Running Away From God
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Running Away! The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.
Running Away! The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.
Orders Received
A. Orders Received! (Jon. 1:1-2)
3 But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.
There were few prophets available at this time, Hosea, Amos and Jonah were about the only 3 men prophesying to all Israel.
There were few prophets available at this time, Hosea, Amos and Jonah were about the only 3 men prophesying to all Israel.
a. At this time the Northern Kingdom was enjoying the greatest strength militarily and monetarily since the days of Solomon.
b. Judah too was strong and healthy at this time.
c. Because of this quiet affluence there was no war, but also the people of God had become lax in their worship of God.
In their lax attitudes toward God in prosperity and peace God decides to talk to both nations.
a. Amos came from the Southern kingdom and prophesied to the Northern Kingdom, his style was a bit harsher than the native son of the Northern kingdom Hosea ... who wept over the Northern kingdom's indifference to real worship!
b. Jonah means "A Dove.” Jonah is a picture of the Believer. The name, Amittai, means "My Truth." He also came from the Northern Kingdom ... although not far from the border between the two, had already prophesied this how the Northern Kingdom would become strong In .
God desired to speak to His people, even if they weren't anxious to hear!
a. The 3 prophets each had the same message ... but different styles because of their context
b. Amos spoke harshly against the Northern kingdom ... he was from the Southern!
c. Hosea wept over the Northern Kingdoms indifference, his tone was much softer for he identified with the Northern kingdom!
d. Jonah was popular and had gained a good reputation among the Hebrews for his word had come true about the expanded kingdom and prosperity ... They were God's privileged people and they liked this special status, prosperity, and peace!
Now you can understand why Jonah wasn't thrilled with God's orders ... although it concerned a harsh word against a huge enemy Gentile city (Nineveh) ... Jonah knew God was loving and forgiving and the last thing he wanted to see was a bunch of Gentiles get in on the kingdom blessings by repenting of their sins!
a. Jonah understood that these wicked enemies of Israel MIGHT repent; and if so, God would be good to them ... which; would make Jonah as a prophet look bad to his own people who loved him for his good and favorable words of prosperity and peace.
b. Use a personal example from the Marines about receiving orders
b. would make Jonah as a prophet look bad to his own people who loved him for his good and favorable words of prosperity and peace.
B. Organized Resistance! (Jon. 1:3)
Jonah probably thought, if I get out of the PROMISE land, the land of God's promise and calling ... then God either couldn't find him or get anyone else to go and "save" these Gentiles!
He pays a boat fare, the destination is the farthest point known in the world at that time in the opposite direction from Nineveh! While Nineveh was east, he decides to buy a boat ticket to the furthest point west known to man in those days!
a. He carefully plans his opposition and running from God!
b. Travels to nearby Joppa on the coast.
c. Purchases a boat ticket.
d. Hops on board and justifies his actions all the way! EVEN THOUGH HE KNEW BETTER! How many times do we Christians do this?
e. The irony here is that to prevent God from savings hundreds of thousands of Gentiles Jonah gets on board a Gentile ship! He doesn't mind using them... when he should have been saving them!
Why would God send Noah to Nineveh now! Because Nineveh had just gone through 2 serious plagues and a solar eclipse which in those days were frightening to unsaved people ... and the people of the town were ripe for repentance! God knew this, and so did Jonah, only Jonah didn't want it to happen and God did!
a. This was jealously at work with the Hebrews enjoying the blessings of God as a special people; they didn't want anyone else to cash in on it ... especially not Gentiles!
b. Yet this had been God's plan all along ... once they were secure and strong they were supposed to be doing missionary work and taking God's message to the nations of the world!
c. Jonah refuses to be the missionary to the Gentiles, but using them and riding on their boats is ok!
d. Use a personal example of God calling you to ministry but were afraid to answer.
Reckless Attitude. Then the LORD sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” 7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” 9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.) 11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
Reckless Attitude. Then the LORD sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” 7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” 9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.) 11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”
7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.)
A. Operation Rescue!
A. Operation Rescue!
11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”
A. Operation Rescue! (Jon. 1:4-5)
You know you can’t really run away from God!
Sure enough God knows exactly where Jonah is ... and sends him a message via the air and water! THINGS GET REAL STORMY when we run from God!
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
While Jonah lay sound asleep in the belly of the boat caring nothing for the Gentiles he was riding with, they are battling the storm, trying to save not only their own lives, BUT HIS! They cared more for him then what he was showing toward them!
a. Why the bottom of the boat ... because when you run from God you like to hide!
b. What a contrast to the time when Jesus was sound asleep in the belly of a boat during a storm! His sleep was sweet, Jonah's was escape!
What Jonah didn't know was that running away from God by hiding in the belly of the boat would cost him a return ticket in the belly of a great fish where he would confront God anyway!
The men sacrificed everything they owned to try and save their lives and Jonah's ... while Jonah wouldn't sacrifice anything to see 100,000's of lives saved!
B. Ornery Rider! ()
"How can you sleep" ... a question I've asked many a backslider!
All these Gentiles ask is for Jonah to call upon whatever God he served ... the least he could do at a moment like this for them!
Still he refuses and acts indifferent! They had a real problem on their hands ... an ornery believer! Nothing could be worse!
a. Instead of helping them, he continues to just be ornery and obnoxious.
b. They came to Jonah for help, they didn't mind asking a Jew for help as Gentiles; but he being Jewish he had no interest in helping them as Gentiles ... after all, he didn't care about the 100,000's of Gentiles in Nineveh either!
c. How many sleeping prophets are here and dopey saints?
C. Obvious Reason ()
Having exhausted every logical approach to the storm they assume this is not just some odd accident of nation ... someone has brought this upon them!
As Jonah watched, they cast lots to find out who was the reason for the angry gods or god! Guess who the lot fell to -- JONAH!
Even unbelievers can be disgusted with miserable saints who are trying to run from God!
a. Quickly they asked all the logical questions
b. Who is responsible for this trouble?
c. What do you do?
d. Where do you come from?
e. What is your country?
f. Who are your people?
g. IRONICALLY he states to them that he belongs to the people of the one true God and that he is a worshipper! How interesting ... he can brag about his membership, but be out on the boat running from God while his brethren are worshipping!
h. They immediately made the connections, and they were terrified ... Jonah had told them already that he was running from God, but now they realized that this might be the ONE REAL GOD since all their appeals had failed to their false gods!
What this meant was that their safety was in the hands of a stranger ... one that didn't seem to care a whole lot about them or others!
The final obvious question was, "WHAT CAN WE DO TO YOU TO MAKE THIS STORM CALM DOWN?"
Repentance Accepted. Jonah 12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” 13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried out to the LORD, “Please, LORD, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, LORD, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him. 17 Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Repentance Accepted. Jonah 12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” 13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried out to the LORD, “Please, LORD, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, LORD, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him. 17 Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried out to the LORD, “Please, LORD, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, LORD, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him.
A. Overboard Results! ()
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Jonah's answer was simple and honest! "Throw me overboard!"
The New International Version. (2011). (). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
a. This quick answer demonstrates the state of mind he was in ... while he acknowledges his sin he seeks to play the role of a martyr in the end!
b. Martyrdom using the means of going overboard!
Though he repents of sorts ... he at least assumes his death will mean that the capital city of the Assyrian empire, Nineveh won't hear and repent! While he is sorry enough to save the lives of these few Gentiles on this boat, he still hopes not to have to see hundreds of thousands saved from Nineveh!
Ironically again, the men refuse this harsh treatment and continue to do everything humanely possible to save Jonah as well as themselves!
a. They were more compassionate towards him than he to them!
b. If he really was sorry for his sin, he could have just offered to jump without their help of throwing him overboard ... but he doesn't offer to simply jump himself, he wants them to throw him overboard!
c. They realize human effort won't work ... so the PRAY TO THE GOD OF JONAH!
d. They ask for God's forgiveness before they act!
e. They acknowledge the innocent blood they would be spilling!
f. They acknowledge the Sovereignty of God in the process!
g. Then they threw Jonah overboard ... and the sea immediately calmed down!
h. This brought a great sense of conviction on them about God!
i. Jonah's rebellion would save even these few Gentiles ... they sought for God by making sacrifices for their sins ... and making vows before the true God!
Would Jonah have been mad if he knew that these Gentiles had gotten saved in the process of his rebellion? Now he has several Gentile converts on his conscious!
a. Poor Jonah, he couldn't even disobey God without someone getting saved!
b. How ironic is God's love that even our worst actions can sometimes lead to other people's redemption!
B. Ocean Ride ()
But Jonah had an even bigger surprise waiting for him! As he fell overboard thinking, "at least Nineveh won't hear the gospel" what happens? HE GETS SWALLOWED BY A GREAT SEA CREATURE ... something as big as a whale!
He couldn't run away from God like he thought!
a. Now, he who rode in the belly of a comfortable ship … would now return in the belly of a smelly fish!
The ride back to God can sometimes be uncomfortable... but it is better than never returning!
b. He would now return in the belly of a smelly fish!
Had Jonah originally gone to Nineveh it would have been a one month trip ... now it cost him MORE time because of the detour he took!
a. What did he gain by trying to run from God!?
b. Bitterness
c. Storming climate
d. A ride in the belly of a huge fish, slop and all! (if you think handling a fish makes you smell, try living in one for 3 days)!
e. How much better if he had obeyed God in the first place and not run!
God got the first word and the last ... He always does you know! Jonah bought a one way ticket, and got a free return trip ... God doesn't let go of us very easily but that doesn't mean the return trip is always smooth!
Why fight it? Why run away from God?
a. Usually it is because we are bitter against God ... so we think we are going to get even with Him, imagine that!
b. Sometimes we are running away because we are afraid God might do something wonderful and then we have to adjust our hearts toward this miracle. It seems easier to run away! Sometimes we hope God won't answer because then we might have to accept something we don't really want ... so we run hoping we won't have to be responsible or so it won't happen!
c. God might let you run a certain distance, but remember that return trip ... the longer you're running away the more time spent in the belly of the fish on the return trip!