Journey Of Jonah - The Pouting Prophet
A new resident to the community was walking down a street and noticed a man struggling with a washing machine at the doorway of his house. When the newcomer volunteered to help, the homeowner was overjoyed. The two men began working on the bulky appliance one from inside the house the other on the porch. After several minutes of fruitless effort the two stopped and just stared at each other in frustration. They looked as if they were on the verge of total exhaustion. Finally, when they had caught their breath, the first man said to the homeowner: "We’ll never get this washing machine in there!" To which the homeowner replied: "In? I’m trying to move it out of here!"
They were not on the same page - neither was Jonah and God.
When we left off last week Jonah had preached to Nineveh - as he was preaching a great revival took place - greater than any revival in the history of world. It pleased God - but not Jonah. Let's pick up the story in chapter four of Jonah:
"But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry. He prayed to the LORD and said, "Please LORD, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for death is better to me than life." Jonah 4:1-3 (NASB)
I love it when a story has a happy ending. I like it when the good guy wins - the bad guy looses and the hero rides off into the sunset with a beautiful young woman at his side. Don't you love those types of stories? But that is not what happens in the book of Jonah. If the story had just ended at chapter three - I think I would have be OK with it - but we have chapter four.
You would think Jonah would be happy. But no - he's not! He is angry with God for showing too much mercy. He is angry with God for showing too much compassion. He is angry with God for forgiving "THOSE" people. He is angry with God for not destroying them - like Jonah thought they should be destroyed. Bottom line - He is angry with God for acting like God.
Do you see what was going on in Jonah's mind? Jonah didn't want to go to Nineveh because he knew the character of God. He knew that God was gracious. He knew that God was compassionate. He knew that God was slow to anger and abounding in loving-kindness. He knew that God would forgive them - if they turned from their wicked ways and sought the ways of the Lord. But here is the bottom line Jonah:
God Is God - And Jonah Is NOT!
Boy this is a hard lesson for Jonah to learn - but then again it's a hard lesson for all of us to learn. Because if the truth be known - there is a little Jonah in all of us and a lot of Jonah in most of us.
Can I really let God be God? Can I really let Him take control of my life? Can I really trust Him and believe that He knows what is best for me? Can I really acknowledge that He is in control and I'm not - even though sometimes I think I am?
God will often do unpredictable and extraordinary things - and sometimes they are things I don't like. Look at these passages of scripture with me:
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:4 (NASB)
Or:
And we are also happy with the troubles we have. Why are we happy with troubles? Because we know that these troubles make us more patient. And this patience is proof that we are strong. And this proof gives us hope. And this hope will never disappoint us.
Romans 5:3-5 (ERV)
Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials....We are also happy with the troubles we have. What is the Bible talking about? When trials come - when troubles come - I am neither happy nor filled with joy. But here is a fact folks - God is always more concerned with our character more than He is with our comfort. Maybe Jonah you need some attitude adjustment? Maybe Jonah you need a change of heart? Jonah are you listening? Jonah are you learning? Jonah can you hear what God is trying to teach you? God is in charge not you - you are not in charge of Him. Jonah don't you know that God says:
"I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION."
Romans 9:15 (NASB)
God does not ask your permission. He does not ask your blessings. He is God and you are not. But look at the question God does ask Jonah:
"Do you have good reason to be angry?" Jonah 4:4 (NASB)
Notice that Jonah never answers God at this point. He never says anything. Let's pick up the story again:
Then Jonah went out from the city and sat east of it. There he made a shelter for himself and sat under it in the shade until he could see what would happen in the city. So the LORD God appointed a plant and it grew up over Jonah to be a shade over his head to deliver him from his discomfort. And Jonah was extremely happy about the plant. But God appointed a worm when dawn came the next day and it attacked the plant and it withered. When the sun came up God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah's head so that he became faint and begged with all his soul to die, saying, "Death is better to me than life." Then God said to Jonah, "Do you have good reason to be angry about the plant?" And he said, "I have good reason to be angry, even to death." Then the LORD said, "You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?" Jonah 4:5-11 (NASB)
So Jonah now leaves Nineveh and goes out east of the city. He’s still hoping against hope that God will send down fire and brimstone and destroy the city. When that happens, he’ll have a front-row seat to watch it happen. But God has other plans. Three things happen in short order, all of them appointed by God:
A. God appoints a vine - v. 6
B. God appoints a worm - v. 7
C. God appoints a scorching east wind - v. 8.
You see in Jonah's eyes - The vine was good because it gave him shade. The worm was bad because it chewed up the vine. The east wind was very bad because it caused him great discomfort. Yet all three of these things - the vine - the worm - the wind - came from God. The same God who appointed the vine also appointed the worm and also appointed the scorching wind. The real question boils down to this: Jonah do you only love God when He gives you what you want?
That is a good question for all of us. Do you only love God when things are going well?
Do you remember what I just read a few minutes ago:
"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials"
"And we are also happy with the troubles we have."
Do you only love God when things are going well? Do you only love God when the sun is shining? Or do you love God when the storms of life come crashing down on you too?
Do you want me to tell you what I think is going on in the book Jonah? Let me tell you. In chapter three - God saves Nineveh. In chapter four God is in the process of saving Jonah. You see salvation is a process. God wants us to be changed - to be more like Him. That is way the Bible says:
Work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:12b-13 (NASB)
Or what about the passage of scripture which says:
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2 (NASB)
You see God is at work in us. He is not finished with us yet. He wants us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. He wants us to change the way we think about things.
God knows how to deal with wicked sinners. He saves them. But what does God do with those "holier than thou" church folk. He saves them too. He saves them to be more like Himself. You see God is in the life change business. He saves people and He continues to save them (transform them) though-out the journey of their lives. God is transforming us - changing us - getting us ready for Heaven.
How can we tell if we are being changed? How can we know that God is in work in our lives? We know that we are being changed when we start loving the things God loves. We know that we are being changed when we start acting like God acts. God is the potter and we are the clay. God is in process of molding and making us into His own image.
Jonah’s story ends with a question. God asks Jonah: “Should I not have compassion on Nineveh? Should I not be concerned about that great city? Should I not love the people there?”
The answer of course is yes. God always loves people. God is always concerned about people. But there is a great difference between Jonah and God. God loves people. Jonah loved the plant more than he did the people. Jonah was more concerned with his comfort than he was with his character. He would rather be comfy and cozy than be concerned about the condition of Nineveh.
Does Jonah change his mind? Does he come to see things the way that God sees them? Does he start loving people in the end? The story doesn't tell us - does it? It just leaves us wondering. It just leaves us hoping.
But here are three things we can learn from the Book of Jonah:
1. God Loves PEOPLE
God loved the people in Nineveh. He loves the people in New York. He loves the people in Kansas City. He loves the people in Topeka. He loves the people in Auburn, Kansas. God loves people. God has always been concerned about people.
Nineveh is people. Nineveh is your neighbor next door. Nineveh is the teller at the bank. Nineveh is the guy next to you in line at Wal-Mart. It is the person you bump into at the store. It is the people you see as driving down the road. Nineveh is the relative you haven't spoken to in years because you're mad at them - even though you don't remember why. Nineveh is the pregnant teenage - "that should have known better." Nineveh is the person you saw that has all the tattoos and body piercings - that you just raised your eyebrows at. Nineveh is everyone - even though you may not like them. All of these people are Nineveh - all the people around you - your friends and your foes - the good guys and the bad guys - everyone in your neighborhood in fact everyone in the world - God loves them.
You see, Nineveh is not just a place - it is people. Wherever you find people, there you find Nineveh in all its splendor and power and glory and greed and brutality and evil. It’s all there, mixed together, the good with the bad, the light with the darkness. Look around, child of God, you and I live in Nineveh.
The message is clear: God loves Nineveh - because He loves people. He loves the people who make their living in the big city. He loves the people working in the country. God loves people. He always has and He always will. And the story of Jonah is that God wants Nineveh saved.
2. God's Plan For Saving People Involves PEOPLE
God sends Jonah to Nineveh in order that it might be saved. As far as I know - there was no plan "B". Jonah was to go to Nineveh and preach there.
God always uses people to save people. Was Jonah reluctant? Was Jonah rebellious? Was Jonah stubborn? Yes he was - but God got his attention. After spending three days and three nights in the belly of a great fish - Jonah went. You see - God's plan for saving people always involves people. There is no plan "B". Jonah was told to go to Nineveh - eventually he went. Eventually he did what God asked him to do.
Let me ask you - is God calling you to do something? Have you ever been reluctant? Have you ever been rebellious? Have you ever been stubborn? I know I have. But God has a way to get my attention. What will God have to do to get your attention? What will God have to do to get you to obey him? Why in the world can't we obey Him without all the drama?
We should pray:
"Lord help me to pay attention to You. Lord make me an obedient servant. Lord help me to stop running to Tarshish. Lord help me to be a part of Your plan for this world. Help me to be a faithful servant. Help me to be a witness for You. Help me to tell others of Your love. Lord please don't send a great fish my way."
God wants to use me to save the world. God wants to use us to save the world - let us willingly be a part of His plan.
3. God's Willing To Do Whatever It Takes To Save PEOPLE
How far is God willing to go to save the people of Nineveh? He was so intent on their salvation that He would never let go of Jonah. He would never let him off the hook. Jonah was the plan for Nineveh. Jonah needed to go there. Jonah needed to preach there. Jonah needed to witness there. God did what He needed to do to get Jonah there and finally Jonah went.
Jesus is the plan for you and me. God sent Jesus for you and for me. He was not stubborn. He was not rebellious. He came for us willingly.
John chapter three verse sixteen tells us:
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."
John 3:16 (NASB)
God's actions speak louder than words. God never let Jesus off the hook. He gave His son for us. Jesus prayed that the cup might pass from Him - but it didn't. God had a plan for our salvation. God was willing to do whatever it took to save you - to save me. He gave us His son.
