faith in verse 9, “I am Hebrew, I fear the God of heaven who made the sea and the land” and still these sailors know “fleeing from the presence of the Lord” is a bad idea.

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Jonah 1:1, “1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying”

• In verse 1 we see the name “Jonah” and the name Jonah means “dove, a messenger of peace.”
• We don’t know a ton about Jonah, but Jonah would have been raised just like every other Israelite in history, which is to be a blessing to others. Did you know this about Israel?
• Abraham in Genesis is established to be a blessing to all the nations. Moses is raised up for Israel to be a blessing to all the nations. David is set apart to lead Israel to be a blessing to all the nations, so that Israel is established to be like a mirror that reflects the glory of God to the nations, so that the nations of the world might see Israel, see the beauty of Israel, and that it would peak their curiosity about the God of Scripture.

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It is possible we see so many sexual wounds in our lives today that we think these sexual wounds are just a normal part of our lives, but in Genesis 2 actually teaches us sexual wounds and sexual brokenness isn’t what God intended for in the very beginning.

Now, our culture today hears that description of sexuality, and is deeply offended. Our culture says, “We aren’t sexually wounded.’  In fact, all of the sexual shame in our culture today is because of some ill informed puritans.”

We just need to break off those sexual shackles. We need to become sexually enlightened, we need to become sexually free, and at first glance it kind of sounds wise until you realize our culture has been running that play since the 1960’s, and the promise of sexual liberation seems really confusing.

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Today our culture is talking about really complicated subjects more than ever, and one of those subjects is sex, therefore, wouldn’t be awesome to grow in confidence and boldness around any subject in our culture today, especially in the subject of sex?

Imagine becoming the type of people that men and women pursued at the office and the playground for gentleness and wisdom, not only around sex, but in all areas of life?

Genesis 2:18, “18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”

• In Genesis 1 we see a macro view of creation, male and female He created them in His image, and in Genesis 2 we see the God of Scripture zero in on His prized creation, humanity, and we see the foundation for marriage when it says, “It is not good for man to be alone.”
• When you see the phrase, “It is not good for man to be alone” it should jump off the page, because Adam isn’t alone. Adam is walking with the God of Scripture in the cool of the garden in perfect union.
• It is in Genesis 3 we see sin enter into creation and destroy everything God created to be good, but in Genesis 2 everything is perfect, and yet we still see the phrase, “It is not good for man to be alone.”
• Do you know why? It is because the God of Scripture created marriage to be a gift. It is because the God of Scripture created man and woman to come together under the commitment of marriage, and He created marriage to be good.

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Current studies show:

• Sex is the number 1 topic searched on the internet
• In 2017 sexually driven sites are reporting 81 million visits a day.
• In 2017 the most popular day to look at sexually driven sites is Sunday.
• Yet at the same time, studies show 1 of 10 married couples sleep alone in separate rooms.
• The average age of first sexual experience is 17, 10 years ago it was 16.
• Teen pregnancy is in decline.
• Studies show marriage is taking place later in life, and virginity is becoming more common.
• In addition, studies are showing that viewing sexually driven sites are re-wiring our brains and creating sexual dysfunctions in the process. (www.yourbrainonporn.com)

It means in 2019 we are seeing more interest in isolated sexual experiences, and a decrease interest in physical sexual experiences, and as a result there is a lot of confusion in our culture around sex.

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Luke 24:36-39, “36 While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be to you.” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

• In verse 38 we see Jesus has entered into Jerusalem, been put to death on a cross, resurrected from the dead, and in verse 38 Jesus says, “Why are you troubled?” What’s up with that?
• In verse 39 you need to circle those words, “See My hands, My feet, touch Me, see Me. Those words are important. In verse 39 Jesus is pointing the disciples to verifiable evidence of His resurrection.

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Luke 22:39-42, “39 And He came out and proceeded as was His custom to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him. 40 When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, 42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.”

• Notice the phrase, “remove this cup from Me.” The word “cup” is a reference to Jesus’ death. In Isaiah 51 Isaiah is speaking of Israel facing God’s judgment and drinking His judgment as a “cup of wrath.” (Isaiah 51:17)  Jeremiah 25, Jeremiah is speaking of God’s judgment as a “cup of wrath” (Jeremiah 25:15). Throughout Scripture the word “cup” is often associated with “God’s judgment” therefore, when Jesus prays the phrase, “remove this cup from Me” Jesus is speaking about the “cup of wrath” that is going to be poured out on to Jesus at the cross.

Luke 22:43-46, “43 Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. 45 When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, 46 and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

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Luke 22:14, “14 When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him.”

• Through the life of Jesus we constantly see Jesus saying “My hour has not come, My time has not yet come” and in verse 14 the hour has come, and Jesus reclines at the table with the apostles to celebrate Passover.

Luke 22:15-16, “15 And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

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Luke 19:28, “28 After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.”

• In verse 28 we see the phrase, “After He had said these things” and this is a literary cue to say, “What things?”
• In the previous verses Jesus presents a parable about the urgency of living in His Kingdom on earth, and then in verse 28 Jesus makes His way to Jerusalem.

Now you need to know the context of Luke 19 is taking place during the Passover season. Passover goes back to Exodus when Moses leads Israel out of bondage in Egypt, when the angel of death passes over every house covered by the blood of the lamb, and in Luke 19 everyone, possibly millions of people, are headed to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover.

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Luke 12:13, “13 Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”

• In verse 13 it appears there is some tension around who inherits what, and I don’t know how many of us have been in those conversations about inheritance when someone passes away in the family, but they are really uncomfortable.

Luke 12:14-15, “14 But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”

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Luke 10:25-26, “25 And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 And He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?”

• In verse 25 a lawyer stands up, and asks Jesus, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” First, you need to know the lawyer in verse 25 isn’t like a lawyer for personal injury like Funk and Associates. This lawyer is an expert in biblical law. Write that in your notes, “This lawyer is a religious scholar, expert in biblical law.”

Luke 10:27, “27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”

•  Verse 27 is impossible!.  Who on earth can love the God of Scripture with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and your neighbor as yourself.

Luke 10:28-29, “28 And He said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” 29 But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

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Luke 9:28, “28 Some eight days after these sayings, He took along Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray.”

• The phrase “some eight days” is a strange description, but the intent is to connect these words to the words of Jesus in verse 18, which is what we looked at last Sunday, “Who do people say that I am?”
• In verse 20 Peter responds, “Jesus, you are the Christ.” In verse 27 Jesus says, “Some of you will not taste of death until you see the kingdom of God” and in verse 28 Jesus takes Peter, John, and James up on the mountain to see the glory of God revealed in Jesus known as the transfiguration.
• The transfiguration gets very little attention in the local church in the United States. We talk about the incarnation of Jesus (His birth), the resurrection of Jesus (His death), but the transfiguration is a moment in the life of Jesus where His glory is revealed.

Luke 9:29, “29 And while He was praying, the appearance of His face became different, and His clothing became white and gleaming.”

• The word, “different” in the original language means “different.” I don’t fully understand what takes place in this moment, but in this moment Jesus goes from a caterpillar to a butterfly times a gazillion.
• Verse 29 is the opposite of Philippians 2:7 that describes the glory of Jesus taking on flesh, “Emptying Himself, being made in the likeness of men” but now the “likeness of men” is being pulled back and the glory of Jesus is bursting forth with blazing light.

Luke 9:30-31, “30 And behold, two men were talking with Him; and they were Moses and Elijah, 31 who, appearing in glory, were speaking of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.”

• Moses and Elijah would have been the two key figures of the Old Testament.
• Elijah is most known for his resistance against false teaching, so that Moses is a representative of the law, Elijah is a representative of the prophets, but in this moment all the attention is on Jesus, because Moses and Elijah are “speaking of His departure.”
• The word, “departure” in the original language is the word, “exodus.”

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Luke 9:23, “23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

• First we see the identity of Jesus established in verses 21-22, Jesus is the One with final authority in heaven and on earth to remove guilt once and for all.
• In verse 23 Jesus lifts up His eyes to all the people and says, “Take up your cross and follow Me.”
• The invitation of Jesus is not to intellectually describe how Jesus removes our guilt. The invitation of Jesus is not a pop quiz. The invitation of Jesus is to live as new people in Jesus, free from guilt, with heaven on earth.
• So many times the local church presents Jesus as your ticket to heaven, but in verse 23 Jesus is saying, “Heaven on earth begins today. Take up your cross and follow Me.”
• The phrase, “take up your cross” means “die to yourself.” These words are from Jesus to put our fleshly desires of the world to death, and follow Jesus by faith in His authority.

That is why Jesus is asking, “Who do you say that I am?” The answer to that question makes all the difference. Jesus is the Christ! Jesus the One who holds all authority in heaven and on earth, therefore, by grace through faith in Jesus we die to our flesh and obey Him. 

In Luke 6 Jesus comes down the mountain from prayer, gathers the Apostles to Himself and as a “great throng of people” gather around and He begins to describe characteristics of what it looks like to become new people in Jesus.

Luke 6:20-22, “20 And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. 22 Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.”

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