Jonah"You Can't Run, You Can't Hide"
...is gods and even through the cargo overboard to lighten the ship. But of course Jonah was downstairs fast asleep like many of us are today when the storms are raging in other people's lives. As long as it is not disturbing us, we say it's not our business. Or is it? When God calls us to go to our brother or sister we often times try to do just as Jonah. Speaking to all the Jonah's of the present day world, you know what? "You can't run, you can't hide” When the Captain found Jonah sleeping he cried out to him and commanded him to call upon his God to have mercy on them so that they would not perish. So the men of the ship all cast lots and it felt upon Jonah. They then ask him who he was and he stated that he was a Hebrew who feared the Lord, the God of the heaven, which had also made the dry land and the sea. This terrified them so they asked him why in the world was he trying to run from God! They asked him what to do about the situation and he said unto them, "Take me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you” (Jonah 1:12). So they pray and asked God please not to let them perish for Jonah's life and tossed him overboard and the storm ceased from raging. This caused the men to exceedingly fear so they offered a sacrifice unto the LORD and made vows. Now concerning Jonah, "the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah” (Jonah 1:17). Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Crying out to God, pleading for God to have mercy on him. "Saying that he would sacrifice unto him with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is the LORD” (Jonah 2:9). God answered him and the fish spit him out on dry land. Upon this miraculous occurring, I wonder and somewhat even believe, Jonah would tell you "You can't run, you can't hide”! We see that God often times give us an opportunity to rectify ourselves. He is an awesome God of second chances. "And the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time saying, Arise, go to Nineveh that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you” (Jonah 3:1-2). According to the word of the Lord, Jonah did go to Nineveh, which is about a three days journey. Entering into the city in a day’s journey, I can only imagine hearing the “Missionary Jonah” crying out, "Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown! ” Whether he said more, we are not sure, however, he pronounces God's judgment on the city for its wickedness. When the king of Nineveh got word of this, he got off of his throne, took off his robe, covered himself in sackcloth and sat in ashes. They king had it proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh for everyone to clothe themselves in sackcloth and decreed for a fast and prayer unto God. All of Nineveh repented and turned from their evil ways. They came to know that, "You can't run, you can't hide”! Well as we find out in the end of the book of Jonah that God is a merciful and forgiving. "When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God repented of the evil which he had said he would do to them; and he did not do it” (Jonah 3:10). It displeased Jonah exceedingly and he was angry, he felt that they did not deserve another change. Now keep in mind, this is the same man who was swallowed by a fish and was in the fish’s belly for three day and three nights and God gave him the chance to get it right. We now know that his own ego got in the best of him and he prayed to the Lord and said, "I pray thee, Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and repentest of evil. Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live” (Jonah 4:2-3). God asked Jonah if he had a right to be angry. Jonah went out the city and sat on the sideline to see what God was going to do about the evil people of Nineveh, they deserved to be destroyed just as had said, right? Still having mercy upon his pouting servant, God prepared a gourd so that Jonah could have shade over his head to deliver him from his grief. Did Jonah take this for granted or were he shouting and praising God for the blessing because of the intense heat? Whatever the case, he was exceedingly bitter because God did not destroy Nineveh. With the selfish attitude of the prophet, God sent a worm to destroy the gourd. When the sun came out God also prepared a vehement east wind and the sun was so hot on Jonah's head that he fainted and would have rather been died. He said, "It is better for me to die than to live”, (Jonah 4:8). God showed him that he had more pity for the gourd, which he had not labored for or made grow, than the souls of Nineveh. The book end's with a lingering question in which God ask Jonah, in Jonah 4:11, "And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?” Well that brings us back to the question of why Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh. Did he feel as if the timing was wrong, like we sometimes do? Maybe he felt like God was interrupting his plans, you know how it is, we have an agenda and most of the time it does not include the will of God. We have our lives all mapped out, our goals set, you know? They will not receive me; they will not believe that I am sent from God, we try to reason with ourselves. Maybe God made a mistake, I am just a nobody, I do not qualify for this position, we scream out in our mind. But we should have the mine set of "I’m just a nobody, trying to tell everybody, about Somebody that can save anybody”. I do not know what to say, we convince ourselves, they will laugh at me or even worst, they will think that I have literally snapped. Preaching to a bunch of sinner that are into such corrupt behavior...