God’S Immeasurable Grace and Mercy: A Powerful Look at the Story of Jonah and How It Correlates Spiritually to the Leadership in the Church.

By Kevin Petty

In todays technology and scientific discoveries, our modern churches have played a large leadership role spiritually. But today, our churches are drifting far from the shores of the safe arms of our Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit is not leading in our services. We are losing a generation. The cross of Christ is not being preached or presented. Our only hope is to find his grace and mercy during this time of need.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 22, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543427547

Kevin Petty

He is a Bible reader and loves God's word. Always seeing the Bible in today world and find ways to apply it. He loves to share what he's learn with others and feels inspired to help people make sense of God's love and grace.

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Copyright © 2017 by Kevin Petty.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2017908821

ISBN:                   Hardcover                           978-1-5434-2756-1

                            Softcover                              978-1-5434-2755-4

                            eBook                                    978-1-5434-2754-7

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the Holy Bible, King James Version (Authorized Version). First published in 1611. Quoted from the KJV Classic Reference Bible, Copyright © 1983 by The Zondervan Corporation.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. [Biblica]

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 06/30/2017

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Chapter 1: Misled Leadership and Responsibility in the Church

Chapter 2: The Heart of Men

Chapter 3: A Prophet among Us

Chapter 4: Storm of Temptation and Rest

Chapter 5: Jonah Is Cast Overboard

Chapter 6: Jonah Accepts God’s Commission

Chapter 7: Jonah Becomes Disengaged with the Results

Epilogue

I would like to

Dedicated my book to my mother and father, Robert and Lillian Petty, spiritual leaders in my family when I was growing up, along with my Pastor, who always encourage me.

INTRODUCTION

From Adam’s failure to Israel’s rejection, now the church is given the leadership position. It has been nearly two thousand years since the church has been in this leadership occupation. The church has been the beacon of light for those who sit in darkness. But as time went by, the church lost its focus and leadership providence. It has succumbed to the ways of the world, and it has allowed the methodology of the world to dictate its leadership role. That has resulted in lessening the effectiveness of the Word of God in people’s lives.

The church leaders’ self-centeredness and their blithe indifference to the Lord’s calling them back to the cross have factored into their leadership role and have been detrimental to the work of the Lord and to the body of Christ.

Due to failure in leadership in the church, we are witnessing a generation that is unruly, selfish, and without respect for God or any authority figure. This darkness prevails because the forces of light, the church, have allowed this massacre to wreak havoc on society, on our cities, and on our nation, rather than standing up to it.

But the only way to stand up is to put our focus back on the cross and what the Lord did for us, and to have our faith again established on His Word.

We must also allow God’s Holy Spirit to lead us once again to His grace and mercy so that we will flow toward His will and He will meet our needs.

Jonah, in many ways, exemplifies the church leaders of today with respect to self-centeredness and arrogance, which has been a description of this generation. Humility and meekness cannot be found in today’s churches or among the church leaders. When I mention church leaders, I am describing those who are influential among their members.

The Old Testament book of Jonah describes many of today’s church members and leaders as it relates to spiritual matters. The background of the story is the Assyrians meddling attack against the Israelites (2 Kings 15–19), which displeased the prophet in his relationship with doing the Lord’s will. Jonah, the leading character of the book that bears his name, was devastated about the attack on his people, that when God called him to go to Nineveh to preach , he instead went the opposite way and took a ship bound for Tarshish. Just this one act shows the reader how much he had backslidden from God and put the nation in jeopardy of God’s wrath, along with the crew on the ship.

The church leaders are in the same downward spiral that Jonah found himself in and has all nations in jeopardy as well.

God is no respecter of persons. He knows the hearts of all; He tests and prods us toward the way of His will. He never violates our free will or freedom to choose. He allows storms to teach and persuade us back to the way of the cross. Like Nineveh, the church, the body of Christ, has the resources God has given—but due to poor leadership, we are in the same boat. We do not "know our right hand from the left."

The church leaders needs to seek the things of God that adds value to our character and faith. Making the church the center of humity and meekness is what the reader should take away from this perspective of the book. We need to see this road