Minor Prophets: Jonah and The Storms of Life

Minor Prophets: Jonah 

1. Someday, you may find that God’s plans are wrecking yours! 

• Christians want to hear from God. 

• I would love to know God’s will.

• I want to warn you

  • What God asks you to do—May not want to do!

1. The word of the Lord came to Jonah … Jonah 1:1

   1.  God is a God who speaks—God is still speaking today.

2. 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.” Jonah 1:1-2

3. Jonah did what a lot of us do: we run! Vs 3 …

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.

Jonah 1:3

II. Jonah ran from God …  

• God says—Go to Nineveh … 550 miles East.

• Jonah heads the other direction—Tarshish—2,500 miles West.

• At that time—Tarshish—As far as the other direction one —Could go!

1. Text says—Jonah found a ship bound for Tarshish.

• If you want to run from God, the devil will always offer you a ride.

• You can always find a boat—Sailing in the wrong direction.

2. Why did Jonah run? … Hated people/Nineveh.

   1. Context—Jonah—Jewish-Hebrew from Israel.

   2. Nineveh—Capital/Assyria

   3. Assyrians/Israelites—Hated—(Luke Sky/Darth Vader)—Good reason!

   4. Assyrians—Truly barbaric—After conquering …

3. Real reason—Jonah didn’t obey—Not because he’s afraid …

   1. Jonah knew God’s character—Didn’t want God to forgive his enemies!

   2. So—Jonah ran—Disobeyed God—Rationalized—Disobedience.

   3. Assyrians don’t deserve it—So I’m not doing it—Rationalize sin?

III. When our mind makes an excuse for what our spirit knows is wrong.

•  God asks you to do something …Serve—Give—Witness—Forgive.

• Not ready—Not the best time—Don’t feel like—Do it later.

1. Delayed obedience is disobedience.

1. What is … Spiritual Maturity? (Bible knowledge? Vs. Obedience)

2. A short time between God’s command and our obedience.

IV. Word/Lord came/Jonah—Jonah ran from the Lord!

• Once he started running from God—Life went downhill.

  • Jonah went down to Joppa. Jonah 1:3

  • Jonah went down to the bottom of the ship. Jonah 1:5

  • Jonah was thrown down to the bottom of the sea. Jonah 2:3

Jonah—On the boat—Vs 4 says …

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.Jonah 1:4-5

V. Pagan sailors are afraid—Start praying!

• No atheists in foxholes!

  • Funny—Didn’t believe/God—About die—Cry out/God!

  • Airplane—Don’t believe/God—Don’t want to hear—Turbulence!

1. Notice—Sailors didn’t do anything wrong.

   1. God sent a storm 

   2. Not the Devil

   3. The Storm was b/c—Jonah’s sin—the Sailors suffered

   4. Wrong guy/Boat.

2. Some/you … Suffer—Wrong person—Your boat.

   1. Don’t date, start a business, or become best friends with a Jonah!

   2. Throw the guy off your boat!

   3. Stop following anyone, leading you away from God.

3. Sailors—In a storm, they didn’t cause …

VI. The crazy thing is—Boat about to break apart, storm—Jonah’s sound asleep.

1. Jonah’s life—Going down—Didn’t even know it.

   1. Scary place … Become comfortable disobeying God.

   2. Maybe same/Some/you—Like Jonah—Comfortable/Compromise.

   3. God won’t let you get comfortable—Sin/Compromise—Consequence.

2. This case—God sent a storm—Mean God?—Kindness.

   1. Sometimes God sends a storm—Sometimes God allows a storm.

   2. Sometimes, you bring/yourself—Sin always has consequences.

3. Some people blame every storm—Devil—Devil sent the storm.

   1. Some storms—You brought on yourself.

      1. Devil didn’t cause you—Lose/job—Always late!

      2. Devil get you—Debt—Max CC—Spent more than—Made.

      3. Devil didn’t destroy—Marriage—Selfish/Took spouse/grant.

      4. The devil didn’t bring every storm/your life—Some brought on yourself.

Jonah’s life is going down—Don’t even know it.

VII. Everyone on the boat realizes—Jonah’s fault—Vs 8 …

8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? … 9 [Jonah] answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”Jonah 1:8-9

1. Jonah says—I’m a Hebrew—Worship the Lord!

   1. Says he worships God— But he is not obeying God? Hmm!

   2. Represents one of/ biggest problems—Our churches.

      1. We claim to LOVE God—Don’t obey God.

      2. Where in your life are you rationalizing sin and running from God?

11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked [Jonah], “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.” Jonah 1:11-12

Someone here … God chose you—God called you.

Running from God … Now you’re stuck in a storm.

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. Jonah 1:15-16

Jonah’s overboard—Appears his life—Coming to an end …

STORM LESSONS: 

1. God Doesn’t Show Up the Same in Every Storm 

   1. If God doesn’t part the Red Sea like He did for Israel, calm the storm like He did for Jesus, or send a fish like He did for Jonah, He will give you the strength to swim just as He did for Paul.

2. Not Every Storm is the Same

   1. Jonah went through the storm because he disobeyed God. 

   2. Moses and Paul went through the storm because they were in the will of God. 

   3. Jesus went through the storm because He was God. 

3. Not Every Storm ends the SAME WAY. 

   1. For Jonah, the storm ended when he was thrown overboard.

   2. For Jesus, the storm ended because He rebuked the storm. 

   3. For Paul and Moses, the storm ended when they walked or swam through it. 

      1. Sometimes the storm is just the struggle of life, like Paul. 

      2. Other times, it is an opportunity for God to show His power over a spiritual attack, like Jesus 

         1. Remember, Jesus did not just speak to nature; He rebuked the storm as its cause was a principality. 

      3. While another time it might be a result of running from God’s presence and continuing in sin, like Jonah. 

         1. Jonah tried to escape his problems, and he ended up being swallowed by them. 

         2. God allowed the storm not to punish Jonah but to:

            1. Stop him from going in the wrong direction 

            2. Lead him to a place of humility and repentance 

            3. Get him to the place on time to do what God has called him to do in the first place. 

4. Your storm and what you believe is swallowing you may actually be what is saving you! 

   1. What you think is swallowing you may actually be God’s vehicle for getting you where you are supposed to be. 

   2. What you think is swallowing you may actually be God’s testimony and method of reaching those around you with God’s word for them. 

   3. God prepared a fish – was God’s method to get man the message.

   4. God uses even failures to make a future. Rom.8:28 

      1. Jonah hiding from God – Adam 

      2. The directions: 

         1. “went down to Joppa” (Jonah 1:3). 

         2. After paying the fare for a ship, he “went down into it” (verse 3). 

         3. And after the sailors throw him overboard to put an end to the storm, Jonah finds himself drifting “down to the moorings of the mountains” (Jonah 2:6).

            1. Jesus came down from heaven – immanent, incarnation, indigenous… 

            2. Then went down into the Earth 

            3. They went down into Hades (Luke 23:43) and also preached to the Spirits in prison (1 Peter 3:19)  

      3. The men on the boat with Joanh are saved from the storm by Jonah going down and overboard. – Souls saved by Jesus, He said this in Mat. 12:39.

         1. He was in the belly of the fish – 3 days, Jesus in the grave for 3 days. 

         2. Jesus gave up His Spirit, Jonah’s name means dove! 

         3. He was coughed up by the fish on the shores of Ninevah.

            1. Contextualization:  The Ninevites worshipped Dagon, A prominent god in the Near East. Dagon was depicted as a half-man, half-fish deity and believed to rule the sea.

            2. Jonah would have been covered in white and presented as a man from a fish, from the sea. 

Conclusion: 

• Maybe— someone you know is running from God—Drift—Area life

• Perhaps God is saying to you,  it’s time to stop running … Turn to him!