'GRACE TO THE DEPTHS'

Rev. Jonathan Griffiths

by Rev. Jonathan Griffiths                           

Senior Pastor, The Metropolitan Bible Church,  Ottawa, ON.

www.metbiblechurch.ca/

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PODCAST for Sunday, February  16^th,  2020

http://accm.ncf.ca/images/20.02.16.mp3

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Broadcast Title:

  "Grace to the Depths"
Part 1 

 
Reference passage: Jonah 1-2   (NIV)

Jonah Flees From the Lord

1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: ² “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

³ But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
⁴ Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. ⁵ All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.
But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. ⁶ The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”
⁷ Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. ⁸ So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
⁹ He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
¹⁰ This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
¹¹ The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
¹² “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
¹³ Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. ¹⁴ Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” ¹⁵ Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. ¹⁶ At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.

Jonah’s Prayer

¹⁷ Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 2 ^1 [a]From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. ² He said:

“In my distress I called to the Lord,
    and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help,
    and you listened to my cry.
³ You hurled me into the depths,
    into the very heart of the seas,
    and the currents swirled about me;
all your waves and breakers
    swept over me.
⁴ I said, ‘I have been banished
    from your sight;
yet I will look again
    toward your holy temple.’
⁵ The engulfing waters threatened me,^[b]
    the deep surrounded me;
    seaweed was wrapped around my head.
⁶ To the roots of the mountains I sank down;
    the earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you, Lord my God,
    brought my life up from the pit.

⁷ “When my life was ebbing away,
    I remembered you, Lord,
and my prayer rose to you,
    to your holy temple.

⁸ “Those who cling to worthless idols
    turn away from God’s love for them.
⁹ But I, with shouts of grateful praise,
    will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.
    I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”

¹⁰ And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Footnotes:

1. Jonah 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1 is numbered 1:17, and 2:1-10 is numbered 2:2-11.
2. Jonah 2:5 Or waters were at my throat

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Rev. Jonathan Griffiths

The Metropolitan Bible Church

2176 Prince of Wales Dr, Nepean, ON K2E 0A1

Phone: (613) 238-8182
www.metbiblechurch.ca/

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To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:

http://accm.ncf.ca/images/20.02.16.mp3

'PRAYING IN THE BELLY OF THE FISH'

Rev. Canon George Sinclair

by Rev. Canon George Sinclair                           

 Pastor of the Church of the Messiah, Ottawa, ON.
 www.messiahchurch.ca 

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Podcast of CFRA broadcast on Sunday,   

December 15^th, 2019 

http://accm.ncf.ca/images/19.12.15.mp3

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This week's broadcast is the sermon I gave at Church of the Messiah. 

The sermon was called "Better than Kharma" 

 It is part of my series, "The Story of Jonah"

"Praying in the belly of the fish"

  

Today’s Reading: Jonah 1:17-2:10  (ESV)

A Great Fish Swallows Jonah

^17 [a] And the Lord appointed^[b] a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

Jonah's Prayer

2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, ² saying,

“I called out to the Lord, out of my distress,
    and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
    and you heard my voice.
³ For you cast me into the deep,
    into the heart of the seas,
    and the flood surrounded me;
all your waves and your billows
    passed over me.
⁴ Then I said, ‘I am driven away
    from your sight;
yet I shall again look
    upon your holy temple.’
⁵ The waters closed in over me to take my life;
    the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped about my head
⁶     at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land
    whose bars closed upon me forever;
yet you brought up my life from the pit,
    O Lord my God.
⁷ When my life was fainting away,
    I remembered the Lord,
and my prayer came to you,
    into your holy temple.
⁸ Those who pay regard to vain idols
    forsake their hope of steadfast love.
⁹ But I with the voice of thanksgiving
    will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
    Salvation belongs to the Lord!”

¹⁰ And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.

Footnotes:

1. Jonah 1:17 Ch 2:1 in Hebrew
2. Jonah 1:17 Or had appointed

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 NOTES:

No Other: The Story of Jonah
Praying In the Belly of the Beast.
Jonah 1:17 - 2:10

1. Because the Lord is God, there is no other god, hence there is no other, when it comes to people.
   
2. Death swallowed Jonah, and the Lord had death spit Jonah out alive.
   
3. Death swallowed Jonah, and the Lord had death spit Jonah out alive. Death swallowed Jesus, and the Lord spit death out dead.
   
4. In Religion and spirituality, vows and sacrifices lead to “salvation.” With the Gospel, salvation leads to vows and sacrifices..
   
5. Grace leads to faith and obedience. So your faith and obedience flow out of grace.
   

George Sinclair George is the Lead Pastor at Church of the Messiah.
More about George Sinclair

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To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:

 http://accm.ncf.ca/images/19.12.15.mp3