Does this surprise you, the fact that God would use a less than perfect person to do His will.  It shouldn’t.  If you read the Bible’s who’s who list you will find liars, adulteresses, murderers, idolaters, cheating tax collectors all being used by God to proclaim His Word and Will.

It is proof that no one earns or qualifies for God’s service.

Therefore like the disciples, like Jonah, we are called to carry out the will of God.

Jonah was called to bring a message of doom from God to the people of Nineveh. Jonah’s task is similar to a doctor who has to inform a patient or a family member who has to tell a loved one that their prognosis is terminal.

Some of the most difficult moments I have experienced in ministry and in life have involved telling the truth.  Being asked, should we tell them or not.  Faced with preaching God’s Word when I know that it will conflict with someone’s opinion or life style.  When I know it will make sitting in the pew rather uncomfortable, in the same way the Ninevites were made uncomfortable with Jonah’s message from God.

Every day people are faced with obeying the Word of God or disobeying the Word of God.

It is like when you were a child and your parents want to know what happened.  You know what you did.  You know that you shouldn’t have done it.  So you struggle with telling the truth or not.  If you tell the truth you are going to be punished.  If you don’t tell the truth you may avoid being punished.  That is unless your parents find out the truth later on.

You can only hope that you would respond as Jonah did.  Jonah chose to obey God’s Word. Since he is not from Nineveh and since he doesn’t have any family and friend living in Nineveh, bringing the message of doom should not have been a problem, but it was.  It was a problem because Jonah did not think Nineveh was deserving of another chance. They were evil, violent people.  They were not deserving of a second chance.

This was the reaction of many people, not just sports fans, to Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker.  John was quoted in Sports Illustrated to have said some racially bigoted remarks, remarks of hate.  Some people thought he should be suspended from baseball for life, that he was not deserving of a second chance.

This has also been said of Indiana basketball coach Bobby Knight.  Over the years he has verbally and physical abused his players, has spoken words of sexual harassment, has had outbursts of anger on the basketball court, one involving throwing a chair across the court.  Finally the President of Indiana University called for an investigation.  Public opinion was that he should be fired and banned from coaching again.  The outcome was that the school adopted a zero tolerance policy.  Which means he will be given one more chance.

Will Coach Knight, will Braves pitcher John Rocker be like the Ninevites.  This heathen nation believed Jonah’s message and repented.  As a matter of fact Jesus said in one of his parables recorded in Matthew 12, that the Ninevites will rise up to condemn the Israelites for their failure to repent.  The Israelites heard God’s Word many times and still they chose to disobey.

The Ninevites heard God’s Word only once and they repented.  From the kings throne down to the animals, they put on sack clothes and fasted and repented and turned from their violence and evil ways.  The king said,

One can only hope that America will come to its senses.  That America will hear the Word of God and repent of its violent behavior.

Recently I read an article about the rising tide of violence at youth sports.  In April of 1999, Ray Knight former Reds and Mets 3rd baseman was charged with simple battery and disorderly conduct for engaging in a heated and profane argument with the father of a girl on team opposing his twelve year old daughter’s softball team.  Knight finally punched the man in the head.

In April of 1999, a man who was coaching his son’s team beat up the manager of the opposing team.

In July a youth baseball coach was arrested for punching and breaking the jaw of an umpire.

In August, a policeman was convicted of corruption of a minor to commit simple assault by giving $2.00 to a ten year old Little League pitcher to hit a batter with a fastball.

In September, a soccer dad punched a fourteen year old boy who had scuffled with his fourteen year old son, leading to both boy’s ejection.

In October police had to be called to stop a brawl of at least fifty parents and children at a football game involving eleven to thirteen year olds in Swiftwater, Pa.

In Jan of this year, in Staten Island, NY, at a hockey game of eleven and twelve year olds, a father attacked his son’s coach hitting him with two hockey sticks.

In July of this year the father of a twelve year old hockey player, beat and killed the father of another twelve year hockey player because of a cross check into the boards to his son during the game.

These signs of the violence and vulgarity have become part of society.  It is not limited to youth sports.  The ugliness of violence and sin is everywhere. I n the home, where statistics indicate that over ten million children under the age of eighteen are victims of abuse. Violence and sin can be found on TV, on the movie screen, in online Chat rooms, video games, music and music videos, on the high way, in the classroom, in the streets of the inner city and the playgrounds of our children.

The time has come for everyone to heed Jonah’s message of doom.  The time is now for each one of us to commit our life to obeying the Word and Will of God.

Sport’s writer Victor Lee said of Coach Bobby Knights situation, "I would like nothing more than to see a man like Coach Bobby Knight transformed, but I know it can only happen in the truest sense by the power of Jesus Christ.  The fact is, neither Bob Knight nor any other mere man can change on his own.

Change comes from the transforming power of Jesus Christ working in a person’s heart.  If Coach Knight will turn his focus to Jesus Christ and surrender to Him, he will become a changed man.  If he tries it any other way, he’ll be gone soon enough.

Nothing is more true, by repenting of our sins, by surrendering our lives and our wills to the transforming power of Jesus Christ, God responds in mercy and grace.  The purpose of God’s judgment is correction not revenge.  He is always ready to show compassion to you, to anyone willing to seek Him and obey His Word and Will.

That is why He sent His Son, Jesus,

Jesus’ died on the cross for your salvation and mine.  His death can be compared to a man who risked his life to save a youngster who was being swept out to sea by the riptide. After the child recovered from the harrowing experience, he said to the man, "Thank you for saving my life."

The man looked into the boy’s eye and said, "That’s okay, kid. Just make sure your life was worth saving."

Jesus has saved your life. Are you making sure, that your life was worth saving?

amen