Evil Diversion

Our Father in heaven, we thank you because you are El-Shaddai, You are the Jehovah- Jireh, the Jehovah-Shamah, and Jehovah Shalom who has all powers in His hands. Thank You for being our provider, shelter and rock. We thank you for the promotion, provision and breakthroughs you have given us. Glory be to Your holy name. Do wondrous things in our lives through this message, in the name of Jesus. Thank you Lord Jesus, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Beloved, life is like a journey in three parts. There is the beginning, the course of the journey and the end. God has a divine purpose for us as a church. Apart from that collective purpose, God also has a divine purpose for us individually. What I mean is that God is not in the business of messing about. He has a divine purpose for putting you somewhere. He has a reason for allowing your father and your mother to give birth to you. He does not engage in useless activities. One of the most terrible and effective ways of amputating a person’s life and his destroying potentials is what is known as satanic diversion.

WHAT IS DIVERSION?

A diversion is turning aside from a course that is to be followed. A diversion is a change of direction or an alternative route. It is also something designed to take away attention from the main course. Simply put, it is a change of direction.

Jonah 1:1-2 says, “Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it for their wickedness is come up before me.” That was a straight forward message to a man of God from God. Verse 3 says, “But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord and went down to Joppa: and he found a ship going to Tarshish so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.” Jonah paid his fare to go into bondage. He sponsored himself out of the will of God. That is, a person can use his money to buy diversion, or divert his journey from where God wants him to go. Verses 4-5 says, “But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea so that the ship was like to be broken. Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the waves that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them...”

We can see how a single person who was diverted put other people in trouble. All those traders threw their things into the sea because a single man who had been diverted was on board. “...But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship, and he lay and was fast asleep.” The Bible says that he slept deeply, even though he was in disobedience and diversion. So, you may enjoy yourself as you are being diverted. Verse 6 says, “So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.” After all the other people in the ship had tried their little gods, they woke him up to call upon his own God, who might be more effective.

Verses 7 - 17 say, “And they said every one to his fellow, come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us, so they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us, What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. And he said unto them, take me up, and cast me forth into the sea, so shall the sea be calm unto you; for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not, for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord, and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee. So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made vows. 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.”