“Deep Throat”
Book of Jonah (Selected passages)
INTRODUCTION:
There are a number of situations in this life, that for the most part, we have only one chance to get right. What are some that you thought of? (Take answers from the audience - 2 or 3) Well, there are some things that you have just one chance at.. No matter how much you might cry out, “Wait, I can do better!” the appeal is ignored and a second chance is most of the time denied. Well, having days, rather than minutes, to contemplate that question, here’s some that I listed.
1. Borrow a healthy sum of money from a friend and never pay it back. Then try to borrow some more. I doubt they’d lend it again.
2. A walk on try-out at a major university’s sport’s program. But you’re cut. Doesn’t matter how much you might say, “I can do better, Coach.” You’re gone.
3. Tight roping without a net - over the Royal Gourge. Can you imagine? “I’ll do better nexxxt tiiiiiime!” No next time!
4. Invite all your friends to a party at your house, then when everyone shows up say, “I decided I didn’t feel like a party tonight, come back another time.” I really doubt it!
5. Or here’s one. How about today when I finish preaching, I say, “Folks, wait, I think I can do that better. Will you stay an extra 30 - 35 minutes & let me get this right?”Let me see a show of hands.. How many would stay.. No, don’t.. It might not be pretty. My wife and I came in separate cars, she’d probably leave to!
But it’s true isn’t it? There are many situations in life in which we have only one chance to get it right, even if you desperately need a second chance. The good news is, that with God, it works differently. With Him, we get a second chance. Oh, we don’t deserve one, but we get one. And there is no-one in the Bible in need of a second chance more than the guy we are studying today. Jonah is in deep trouble.. A “deep throat” of trouble. But from studying his life and how God dealt with him and with those he was to preach to, we can learn one of the greatest things about the Creator: He’s a God of second chances! (Insert - prayer)
I. THE REACTION OF JONAH TO GOD’S PLAN:
First let’s look at the reaction of Jonah to God’s plan. The first verse of this book clearly shows us God’s plan and the part in which Jonah was to play. “The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: ‘Get up and go to the great city of Ninevah! Announce my judgement against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.’” The plan is clear.. Jonah is to be God’s messenger to the people of this very large city and tell them they better straighten up.
Now, it’s important here to at least get a glimpse of why this city is called “wicked” by God. Ninevah was a part of Assyria, modern Iraq, and the atrocities of Assyria are noteworthy. The Assyrians were a dominant and aggressive nation. At the time of Jonah they had invaded much of what we now know as the middle east. When they conquered a land they not only took spoils but they also piled up corpses, often dragging them all the way back home, beheading them and stacking the skulls at their city gates so all could see their dominance. They were known to strip the flesh from their prisoners while still alive, to take all the leaders, their wives and their children of a defeated city and burn them alive. And far from trying to hide their brutality their own records brag of it, actually glorifying in it. What is especially difficult for Jonah is that during his lifetime the Assyrians invaded Israel and did some of the same things. For example, in 722 BC Assyria lay siege to Samaria, a town in northern Israel. The Assyrians surrounded the city and even though the citizens pleaded for their lives they let each and every citizen starve to death. Some scholars think that Jonah may have been directly affected by the Assyrians cruelty, possibly losing family members in the conquest of Samaria. But perhaps knowing this we can better understand Jonah’s hesitancy to take God’s warning to Nineveh. It was like walking into a death trap and even more Jonah did not want the people of Ninevah to be spared, he wanted them destroyed.
And so when God tells him to go east to Ninevah, Jonah deserts God’s forces and flees west. Vs:3 - “... Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction... to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish.” Tarshish, as you can see from the map is in Spain, some 2200 miles from Israel. Jonah was to be going east to Ninevah but instead the last of vs:3 tells us, “He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping that by going away to the west he could escape the Lord.” But it is always best to run to God, not from God because He can see you wherever you go. The Psalmist wrote: “Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit? to be out of your sight? If I climb to the sky, you’re there! If I go underground, you’re there! If I flew on morning’s wings to the far western horizon, You’d find me in a minute -you’re already there waiting!” (Psalm 139:7-10 - Msg) You can’t run from God and neither could Jonah.
One little truth for the taking here. Did you notice that even though Jonah was directly disobeying God that things seemed to work out for him? I mean he found the right ship that was traveling in the right direction, he had enough money and there was room because he bought a ticket and apparently the ship sailed off on time. I have known people who think that just because the circumstances are working out that they think that means they’re okay with God. Not necessarily. You can have the time of your life, things might seem to be working out for your benefit, but you can still be way outside what God wants. Pro. 14:12 says “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”(NIV) Jonah may have thought that God changed his mind because after all things were working out. He didn’t think that for long.
II. THE RESPONSE OF GOD TO JONAH’S PLOT:
Let’s see the response of God to Jonah’s plot. Vs:4 - “As the ship was sailing along, suddenly the Lord flung a powerful wind over the sea, causing a violent storm that threatened to send them to the bottom.” This must of been a hurricane type storm because these weathered sailors are terrified.. Vs:5 says they feared for their lives and were desperate. They started flinging cargo off the ship not realizing that the one thing they needed to throw overboard wasn’t even on deck. Where was our man Jonah? Last of Vs:5 - “And all this time Jonah was sound asleep down in the hold.” How can Jonah do that? Well, he may have been just physically worn out. I will tell you that some of the most tired times of my life have been when I’ve been fighting God. But it also may have been that Jonah had convinced himself that running from God was the right thing to do, that God would get over it.
Another small truth for the taking. Our conscience is not always a good barometer for our relationship with God. You know, Jimney Cricket said, “Let your conscience be your guide.” What does he know? He was a cricket! Because the truth is, our conscience is not a good guide. The Bible talks about the fact it can become hardened, seared. Just because the native girl thinks it’s proper to sacrifice her baby to the river god, because that’s how her conscience has been programmed, doesn’t make it right. The Bible tells us, “The heart is deceitful above all things... who can understand it?”(Jer. 17:9 NIV)
Now, you might be wondering.. “Ok, Tim. You’ve said circumstances aren’t dependable and my conscience is not a good barometer. How do I know what’s right?” God. He sets the standards of right and wrong. “How do I know what God wants?” The Bible. That’s why we study it here at Discovery. It’s the objective standard for being in God’s will, knowing what God wants. So, God let’s Jonah know, in a very stormy way, that it’s time to wake up!
When you read this you find that the sailors wake Jonah up telling him to call on his God to save them. But Jonah knows that the only way God will save them is if the sailors get rid of him! In vs:10 he confesses his wrong doing and sacrifices himself for them. Vs:12 - “Throw me into the sea,” Jonah said, “and it will become calm again. For I know that this terrible storm is all my fault.” Now, to the sailors credit they don’t immediately do that. hey try harder to stay afloat but the storm just gets greater. Vs:14 - “Then they cried out to the Lord, Jonah’s God. “O Lord,” they pleaded, “don’t make us die for this man’s sin. And don’t hold us responsible for his death, because it isn’t our fault. O Lord, you have sent this storm upon him for your own good reasons.”Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once!
And then God arranges for the “Catch of the day.” It’s interesting to me that when we read this story we can look at the great fish as Jonah’s punishment. When actually it was Jonah’s deliverance. God arranged for the great fish to swallow Jonah to keep him from drowning! And so Jonah stays in this “whale of a prison” for three days and three nights. What did he do down there? Well, I don’t know all he did but I know he prayed. Chapter 2 of Jonah is his prayer.
And what does Jonah pray? “Get me out of here?” No. When you read Jonah’s prayer you find that he does not concentrate on the negative (being in the belly of a fish) but the positive - the fact that he’s still alive and thankful that he didn’t drown. In fact, he says things like: “I sank beneath the waves, and death was very near. The waters closed in around me.. But you, O Lord, my God, have snatched me from death. When I had lost all hope, I turned my thoughts once more to the Lord... I will fulfil all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.” The fish was Jonah’s deliverer not his punisher. And 2:10 reads: “Then the Lord ordered the fish to spit up Jonah on the beach, and it did.”
You see, Jonah had learned his lesson. And while he may have looked pretty puky on that beach on the outside, he was finally clean on the inside. Jonah had gone from disobedience to desperation to deliverance to dedication. He’s ready to do it God’s way. So, 3:1 tells us, “Then the Lord spoke to Jonah a second time: “Get up and go to the great city of Ninevah, and deliver the message of judgement I have given you.” And in one of the great Bible understatements vs:3 says, “This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command..” I guess so!
Now, for the “rest of the story.” Jonah goes to Ninevah and tells them they’ve got 40 days to straighten up their act or God is going to destroy them. I have to think Jonah got a little perverse pleasure telling this violent people that they were going to get theirs! And what do they do? Of all things they believe Jonah’s message.. And change! 3:5 - “The people believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they decided to go without food and wear sackcloth to show their sorrow.” Wow! God’s word can be an amazing thing. Heb. 4:12 says, “God’s powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God’s Word.”(Msg)
And God’s word is not only powerful, God Himself is forgiving. Vs:10 - “When God saw that they had put a stop to their evil ways, he had mercy on them and didn’t carry out the destruction he had threatened.” But while God is merciful, Jonah is mad! 4:1 says, “This change of plans upset Jonah, and he became very angry.” Basically he says to God.. “I knew it! I knew if I came here and preached and they changed that you would save them! In fact, it’s why I ran a way in the first place! I knew you were a gracious and compassionate God, filled with unfailing love and I just knew you wouldn’t destroy these people if they were sorry for their sin! That makes me so mad I could just die!” How could he say that? How could he feel that way? And yet... what if a gang killed your child and God came to you and said, “I want you to go and tell them to get right with me.” Would you want to go? And if you went and they cried out to God that they were sorry for taking the life of your child and He forgave them.. Just like that.. How would you feel? That would be so hard. And yet the bottom line, like it was for Jonah, is that is not our place to play God. One day everything will be made right. And so God forgives the people of Ninevah and Jonah learns that God is exactly who he thinks he is: “...compassionate, gracious and filled with unfailing love.”
III. THE RESULT OF GOD’S LOVING PURPOSE:
The results of God’s loving purpose are clear.. He rescues both Jonah and the people of Ninevah. For Jonah God uses a great fish, for Ninevah he uses Jonah, but it’s clear that in both cases this God is a God of second chances. This is such a great story with so many lessons to learn. So, before we go home let’s look at three.
1. All sin is the same before God. Sometimes we look at some sin as worse than others. That’s what Jonah did. He obviously didn’t think his direct disobedience to God was as bad as the sin of those living in Ninevah. Now, granted, some sin does have heavier consequences than others. A murderer will often suffer much more than a liar. An adulterer may lose his family where a dishonest employee may only be docked some pay. But that doesn’t mean the sin is greater in God’s eyes. Any sin separates you from God. God is holy, perfect and cannot abide sin nor be around it. Our sin places us in opposition to God. Now, that should do two things. A) It should humble us before God realizing that He’s ready to forgive us, to reconcile with us, in spite of our sin. B) It should make us less judgmental. When you realize that all sin is the same before God you know you don’t have the right to have an accusing attitude. All people are precious to God. 2 Peter 3:9: “God doesn’t want to destroy anyone but wants all people to have an opportunity to turn to him and change the way they think and act.”(GW) That’s was a huge lesson for Jonah to learn and a great one of us too.
2. All sin must be dealt with. One of the things we learned last week from the life of Balaam and again today is God doesn’t give up on us. He desperately wants to have an intimate relationship with us. And yet, because sin separates us from God, and because He doesn’t want that separation to stay in place, He “pulls out all the stops” so that we will come back to Him. Jonah’s sin was dealt with by a great fish. Ninevah’s sin was dwelt with by Jonah declaring God’s potential judgement. And our sin has been dealt with too. But unlike Jonah and Ninevah our sin has been eradicated completely through Jesus Christ. You see, that’s why Jesus came. To pay for our sin. There was no way for me, as a sinful man to cross the chasm of sin - the break in my relationship with God. I could never be good enough because once I sin I miss the target of perfection and no matter how many times I hit the bull-eye of being “good” after I miss, I can never get a perfect score. And it takes a perfect score to be back with a perfect God. So Jesus, who was perfect became our substitute. He did not die a martyr’s death on the cross - just one good man for another. No, he died a substutionary death.. As a substitute for me and for you . The Bible says in Isaiah 53 that at one point on the cross Jesus took all sin upon Him.. “...it was our pains he (Jesus) carried– our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him--our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole... We’ve all done our own thing, gone our own way. And GOD has piled all our sins, everything we’ve done wrong, on him, on him.” (Isa. 53:7-9 Msg) You see, our sin has been dealt with. And that brings us to the last lesson.
3. We do have a God of second chances. The story of Jonah is so very clear on this point. Jonah is given a second chance, Ninevah is given a second chance. Jonah couldn’t of said anything truer when he said that “I knew you were a God of unfailing love.” Please don’t miss this.. God loves you! He wants you to know that he is simply waiting for you to love Him back! So, in light of the fact that God is the God of second, third, fourth.. chances remember two things.
A. Remember to apply the salve of forgiveness to all, including yourself. Bob Russell, a preacher in Kentucky, says that when he was 11-12 he wanted to build his brother, John, a toy wheel barrow for Christmas. He got some old broom handles and a wheel off a wagon and some old wood. Bob said he put together the most awful looking contraption you can imagine. One week before Christmas Bob’s Grandpa came to visit and he was a carpenter. And Bob asked him if he would look at this wheel barrow & help him. Bob said his Grandpa didn’t laugh and he wasn’t critical but just said, "Let’s see what we can do." Bob says he remembers his Grandpa taking it apart, cutting it down, sanding it, adding a few pieces, he added an axle to the wheel and together we painted it. And when it was finished, it was first rate! Bob says, "I gave it to my brother on Christmas day and the first thing my brother said was, "There’s no way You made this!"
When I heard that I thought: That’s what God does for us. We try to fashion our own lives. Sometimes the harder we try the more messed up things become, the closer to Tarshish and the further from God we get. But when we turn to Jesus & place our trust in Him, He takes the same material- Our talents, our personalities, & the Master Carpenter makes something beautiful of our lives. And people that see us say, "There’s no way, you’ve done that on your own." And they’re right! And I so disparately want you to grasp this truth today.. That there is no problem so serious that He cannot heal it.. That there is no life so sinful that He can’t forgive it and make it over anew. All we need to do is apply God’s forgiveness to our own lives.
And oh, how God is aching to forgive you. So much so that He sent His one and only Son to say, “Here look, while you were sinning, while you were running from me, I provided a way for you to come home. I knew all about that habit, I knew all about that rebellion, I knew all about that terrible thing.. That’s why my Son, Jesus, died.. For you, just for you. Romans 5:6 says it this way: “For while we were still unable to help ourselves because of our sin, at the very moment of our need, Christ died for the ungodly.”(NCV) Oh, no matter how unworthy you feel, no matter how ungodly you have been.. And I’ve been there too... I can look to God and say, “it’s because of you, and all that you went through,(Start video) that I know I have never been unloved.”
{All Scripture taken from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted}
(Video “Never Been Unloved” used by permission from
www.sermonspice.com)
