Jonah Part III
Notes
Transcript
Jonah Chapter 2
Jonah Chapter 2
We have covered so far:
A Rebel & the Storm-Making God Ch 1:1-6
Lot Casters & the Idol-Smashing God 1:7-17
Tonight we are going to cover A Thankful Man & the Fish-Saving God
What are some things that have happened so far?
Jonah ran from God v.3
He boarded a ship heading to Tarshish v.3
The Lord caused a great storm v.4
They thought they were going to to die v.5
They cast lots v.7
They question Jonah v.8
They are more afraid v.10
Jonah asks to be thrown into the sea v.12
They tried to save themselves but can’t v.13
They pray to God v.14
They throw Jonah into the sea v.15
Before we begin I have two questions I want you to answer on your sheet. One is deep, one is not.
Based on how you spend your time over the course of a week/month/year—what two things do you value most in your life? I.e.—what two things do you spend the most time on?
What is something you don’t want to do under any circumstance no matter what? Job, task, chore…
Lets read tonights passage
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. 1 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. 3 For you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all your waves and your billows passed over me. 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 at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; 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 was so willing to run from God he got into a boat and went the complete other direction. And then he was either so afraid of God or so willing to rebel against God he would rather jump to his death then listen.
I think it was probably a little of both. Jonah doesn’t cry out—Lord I’m sorry, I will go. Spare their lives.
I think part of him says I disobeyed, there is punishment for that which is death.
I think there is another part that says I would rather drown then go to Nineveh. And so they throw him in.
Has anyone ever been to the ocean? Have you ever been out on the ocean? Far enough out you can no longer see land? We went on a cruise and you get far enough out you can literally see nothing but water in all directions. It can be scary. The water is not calm by the way. Even at “calm” there is significant waves.
And in the midst of that imagine looking out in a storm and then jumping or being thrown in. Many people admit there worst fear is drowning. You are helpless, you can fight and fight but at some point the water takes over your body and you can no longer breathe.
You know what often happens when someone drowns is not that they die from water but rather lack of oxygen. Your body needs oxygen to survive and your lungs cannot process air under water and so eventually your brain suffocates from lack of oxygen.
Jonah is probably scared to death. He is thrown into the water to drown.
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 then goes into prayer. This story is a prayer and this is a prayer within that prayer:
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 at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; 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.
Our children’s story and cartoons do a bad depiction of this because it implies he jumped out of the boat and into the fish. No he was drowning. It says the waters closed over him to kill him, the seaweed wrapped around his head. He sunk to the bottom of the sea.
While he was in the water he realizes he has disobeyed and has been punished for that and acknowledges that.
Why do your parents discipline you?
To protect, to train, to correct
Lets read a couple verses:
5 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” 7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
11 My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, 12 for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.
Discipline is a good thing. God is showing his love towards us when he corrects and restores us. Jonah acknowledges this and then moves from thanking the Lord to committing to serve.
9 But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!”
He will go to Nineveh and he will proclaim the gospel like he has been told to.
10 And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.
Discussion
Based on your use of your free time, what do you value in life? What value do spiritual disciples and service within your congregation have to you?
Consider again the structure of Jonah’s two prayers within Jonah 2. What is the relationship between the prayer in the depths and the prayer in the fish? How does each contribute to the other?
Keller says, “An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, “If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.” What are some things in life from which you might be drawing an inordinate amount of self-worth, personal value or even a sense of security?
What are some ways in which people can mask totally depraved lives and fool themselves about their own ability to handle life apart from God’s help? What are some dreadful things the Lord uses to awaken people to the truth about the desperation of their situations and their need for Him?
How does Jonah compare to Christ in this chapter? What might this comparison reveal about how we should read the storyline of Scripture?
40 For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.