Learning From Jonah: You Don’t Want To Run From God
Shared on October 27, 2024
When God gives you an assignment, it’s best that you take up that assignment. The last thing you should ever try to do is run from God. Join Pastor McCrary for this week’s lesson as he takes a look at Jonah’s choice of trying to run from God.
Introduction
This week’s lesson shifts our focus away from Daniel as we will take a look at Jonah for the next few weeks. This week’s lesson also takes us into the last unit of lessons for this question which is titled – Jonah: A Resistant Prophet. There is an incredibly important lesson to be learned through Jonah, so let’s lock in and dive into this week’s lesson.
Jonah’s Commission
The selected scripture of this week’s lesson picks up nearly midway through the first chapter of Jonah. So, because of that, I want to share a bit of background information so that we can have an idea for what’s taking place in the selected scripture.
The Book of Jonah opens with Jonah receiving a commission (task) from God. God tasks Jonah with going to Nineveh and crying out against it because their wickedness had become before the Lord (Jon. 1:1-2). Pretty straightforward assignment, right?
Jonah’s Disobedience
Well, for Jonah, this assignment was a major problem. Why was that? Well, Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. The Assyrians had conquered Israel, the northern kingdom. According 2 Kings 14:25, Jonah, the son of Amittai, was from “Gath Hepher”. Gath Hepher’s location was in the northern kingdom of Israel.
So, Jonah had likely suffered because of the Assyrians. We know that he survived the Assyrians conquering the land, but we don’t know that about any family or friends. The chances are high that Jonah lost loved ones at the hands of the Assyrians.
Rather than completing the assigned task, Jonah chose to flee to Tarshis. Let’s be clear, Jonah made the choice to run from God and the task given to him.
Scripture tells us that he made his way south from Gath to Joppa. Joppa was a coastal city which sat off the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. To get to Tarshish, Jonah would have to get in a boat and sail across the Mediterranena to the west, a direction completely opposite of Nineveh (Jon. 1:3).
Jonah was disobeying God’s assignment, again, by choice. Jonah’s disobedience was a blatant choice stemming from hate. Jonah’s actions were completely opposite to Daniel’s actions, right? The Babylonians had conquered Daniel’s people but did it keep him from serving the Babylonians? Did Daniel stop moving faithfully?
There are many of us who are a lot like Jonah. When people wrong us, we will choose to have nothing to do with them. Jesus taught that true love is to love even our enemies – those that despise, persecute, and even use us (Matt. 5:44-45). Jonah was being tasked to love his enemies but it seems he found doing that impossible.
How would God respond? Do you think God ignores disobedience? Do you think God ignores your disobedience? I know for certanity that God doesn’t ignore our disobedience. This is why we must always be prayerful that the Lord is merciful and will forgive us of our unrighteousness, right?
God’s Response to Jonah’s Disobedience
God sent a storm to the ship that Jonah had boarded (Jon. 4:4). The storm was so bad that those sailing with Jonah feared for their lives as the boat was about to be broken up. So, God’s response to Jonah’s disobedience was not kind.
Jonah had not thought anything about choosing not to do what God had tasked him to do. To show you this, scripture tells us that Jonah had gone to the lower parts and was sleeping through the storm! I don’t know about you, but when I know that I have sinned – disobeyed God – I feel awful and filled with regret!
So the men came, woke him up, and told him to call on his God as the others had been calling on their gods (Jon. 1:6). I imagine that Jonah woke up, still not thinking anything about what was going on. What’s even more fascinating about this is the fact that the idolaters seemed to recognize more quickly than Jonah that something was not quite right about the storm!
Our lesson opens with the men casting lots to see who was the cause of the supernatural storm (Jon. 1:7). The lots fell on Jonah being the cause of the supernatural storm. Now, let’s be very clear, the falling of the lots wasn’t a random coincidence!
God was clearly sending a message to Jonah, first through the storm that he had slept through, and now through the falling of the lots. When God speaks to us, His message is very clear. A lot of times we struggle to recognize His message because we either aren’t paying attention or don’t want to recognize His message.
Jonah’s Response to God
God was rebuking Jonah. This now puts the shoe on Jonah foot with a choice that he now has to make. Sinners choose to ignore God’s rebuke whereas the believer is one that heeds His rebuke. For example, Jesus was God’s rebuke to the world as He called on all people to repent and turn from sin. Sinners ignore the call of Christ whereas believers choose to heed God’s rebuke and live in repentance.
With the falling of the lots, God’s rebuke was now too obvious to miss for Jonah, especially when idolaters were recognizing signs. The men confronted Jonah about who he was and what he had done to cause the storm to come upon them (Jon. 1:8).
Again, I find it so interesting that the idolaters were so aware of things not being right on a spiritual level – this had to be a wake up call for Jonah. If sinners are picking up on spiritual signs before us, then something isn’t right! So, Jonah answered the men and acknowledged being Hebrew and fearing the Lord who made the world (Jon. 1:9).
Jonah’s acknowledging of God here kind of makes me wonder whether or not he really believed in what he said. Again, when I sin, knowingly, I certainly fear what God’s response will be. I will pray to the Lord for mercy for not wanting to suffer or to even face punishment. Jonah had boarded a boat and went to sleep knowing he was being disobedient!
The men asked Jonah, “Why have you done this (Jon. 1:10)?” The scripture tells us that the men knew Jonah had fled from the presence of God because he had told them. It’s almost as if they are asking Jonah, if you feared God, why did you flee and disobey Him?
That’s a question to ask ourselves when we choose to sin and disobey God’s command. Like Jonah, God has commanded us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Yet, so many so-called believers do everything but love their neighbor. Do we truly fear the Lord when we can’t follow the command of loving all people?
When the men asked Jonah what they should do with him, Jonah told them to throw him into the sea (Jon. 1:11-12). Jonah was seemingly accepting that he was the cause of the trouble – accepting God’s rebuke and acknowledging his sin. Rather than throwing him into the sea, the men tried to row back to land against the storm and against God (Jon 1:13).
Going Against God’s Will
There is no going against God when He has made His judgment. There is no going against God’s will. Jonah had tried to run from God’s will and he could not run nor hide from the Lord. The men tried it and eventually realized that they were going nowhere fast. So, they cried out pleading for mercy from God (Jon. 1:14).
A reminder, these were men who had cried out to their gods but were now crying out to the one true God! Was this them now making a choice to turn to God? I believe so! Their cry for mercy seems genuine as they prayed for the Lord not to charge them with innocent blood. Jonah had made God known to them and they believed.
So, the men picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea (Jon. 1:15). After doing that, the sea immediately calmed down. This goes to show that the Lord heard their cry for mercy and He showed them mercy! In God-fearing faith, the men made an offering to the Lord and took vows of faith (Jon. 1:16)! They learned right away that it’s foolish to go against God.
As for Jonah, our lesson comes to a close with Jonah being swallowed by a great fish where he remained for three days and three nights. In the belly of this fish, Jonah would have plenty of time to consider the error of his way, right? I do want to say that there are times when God will put you into a position to consider your ways.
I certainly believe I have had those times in my life. From my own personal experience, it is definitely best to use that time wisely and make proper changes, right? Disobedience is not met with a reward of God’s blessing. No, disobeying God is met with a rebuke that one should heed and then move in repentance. Will Jonah choose to move in repentance? That is what we will take a look at in our lesson next week.
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