September 9th, 2020
By Tina Yerkes
Many of us remember learning about Jonah & the Whale as kids in Sunday School. And most of the time, we focused on the amazing fact that Jonah was swallowed by a whale or a really big fish. And understandably so because it seems impossible for a story like this to be true. But this time, let’s look at the man that God spoke to with clear direction - Jonah.
The first sentence in the book of Jonah tells us “The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” And the second sentence tells us exactly how Jonah responded, “But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.” This is not exactly the best start for a prophet who gets an entire book of the Bible and has actually heard the voice of God.
This would be the just the beginning of us reading this book and thinking, “Oh Jonah. {deep sigh} What in the world are you thinking?” He doesn’t just stop there. This prophet went to extreme measures to go in the opposite direction. He complained, yelled, pouted, and eventually obeyed but in disgust.
Candice Lucey, from Christianity.com says, “He was not the “good guy” in this story but a normal, flawed human being who only did what he was told as a matter of duty, after being given a second chance.”
We are flawed and normal people who sometimes do what God says to do and sometimes we do not. How many times have we understood or heard from God how to respond in a conversation or reach out to someone and we brush it aside. We don’t always obey God. And sometimes we do, but begrudgingly.
God called Jonah to do something that he did not believe was good for his people, the Israelites. He was called to show mercy to a city of people who he didn’t feel was worth saving. And he valued his own opinions over the love that God was going to give the city of Nineveh.
Let’s not be like Jonah but learn from him. The book of Jonah is a very interesting book to read and it’s only 4 chapters. You can find it here in this link. Read Jonah this week. See what speaks to you from Jonah’s choices, his path and his ultimate demise. And if you want an entertaining, kid version, I highly recommend Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie.
Don’t let anyone tell you that the Bible is boring!
Many of us remember learning about Jonah & the Whale as kids in Sunday School. And most of the time, we focused on the amazing fact that Jonah was swallowed by a whale or a really big fish. And understandably so because it seems impossible for a story like this to be true. But this time, let’s look at the man that God spoke to with clear direction - Jonah.
The first sentence in the book of Jonah tells us “The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” And the second sentence tells us exactly how Jonah responded, “But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.” This is not exactly the best start for a prophet who gets an entire book of the Bible and has actually heard the voice of God.
This would be the just the beginning of us reading this book and thinking, “Oh Jonah. {deep sigh} What in the world are you thinking?” He doesn’t just stop there. This prophet went to extreme measures to go in the opposite direction. He complained, yelled, pouted, and eventually obeyed but in disgust.
Candice Lucey, from Christianity.com says, “He was not the “good guy” in this story but a normal, flawed human being who only did what he was told as a matter of duty, after being given a second chance.”
We are flawed and normal people who sometimes do what God says to do and sometimes we do not. How many times have we understood or heard from God how to respond in a conversation or reach out to someone and we brush it aside. We don’t always obey God. And sometimes we do, but begrudgingly.
God called Jonah to do something that he did not believe was good for his people, the Israelites. He was called to show mercy to a city of people who he didn’t feel was worth saving. And he valued his own opinions over the love that God was going to give the city of Nineveh.
Let’s not be like Jonah but learn from him. The book of Jonah is a very interesting book to read and it’s only 4 chapters. You can find it here in this link. Read Jonah this week. See what speaks to you from Jonah’s choices, his path and his ultimate demise. And if you want an entertaining, kid version, I highly recommend Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie.
Don’t let anyone tell you that the Bible is boring!
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