Sermon Notes: “In The Belly of the Whale “
Dr. Kishore Vellody | October 12, 2025
17 And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:17
Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,
“I called out to the Lord, out of my distress,
and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
and you heard my voice. Jonah 2:1-2
For you cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,
and the flood surrounded me;
all your breakers and your waves
passed over me. Jonah 2:3
We find ourselves in the belly of the whale due to
- Sin/disobedience
God meets us in our sinfulness in the belly of the whale … and then is our Rescuer who calls us out!
We find ourselves in the belly of the whale due to
- Undeserved struggle/suffering
4 Then I said, ‘I am driven away
from your sight;
yet I shall again look
upon your holy temple.’
5 The waters closed in over me to take my life;
the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped about my head.
6 To the roots of the mountains I went down,
to the land whose bars closed upon me forever.
Jonah 2:4-6a
God meets us in our lowest moments in the belly of the whale … and stays with us as our Comforter and Healer …
40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish (sea monster), so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Matthew 12:40
In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea. Isaiah 27:1
We find ourselves in the belly of the whale due to
- Willingly entering because it is where we will find those who need a Savior
None of us have enough time to stand outside the belly of the whale and point fingers at those inside
Yet you brought up my life from the pit,
O Lord my God.
7 When my life was fainting away,
I remembered the Lord,
and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple.
8 Those who pay regard to vain idols
forsake their hope of steadfast love.
9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation belongs to the Lord!”
10 And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. Jonah 2:6b-10