Escaping God

Jonah

Literary Satire using extreme circumstances and humor and irony to make many strong points about our God and the way we sometimes act in relation to him.

Jonah belongs to a group of writings called “the Prophets,” but this story is about the prophet himself, not his words.

Unique book that Jesus referenced in his teaching, and is worthy of our study. It’s not about a fish. It’s about the God behind the fish.

Jonah 1:1–16 NIV

1 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. 4 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?” 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.

Escaping God

It’s very clear what Jonah wants to do, run away from the LORD and head for Tarshish (v. 3).

But is that even possible? Is it possible to go some place where God is not?

Job 7:19 NIV

19 Will you never look away from me, or let me alone even for an instant?

Psalm 139:8 NIV

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

Amos 9:2–3 NIV

2 Though they dig down to the depths below, from there my hand will take them. Though they climb up to the heavens above, from there I will bring them down. 3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel, there I will hunt them down and seize them. Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them.

Matthew 28:20 NIV

20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

I think this last one often gives us comfort, but if we’re not walking with Christ, should we find his presence comforting?

Escaping God

Jonah believed in God. He heard the word of God. He talks to God. His fleeing indicates he believed God was real. This isn’t a story about a lack of faith in God, but rather anger.

Jonah was angry at God, and he prays to God and chews him out in chapter 4. Jonah is angry because God is sending him to “those people.”

Nineveh was Gentile. They are not “like us.” They had done bad things in the past. Jonah didn’t believe they deserved God saving, let alone even hearing a word from God.

When God calls Jonah out of his comfort zone, he gets mad. And he tries to escape from God. He wants to go to Tarshish, the furthest known place in the world at that time.

The text uses the imagery of Jonah going “down” as he tries to run from God. He goes down to Joppa to hire a ship.

“paying the fare” probably indicates he rented the entire ship. This voyage was all about him.

He went down into the ship to sleep, to do what he wanted, to forget his situation.

And ultimately he tells the crew to throw him down into the sea. The most selfish move of all. Jonah wanted so badly not to do what God was calling him to that he’d rather convince a crew to kill him, and he’d rather die in the stormy sea than obey God!

God called Jonah to Nineveh and Jonah wanted no part of it, so he tried to escape from God. What is God calling you to that you’re currently trying to escape?

The question is still out there, can you escape from God?

Jonah was going to Tarshish, a place where the name of the LORD was not spoken. Life didn’t revolve around following him there. You could go through your day and never encounter a person or object that would make you think about the LORD. LIFE WAS LIVED AS IF THERE WERE NO LORD OF HEAVEN AND EARTH.

Look at our culture. Can you live life comfortably as if there were no LORD of heaven and earth?

We can fill all our attention with godless circles of friends, and chase after our own interests so much that the name of God never comes from our lips, except to enhance our profanity.

We can never remember what God has done for us, we can stay away from worship, we can avoid Christians, we can hide our Bibles and never look at them, we can completely remove God from our thoughts and actions and be completely worldly.

WE CAN FORGET ABOUT GOD AND LIVE IN “TARSHISH.” IT’S AVAILABLE WITHOUT GOING ANYWHERE.

BUT GOD IS NEVER ABSENT. GOD WHO CREATED AND SUSTAINS ALL LIFE IS NEVER ABSENT.

We can forget him and his word and his works and live as though he does not exist, just like Jonah wanted to, but God is still there!

Forgetting God

Scripture often talks about sin by talking about forgetting God and his work in our lives.

Psalm 78:11 NIV

11 They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them.

Psalm 106:13 NIV

13 But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his plan to unfold.

Psalm 106:21 NIV

21 They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt,

The people of Israel lived in the forgetfulness of Tarshish, even though they didn’t leave their homeland. We can be guilty of the same if we aren’t intentional.

Jesus had to constantly remind his followers of what he had done and said!

Mark 8:18 NIV

18 Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?

John 15:20 NIV

20 Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.

The angel had to remind the women about what Jesus had said concerning the empty tomb!

Luke 24:6 NIV

6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:

2 Timothy 2:8 NIV

8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,

Worship Regularly

Isn’t it strange that when the power of God is displayed through the storm Jonah wants to drown in the sea to forget, yet the pagan sailors offer sacrifice and take vows to God?

JONAH FAILED TO REMEMBER. GOD DIDNT’ LET HIM FORGET. AND I THINK IF WE’RE HONEST, WE MAY TRY TO ESCAPE GOD BUT THERE ARE TOO MANY THINGS AROUND US TO LET US FORGET GOD.

This is one of the reasons that we have worship as a firstfruit here. WE WANT TO KEEP WHAT GOD HAS DONE FOR US IN THE FRONT OF OUR MINDS SO WE DON’T WIND UP FORGETTING!

Relentless Grace

God called Jonah to Nineveh and Jonah wanted no part of it, so he tried to escape from God. What is God calling you to that you’re currently trying to escape?

Either you, or someone you know is trying to Escape God. BE THE CONSTANT REMINDER IN THEIR LIVES THAT WE HAVE A GOD WHO WILL NEVER LEAVE US EVEN THOUGH WE TRY TO LEAVE HIM!

HE WANTS TO SAVE EVERYONE, EVEN THE ONES WE MAY NOT THINK ARE WORTH SAVING…GOD DOES!

-RUN FROM GOD AND HE WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU. BUT DRAW NEAR TO GOD, AND HE WILL DRAW NEAR TO YOU.

Find your home in a place where the name of God is known and spoken, where friends and family follow Christ and help you do the same.

Don’t be like Jonah, because fleeing from God will lead you down, down, down, eventually to death. But to obey Christ, and to walk with him is life where God’s RELENTLESS GRACE always wins.