Jonah's Spiral Downward
Jonah 1:1-3
Jonah’s Spiral Downward
Scripture: Jonah 1–4, especially Jonah 1:1–3: “Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.’ But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.”
Introduction: The Book of Jonah differs from other minor prophets. It is a narrative, biographical rather than prophetic. It’s the story of a servant, a storm, and a sovereign God. Jonah is God-called but disobedient; the storm is God-appointed and God-controlled, and God’s powerful attributes are evident throughout the story. Jonah himself is a strange paradox: a prophet of God, and yet fleeing from God; thrown into the sea, yet alive; a preacher of repentance, yet needing repentance. He is pictured as sanctified in spots, self-willed, godly, courageous, prayerful, obedient after chastisement, bigoted, concerned with his own reputation, zealous for the Lord. As if this was not enough, Jonah is a great missionary book, and Jonah himself a great evangelist.
1. The Rebellious Prophet (ch. 1).
A. The Word Heard (vv. 1, 2). God spoke to Jonah and instructed him to go to the wicked city of Nineveh and cry against it because of its wickedness. This word from God was a definite word, a disturbing word, a distinct word, and a disobeyed word.
B. The Will Hardened (v. 3). Jonah understood God’s Word and yet he was uncomfortable with God’s Word and unwilling to obey God’s Word. He acted as people often do who don’t like God’s commands—he rebelled and ran away, thus removing himself as far as possible from being under the influence of God.
C. The Wrath Hurled (vv. 4–16). The truths embedded in these verses include the
1. directed storm (v. 4),
2. discovered sin (vv. 5–13), and the
3. devoted sailors (vv. 14–16).
D. The Whale Handy (v. 17). The sailors cast Jonah into the sea and a huge fish swallowed him. Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Truths found in this verse include the
1. prepared fish,
2. providential fact,
3. prophetic figure, and the
4. prophet’s fate.
2. The Repentant Prophet (ch. 2).
A. The Servant Speaks (vv. 1–9). These verses record Jonah’s
1. supplication (v. 1),
2. suffering (v. 2),
3. statement (vv. 3–6),
4. submission (vv. 7–8), and
5. singing (v. 9).
Jonah’s prayer reveals a note of triumph. He prayed out of the belly of the fish but with an absolute confidence in God and in His deliverance. He had disobeyed God and God had disciplined him and now he abandoned his disobedience and vowed to be obedient—obey God’s Word.
B. The Sovereign Speaks (v. 10). This verse reminds us of the
1. faithfulness of Jehovah,
2. freedom of Jonah, and
3. focus on Jehovah and Jonah.
God caused the fish to vomit Jonah up on dry land. God hears and heeds the prayers of His people.
3. The Re-commissioned Prophet (ch. 3).
A. The Willing Prophet (vv. 1–4).
1. The Renewed Commission (vv. 1–2). God is a God of second chances. Illustrations abound that confirm this—Peter, Thomas, John Mark, and Samson. God disciplines Jonah for his rebellion, Jonah repents, and the word of the Lord comes a second time. This time Jonah is ready to obey God’s word. He recognized that this second chance was undeserved, unexpected, unparalleled, unique, and unequivocal. God did not change the task but changed His man.
2. The Ready Compliance (vv. 3–4). Jonah is as ready to obey now as he was to disobey in the beginning.
B. The Wicked People (vv. 5–9). The people of Nineveh responded to the message of Jonah. They
1. believed (v. 5).
2. It affected their behavior (v. 5).
3. The repentance began with the leaders and extended to the people (vv. 6–7).
4. They beseeched God for mercy (vv. 8–9).
C. The Wondrous Pardon (v. 10). God saw their conduct and spared the city. Divine judgment was averted.
4. The Raging Prophet (ch. 4). Jonah was filled with rage when God spared the city.
A. The Grieved Prophet (vv. 1–5).
1. His grief (v. 1) in light of God’s action reveals his shortsightedness, selfishness, stubbornness, and superficiality.
2. His grip (v. 2) indicated that he knew this would be God’s response to the repentance of the people of Nineveh and he didn’t want God to withhold judgment.
3. His groaning (v. 3). Jonah wanted to die.
4. His grace (v. 4). God responded to Jonah’s attitude and actions with gentle, gracious grace.
5. His grudge (v. 5). He went out of the city and made a booth and sat in its shadow waiting to see what God would do.
B. The Gracious Provision (vv. 6–11). God dealt with Jonah by using:
1. the plant (v. 6),
2. the pest (v. 7),
3. the passion (v. 8), and
4. the principle (vv. 9–11).
Conclusion: The love of God in our hearts will constrain us to that full commitment which God sought from Jonah and which he received so joyfully from Paul. To be an effective servant of the Lord one must, like Jonah, die to the lusts, the attractions, allurements, and rewards which man has to offer and be content with the compensation which God gives. We must be worldwide witness. We must hear God’s call to a solemn, sacred stewardship of life and possessions.
| APPROPRIATE HYMNS AND SONGS |
| Trust and Obey, Rev. John H. Sammis/Daniel B. Towner; Public Domain.A Man with a Perfect Heart, Jack Hayford; © 1995 Annamarie Music (Admin. by Maranatha! Music.).Blessed Are the Broken, David Baroni; © 1994 Integrity’s Praise! Music.Jonah, Ron Hamiliton; © 1981 Musical Ministries (Admin. by Majesty Music, Inc.).Where He Leads Me, E.W. Blandy/John S. Norris; Public Domain. |
| FOR THE BULLETIN |
| ✶The Third General Council of the church convened in Ephesus on June 22, 431, primarily to deal with the Nestorian heresy. ✶ Queen Elizabeth’s Prayer Book was published on this day in 1559. ✶ America’s first “Blue Laws” requiring church attendance in Virginia were enacted on June 22, 1611. Everyone was required, morning and afternoon, to attend services on the Sabbath. Penalty for the first offense was economic sanction; second offenders were whipped. ✶ Commentator Matthew Henry died on June 22, 1714. ✶ On this day in 1750, Jonathan Edwards was dismissed from his pulpit in Northampton, Massachusetts by popular vote, after serving there 23 years. |
| STATS, STORIES AND MORE |
| Is Jonah Historical?“It is a mistake (based in part on the difficulty some readers have in coming to terms with the miraculous character of the story line) to assume that the events and actions of the book are not historical in nature. While the story line is unusual, it is presented as normal history. Further, Jesus used the story of Jonah as an analogy of His own impending death and resurrection (Matt. 12:39–41). Jesus’ analogy depends on the recognition of two historical realities: (1) the historical experience of Jonah in the belly of the great fish, and (2) the historical experience of the repentance of the people of Nineveh based on the preaching of Jonah (Luke 11:29–32). Indeed, the phrase ‘the sign of the prophet Jonah’ must have been a recurring phrase in the teaching of Christ, for it is found on more than one occasion in Matthew’s account of Christ’s ministry (Matt. 16:4). Thus any view of the Book of Jonah that does not assume it describes historical events is obliged to explain away the clear words of Jesus to the contrary.”—From Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary, edited by Earl Radmacher, Ronald B. Allen, and H. Wayne House.ObedienceA missionary translator was endeavoring to find a word for “obedience” in the native language. This was a virtue seldom practiced among the people into whose language he wanted to translate the New Testament. As he returned home from the village one day, he whistled for his dog and it came running at full speed. An old man, seeing this, said, admiringly in the native tongue, “Your dog is all ear.” Immediately the missionary knew he had his word for obedience.—from Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations by Paul Lee Tan. |
| WORSHIP HELPS |
| Call to Worship:“Come we that love the Lord, and let our joys be known. Join in a song with accord and thus surround the throne”—Isaac WattsPastoral Prayer:We are distracted today, O Father, many of us. We have heavy loads, multiplied burdens, busy lives, and short attention spans. Please forgive our scattered thoughts, and teach us now to “stay” our minds on You. Lord, we would see Jesus today. Lord, we would cast our cares on You. Lord, we would rest ourselves in Your mercy. Give us today a wondrous sense of Your magnificent presence, and in the light of Your glory may our perspective be healed and helped. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.Scripture Reading Medley:Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (Taken from Ps. 32:8; Prov. 3:5–6; Isa. 30:21.) |
| KIDS TALK |
| Have a fish bowl. Describe the fish to the children and talk God’s creative genius. He is able to create funny little creatures that live under the water and move by wagging their tails. Ask: “If God can make a little fish, don’t you think He could make a big one? Jonah 1:17 says, ‘The Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah.’ Some people don’t believe that, but I do. After all, the real miracle is that God could make something as complex and wonderful as fish to begin with. The size, large or small, is just a detail.” |
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[1]Morgan, R. J. 2002. Nelson's annual preacher's sourcebook : 2003 edition (electronic ed.) . Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nashville
Introduction
Sermon text with italics and bold and John 3:16 and v. 20.
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