Regeneration Nashville | Pastor Jasmine Brady | “The God Who Finishes Unfinished Stories”

The core of the gospel is redemption, where God takes unfinished or broken narratives—caused by our sin, failure, or hurt—and repurposes them through His grace. This message encourages believers to embrace the truth that Correction is not your enemy; Offense is (as discussed in our previous conversation, though not explicitly in these sources), and that God’s plan is always to bring restoration to past failures.

This summary focuses on the power of redemption, the crucial lesson from the Book of Jonah, and the ultimate transformation demonstrated by Peter and the early church.

1. The Divine Act of Redemption and Restoration

Redemption is God’s refusal to allow sin and failure to have the final word in a person’s life. When God redeems something, He doesn’t just repair it; He repurposes it.

Three Meanings of Redemption:

1. Jesus Pays the Price to Reclaim What is Lost: Jesus paid the price to redeem what is lost, whether it is a lost soul, a lost calling, a lost son, a lost ministry, or a lost purpose.
2. Jesus Restores Purpose from What Was Wasted: God restores purpose even from things that human eyes might label as a “waste”.
3. Jesus Reframes the Story: Even personal failure becomes a part of one’s testimony when redeemed by Jesus.

The good news is that we do not have to know how God will fix or make something wonderful out of a difficult past, because God is all-knowing and all-powerful.

Revisiting Old Places with New Grace

God often requires believers to revisit difficult places or past situations—not for shame, but to redeem the memory. He brings us back to old places with new graces.

• Restorying the Soul: As noted, God wants to “restory” the soul, picking up the pen to write a new page and a new chapter where the story does not end in failure, but in restoration and redemption.
• Safety in the Redeemer: When life is submitted to the Great Redeemer, believers are in a safe place, protected from being hurt again.
• The Power of God’s Love: “There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still”. God’s story is stronger than our sin, His calling is louder than our failure, and His redemption is greater than our regret.

Biblical Examples of Returning:

This theme of revisiting past situations for restoration runs throughout the Bible. Examples include:

• Moses had to return to Egypt after killing the Egyptian slave.
• Jacob had to face his brother Esau again after deceiving him.
• Peter had to face the charcoal fire again after denying Jesus three times; Jesus brought him back to that circumstance and asked him if he loved Him three times, thereby restoring him and commanding, “Feed my sheep”.

This revisiting of places, relationships, or circumstances is a work of the Holy Spirit and should not be a self-initiated search for every past mistake. The place of your greatest shame can become the place of your greatest story if you allow God to redeem it.

2. The Jonah Story: Rebellion vs. Redemption

The Book of Jonah provides a clear narrative contrasting rebellion with the potential for redemption, serving as an open-ended mission for the early church.

Jonah’s Rebellion and Descent

The word of the Lord came to Jonah, a prophet, instructing him to go to the great city of Nineveh to “cry out against it for their wickedness”. Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria, the nation responsible for decimating Israel and annihilating the ten tribes of the northern kingdom.

• Fleeing the Call: Jonah rebelled, setting out to flee to Tarsish, away from the presence of the Lord.
• The Drumbeat of Descent: Jonah went down to Japa, down into the ship, down into the sea, and down to the belly of the fish, demonstrating the spiritual descent that occurs when fleeing God’s call.
• Reluctant Obedience: After being swallowed by a great fish and cast onto the shore, Jonah reluctantly preached, only devoting one day to preaching in Nineveh, though it was a three-day journey.
• The Result of Grace: Despite Jonah’s reluctance, the people of Nineveh repented, resulting in one of the greatest revivals the Bible records.
• Jonah’s Anger: Jonah was angry that God showed mercy, saying he knew God was gracious, loving, and slow to wrath.
• Unfinished Story: The book ends on a cliffhanger—Jonah pouting and wishing he were dead, with no recorded reconciliation or repentance. This ending invites believers to consider if they would willingly extend forgiveness to their enemies.

The Significance of the Gentile Mission

God instructing Jonah to preach to Nineveh was a significant step, extending God’s message from the family of Abraham to the whole world (Gentiles). Without the gospel going to the Gentiles, salvation would not be available to people who are not Jews.