♪ theme music ♪

(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,

an in-depth, interactive study

of the Word of God.

We're in the middle of a series,

<i>God's Mission - My Mission,</i>

seeing the heart of God

to bring a revelation of His love

to everyone on planet Earth

and save as many as possible,

as many as will believe

in His grace and mercy.

Our topic today, well, we're looking

at an ancient prophet named Jonah

and <i>Excuses to Avoid Mission.</i>

That's not to give you ideas,

but to see how we can make it

past those excuses.

So, welcome to Hope Sabbath School

and welcome to the team.

Good to be together again.

Take a look at each other there.

You look like the whole world,

and that's what Hope Sabbath School

is about, isn't it, every nation,

kindred, tongue and people coming together

to study the Word of God.

We've got some team members

joining us remotely.

Sabina, great to have you back with us,

glad you're here today.

Leeah, good to see you again.

And Hope, good to see you, Hope.

We're glad you're here

for Hope Sabbath School today.

And we've got emails

from a few people around the world,

and can I ask <i>you</i> to write to us:

sshope@hopetv.org.

Share with us how you're blessed.

You can even send us a digital picture

of your family, maybe a study group

that you're leading.

We want to see how God is blessing you

through a study of His Word.

Here's a note from Virginia

in the United States of America.

Denise writes and says, "I've wanted

to send you a message for a while,

so while watching Hope Sabbath School

this Friday evening,

it seemed like a perfect time.

I've so enjoyed the different teachers

on Hope Sabbath School."

Well, I happen to be teaching today,

but there are quite a few teachers

even in our group today.

"I have to admit, it's taken a while

for me to get used to the new set..."

Well, you're right; we used a set

for about 10 years until it

started falling apart,

and we have an amazing new set.

"...took a while, but I think it was

probably time for an update," said Denise.

I think the people that moved

the old set around would agree with you.

"Hope Channel has

always had beautiful sets

and such professional filming
and programming.

I consider it an honor to help

in a small way with electronic giving.

May God continue to lead

and guide you all."

Well, Denise, thanks for writing

to us from Virginia

here in the United States of America.

Well, across the ocean, in Zambia,

Letty writes, and she says,

"Greetings, Hope Sabbath School family,"

we gave Letty the wave; she says,

"and the whole Hope Sabbath School family

around the world

and the entire production team."

So, we want to wave to them, too.

"The study of the Bible

has been a huge blessing in my life.

I put it upon myself to download

the weekly programs and to share them

on many platforms with my friends,

family and the entire church!"

(Team) Amen!

(Derek) What do we call that?

That's joining God in His mission, right?

That's what this series is all about.

"If it will ever be possible,"

writes Letty from Zambia,

"I would love to be part of the team.

May God bless your ministry.

Pray for me as I also pray for you."

Well, I want to tell you, Letty,

and I know the team agrees,

you <i>are</i> part of the team, right?

You're doing, there in Zambia,

what we can't do in this country

for your people.

Thank you for writing to us.

Here's a note from a donor couple

in Jamaica, and they write and say,

"Christian greetings

from the beautiful island of Jamaica.

My husband and I are pensioners,"

that means that they are on retirement,

"but we're thankful to the Lord

for the work He has done

raising up Hope Channel around the world.

We are positive that many souls

are being blessed daily

by the various programs,

especially Hope Sabbath School."

Wow, that's why they wrote to us.

"Thank you for your commitment
and dedication.

Enclosed is a contribution

toward the evangelistic outreach,"

that's why we exist, right?

"May the Lord continue to bless

Hope Channel and the leaders

as you continue to allow the Holy Spirit

to use you for God's honor

and glory. Amen."

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) And a donation of 100 dollars

to bless the ministry.

Thank you, Jamaica, for being part

of the great miracle,

and thank you to each one of you

who say, "I want to be part."

Maybe you've been thinking about it.

You can go to our website,

hopetv.org/hopess.

Some of you watch the program there.

Click on the Donate button

and say, "Dear Lord, bless

the global evangelistic media ministry

of Hope Sabbath School."

One last note, I don't remember

the last time we got an email from Cuba,

not the first time, I know, but...

"Hello, Hope Sabbath School team,"

writes Adiel from Cuba.

"I've been watching your progam,

and I'm glad God is using you

for the precious work

of sharing His message.

God bless you; Jesus is coming soon."

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Well, Adiel, thanks for writing

to us from Cuba.

Doesn't it encourage you

to hear from all these different parts
of the world?

It really is amazing.

We realize that many are listening

in a second language,

which is why, those of you

who are watching from around the world,

we try to speak slowly and clearly

because we want to thank you

for listening to us in maybe a language

that may be your second or third language.

But, the Holy Spirit helps us, doesn't He,

as we study the Word together.

Well, right now we need your help

to sing our theme song.

It's a 3,000-year-old Scripture song.

My wife put a new tune to it;

it's kind of a happy tune,

and it speaks about mission,

because it says in Psalm 9,

verses 1 and 2, "I will praise You,

O Lord, with my whole heart;

I will tell of all Your marvelous works."

We join God in His mission.

Let's sing it together.

♪ music ♪

(Derek) Well, we're going to study today

about a prophet who didn't want

to tell of all God's marvelous works.

In fact, he wasn't glad and rejoicing

in the Lord either,

but I think there'll be some lessons

that will help us

to join God in His mission.

Let's sing our song together again.

♪ music ♪

(Derek) Amen. Let's pray together.

Father in Heaven, what a privilege it is,

not only to praise You

with our whole hearts

for You are worthy of our praise,

but also to tell

of all Your marvelous works,

to join You in Your mission to share

Your immeasurable, unfailing love

with the world.

Today, as we look

at an ancient prophet, Jonah,

and excuses for mission,

I pray that You would help us

to find freedom from those things

that hinder us from being the witnesses

that You've called us to be for You.

I thank You in the name of Jesus. Amen.

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) Well, we're considering Jonah,

and we'll learn about him primarily

in the book that bears his name,

the book of Jonah.

It's a small book near the end

of the Hebrew Scriptures.

I was in the city of Joppa just recently,

and several important things

happened in Joppa.

One of them was someone was raised

from the dead by the power of Jesus' name.

Do you remember who that was?

It was Dorcas, raised to life in Joppa.

What else happened?

Well, Peter had a vision in Joppa

that he should not call any person unclean

when a message came

from a centurion, you remember?

But, perhaps Joppa is best known as being

a place where Jonah went

to try to run away from God.

And we're going to consider

the excuses he made and the excuses

some others may make to avoid mission,

but hopefully we can get past them.

We might even identify some excuses

that we have made in the past

or may still make.

So, Jonah, chapter 1, Samuel, if you

could begin our study today in Jonah,

chapter 1, and read for us

the first three verses.

(Samuel) I'm reading

from the English Standard Version,
and it reads:

(Derek) Now what do we know

about the Ninevites, the Assyrian Empire?

What did Jonah probably know

about them, too?

Well, if we just had these verses,

what do we know?

The Lord says something; what do we know?

(Team) Wicked.

(Derek) They were wicked, right.

So, even if we didn't have any details,

we would say they were very wicked.

But, Sabina, I'm going to ask you

to find another little book;

it's right there in the Minor Prophets

after the book of Jonah,

Micah, and then Nahum.

Some of these little books

are hard to find, but Nahum,

chapter 1 and verse 1,

and then I'll have you read

chapter 3, verses 1 to 4.

We learn a little more about Nineveh.

(Sabina) Okay, so I'll be reading

from the New International Version

and Nahum, verse 1, says:

And then chapter 3, verses 1 to 4 say:

(Derek) What do you think about this city?

One of the excuses that someone might make

and perhaps one of the motivations

for Jonah to say, "Let me get a boat

anywhere in the other direction,"

is because of...? Fear, right?

I mean, these were a fearful people,

but if Jonah had remembered something

of the Lord's work, it might have

helped him to find freedom from his fears.

Let's go back to 2 Kings, chapter 19,

and, Travis, would you be willing to read

for us 2 Kings 19, verses 32 to 37?

Sometimes when we

are tempted to be afraid,

we need to remember what God has done.

(Travis) And I'll be reading

from the New King James Version:

(Derek) Some of us are very happy

that <i>you</i> read that text; there were a lot

of difficult names there, thank you.

You can go - and I was

in Israel just recently - and you can see

reliefs in museums of devastation

that the Assyrians brought,
even in Israel.

But, the Lord delivered His people

there in Jerusalem.

So, if that memory was there,

why would the prophet Jonah be so fearful?

What do you think?

Leeah, what do you think?

He knew how God had delivered in the past.

(Leeah) The Assyrian Kingdom

continues to resurface, so I think

there was probably the fear

that, "Well, why did they come back?

if God struck them down once,

why do they keep coming back?"

There's a lot of fear that comes

when something kind of "rears

its ugly head," as we say.

(Derek) Okay, good point.

In other words, maybe they're

coming back for revenge.

"God delivered us in the past,

but can we be certain

that He will deliver again?

I'm actually going to them now."

What do you think, Jason?

(Jason) It can be a combination of fear
and also feeling like they don't

deserve it because they're so wicked.

(Derek) We're going to come

to the "don't deserve it" in a minute,

but the fear thing would be what?

You've been in the military, right?

You hear about these people.

And you won one battle by the Lord.

(Jason) Yeah, it gets to be overwhelming

because of the things you heard

and feeling like, "I can't do this,"

feeling inadequate, in that sense.

(Derek) Nancy.

(Nancy) I would say there is one of him

against a whole city, but he's forgetting

that he's with God,

and with God on our side...

(Derek) I mean Sabina read

that description in Nahum; it was

pretty overwhelming, wasn't it? Travis?

(Travis) So, I think if we're

going to be hard on Jonah,

we're going to have to be hard on Elijah,

the same who slew all the prophets of Baal

and then runs from a queen.

So, we could be hard on Jonah,

but there are other prophets.

I mean, Elijah, he was

quite a prophet of God,

and he was afraid of Jezebel.

(Derek) So, maybe there are times...

I see your hand raised.

Because that same Elijah

would stretch his body

over a lifeless child,

and he would be raised to life, right?

And yet, he does run from Jezebel.

And yet, later God deals with Jezebel.

I mean, there's nothing

too hard for God, right?

But, you're saying one time

we might feel strong

and other times overwhelmed by fear?

(Stephanie) I think the difference is,

is where I'm placing my eyes -

on evidence that God exists,

and He's led me so far,

or on what I can see presently,

which can change in an instant

when God's in it.

(Derek) I'm remembering a quotation.

Lots of hands raised, this is great.

But, I remember, "We have nothing

to fear for the future

except as we shall forget

the way the Lord has led us

and His teaching in our past history."

So, maybe in that moment -

you talk about focus - we shift our focus

even though the evidence

is still there, right?

Now, a couple more, and then I want

to ask is there...Travis, you said,

let's not be too hard on him.

Can you think of a time when fear

got the best of you

in a challenging mission assignment? John.

(John) Going back to the quote

that you just recited,

Jonah must have forgotten

about the stories of how God

delivered them from the Assyrians.

And also, Jonah must have

thought to himself, I mean God did it,

even if he had remembered

God did it before,

would He do that again?

And at times in our own lives,

we think like that, "Okay, yes, God

gave me that victory back then

in reaching this person,

but would He do that again?

And so, those are some reasons

that could be why Jonah was fearful.

(Derek) We're going to have to give

a testimony time, honest time.

Some of you have been

in difficult places on mission trips

or long-term assignments; Sabina, you're

in a long-term ministry assignment.

Can anybody think of a time

when you felt fear

kind of well up, like, "Whoa!"

Adison, you're nodding and smiling.

(Adison) When I was 13 years old,

so this was way back now,

I remember sharing with a group

of about 50 to 60 people from the public

about the sanctuary message,

about Exodus 25 and that important topic,

and it was one of my first times

I had ever spoken publicly.

And I remember human emotion

taking over in that moment,

and it was like a paralysis.

I was just paralyzed with fear.

And, you know, 13 years old,
there is still...

Anyway, I love this story about Jonah;
it reminds me of that.

(Derek) And you weren't

in Papua New Guinea, you were...

(Adison) No, I was home.

Yes, I was on Vancouver Island in Canada.

(Derek) Sometimes fear

might come for different reasons,

but you felt that.

Anybody else can think of a time? John?

(John) I'll leave the country unnamed,

but I was in a certain country

going door to door

giving out Christian literature

and praying with them.

And soon there were

some certain other religious extremists

who came, and they took us

to the police station.

And during that time, my friends and I

were quite fearful as to what was

going to happen next.

But, the Lord amazingly delivered

by sending some other people

who came to the rescue.

(Derek) But the fear came?

(John) Yes.

(Derek) Sabina, you think of a time.

(Sabina) Yes, I think that one

of the times where I felt the most fearful

was actually when God invited me

to leave my job, back in the day,

to go into fulltime ministry.

And for me, it was

a very challenging request from God

because I had lots of uncertainties

about my future, you know,

how He would provide for me,

what ministry would look like for me.

And it took me maybe about half a year

to take a step further than He

had already impressed upon my heart,

even though I had, like, a strong sense

of calling since I was a teenager.

It was at 28 only that I sensed that He

was directly indicating my next move.

And for me to respond to this move,

it took me, as I said,

more than half a year.

I asked for some evidence from God,

and I really had a hard time trusting

that He was the One

who was speaking to me.

So, I eventually responded,

but I was quite fearful at the time.

I was quite fearful

of my family's judgment.

I was quite fearful of not having enough

to provide for myself in the future.

I was quite fearful

of where all this would end.

And, you know, I'm thankful;

now 10 years almost have gone by,

and God is good.

(Derek) So, I guess one thing,

and then we're going to move on

to another excuse

after just a moment here.

We ought to be sympathetic, compassionate

toward people who may wrestle

with some fears, because we've

also wrestled with fears, right?

So, we're not judging Jonah

or anyone else, but we're saying

how do we make it past the fear?

And that's my final question for us

before we move to the second excuse.

Fears will come, right?

How do I make it past that fear

if it's clear that God has

given me a mission?

God has asked me to do something. Nancy?

(Nancy) We have to remember

what we're dealing with,

the Great Controversy between good

and evil in the universe is real.

And so, when we remember what it's about

and whose side we're on,

it will give us courage.

I wanted to mention that one situation

in which we may feel fearful

is when we're among peers that have

the same head knowledge about God

but perhaps not the same heart knowledge

and the heart experience.

And so, we may feel like, "Well,

it's not cool," maybe, "to stand out

and be bold for God."

But when we really understand

what's happening and what is at stake

and who's on our side,

then we will be bold.

(Derek) I'm going to ask Hope,

because Hope you're, today,

the youngest member of our team.

I know you've done ministry; you've had

a youth prayer group that you lead,

were there ever times

that you felt fearful,

and if so, how did you make it past that?

(Hope) One time that comes

to my mind for sure is when I was

doing some canvassing, and that is

selling Christian books door to door.

And I was in a neighborhood that was

a little bit lower class, and I remember

feeling so afraid, and I actually called

my leader, and I was just like,

"I can't do this."

And I remember I just had

to hold onto the Bible promises,

and that was the only thing

that could get me through that.

And one verse that actually sticks out

in my mind is Psalm 34:4, and it says,

"I sought the Lord, and He heard me,

and delivered me from all my fears."

And, when we seek God in our fear,

not waiting until after we've freaked out

and then coming to Him, but seeking Him

while we're afraid, I think that's

something that's really important,

just keeping that connection with Him,

because He is the only One

who can free us from our fears.

(Derek) Thank you so much.

Wow, that's one

of my wife's Scripture songs,

"I sought the Lord, and He heard me,

and delivered me."

So, how do I find freedom from my fears?

The answer is not by trying harder, right?

God is the One who can deliver us

from all our fears. Samuel?

(Samuel) Here in the Scriptures

that we read, a couple of times

the Bible mentions, "He went away

from the presence of the Lord."

And when we go away

from the presence of the Lord,

that's when fear creeps in.

But, we must continue to stay

in the presence of the Lord

through faith in Him,

that He who has called us

will carry us through. for me.

(Derek) And maybe not

that fear crept in, but fear was

increased, right, exponentially increased.

The fear was there.

Hope is saying when you feel the fear,

run <i>to</i> God rather than away from Him;
He is the One.

If we run away, the fear

just increases, right,

and becomes overwhelming.

We've got to move to a second.

I just want us to know then, if someone

says, "Well, I've been asked

to do this, but I'm afraid," that we

would come with compassion, right?

And maybe even a testimony,

like we just heard from Hope.

You know, "Hey, I felt that it was real.

I checked with my leader,

but I also remembered the Word

that God had hidden in my heart

in Psalm 34 and verse 4."

A second excuse that we see or discover

in the story of Jonah is the idea,

an excuse that, "God, You're saying

these people need to hear,

but I don't think those people

deserve to hear that good news,"

whether it's a certain neighborhood

or a certain country

or a certain socioeconomic level.

And by the way, there are people who think

that the homeless don't deserve it,

but there are also people who think

the rich don't deserve it.

We have all of these different ideas.

Let's take a look at Jonah

and see if we can learn something

about his attitude

and actually his faulty view of God.

Jonah, chapter 1, I'd like to go

back to verse 3, Kylynda,

if you would read that.

We heard it at the beginning,

but what faulty view of God

do you hear in this text?

(Kylynda) Verse 3, I'm going to be reading

from the New King James Version:

(Derek) So, help me, someone.

You're smiling, Stephanie.

What faulty view of God

is in that narrative?

(Stephanie) The belief that you

can go away from God; you can run away

and He won't see you.

(Derek) You remember the Psalm of David

where he says, "Where can I..."?

"...go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your presence?

If I ascend to heaven...

or farthest parts of the sea..."

So, there is a faulty view

of God there, isn't there?

We've got to move to the next verse.

Leeah, if you would read for us

in the same chapter, 1, verse 12,

let's see another faulty view of God.

Listen carefully, because the faulty view

of God will distort our idea

about whether people

deserve His grace or not.

(Leeah) I'll be reading

from the English Standard Version,

Jonah, chapter 1, verse 12:

(Derek) What's faulty there?
Anybody? Jason?

(Jason) That God desires,

like, a sacrifice, like throw himself?

But, we know the Bible says

a contrite heart, a broken heart

is what God wants, not a sacrifice.

(Derek) Right, so there's

this distorted view of God

that somehow, "If you throw me in,

God will somehow be happy."

What would bring joy to God

is to obey the mission assignment, right,

not to throw him into the sea.

Well, let's go on to chapter 3

and verse 4 now, when he finally,

and you know the story.

He's thrown overboard.

God prepares a great fish,

and I don't know how that happened.

You say, "That's not normal."

You're right; that was a miracle.

"Submarine" catches him,

an aqua-submarine, and then vomits him

up on the beach, and God says,

"I haven't changed my mission plan,

which is to show My love

to the people of Nineveh,

and I want you to go."

What do you see in chapter 3 and verse 4?

John, would you read that verse for us?

Jonah 3 and verse 4,

and what's missing there?

(John) Jonah, chapter 3 and verse 4,

from the English Standard Version:
it says:

(Derek) What's missing

in this picture, folks? Adison?

(Adison) Grace, redemption.

(Derek) Yeah, "Repent," right,

"for the Kingdom of God," you remember

what John the Baptist said, right?

There's both a word of judgment,

if you will, but also we need

a word of...? Grace.

Why doesn't Jonah say, "If you

don't repent, this will happen in 40 days,

but if you repent, God is

abundant in mercy and kindness

to all those who call upon Him"?

Why, why doesn't he say that? Samuel?

(Samuel) I think the excuse is

he doesn't want them to repent.

He doesn't want them to be saved.

He doesn't want them to have salvation.

(Derek) He has this thought

that maybe God is more generous

and more compassionate than he is, right?

But, you're right, he doesn't

want them to be saved.

So, these distorted pictures.

Well, it gets even worse,

and I'm going to ask Adison

if you'd read Jonah 3, verse 10,

and chapter 4 through verse 4.

It's kind of startling, because this is

from a prophet of God.

Let's see what he says.

(Adison) And I'm reading

from the King James Version, verse 10:

(Derek) This is one

of the most successful
evangelistic meetings

in the history of the planet.

It's not a very good sermon, right?

But the Holy Spirit works,

which is how any life is changed,

and a whole city repents!

And Jonah is what?

(Team) Exceedingly angry.

(Derek) Exceedingly angry.

I'm not going to ask you if you were God

how you would treat that prophet,

because fortunately God was

as merciful and gracious as Jonah thought;

otherwise, he could have lost

his life right there. John?

(John) In some ways, I almost think

that, yes, God was trying to reach

the city of Nineveh,

but in bringing Jonah into this mission,

He's also trying to reach Jonah

and to show that mercy and compassion.

(Derek) So, faulty view of God

or certainly a faulty view of salvation,

how could that get in the way for us

in our mission today? Kylynda?

(Kylynda) I think we all have biases,

and it's unavoidable, but sometimes we

want to project these same biases to God.

We want God to agree with us

that some people are better than others,

or we can treat people in some way

and treat other people in a different way.

And we have to learn to say, "God,

how should I look at the world

through Your views?"

whether it's intentional

in the case of Jonah

or even unintentionally, "Please save me

from looking at other people

through biases that I've

built up in my life."

(Derek) Can anybody think

of someone that you met,

Sabina, I see your hand there,

can you think of someone that you met

that your first impression was,

"There is no way that God

could save that person"?

Think about that. Sabina?

(Sabina) There have been people

I've encountered in ministry

and in life in general that I found

very rooted in ideas or ways

that definitely were not pleasing to God,

but I've personally have not thought

that they were unworthy.

But, I have found people

that have thoughts just as you are saying,

like their ideas about salvation

are rooted, not in God's grace,

but in an understanding

that maybe through their works

they are going to achieve salvation,

and that they, because they believe so,

don't think they are worthy

of receiving God's grace.

So, that's also possible, right,

not only what we think about other people,

but what we think about God's salvation

may hinder <i>us</i> from coming to Jesus, right?

(Derek) I remember one time I was

speaking in Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro,

and I was speaking in a church.

And there was a young man,

and he was a strong young man.

He looked like a bodybuilder,

and he had tattoos over almost all

of his body that I could see.

And a first impression would be,

"Why is he even here?"

But, as he listened to the Word of God,

he was leaning forward, focusing,

and when an invitation was given,

this young man got up and walked forward!

(Team) Amen.

(Derek) But sometimes, as Kylynda said,

we may have biases.

We say, "Well, that wealthy businesswoman

is not going to be interested."

"That homeless teenager

is not going to be interested."

But the question is, rather,

is God interested in <i>them?!</i> Samuel?

(Samuel) There are two ways that I think

faulty views can hinder us from mission.

One view is that there is this notion

that God doesn't destroy,

and that everyone

will be saved at the end.

So, if everyone is going to be saved,

why do I need to go

and share God's mission?

On the opposite extreme is this view

that God has already chosen some

to be saved and some to be lost.

So, if God has chosen some to be saved,

why do I go bother

and share God's mission?

So, these are some views

that exist in the world, very much so,

faulty views that can hinder
from sharing God's mission.

(Derek) The Word of God challenges that

when it says, "Today, if you

hear His voice, don't harden

your heart," right?

There is a choice that we make. Jason?

(Jason) And also, we could tend

to lean into the point

of, "It's not my job to do it;

maybe someone else will come along

and witness to them," you know,

and kind of free yourself up

from trying to do that mission,

even though God has called you to do it.

(Derek) We'll come to that

as another excuse in just a minute.

That's good; you're moving forward.

First excuse is...? "I'm afraid."

And we've all been there,

and let's be compassionate

if someone is struggling.

Second excuse is...?

"They don't deserve it,"

because of my faulty view of God.

Even though in the back of his mind

he knew better, didn't he?

But there is a third excuse that I think

Jonah could definitely have thought about,

and that is, "That is

way too difficult for me."

Someone mentioned, "There's one of me,

and there's that great city,

and You're expecting me to go

into the midst of that city

that Nahum describes as full of blood,

corpses stacked up?

Way too difficult for me."

Think about a mission assignment

God may give to you, a difficult one.

Just imagine it; it may be inner city,

it may be a foreign country,

it may be the other side of the world.

What are some excuses

that you might come up with?

I'm going to ask Hope to start with that,

and God's going to...

I know, Hope, you're thinking

about getting some mission training,

but then God throws you,

let's say He throws you to Mongolia, okay?

Mongolia. What are some things

that might cause you, Hope, to say,

"That's too difficult for me"?

(Hope) I don't know the language.

I don't know the culture.

I don't know anything

about any of the people.

(Derek) Yeah, so I've got two right away.

I don't speak Mongolian, and I

don't understand the culture, alright?

Are those valid concerns?

(Team) Yes.

(Derek) Is it too difficult?

(Stephanie) Not for God.

(Derek) It depends how I'm looking, right?

I might have to say, and we've had one

of our team members

just recently learn another language.

I don't even know what it looks like,

but someone just learned

the Albanian language, right?

But, I could say, "That's too difficult

for me, a language/culture."

What else might cause me to say,

"Oh, send somebody else"?

You said, "Send someone else," right?

What other...we'd like

to call them reasons, right,

but if God's calling us,

all of His biddings are enabling,

so He's going to do.

But from a human perspective,

what else, John?

(John) It's not safe for me or my family.

(Derek) Yes! I mean, sending Hope

over to Mongolia without bodyguards,

you know, that's not safe.

Or, someone, I remember my wife and I

as a young couple got a call to go

to a part of the world

that they called "the white man's grave."

And I had the fear that I

would bury children there, right?

It may not be safe.

Sabina, you want to respond

to one of those three,

or is there something else

that we might go, "This is too difficult"?

(Sabina) I'm thinking of something else.

It relates to what is shared,

but it's something else,

like material deprivation, I think, is,

depending on where you are going,

how you are going,

really, you may not have

the same facilities or amenities

that you have in your home country, right,

or even you do, but you are going

to spend a life with less

than what you wished.

(Derek) So, I'm going to ask you

to share a testimony.

Travis, you've been

to a lot of different countries, right,

and I'm sure there were times

when some of these...

We'll call them reasons;

they become excuses if we what?

Finish the sentence:

They become excuses if we...? 
Don't go, right?

But they may still be reasons,

right, is that right?

Don't know the language,

don't know the culture; it's not safe,

so those are reasons,

but we go anyway if we're focusing

on the Lord and how He's led in the past.

Can you think of a time when you go,

"This is difficult, too hard for me"?

(Travis) Well, Derek, it's interesting

you ask the question, because, as we're

going through this study,

I'm struggling internally,

because I've just been asked

to take on an orphanage in Bangladesh.

And I'm like, "Lord, I have

way too much going on

with other orphanages

and different things."

Like, I can't handle it.

(Derek) You shared with us

in a previous study that you

actually helped launch

a new orphanage in Malawi, right?

Started there, putting roofs on churches,

because your background

is in construction.

But your background

wasn't in running orphanages, right?

So, now here this...

What do you know about Bangladesh?

(Travis) I don't know anything

about Bangladesh; I don't know anything.

I started looking up the tickets,

and my wife says, "You have

so much going on!

Can you really handle this?"

And so, now I'm thinking, as we're

going through this study,

you know, I think about Martha

being distracted with much serving.

Is there a balance, because I

certainly would want to help

the orphanage in Bangladesh,

but at the same time,

can you have too much?

And that's what I'm struggling with now.

(Derek) What's the big question?

This is real, right? It's right now.

He's thinking about it during this study.

What is the big question I ask

when someone says, "I'd like you

to come and do this"?

What do you think?

(Kylynda) Has the Holy Spirit

called me to go?"

I think it's very hard,

because as I mentioned

we have internal biases,

but we also have internal thoughts

about what God might be saying.

It's really difficult to wisely discern

the voice of God.

You need prayer, you need Scripture,

and you need conversation

with other people that can help guide you.

(Derek) There's a lot of counsel

right there, isn't there?

Because, sometimes we might even have

like delusions of grandeur,

that I'm like the savior of the world.

And what I'm hearing Kylynda say is,

"Is this something the Holy Spirit

is impressing me to do?

Or, do I join with them in prayer

that God would bring someone

just as he brought someone to Malawi?"

Does that make sense?

Now, is it possible

God's asking Travis to do that?

(Team) Yes.

(Derek) But we don't know for sure, do we?

We have to listen.

Sabina, what are you thinking?

(Sabina) I believe that, in just going

with what Travis was sharing,

there needs to be an inner conviction

that comes from God

so that we can move forward.

But then, as we put the story of Jonah

in perspective, one could say,

"Oh, but Jonah was not convicted."

So, I would say there needs

to be an inner conviction based also

on what the Scripture is teaching.

So, if your reasons

for not being convicted are

going against Scripture's wisdom,

then maybe you should follow

Scripture's wisdom and respond to God.

But, maybe if the reasons that you are

not having that inner conviction

are aligned also with God's Word,

just as Travis was saying,

like, "Maybe I have too much on my plate.

Do I have enough resources now?

Am I the right person to do that?"

So, those are all valid questions

that we don't want to ignore as well.

(Derek) We've looked

at three main excuses,

and then Jason added a fourth one,

which I actually wrote down

as another excuse, but, fear.

And fear is real; there can be real things

not just imaginary fear, right, real fear.

"They don't deserve this," but that

really comes from a faulty view of God,

because from God's persepective,

how many people deserve salvation?

(Derek, Team) Everyone.

(Derek) Why are you saying

they don't deserve it?

"It's too difficult," that's real.

I look, I go, "I don't know the language,

the culture; it's not safe."

Another one Jason mentioned,

"Someone else could do it better."

Have you ever felt that way? Samuel?

(Samuel) Another excuse I think of,

particularly here in the story of Jonah,

is that Jonah was a Jew,

and the people of Nineveh were Gentiles.

And so, there is that racial tension,

which can often hinder us

from going into missions.

(Derek) And by the way, those Gentiles,

as you called them, from Assyria,

killed a lot of Jewish people.

They came and slaughtered and destroyed

a lot of cities, but that's

an interesting bias to this

that says, "I don't want them

to be saved," right?

As you've listened to the study,

and I'm going to start

with some of our remotes;

Leeah, I'm going to start

with you if that's okay.

I don't know the answer to the question,

but as you hear this story of Jonah,

we've looked at three or four excuses,

what do you feel in your heart

(and I'll give the rest of the team

time to share) is an excuse

that you might easily grab onto

that you need to just give to God?

Say, "God, I just need

to give that to You, because I do want

to join You in Your mission,

whatever that looks like."

(Leeah) In anything that God

has called me to in my life,

I have felt quite a measurable amount

of fear, and fear mainly for the unknown.

Like, we named so many reasons,

maybe I don't feel like I can afford it,

or I don't understand the culture,

or I don't understand the language.

But, all of these things can be denounced

when we go to God and when we say,

"This is my fear."

God understands that we're

going to have fear, and He

probably expects it, too,

because He knows that we're human.

But, like somebody said earlier,

I think in instances where He knows

we're going to be afraid, or like Jonah,

when He knows that we're going to resist,

maybe that call to mission is more for us

and for our heart change than it is

for the people that we're

actually going to witness to.

(Derek) Alright, so, just letting go
of that fear.

By the way, I received some healing

a few years ago where God

directly said to me, "Derek, I want

to deliver you from all your fears."

And I was anointed that day, by the way,

because I grew up with a lot of fears,

and some of them were

from my family of origin, a lot of fears.

So, I can relate to that.

Let's show some kindness to Jonah, right?

Anybody else, as you've looked

at this study, something you just feel...

Kylynda, is it the same or something else?

You just say, "God,

I want to give that to You.

I could easily grab onto that

and make it a reason when actually it

could be an excuse holding me back."

(Kylynda) Well briefly, several years ago,

I had the opportunity to work in a lab

in a different country.

So, I'm a scientist; it's my first day,

and I'm eating lunch

with my new colleagues, and they say,

"Well, what are you doing this weekend?"

And I thought, "Oh, you know,

maybe I shouldn't mention going to church

or Sabbath," because in science

it could be perceived that someone

who embraces faith

is not intelligent

or they're intolerant or bigoted,

or, you know, maybe it's not appropriate

in this culture to discuss religion,

so I said, "Nothing."

And then someone else came to the table,

another scientist, sat down,

not of my faith, and started

to pray for his food.

Everyone at the table went silent

until he finished, and then we all

started talking again.

And I think it was like a personal rebuke

to me because it wasn't

quite the same shade of fear.

I wasn't afraid that they

would hurt me or say things,

but pride and apathy, they play a role

in how people might perceive me.

And I want to ask God's forgiveness

and grace to say, "What do You

want me to do, and can I be open

to do that no matter the circumstance."

(Derek) And, we need to recognize

that there is a time

and place to share more.

Even Jesus said, "There are some things

I would share with you,

but you cannot bear them now."

So, we don't have

to share everything right away,

but you were feeling there,

you used the word rebuke,

or at least a loving reminder

from the Holy Spirit, "When I ask you

to do something, don't be afraid," right,

"Don't let that hold you back." Nancy.

(Nancy) Derek, I'd also like

to mention comfort.

Some of us don't want

to go off somewhere else

because we're comfortable.

We know God, we're happy in our church,

and maybe going off to another country

with our families, and the grandparents

won't get to be with the children,

you know, things like that.

But, Jesus says, if you can remind me

of where in Scripture, that sometimes we
are called to leave...

(Derek) Father and mother?

(Nancy) Yes, yes, and, "Great

will be our reward."

And so, yeah, I wanted to mention comfort.

(Derek) Comfort, right, because there

may be bedbugs there or snakes

that I don't like, or people

that I don't like.

There are lots of reasons.

We need to move to Isaiah,

and I'll give you a chance

to share at the end,

because Isaiah finds

his way past all excuses.

And, I think there's a clue,

and, Stephanie, if you could read for us

in the book that bears the prophet's name,

in Isaiah, chapter 6, verses 1 through 7,

I think there's a clue in this passage

as to how he abandons all excuses,

because verse 8 is a verse we'll read

after you've read 1 through 7.

(Stephanie) Alright, and I'll be reading

from the New King James Version:

(Derek) Now the first half of verse 8.

(Derek) So, there are lots of excuses

because he's going to be given

a difficult assignment,

but the second half of verse 8,

how does he respond?

(Derek) Whew! What was it

in the first seven verses?

There's something there, isn't there?

It makes sense from all the things

we've been studying.

What was it in the first seven verses

that gave him the courage

to abandon all excuses,

call them reasons, and say,

"Here am I, send me"? Adison?

(Adison) He had an experience with God.

He saw the glory of the Lord,

the character of God,

and that changed him

and moved upon his heart to say,

"Here I am, Lord, I want to serve You.

You are beautiful, amazing."

(Derek) That's one thing.

Stay with us now.

He saw the glory of the Lord.

He had a revelation

of the glory of the Lord.

What else? Samuel?

(Samuel) I think the verse

also talks about how your guilt

is taken away, and your sin atoned for.

(Derek) So something was

happening to him spiritually. What else?

(Nancy) Perspective.

(Derek) There was something else

really big that happened there

in those verses.

What was it? Yes, Kylynda?

(Kylynda) He was touched

by the fire from the altar.

(Derek) Something supernatural happens

when we abandon all of our excuses,

and it comes in the context

of that encounter

with the living God, right,

and the freedom from all of the shame

and guilt and sin and all of that.

Something supernatural happens

that enables us to say....Stephanie?

(Stephanie) Yes, he recognized who he was

in the presence of God.

He understood that he was a human being,

and he was in the presence

of the Almighty King.

(Derek) So, someone's watching today,

and you're saying, "I want to be the woman

of God/man of God,

join God in His mission,

but I've been...Honestly I

called them reasons,

but maybe they're excuses.

I need a revelation of the glory of God,

and I need something supernatural

to happen in me."

Is God able to do that?

I hope you're raising your hand

and saying, "Yes," because He is!

And He's done it;

it's recorded in Scripture.

People, I'm sure Mary, when she was told,

"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,"

she had to wrestle with fear,

"This is too difficult,"

but surrendering and trusting a loving God

to say, "God, here am I, send me."

Is that your prayer today?

I want to pray for you just now.

Father in Heaven, we didn't just come

to study today to rebuke people

for making excuses.

We came so we could see how easy it is

to have reasons not to go.

But, we've learned

that an encounter with You,

that, yes, Your supernatural blessing can

enable us to do whatever You ask us to do.

Today, we just want to say,

whatever that looks like in the mission,

Lord, we're available.

Here we are, please send us.

And when we see miracles,

we will give You all of the praise.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

Well, thanks for joining us
for Hope Sabbath School.

Go out and be a blessing

to those around you.

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