The Heart of TransformationSample

Repentance is like a pulling back of the carpet of our lives. Once the carpet is pulled back on our lives, we see the dirt, grime, and decay that lies in our soul. We need to name this grime for what it is, and let the Holy Spirit do the work of cleaning it up and rebuilding the foundation. This is the work of transformation.  

The story of Jonah shows us a great example of repentance. Nineveh was a city that God loved, and Jonah was instructed to go there to deliver the message of repentance. It was the only time a prophet in the Old Testament was physically sent to a city to deliver the message, but Jonah didn’t want to go because he hated the city of Nineveh. In defiance, he ran the other way, was thrown overboard, and ended up in the belly of the whale. With the time to be alone with his thoughts for 3 days, Jonah ended up agreeing to obey God and went to Nineveh. God used the whale to save Jonah’s life, but Jonah didn’t allow the time spent in the whale to change his heart. Later on in the book of Jonah, we see that he is still angry about God’s mercy on Nineveh, an evil city in Jonah’s eyes. Jonah repented and obeyed, but his heart did not change. He repented, but he did not allow transformation to happen.  

Questions:

1. Like Jonah, we have just spent 3 months with our own thoughts navigating 2 pandemics. In this time, did you identify an area of your life where you needed to repent, but you are still angry with God’s response? Take a moment to think about your thoughts. Are they reflective of the price that Jesus paid for us?