January 23, 2022 Jonah 1:1-17

Intro

Good morning Gracepointe. I want to start off by reminding us of our primary vision here at GP...to eradicate hopelessness in Milwaukie and beyond with the relentless love of Jesus. We want to bring hope to our community and beyond with the love of Jesus. Hope is an amazing thing.... It keeps us moving or often times falling forward. It fuels us to do the impossible as we continue to run the race of life. Broadly, it is to trust, wait, look for something beneficial with great expectation in the future.

Several psalms point to this hope, this waiting on the Lord as we see in Psalm 25, 27, and 40....In times of trouble, we should wait on the Lord because he can turn all things around. Through out scripture, we see God’s people in the old covenant hoping in being delivered from their enemies, recovering from illness, for the provision of land, prosperity, and peace. Hope is the proper response to the promises of God. In Christ, we put our hope in Him and he is faithful. We shall not perish but instead we have everlasting life. This hope changes us from people who look at this current life as all there is…and moves us to people who passing through to our home with Him. This hope changes how we see ourselves, changes what we value, changes how we live our lives. Romans 15:13

Romans 15:13 NIV

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So why are we talking about hope? Today we are starting a brand new series on the book of Jonah titled Hope in Dark places. That hope, that waiting with expectation on a promise....joy and peace that Paul talks bout in Romans. It is available to everyone. Everyone has the opportunity to put their hope in Jesus Christ and be filled with all joy and peace as they trust Him. God sent His son Jesus to bring hope to all that would place their trust in Him. As followers of Christ, we must also be willing to put our hope in Him....to allow Him to light up those areas in our lives that may have grown dark. We see some of these dark places in Jonah.

Jonah - Jonah Overview

Jonah is such an interesting book of the bible. Only 4 chapters long and full of outlandish things. Today, we will be focusing on the characters and events of Chapter 1. And I say characters because the overall writing of Jonah is to many scholars, a historical narrative with a writing style that includes irony. There has been debate in recent years on whether it is fully historical or a parable....I will be approaching it from a historical perspective but again with a nice dose of literary irony mixed in which I greatly appreciate.

Right off, I want to let you know something right now. Jonah is not about a whale. Contrary to what you might have seen in a kids lesson, an animated series, or generally thought about, Jonah is not about a whale. That only takes up 2 verses. The “ great fish” is only mentioned 4 times in the entire book. But us with our squirrel like attention spans…oooh look. Big fish! I urge you to look beyond the fish. Our journey with Jesus has moments that look like characters we see in this story…moments that look like Jonah, that look like the sailers, that even look like the Ninevites. Ultimately, Jonah is a story of God’s longsuffering, patience, and willingness to forgive those who stop running from Him and begin to run toward Him instead. It is because of God, through Jesus Christ,by the power of the holy spirt that we can find hope even in the darkest of places. (Laurie, G 2014 A Fresh Look)

So lets jump right in. I will be in Chapter 1 of Jonah in the NIV.

JONAH- The Prophet

Jonah was a prophet from Galilee who advised the king of the 10 tribes of Isreal, Jeroboam the Second from 786-746 BC. 2nd Kings 14:25

2 Kings 14:25 NIV

25 He was the one who restored the boundaries of Israel from Lebo Hamath to the Dead Sea, in accordance with the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, spoken through his servant Jonah son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath Hepher.

In 2nd Kings, we see that Jonah prophesied that Jeroboam II would fix Israel’s border that had been weakened during earlier conflicts with Assyria. Jeroboam the II did evil in the sight of the Lord…..Amos later comes and prophecies that Jeroboam II reign would end in ruin ,you will die by the sword..and Isreal will have to go into exile because of your evil ways....Israel was too smug regarding their security…they had forgot that their identity was in their dependence on the Lord. Of course, that doesn’t happen today.

Just a small detail....Jonah’s name means dove and his father’s name means truth or truth telling. So the dove who brings truth like the dove on Noah’s ark that represented peace and compassion....right off Jonah is a prophet who loves Israel and his prophecies reflect that.

Nineveh/Ninevites

Jonah 1 starts off....that the word of the Lord came to Jonah, the truth-telling dove....that word was Jonah 1:1-2

Jonah 1:1–2 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.”

What about the character of Nineveh the city and its people? Nineveh is notable in the Bible as the eventual capital city of Assyria, a longtime enemy of Israel. Located in what is now modern Iraq, Nineveh is mentioned in Scripture as a place that turned away from sin through a warning by God, but which was later destroyed. A large expansive city that is known for great wealth, power and also full of great wickedness, violence. cruelty.

A translation of verse 2 might read.... “their wickedness has reached a high degree or the highest pitch.”Another reference of scripture points this cruelty, to heaps of bodies, to mistresses and wicked enticements through out its streets. . Historians point to Assyrians of that time period, “one of the most cruel, ruthless and bloodthirsty kingdoms in history”. Wearing the skin of their enemies, using torture in the most extreme fashion, and leaving beyond those living with deformities and missing limbs. Evil and wicked. Full of idolatry. Longstanding enemies of Israel.

Call of Jonah

And God said Jonah go preach to those folks. A direct command. Go warn these evil people that I am taking notice of their wickedness…a warning that they might respond to. It is important to note here a striking difference. He is to go to a people who are not of God. Jonah is the only Old Testament prophet on record whom God sent to a heathen nation with a message of repentance. In fact in these early chapters we see another difference with other minor prophets in the bible. Look through many of the other minor prophet books of the bible....they all start with the same sentence “The word of the lord came to.....” and then typically what follows that is a long word of the Lord. Chapters consisting of the Word of the Lord. Joel, Amos, Micah......They all do this.

Jonah is different in that the the Word of the Lord is short....Go to Nineveh, your sworn enemy who has done much evil to you and before God....go there and preach against it....their wickedness has come up before me. One commentary put it like this “Imagine a Jewish man in New York during World War II hearing God say, “I’m going to bring terrible judgment on Germany. I want you to go to Berlin and tell Nazi Germany to repent.” Instead of doing it, the man heads for San Francisco and then hops on a boat for Hong Kong.

Jonah’s response

And jonah responds..Jonah 1:3

Jonah 1:3 NIV

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.

In verse 2, God says rise and go. Jonah rose and fled. It is an intentional sharp contrast that points to use of irony And comparison between what should happen and what actually happens

The expression used here means “away from the presence of the Lord” Most scholars agree that Jonah as a prophet of the Lord, was familiar with Ps 139:7-10

Psalm 139:7–10 NIV

7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

Despite the fact that God is omnipresence....that is that He is present everywhere. out of rebellion, Jonah flees and goes down to a port town, a town called Joppa. Here is a map of Jonah’s journey.

Insert Map

Remember Psalm 137, as we see the far side of the sea. Tarshish was a Phoenician city in southern Spain and known as the westernmost place in the Mediterranean world. Practically speaking and symbolically speaking....Tarshish is furthest place away from His desired destination as it was furthest distance from Nineveh.

Jonah’s journey is longer than the one God wants him to take. compared to 5pop miles to Nineveh, Its like 2500 miles or more! I Long journey, sailing rough waters with rough companions and into the unknown. perhaps people who heard though of him as brave. But an action can be brave, can be fearless and also very wrong and foolish.

When my son Benjamin was very little, not quite walking, I was playing around with him in the living room. He was fearless in head butting the couch. Not holding back at all. He would take his noggin and boom…smack it on our couch. and then he would laugh this amazing infectious laugh…and then I would start laughing. It was a cherished memory as he worked his way down the couch cushions. When he did the last couch cushion, he quickly moved right along to the coffee table, pulled his head back and bam. This time, laughter was not the immediate reaction. Tears welled up and oh man did he cry for a bit as we saw a little lump appear on his forehead. Just because you are brave, it doesn’t make it a good, smart, or right thing.

This journey that Jonah took. It involved more resources…as the word says here he payed the fare. The question to ask yourself for a moment right here is....”what was the price you paid in disobeying God.” another question might be who else payed or is paying the price for your disobedience. Jonah wasn’t alone. Instead he was on a ship with sailers that are now caught in a rough spot because of His disobedience.

God brings a storm

So God calls Jonah but Jonah runs away. God then responds. Jonah 1:4-5

Jonah 1:4–5 NIV

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.

The translation of this points to God causing a wind to burst forth. Another translation says “hurled a great wind into the sea”. In this, the translation is showing us YHWH as a warrior would hurl a spear. It is interesting to think of God bringing a storm to accomplish His will. We don’t like to think of the God who blocks our path, who uses a storm to redirect us. But I have come to be thankful for God who has the power to do just that…even when there is pain involved.

Imagine these trained sailers who have most likely made this trip before suddenly reacting out of fear because this is not an ordinary storm but rather an extreme storm. These mariners where afraid. Let’s talk about these sailers for a second.

Sailers and the storm

Jonah finds a ship but that vessel isn’t sailing itself. We are now introduced to our newest group of characters. The sailers. The image that would be conveyed by saying the sailers in Joppa would be a rough group of pagans who were up to no good. I immediately think of Pirates of the Caribbean....Jack Sparrow as the captain. This is a direct comparison between a prophet ( a person of Godwith a call from God) and sailers (people apart from God). Yet their actions are opposite of what we would expect.

The storm rages and the ship is getting bad. Men are afraid and crying out to their various deities. This is emergency religion time. Who has suddenly become more devout when things look like they could go real bad real fast? I used to ride my bike to work when I worked part time downtown. Once, I decided to go a different way to work and I took 99 all the way from Milwaukie to downtown. That road is a scary road…people like you and me drive far too fast on it. There is no shoulder and the little strip of road for me and my bike was littered with tree limbs and broken glass. Unfortunately, once you start going it is hard to find a spot to turn around. So I just kept going. But Jesus and I had some conversations. They were desperate ones. I felt a side mirror flip my jacket right as I found a spot to turn off. I promised God and my wife Jen to not ever do that again.

we see in v 4 and 5 the storm was violent enough to cause them to throw away their earnings in order to simply survive. None of it helps. What is our man of God, peace bringing truth telling prophet doing while all of this is happening?

Jonah is down below, asleep.

Jonah’s response - fast asleep

Again, the story of Jonah is showcasing how the prophet of the Lord, who has the ability to stop this storm at any moment by doing what God is asking of him....is instead in a deep deep sleep. Asleep! The sailers are in fear for their lives and the prophet has set himself to the side and is snoring. The story is pointing to an indifferent prophet....one who doesn’t care about Nineveh, about the storm…about the sailers…indifferent.

Here is a point where we need to ask ourselves....where are we asleep in our spiritual lives? Where are we indifferent to the fear and hardship of others?

Finally, in verse 6, the captain of the ship wakes up Jonah, ordering him to call out to his God. “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, and we will not perish.’” It is no mistake or accident that the captain uses very similar words to God’s word to Jonah in verse two. God told Jonah to arise and call out against Nineveh. Now the captain tells him to arise and call out to his God for salvation. Though this captain was the very definition of a pagan, God used his words. Perhaps Jonah realized that he could not escape God. First, the storm came, now the captain was using some of the same wording of God’s message. Indeed, Jonah could not outrun God. But still he stays silent.

JONAH CONFESSES BUT STILL DOESN’T DO THE RIGHT THING

In Verse 7 and 8, The sailers decide that this is not an ordinary storm and that their gods are not or cannot doing anything to stop it. So they gather around and cast lots and the lots point to Jonah!

What follows would be a dumpster fire of chaos as all the sailers began asking questions…who are you? What is the cause of this trouble. What do you do for a living? Where do you call home? Who are your people?

It is here that finally, Jonah does something right kinda. He responds in Jonah 1:9

Jonah 1:9 NIV

9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”

Interesting that he starts with his country of origin. He begins with the country he identifies as his. When his loyalty to the desires of his nation conflict with the word of God, Jonah is giving us hints as to why he is running from God. He follows that with who he worships and accurately proclaims something about the Lord Rule over all things. But we must acklowedge that while Jonah has said he worships God, have his actions reflected that.

Here’s the prophet of God, who knows God and knows His power, saying calmly that He “fears” the God of the sea, while doing his best to ignore even sleep through a storm.

Meanwhile, pagan men who don’t know this God personally show great fear of him and concern

Who really fears God? Who is truly prepared to show Him due reverence and respect? So far the sailers show more worship than Jonah. The question to ask ourselves here....Where in our lives do our actions conflict with what we have said? Where are our words and our character not lining up?

What have you done?

In V10 the Sailers response here is another example of how the book portrays pagans responding the way Jonah should. The sailors are terrified. The God who parted seas, drowned and overtook armies, why on earth would you run from a God who can do all that? Verse 10 says that The sailers are terrified and they respond with the What have you done? What did you do? I know you said you worship Him…but the storm around us would say otherwise!

if He is so powerful, why are you not doing what He says? Who runs away from the God of the seas... on a ship?

As the storm gets worse, the sailers ask a question of Jonah in V.11 which indicates they are now treating Jonah as the prophet that he is supposed to be! They ask him the question “what should we do to make the seas calm?” Somehow through all of this, they are now seeing Jonah as the prophet he is despite him not acting like one at all. Jonah answers

Jonah responds in Jonah 1:12-13

Jonah 1:12–13 NIV

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.

Some would argue that Jonah came to his senses. Like the prodigal son, he came to his senses in that he knows the situation he is in....it ain’t good. That is not repentance mind you…just an acknowledgement that current circumstances are not ideal.

Through out the book, Jonah seems to struggle with lots of things. One of them is just simply being obedient. He could have sought forgiveness during the storm......and resumed his call to Nineveh. Perhaps he doesn’t think forgiveness is enough and the only thing left is judgement. Perhaps he would rather die than see the Ninevites receive God’s mercy. Either way, Jonah is still doing his own thing here. God has already given him the call…and now Jonah continues to make up a new plan. Thiat new plan involves pagans taking his life, not angering God because they have killed a prophet of the Lord. In many ways, Jonah is still carrying out a heart of selfishness as He avoids the call of the Lord And also puts his blood on the hands of sailors who have done nothing wrong.

The Sailers respond

Unlike Jonah, the sailers face their situation with innocence and obedience by asking God for mercy! They value human life contrary to Jonah who says just kill me. They acknowledge God’s power. We are supposed to feel empathy for these rough sailers who have checkered pasts…who are apart from God and yet, in this situation, seem to be the the only ones acting like followers of God!

The sailers, left with no other option, pick up Jonah and hurl him overboard into the sea…and the raging sea grew calm....Again the story uses the same word hurl. God hurled the storm into Jonah and the sailer’s path....the sailers hurled Jonah into the sea. The storm grows quite..

In v16 The sailers now greatly fear the Lord and worship Him. The word for fear here is the same as Psalm 111:10

Psalm 111:10 NIV

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.

They fear him, they offered a public expression of dependence and worship to the Lord through a sacrifice and they made vows. God uses Jonah’s disobedience and his attempt at repentance to bring people to faith in God. He will do this again in Nineveh.

IF TIME

some say that Jonah points to the sacrifice of Jesus. There are some connections there but Jonah makes a poor image because you see Jonah was guilty. The lots fell on Jonah. However, in the case of humanity, the lots fell on me and you and the rest of mankind. But Jesus chose to endure death on the cross. The lots didn’t fall on him. but he chose to quiet the storm of sin and death with the cross. That is why we worship Jesus Christ and praise Him into eternity.

Application

Don’t just be a spectator in this story.

Right here it can be easy for us to be spectators in this story. Arm chair quarterbacks who critique decisions. We need Humility to know that we could easily make the same mistakes. knowing God We still made lots and lots and lots of mistakes. It is the grace of God that props us up, not our own strength or will. So where do you see yourself in this first chapter of Jonah There are 4 aspects to think through.

Jonah:

Who is GOD? Trust in Him:

Jonah doubted God’s call and wisdom. Perhaps we can’t see any reason why God is asking us to do the things He is asking? We doubt his goodness, his wisdom, his judgement. AThis points to who we think God is…is our King or is He not. That dictates how we respond to his calling in our lives. In this story, the sailers, the storm, and the sea all obey God…but not Jonah. Have you seen yourself taking steps down and away from what God is calling you to do? Is He your King? Trust in Him and do what he is asking.

Who are you? Trust in Him

Our own bias and outlook on what we should or shouldn’t be doing in the Lord can have dire consequences. Remember the question I asked earlier....what price are you paying for not obeying the Lord? Who else is paying a price? Is it your loved ones? Is it your spouse or your kids? Is it your co-workers? Is it your church? Is it your community? I don’t say that bring shame....I say that to encourage. No matter what you struggle with, God can use you. Ask God to reveal who you are and trust in Him.

What does God want to do?. Trust in Him

Jonah is not good at being a missionary, a prophet. We will see more examples of that later…and yet…God does what He is going to do. God uses the foolish and the weak like you and me to reach people with the truth of Christ. To make disciples who love God and love people. 1 Cor 1:26-31 points this out as it says that “God chose the foolish things to shame the wise.... the weak things to shame the strong. the lowly....the despised…Christ has become for us wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Let us boast in the Lord because he does what He is going to do. Trust in Him.

Remember the gospel…and trust in Him

But if we stop at just looking at Jonah and saying I would never do that…we are missing a big point. Jonah, as we see later, didn’t want to go to Nineveh because he had a bias toward the people God is calling him to. Who are the people in your life who you think are lost causes? Are they rough folks with all the bad habits and lifestyle choices? Are they family members who you throw your hands up and go....”there is no reason to tell them about Jesus? What is the point of loving them like Jesus…when they are just lost causes? They haven’t ever loved me!

I am reminded of what Jesus says in Matthew 5:46-48

Matthew 5:46–48 NIV

46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Jesus came to restore our relationship with the Father. Did he do that just for the people who you think deserve it? Who think and act and look like you? NO! Christ came because God loved the world…people, so much that He gave his son Jesus. Anyone....anyone…sailers, violent armies, thieves on a cross, fishermen, prostitutes, tax collectors, liars, deserters, adulterers, murderers, doubters, chronic complainers and people with anger problems....the list goes on and on. That is the promise of the gospel.....whoever believes in Him…no matter where you find yourself…no matter what you have done....if you believe in Him, you will have everlasting life.

As we look at this story, identify who God has placed in your life to bring that gospel to. No matter if you think they are a lost cause…because at one point…you were a lost cause but God still pursued you. As followers of Christ we now have that hope in Him…no matter what dark place we came from…or what dark place we might find ourselves in…we have hope! And for that we give him thanks. Let’s pray

Will you stand with me. As we remember in all humility who God is, what He will do, and the gospel through Jesus Christ…I pray as it says in Romans 15:13

Romans 15:13 NIV

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Thank you for worshiping God with us today. We will see you next week.