JONAH Part 4: God of the Second Chance posted by Yuen Woh Voon on Dec 13, 2011

“Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, …” Jonah 3:1

Have you ever walked away from an opportunity to share your faith and felt terribly bad about it afterwards? You might even have worked your way into the conversation but at the last minute for some inexplicable reason, you backed off, changed the subject and the opportunity was gone.

In Jonah’s case, he had made the decision to get as far away as possible from his intended audience. He did not have any special love for the people he had been called to preach to.

Well, the good news is that we have a God who gives second chances. He certainly gave Jonah a second opportunity to complete the mission to preach to the people of Nineveh after Jonah rejected it the first time.

God re-commissions Jonah, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.” The Bible says that Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD.

God does not just give second chances; He creates the second chance for Jonah! He is unwilling that Jonah miss out on his destiny and arranges for the ship, the storm and the whale to bring Jonah to the place of reflection, repentance and a re-assignment of the task.

Jonah picks himself up, heads to Nineveh and preaches, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”

Fast forward to the first century A.D. and here we find Simon Peter disowning Christ, not once, not twice but three times. Surely his career as a disciple of Christ and an apostle is over! But then the God of the Second Chance kicks in and He searches out the discouraged and dispirited Simon Peter. Jesus meets up with him after his resurrection and re-commissions him, “Feed my sheep.”

Have you ever failed to speak up for the cause of Christ? Chin up, my friend. He is the God of the second chance. When it comes, make sure you take it!