A Whale of A Tale
Notes
Transcript
17 Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Introduction
Introduction
This morning, we are going to continue our look at the Life of Jonah. You could say what we are looking at “A Whale of A Tale” today...
We’ve looked already up through verse 16 of chapter 1. We have only one verse here that we’ve not covered and with the help of the Lord, I’m going to preach on this one verse this morning.
You know? God has an amazing was of getting our attention!
We are going to talk about a fish this morning…And unlike many fish stories, this one is absolutely true!
The main character of Jonah to most people is the fish.
Thomas Carlisle said, “I was so interested with what was going on inside the whale that I missed seeing the drama inside Jonah.”
That’s one extreme, but the other extreme is to ignore the fish altogether. When Jonah sank below the waves, God sent a “great fish” (not necessarily but probably a whale) to swallow him.
And God kept Jonah in the fish’s belly for three days and nights and then the fish vomited him up on dry land. I’m sure Jonah was thankful that the fish listened to God better than he had.
Today we look at this remarkable rescue.
The book of Jonah, more than any other portion of Scripture in the Old Testament, has been the butt of scoffers.
Disbelief describes the attitude of many regarding the book of Jonah, for it is a word signifying a very strong rejection.
Unbelief is a mere failure to admit a truth. Disbelief is a positive rejection of truth.
Notice verse seventeen …
17 Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
I want to look at some ways we are to look at this, first of all, we are to:
See It As a Miracle
See It As a Miracle
As I mentioned in the introduction, this has been the controversy with the book of Jonah down through the years.
The first question that pops into people’s minds concerning this is “Is it possible?” -
Many skeptics have said that there's no way that this story can be true, because it's impossible for a whale to swallow something as large as a human. However, back in June, there was actually a man up in Cape Cod that was swallowed by a whale and he survived. Now the skeptics go on to say well if it is possible that Jonah was swallowed by a whale, there's no way he would've survived three days in the belly.
My official answer to that is:
Matthew 19:26 (KJV 1900)
26 ...with God all things are possible.
I read a story that in one junior high school class the teacher was belittling the Bible in general, and the book of Jonah in particular…One student stood up and proclaimed his belief in the story of Jonah.
The teacher said, “it is impossible for a whale to swallow a man.”
The student replied that he would ask Jonah when he got to heaven. The teacher looked at the student and said, “Jonah may not be there.” To which the student replied, “then you ask him.” - Some of ya’ll will get that after while...
Now right here in the book of Jonah, or in our text today, it is not called a whale, but it is called a great fish. But in the New Testament Jesus refers to this very incident and speaking of his resurrection.
40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Interestingly enough though, the Greek word in Matthew 12:40 translated whale means, “a great fish.”
Here’s the point!
The One who made the fish to begin with could certainly make the passageway large enough for Jonah…And He could certainly preserve Jonah for three days, or, as I believe, resurrect him.
Miracles are no problem for the God of Heaven!
We “believe in miracles because we believe in God.”
W. A. Criswell says all this discussion of whether or not a man could survive in a fish’s stomach is ridiculous. God could have furnished it with shag carpet, color TV and air conditioning, if He chose to.
The second question that comes to mind is, is it probable?
We know God could do it but would He? The answer again is yes.
God uses miracles at strategic times in the drama of redemption. It is His way of getting our attention and assuring us of His involvement.
He gave miracles under Moses (The Exodus), Elijah (The institution of prophecy), Christ (The arrival of the Son of God) and the Apostles (The writing of the New Testament and the inclusion of the Gentiles in salvation).
Here, in sending His mercy to the despised Assyrians at Nineva, it is highly likely that He would put His signature on it with a mighty miracle.
Here’s the thing folks…We do not believe in the miracle of the fish because it is possible or probable, but because we believe in the infallibility of the Bible.
God says it and that settles it!
Secondly, we need to:
See It As a Message
See It As a Message
God’s remarkable rescue of Jonah has some lessons for us.
It speaks of:
1. The Power of God to Preserve.
A Christian is invincible until God is through with him. The raging sea will not become a grave until God gives the word.
God says to us,
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; Nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand; But it shall not come nigh thee.
Our death is not in the hands of fate, but in the hands of God.
This account speaks of:
2. The Practice of God to Delay.
The fish did not rescue Jonah when he first hit the water. It came after he had sunk to the bottom, when seaweeds had wrapped around his head and when all hope seemed gone.
Look at what the Bible says:
5 The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: The depth closed me round about, The weeds were wrapped about my head.
6 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; The earth with her bars was about me for ever: Yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God.
7 When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord: And my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
God delays His deliverances.
You think about it!
Abraham is stopped from killing Isaac at the last minute in Genesis 22.
The disciples row all night before Jesus comes to still the storm.
Peter is delivered from prison on the eve of his death in Acts 12.
Jesus will return when the plight of the church seems hopeless.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
Why does God work like this?
To drive us to the deeper levels of prayer for deliverance...
2 And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; Out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.
and the higher levels of praise for deliverance...
9 But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.
This account also speaks of:
3. The Power of God to Purge.
The Great Physician knows how and where to touch the heart of His wayward children and bring them back.
The fish was God’s scalpel, God’s medicine, God’s cure for Jonah.
He used a donkey to reach Balaam, a parable to reach David, a look to reach Peter, an earthquake to reach a jailer in Philippi and a storm and a fish to reach Jonah.
The whole world is full of great fishes ready for service.
We also need to:
See It As a Type
See It As a Type
God could have spared Jonah in any number of ways but He chose one that would pre-figure the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Jonah’s fish experience speaks very strongly of the resurrection of Christ, which is especially despised by scoffers. Jonah speaks of the resurrection because Jesus says so.
38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.
39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The Pharisees sought for a sign! The only sign Jesus would give was the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord.
Jonah is a picture of the resurrection because we have Jesus’ word for it.
The resurrection is a target of disbelief because it is vital to our faith. If Christ is not risen, we have no Savior and no message of salvation.
And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
Christianity is the only faith with a living Savior. Buddha, Confucius, and Mohammed are all dead.
Jonah is a type of Christ in death and resurrection.
1. Our Lord boarded the ship of humanity and paid the fare, dying for our sins (Jonah 1:3).
2. Our Lord, tasted death for all in the ship of humanity (Jonah 1:15).
3. Our Lord entered a prepared grave (Jonah 1:17).
4. Our Lord came forth in resurrection after three days and nights (Matthew 12:40,41).
5. Our Lord preached judgment and produced repentance (Jonah 3:4,10).
Conclusion
Conclusion
What do you need help with this morning? - Are you in a storm? Is God delaying your rescue and you’re struggling to keep things going? - Do you need to cry out to the Lord today for salvation?
Whatever the need is in your life, bring it to the God that says, all things are possible...