Back on Track Bible Studies by Rick Flores

KEEPING IT REAL
Through this page, I have met born-again Christians from Israel to India, Kenya to Japan, and Saudi Arabia to the Philippines. I have heard from people on every continent except Antarctica. Beautiful souls, all from different ethnicities and cultural backgrounds. Each with distinct attire, hairstyles, customs, and traditions. Even here in
the USA, church culture ranges greatly from Southern California to Western Kentucky, New York City to Kansas City, and North Dakota to South Texas. What might be determined appropriate clothing by some is looked down on by others. What might pass as acceptable activity by some is considered worldly activity by others. One pastor may preach against attending professional sporting events while another pastor attends games with his family. One saint may abstain from alcohol, while another saint has a glass of wine on Saturday and worships in church on Sunday. One pastor may welcome a Christian band in concert, while another pastor denounces them as counterfeit Christians. One preacher speaks against bowling alleys while another preacher has
church bowling nights. One family believes celebrating Christmas is pagan, while another family spruces up the yard with Santa and his sled.

The fact I did not use the KJV exclusively for this study has probably
already caused some to stop reading.

I am not making any of this up; I speak from experience.

So, here is the first big question: Is someone automatically saved because of what they don’t do? Or automatically lost because of what they do? We can carry on with hiding our face in the sand. We can continue to “unfriend” and “block” those who are in dissent, or we can address some issues. I suppose you have figured out what I
have decided to do.

More to come.

From "God Made Standards."

Holiness should not be delegated only to Apostolic/ Pentecostal churches. Every
Christian minister and church member should strive to obey Hebrews 12:14.

“Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:”

I respect organizational standards and everyone’s personal convictions, even if I do not share all the same sentiments. I believe everyone must determine - after reading the scriptures- how exactly they will present their bodies holy and acceptable before God.

This will be done in the absence of a minister watching our every move. As the Bible declares, we must work out our own salvation.

From, “God Made Standards”

Another small teaser from my upcoming book coming Summer 2026.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝗻
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵

Here is a look at the current chapter lineup:

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭 — I Saw God in an Apple

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟮 — Monotheism Made Simple

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟯 — Who Do You Say That I Am?

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟰 — The Word Was Made Flesh

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟱 — Your Jehovah Is My Jesus

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟲 — The Father and The Son

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟳 — The Lord Is That Spirit

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟴 — Every Title Needs A Name

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟵 — When They Heard This

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟬 — The Way Which They Call Heresy

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟭 — How Did We Miss This?

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟮 — It All Comes Down to One Question

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟯 — Answering Common Objections

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟰 — Oneness or Trinity: Does It Even Matter?

Still writing. Still refining. Still searching the Scriptures.

Looking forward to sharing more in the months ahead!

POUTING WHILE THE CHURCH IS SHOUTING
(Part 4 - The incredible story of the most unlikely Prophet)

Jonah 4:1 This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry.

This has to be a first. The LORD decides not to destroy a city … and the prophet gets upset. Why? How could this be? The next verse provides a complete and astounding answer.

Jonah 4:2 So he complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish!

Time out right here. That is NOT what you said in the beginning, Jonah. God told you to go to Nineveh, and you “got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord.” It is also not what you told the sailors you met at sea. You basically told them you were a backslidden preacher running from God. It is easy to see the “after-the-fact” results and then say you predicted them. It is hard to admit you ran away from your calling.

Let us continue with verse 2:

“I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people.”

This says much more about God than it does about Jonah, and reveals to us a totally different image about God’s character in the Old Testament than most people associate Him with. He has always been a God of love, mercy, and grace. Executing judgment has never been His first choice, yet He has always commanded obedience. The only change in the New Testament is that judgment is reserved until the end. To those who rejected Him, that day will be terrible. To the people who are known by God as His sons and daughters, that day will be rewarding!

[Hebrews 9:27-28 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, 28 so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.]

Jonah 4:3 Just kill me now, Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.”

As unbelievable as it may sound, Jonah was fuming over what he felt was a false prophecy! First, he tells God, “I knew you were going to have mercy on them,” then he turns around and complains because God extended grace. He cared more about his reputation than the people of Nineveh. Instead of rejoicing over saved souls, his pride was hurt. Let me ask you this: If you are an “end-time preacher,” or a modern-day prophet, are you going to be upset if your prophecies on the second coming, the rapture, or the tribulation are wrong? Or are you going to rejoice that you made it to heaven?

One of the biggest downfalls of any man or woman, is pride. “Pride goes before destruction” is an eternal truth beginning with Satan himself. Pride has made more people “go their own ways” than anything else known to man. The desire to serve self-interests is the root of all sin. And not to be lost in the irony of it all, is that those who have come to promote or embrace sexual lifestyles which the Bible calls sinful, have labeled their movement as “Pride.”

By now you understand why I called Jonah the most unlikely prophet. But I also stated if God can use Jonah, He can use you and me. If we are being honest, we probably are more prone to identify with Jonah than we would like to admit. We struggle with our humanity more than we bask in His glory.

Jonah 4:4 The Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry about this?”

You think Jesus is just going to slay you because you tell Him to? He loves you too much to do that. We serve a God who reaches us not only through Spirit, but through reason. He simply asked a question He wanted Jonah to contemplate:

“Is it right for you to be angry about this?”

Let me ask you: what are you angry about, and is it right to be angry about it?
Sometimes we DO have reason for anger, but we are to control it and not allow it to breed sin.

[Ephesians 4:26,27 And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.]

But many times we are angry because our pride was hurt. That’s the kind of anger that gives foothold to the devil. We need to release that anger and continue plowing the harvest fields.

Again, God desires to reason with us. There are many occasions in scripture He asked questions to appeal to human intellect. He gave people a chance to think before acting. For example: In Exodus 4, the LORD asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?,” letting him know he already had what it took to have victory. In 1 Kings 19, God asked a fearful and suicidal Elijah, “What are you doing here?,” letting him know he was not forgotten and was very much still needed. This is of tremendous importance to highlight: Elijah had just come from tremendous victories. His prayers had literally controlled the weather, multiplied food, raised a dead child, and brought fire from heaven. Surely God could have taken Elijah’s life when he prayed for death. But instead of death, God sent an angel to feed him. Isn’t that just like our God? We get so low that we ask to die; He meets us in the dirt and provides food and shelter.

Jonah 4:5 Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city.

Jonah did what we all need to do when we are feeling overwhelmed: he went off to rest and wait on God.

Jonah 4:6 And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.

It is not revealed what Jonah had put together for shelter, but we do know God made it better. He desires to make our lives better also. And since I have been a little hard on brother Jonah, let me give him credit for being grateful to God for the plant.

And here comes the most reoccurring phrase of this book:

“The Lord God arranged …”

He knows your needs. There are times He will provide them even if you did not ask Him to. I do not have the complete answer to cure your depression, anxiety, or fear, but I do know that getting comfortable sleep goes a long way to ease your mind. There is no doubt God is concerned about the emotional burdens you are carrying.

Jonah 4:7 But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away.

You may be surprised why things keep happening and how God could arrange certain things (or people) to be removed from your life. But never forget this eternal truth:

[Psalm 37:23,24 The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. 24 Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand.]

God will not leave you to tend only for yourself. There is a reason you are here on earth at this era of time. You were not meant to live without purpose. It may not be overnight as it was for Jonah, but after a season of rest, God will nudge you to go back and labor in the harvest field.

Jonah 4:8 And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed.

Once again: “God arranged.” And again we learn that not everything you experience will be pleasant to you. But how you react to your circumstances shows your capacity for friction. We ask for all this amazing power from God and we desire to make such a difference in our world … but we forget “to whom much is given, much will be required.”

Unfortunately, Jonah once again sees death as the easier road to take. The heat of life itself was becoming too much for him - or so he thought. But God was not finished with him. Regardless of the mess you think you are, Jesus loves you and will not let you slip away without reaching for you.

Jonah 4:9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?” “Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry enough to die!”

Again the LORD uses reason, but His prophet is still fighting anger issues and suicidal thoughts. Allow me to ask you this: Is is right for you to still be angry with God over things in the past?
Are you angry because your “plant” died and you have to get up and move? The plant represented a comfort zone and a safe space.

Maybe this whole lesson was not really about Jonah, the unlikely prophet. Maybe it was about you, the unlikely Christian. Perhaps God wanted you to realize your value to the kingdom. Peradventure He wanted to redirect your focus from inward to outward and from personal problems to people’s needs. Why? Because it is the antidote to depression and su***de.

Is anything really worth ending your life?
Obviously, God does not think so.
There is ALWAYS a reason to keep living.
There are things only you can do because you are passionate about them. There are certain people only you can reach. Never give up.

Jonah4: 10 Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. 11 But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”

Wow. If there ever was a more perfect example of God seeing “the big picture” of our lives, this is it. God said you’re worried about things pertaining to you, while I worry about the souls of every man, woman, and child on earth. You know what adds more amazement? God even included the animals, which leads me to conclude with this scripture:

[Matthew 6:25-33 That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 28 “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, 29 yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 30 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? 31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

CONCLUSION
Jonah, God knew your weaknesses before He called you. He knew about your emotional and mental state when He chose you. Yet He saw something in you. He wanted to use your life to reach others. You are among a long list of unlikely heroes who have done mighty things for heaven’s sake.

Great will be your reward.

God has arranged it.

Back on Track Bible Studies by Rick Flores
*All scriptures from NLT

ACCEPTING INPUT!
Because my book on the Oneness of God is still a work in progress, I thought I’d give the followers of this page a chance to answer this question:

What should I make SURE to include in the book?

Or perhaps I should have you think of it this way: If you were to hand the book to a person you love who wasn’t a believer in the Oneness doctrine … what would you hope this book did not neglect to address?

Thank you! 🙏
I will read every comment.

A SPACE OF GRACE
Part 3 from the story of Jonah

Jonah 3:1 Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh, and deliver the message I have given you.” 3 This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to see it all.

For its time, Nineveh was a very large city and obviously full of sin and rebellious people who needed repentance and a spiritual revival. God picked right up from where He left off with Jonah. Not a single word of rebuke was recorded. He instructed Jonah to go preach to people whom He desperately wanted to save.

Jonah 3:4 On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!”

Jonah had no idea if - or how - his message would be received. He simply obeyed the voice of God. Notice God also provided a time frame: 40 days. He gave them a specific block of time. “Wake up calls” really do work for some people. When doctors tells patients they are at high risk of dying if they do not control their weight, many of them make drastic changes to their lifestyle. When spouses are confronted with the reality of a pending divorce, many of them change their behavior and save their marriage.

Sometimes we think we have our entire lives to turn to God and get serious about living the life He has called us to. But the Bible is clear there are spaces of time - periods of grace - where God is moving upon you and making Himself accessible and available for you to come to Him.

[Ezra 9:8 “But now we have been given a brief moment of grace … “]

[Isaiah 55:6 “Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near.”]

Jonah 3:5 The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow.

Regardless of Jonah’s character or inward battles, God anointed his message and the people of Nineveh seemed to have moved swiftly - likely much sooner than 40 days. They truly believed they would be destroyed. They undoubtedly trembled at the thought of a horrific death. At this point, there is no indication given in scripture that changing their ways was going to adjudicate anything. But upon reading further, we realize humanity’s hope of mercy has never changed.

I am not sure what you expected from a lesson on Jonah, but God has directed me to ask you to check your own spirit. Ask yourself if there is any idol you are still holding on to that needs to be sacrificed at an altar of repentance. Today would be the right time. Not only are we not guaranteed 40 days, we are not promised tomorrow. (See James 4:13-14).

[Romans 13: 11 This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living.]

Jonah 3:6 When the king of Nineveh heard what Jonah was saying, he stepped down from his throne and took off his royal robes. He dressed himself in burlap and sat on a heap of ashes.

Notice the first thing the king did: he stepped down. That is symbolic of humbling himself. He was accustomed to all the power and benefits from being seated on his personal throne … but he stepped down. Your first step in getting right with God is to step down off your pedestal of pride and your feelings of self-importance. All these scriptures, all these Old Testament stories, are written for our admonition as Paul states in 1 Corinthians10:11. The definition of admonition, according to Merriam-Webster, is “a gentle or friendly criticism or warning.” James preaches on along the same lines, adding that God placed His Spirit in us to keep us faithful. Never forget: God is not as concerned with your talent as He is with your humility.

[James 4: 5 Do you think the Scriptures have no meaning? They say that God is passionate that the spirit he has placed within us should be faithful to him. 6 And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 9 Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

Putting on burlap (sackcloth) and sitting in ashes was a form of mourning or repentance. For those of us with the Holy Ghost, God does not require a change of clothes as much as He longs for a change of heart. Turn, and make it all about Jesus again.

[John 3:30 He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.]

Jonah 3:7 Then the king and his nobles sent this decree throughout the city:
“No one, not even the animals from your herds and flocks, may eat or drink anything at all. 8 People and animals alike must wear garments of mourning, and everyone must pray earnestly to God. They must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence.

How sensitive to God’s calling was the king? He even wanted the poor animals to fast and mourn! He asked for everyone to pray and turn from their evil ways. Once again, a change of clothing is mentioned. This is extremely symbolic and cannot be overlooked. What we do (and wear) outwardly is a reflection of our hearts. But above all, the New Testament teaches us to “wear” Jesus so He will be known through us.

[Romans 3: 13 Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. 14 Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires]

Jonah3:9 Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”

The king’s hope was that God would “change His mind” and spare the city. We can literally usher in the mercy of God when we commit to Him fully. There are definitive occasions where the mind of God was changed by the actions of people. (See Exodus 32:4; Amos 7:3,6; Jeremiah 26:3,42:10; 2 Samuel 24:16)

Jonah 3:10 When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.

For some, there comes a time where God gives up. He brings them strong delusion that they would believe a lie. He turns them over to a reprobate mind. By all means,
when you hear a preacher reaching for your soul, take heed. Continue to hold to the promise of forgiveness and healing through humility, prayer, and repentance.

[2 Chronicles 7:14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.]

From “I’m the Problem. It’s Me.”
The incredible story of the most unlikely Prophet.

Send email request to [email protected] for a free copy of this lesson

I’m excited to officially share the title of my upcoming book!

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝗻
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵

This project has been years in the making, built from countless hours of Bible study, questions, and searching the Scriptures.

At the center of it all is one powerful truth—understanding who Jesus is.
It changes everything.

More details coming soon. Summer 2026!

To know Jesus, is to know the Father. To see Jesus, is to see the manifestation of the Father in flesh:
John 14: 8, 9 Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 9 Jesus saith unto him,
Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath
seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?

When Thomas finally saw the risen Savior, he uttered these words:

John 20:28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.

I’M THE PROBLEM. IT’S ME!
The incredible story of the most unlikely Prophet. (Part 1 - Go to Nineveh)

Jonah has to be the strangest prophet of God mentioned in the Bible, but it sure does give hope to all the rest of us misfits. God uses whom He chooses. If you have felt God’s calling to do anything for Him, you are truly blessed.

I know you are at least generally familiar with the story of Jonah. But let’s take a closer look.

Jonah 1:1 The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.” 3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord …

That alone will preach. God says, “Go here, do this,” and we go the opposite way! We do not know why Jonah reacted this way. Was he simply afraid to speak for God? Did he think he would be killed? Was he rebellious by nature?

… 3 He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.”

So Jonah decides it’s the right time for a voyage and buys a ticket. How many times in our lives have we tried to drown out the voice of God by doing something else,
and hoping His calling would somehow disappear?

4 But the Lord hurled a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart. 5 Fearing for their lives, the desperate sailors shouted to their gods for help and threw the cargo overboard to lighten the ship. But all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold.

Some of you may be in awe of how God controlled the weather. I’m in shock Jonah was sleeping soundly. It sure couldn’t be because of the peace of God that follows obedience. I’ve got to give the sailors credit for at least trying. They prayed to the gods they believed in.

6 So the captain went down after him. “How can you sleep at a time like this?” he shouted. “Get up and pray to your god! Maybe he will pay attention to us and spare our lives.”

Ok, now this will really preach:
Christian, how can YOU sleep at a time like this? Do you not recognize all the wickedness and perverseness going on in our world? Get up in Jesus’ name and start praying.

7 Then the crew cast lots to see which of them had offended the gods and caused the terrible storm. When they did this, the lots identified Jonah as the culprit. 8 “Why has this awful storm come down on us?” they demanded. “Who are you? What is your line of work? What country are you from? What is your nationality?”
9 Jonah answered, “I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”

Because God loved Nineveh and had not given up on Jonah, He even caused the dice to roll in Jonah’s direction. Once they identified the stranger who had just purchased the final “hot deal” ticket, they began to interrogate him. Think about this a minute: This world is getting crazy. People are looking for answers. You must prepare to identify yourself. You cannot answer their questions if you are in disguise.

“Why is this happening? Who are you? Who do you serve? Where are you from? What do you do?” “What do you know that we don’t?”

10 The sailors were terrified when they heard this, for he had already told them he was running away from the Lord. “Oh, why did you do it?” they groaned.

Wow. Just wow. At some point here, Jonah told them he was backslidden. And then he told them about Yahweh. That led to another question: “Why did you run from your God?” They literally groaned to think the one guy who could help them had deserted his post.

Can you imagine having non-believers in your life who need you in a desperate time … and you have to tell them you’re not where you need to be with God?

11 And since the storm was getting worse all the time, they asked him, “What should we do to you to stop this storm?”

This is interesting. They did not ask him, “What shall we do?” or “What can you do for us?” They asked what they could do to him! Maybe they wanted to shake some sense back into him. Maybe they were expecting Jonah to say, “Let me pray to my God.” Instead, they encountered a man with defeat in his voice:

12 “Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.”

I’m the problem, it’s me. I know sometimes we certainly feel that way. We put so much pressure and guilt on ourselves because we have messed up. But God …

13 Instead, the sailors rowed even harder to get the ship to the land. But the stormy sea was too violent for them, and they couldn’t make it.

These sailors - although pagans - had more compassion on Jonah than he did on himself. In many cases, non-believers are beautiful people who just haven’t met your Savior yet.

14 Then they cried out to the Lord, Jonah’s God. “O Lord,” they pleaded, “don’t make us die for this man’s sin. And don’t hold us responsible for his death. O Lord, you have sent this storm upon him for your own good reasons.”

Now these sailors are praying to the one true God! They do not want to die because of Jonah’s rebellion, yet many people will spiritually wilt if you do not get back to serving God. They also feared God would punish them for (in essence) murdering Jonah.

15 Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once!

My, my my! Did you catch that? The moment Jonah plops into the water, the storm stops! There is a lesson here. Are you ready? Get rid of your rebellious nature and watch God work immediate wonders in your life. Ironically, God will toss your sins into the sea of forgetfulness and preserve your body and soul.

16 The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him.

If we can get people to see the power of God, many will begin to praise Him and will continue to serve Him. Connecting people to heaven begins with separating ourselves from hell.

[Psalm 1:1,2 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.]

17 Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights.

The key words here are not about Jonah, the whale, or the three days. They are “the Lord had arranged.” God’s mercy is always two steps ahead of your disobedience. God has arranged some things in your life and you have clearly recognized them. Stop running.

This concludes chapter 1 and will be continued.

Side note: I am not a “Swiftie,” but as a recovering Youth Pastor, I have always tried to “Taylor” my lessons to reach an audience.

©️ Back on Track Bible Studies 2023

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