Now
the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 "Arise,
go to
A)Jonah is a Prophet living
in the time of
B) So Jonah is a prophet on
the scene in the time frame of our study in 2 Kings
C) Here is what we read
about Jeroboam II -
He restored the
territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the Sea of the Arabah,
according to the word of the LORD God of Israel, which He had spoken through
His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath Hepher.
D) So Jonah was a real
prophet in
1) Contemporary of Hosea /
Amos / possibly even Isaiah
Interesting
A) In the N.T. the religious
leaders were arguing about the validity of the
ministry of Jesus – No prophet has come out of
B) They were wrong – they
forgot about Jonah
1) Jonah
= Dove / Amatai = truth
Jonah’s Call: 2 "Arise, go to
A)
Aa){ Capital city of Assyria/ Modern day
1)
B) The city was surrounded
by a great wall 100ft in Ht. and wide enough to run 3 Chariots on top of it
1)On the Wall were 1,200
towers that stood 200ft high all of which made for a mighty Fortress
C) But the city was full of
pride and wickedness – So God was calling Jonah to go and cry out against it
1) The word Cry means to preach or proclaim !
D) What
was his message? – Ch. 3:4
1) Jonah was supposed to go
and tell
E) 40 days and Judgment is
Coming!
So
God comes to Jonah and says Arise!
A) I have a special
job in my home – I am the human alarm clock
B)We have regular ones – but
most of the members of my family have no problem sleeping thru them
C) So
Since I am an early riser – I get to wake everyone up.
1) Denise
with a Kiss – come on sweat heart….
2) Amanda with singing –
good morning ….time to rise and shine
3) Aaron Dude – get up
4) Amy Princess – time to
wake up
D) This call to Jonah is
like that – endearing – Jonah I have a special Job for you –
E)PROPHET
WITH A PURPOSE
1) Go to
V.3 But Jonah
arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa,
and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it,
to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
God
said GO!!!! Jonah said NO!!!! Jonah is running from the call of God! Screens Map
1
A)Now
Map 2 Like going
from S.D. to
B) Map
3 Jonah heads to Joppa – to catch a boat and go about 2400 miles West to
Tarshish =
C) That would be like going
from Map 4 SD to WV
Why
is Jonah running from the call of God?
A)Some have suggested that
it was because Jonah was afraid of the brutality of the Assyrians
B) Wicked – talked study last
time about how they skinned people alive
1) Impale
people on poles outside of the city{
2) Marched into flaming pits / tore tongues
out at the roots { Rep for their Brutality
C) Some have said the Dove
turns Chicken and runs
D) Be like going to
1) Who would want that
Job?
E) Osama’s men come out with
their Knives and rocket Launchers
But
I don’t think it was fear that kept Jonah from going at all. That wasn’t
the issue
A)In fact I hate to jump ahead
in a story but Jonah gives us the reason
for his reluctancy & rebellion
B)
C) Right now in Ch.1 Jonah is running from God but most of you
know God is going to get to Jonah to
D)
When Jonah gets there, he will deliver his message – and
1)Revival breaks out in Ch.3
as
So
Revival is breaking out in
A)We live for moments like
this – NOT JONAH
V.1 But it
displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. STOP
ATTENTION
B) Jonah is a true fire and
brimstone preacher – Likes telling people they are going to hell –
Judgment
is coming and I catch wait to watch you fry!
You
& you Are going to hell and I am
glad about
C)Am I being a little
extreme/ Note what he says next
2 So he prayed
to the LORD, and said, "Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was
still in my country? [ Evidence of this earlier
conversation – Lord when I was home when you called me I told you why I didn’t
want to go – that is why I fled ] Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that
You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in
lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.
3 Therefore
now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than
to live!"
WOW!!!- It would be better for me to die than
to watch you be merciful to that nation
A) I want to die – because
you are too nice – you are too merciful –
B)I wanted the Ninevites to burn in hell – You are forgiving them
.
1) That is why Jonah ran
from God’s call.
C) That is why he was trying
to do 2500 miles outside of the will of God
1)
He didn’t want God to be
merciful to Nineveh
That
is why Jonah ran from God’s call– but why do we do the same thing? 3 Reasons
1)Selective service – We want to do something else!
A)Announcement is made for Children’s
ministry: God tugs on our hearts – I want you to do that –
1) No !!! Not doing Children’s
….
B) I Remember a time when a
guy : Lead worship – great need in the Kids wing
1) No I want to play the Big room
C) One guy – I want to
serve/ Great! Usher greeter first face first impression
1)
You want me to usher – Yea
it will be great- Yea but I feel called to preach.
D)
Selective Service I am not going to get involved because it is not what I want
to do.
1) Can’t do what I want to
do here – find a place where I can
E)That just reveals a person’s heart – not really interested in serving
{ Selective Service
Another
reason why People run from the call of God is because they really don’t believe
God knows what He is doing
A)God I can’t go there – I can’t
do that- Mistake God – that is not the
right thing for me.
B) We think that we know
God’s will for our lives better than He does.
1) Lord
I know you made heaven and earth – you made me – you see the end from the
beginning – but you are off on this one.
C) See how idiotic that is!
- But we do that! –
Another
reason we run from God’s call is we somehow think that if we remove ourselves
from the responsibility we are no longer responsible
A)Example: Sitting in bed
with your wife – Hear a noise – She says did you hear that noise –
B) Now when she says that
she is saying – get up go check that out
1)
But you respond: what noise – I didn’t hear anything
C)
God brings a need into our path – We run from it – Ignore it
1) Not my problem. Not my
responsibility
D) So sometimes we can run
from God for those reasons –
1) For Jonah he just didn’t
want to see God be merciful to
Huge
lesson of this book – Jonah knows about the grace of God in his head –
A)But he Needs to experience
it in his heart
B) Head Knowledge – but He
needs heart Knowledge
1) So Jonah runs from God’s
call -
C)But God is not going to
let Jonah get away easily.
V.4 But the LORD
sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the
sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up.
Now
this is what Blows my mind: Jonah runs and God pursues after Jonah
A)But God had other options
– Hosea was on the Scene – Amos was prophesying at this time! Isaiah was also
there
B) Right there God has 3
Prophetic heavy weights to call on 3 powerful prophets
C) God
could have said – Jonah is being an idiot so Hosea I need you to go to
D) But God doesn’t do that –
He pursues after – Jonah – He is not going to let
Jonah get away easily
1) Puts up some road blocks
in the path – Starts with a Storm
E) Psalm 135:7 He brings the wind out of His treasuries
Why
does God do this? Listen up
A)God was more interested in
what HE was trying to do IN Jonah’s life – than what HE wanted to do THRU
Jonah’s life.
B)See God didn’t need
Jonah’s voice – He had other preachers – But God wanted Jonah’s heart
C) Notice it doesn’t say God
was angry or even disappointed with Jonah
1) God was wanting to do
something in Jonah’s life and
D)Part of the training
process for Jonah
This
is something that we must remember about God
A)Told in
B)
God has a plan for you. He is in the process of molding you & shaping you
to fit into that plan
C) God is seeking to do a
work in our lives and thru our lives
1) Training grounds –
different places – scenarios – situations as well as opportunities for ministry
–
2) Because
it is all part of the process
So
life is filled w/ doors that God wants us to walk thru
A)Each door is a part of the
molding process to accomplish his purpose in our lives –
B) Might be a place of
Revelation… / place of stretching…. / a place where we are challenged beyond our abilities and comprehension
C) God places an open door
before you that he wants you to walk in – but if you
choose to run from that – God loves you enough to pursue you
D) Not because he can’t
accomplish his work without you in that situation – but because he wants to
work in you
1) He
is committed to you
Now
If you continue to run – God will find someone else for that work –
A)But you will come to
another door like that at some pt. in time
B)Because it is the next
step in the growth process for you.
1) It is necessary step for
your growing in the Lord – For Your usefulness
C) We had an
interesting conversation in my Bible class at the School this week –
1) Talking about having a
passion for God
2) Began – Other things
passionate about. Music / sports - { How is that displayed ? Time/ energy
Well
one of the girls said the thing that she was passionate about was her School
work
A)Obsessed with her homework
– One of the boys asked her – Do you like Homework
B) Her response was
interesting – She said not really but I enjoy the
REWARD
C) It was really a profound
answer: You see she is thinking ahead – toward college – Her career
1) She has her eye on the
prize – So she sees the process she is involved in
now thru that lens.
D)Part of the pathway / part
of the Prep for her future. { She is focused on the
Prize!
That
is a great picture of the Christian life. God
has a plan for our lives – it is Purpose with a Prize
A) Paul declared in
B) So many believers live
life focused on the Process
1) So for that reason they struggle in the moment – because they are focused
only on the here & now
C) They run from the calling
of God at that moment in their life
1) because all they can
think about is present comfort –they don’t want to be uncomfortable.
D) They run from the calling
of God instead of to it. 1) Not realizing that calling is part of the process
& training ground for their future.
E) It is literally part of
the prize!
My
life:
A)Days here as a Youth
Pastor – Grace & ministry What it means
to SERVE.
B) Calling
to
1) About Patience – God’s
timing.
2) About
dependence – getting out of the way.
3) About Keeping the main
thing the main thing
C) Here: One big thing: Courage – lead courageously
Make
tough decisions
A)Some are not going to like
– Lord I don’t want to rock the boat – He
says Rock it – too comfortable
B) Courage to take risks
with young Guys
1) Yankees vs the A’s { Phil
/ Jason / John Randle / Scott C /
2) Thrash
metal worship
C) All part of the process –
You can run – say Lord I am comfortable – play it safe
1) but all you are doing is
slowing the process of growth that God is wanting to do in your life.
So Jonah
runs but God sends a storm – that is often the first step in the Process –
things get Rocky
A)God is saying I am not
going to make it easy for you to rebel
B)You know Jonah’s first
hundred miles was pretty smooth
C) Clear passage on his way
from NAZ down to Joppa
1) Gets to Joppa and he
finds and open door to go in the opposite direction from God’s call
Side
note: Don’t just pray for open doors !
A)I sometimes cringe when I
hear people say things like I was praying that if it was the Lord’s will – open
the door.
B)
An open door can be a good confirmation only after you have heard the Lord’s
voice in your heart – Peace / Scripture
1) Confirmation when God
opens the Door
C) But an open door by
itself is not always a sign that God is in something – Satan can also
open doors
1) Here Jonah finds a ship
going in the opposite direction from where God wanted him to go!
D) So the first thing that
God does in his pursuit of Jonah is he sends a storm
V5 Then
the mariners were afraid; and every man cried out to his god, and threw the
cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten the load. But Jonah had
gone down into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast
asleep.
Notice that
others were impacted by Jonah’s rebellion { These sailors were caught in this
storm and were afraid. [seasoned
sailors]
A)Always the case – there is
always collateral damage to sin
a)Sailors
were afraid – Our sin / our rebellion / affects others
B) And notice what Jonah is
doing ! He is asleep
1) It is the only way that
he can shut off his conscience & silence that
voice of conviction
C) Ever
have days – stressed – can’t cope – can’t deal with all this stuff? – I am going to bed!
1) Escape
People do the same thing
spiritually – Check out
A)They find ways to ignore
that voice of conviction that voice of Calling
B) the problem is if you do
that too long you end up like Samson
1) Asleep
– Delilah cut his hair – Samson the Philistines are upon you
C) Samson arose and said – I
will kill them like I have always done – Saddest verses in the Bible
1) Samson did not realize
that the Spirit of God had departed from him. His anointing was Gone.
D) Might have been that
story that inspired David to write – Please don’t take
your HS from me Lord.
So
Jonah is asleep – One more thing that this teaches us
A)Running from God is
exhausting ! Swimming up stream vs going
with the flow!
B) So Jonah is asleep and he
needs to be waked up!
v.6 So the
captain came to him, and said to him, "What do you mean, sleeper? Arise,
call on your God; perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not
perish."
V.6
Captain – Arise Again
A)Same word again – arise –
Oh No !
B) God speaking the same
message to you! – Sermon here
1) Next day radio – Friend –
Devos - He loves you enough to tell you
more than once
C) God in his grace is
repeating the message because he is trying to get your attention.
D)So God is trying to get
Jonah’s attention- Sends a Storm
1) Captain uses the same
word – Watch what happens next V.7
And
they said to one another, "Come, let us cast lots, that we may know for
whose cause this trouble has come upon us." So they cast lots, and the lot
fell on Jonah.
A)Casting lots was a common
practice but it was purely random
B) God allows the
C) Liar
– Hebrew – Speaks of one in a Cov relationship with God
D) Walking in the Fear of
the Lord – Reverence for God – desire to please Him
1) Jonah has broken his Cov
and is Running from God’s will RD
V.11-12
Now
is this repentance? It might have been but Jonah is not thinking Rescue –
thinking death
A)Just Throw me over board –
he is not thinking about going back to
B) SO Throw me into the
storm { let me face my fate
13 Nevertheless
the men rowed hard to return to land, but they could not, for the sea continued
to grow more tempestuous against them.
C) The
men were reluctant to do that- they are rowing but finally when they could row
no more
14 Therefore
they cried out to the LORD and said, "We pray, O LORD, please do not let
us perish for this man's life, and do not charge us with innocent blood; for
You, O LORD, have done as it pleased You."
D)God don’t hold this
against us !
15 So they
picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging.
16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice to the
LORD and took vows.
Amazing:
Jonah’s sin results in the conversion of these sailors
A)I don’t think Jonah gets
credit for this – no reward
Spurgeon
observation
Sinners,
when they are tossed upon the sea of conviction, make desperate efforts to save
themselves
The
fleshly efforts of awakened sinners must inevitably fail
The
soul’s sorrow will continue to increase as long as it relies on its own efforts
The
way of safety for sinners is to be found in the sacrifice of another on their
behalf
V.17Final
Pursuit: Storm / Captain Arise / Lots / Next God prepares a great fish!
Now the LORD
had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the
fish three days and three nights.
A)The next thing that God
does with Jonah is he works in the miraculous
B) He works in the supernatural
– Fish swallows Jonah
C) God will do the same in
your life and my life to get our attention he will move in the miraculous
D) Escape an auto accident –
1) Leave 5 minutes late
Question
have you been running from God ? What has he done to pursue you
A)Calm Now? – Know this the
storm is coming – Famine is around the corner
Loves He chastens
B) Prodigal
son – good times / famine / pig pen – Your pig pen is approaching –
question is will you survive that long
C) God pursues you not
because He is out to get you – But he wants to restore you
D) Don’t wait for that –
heed God’s word today and Arise – Give Jesus the
wheel – Give him the reigns
1) God is my co- pilot – No
he is the Pilot – I want to kick back in 1st class
E) God wants you to
surrender today – Meet you – Arise
God
is in the Business of Blessing Bless able behavior
Running from God
A)Sweaty palms heart beating
–
B) Time of personal
responsibility –Arise