Running Away

Purpose

Jonah had a purpose, as a prophet, a man of God, to fulfill his calling from God regardless of his bias;

Yet Jonah, like many people today, wanted his bias to overrule God’s grace;

Because of his bias, his hatred, his despise of Nineveh he tried the impossible to run away from God.

Storms Come

We can sometimes cause our own storms in life by being disobedient to God;

Jonah was given clear directions by God in verse 2 - 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.”

The New King James Version. (1982). (Jon 1:2). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Nineveh was sinful city that was known for it’s immorality, idolatry, violence and cruel warfare tactics;

Jonah hated Nineveh with all his being and wanted nothing more than for God to destroy it;

So instead of following God 600 miles Jonah tried to run 2,000 miles, and found himself caught in a storm;

However Jonah didn’t care, remember he was sleeping while others were dealing with the effects of his disobedience;

Isn’t interesting that Jonah claimed to worship the same God that he was trying to run from.

God Feared

Up to this point Jonah - the prophet - has defied God, ran from God, and endangered others;

Yet the non-believing Gentiles were more afraid of sinning against God by throwing Jonah overboard;

And in contrast Jonah was more willing to be drowned than to minister where God wanted him to minister;

However when the storm calmed the non-believing Gentiles realized the power of Yahweh and vowed to worship Him.