Jonah 1:1-1:15
Lessons from Jonah
This morning I want to look at the Old Testament prophet Jonah. Many people say that this book is the biggest fish
story ever. But is it a story? Some people say it was a dream, others say it just couldn’t have happened. Well do you
believe that truth is stranger than fiction? The headlines would read FISH GOES MANNING. Well let’s look at his book
and lets let the facts speak for themselves.
Now I want to start out by saying that I think every person can relate to Jonah. We have all been disobedient, and I
think we have all tried to run from God at one time or another.
We have a lot that we can glean from this short book that most people see as a great story for kids. We have all heard
how Jonah was swallowed by the whale, and how Jonah was three days in its belly of the whale, and lived to tell about
it. Well that’s how most people tell it. The bible doesn’t say a whale. It says a big fish.
Now the Old Testament is said to be Jesus concealed. The New Testament is Jesus revealed. There is a term, type
and shadow. In the Old Testament we see type and shadows of things in the New Testament. IE the Passover lamb
represented Christ. The three days in the fish were a sign from God of the resurrection!
So lets see what the book of Jonah has to teach us.
1Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry
against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. 3But 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.
It starts out in verse 1-2 with the word of the Lord telling Jonah to go to Nineveh and to cry against it because their
wickedness had come before God.
Now I believe just as the word of the Lord came to Jonah, God still talks to us today. Not in the way He has in the Old
Testament, but He speaks through the Holy Ghost. In the Old Testament God talked to people. He spoke to Adam and
Eve in the Garden of Eden, He spoke to Moses through the burning bush, He spoke to Joseph in a dream. Then we
move into the New Testament where God spoke through Jesus. Hebrews 1:1-2 says 1God, who at sundry times and in
divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his
Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
John 1:1 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:14 14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us
Then in John 14:16 Jesus tells us; 16And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may
abide with you for ever;
This verse is referring to the Holy Ghost. This is how God communicates with us today.
Now we see here also that Jonah was the son of Amittai. Now first we need to ask the question of weather Jonah was a
real person. To find the answer we need to go to 2nd Kings, which is a historical book. We see here that Jonah was a
real person, and his fathers name is Amittai. 14:25 25He restored the territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to
the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant
Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath Hepher.
Now if this isn’t enough proof let’s see what our Lord has to say in Luke 11:29-30 29And while the crowds were thickly
gathered together, He began to say, This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except
the sign of Jonah the prophet. 30For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this
generation.
Now if we discount this book we might as well just through out the whole bible.
Now God made a very direct request of Jonah. He said GO to Nineveh! Notice that God never told Jonah to stay and
let the people come to him. He makes it very clear that Jonah was to GO. We can’t expect people to come to us! We
need to go to them.
I had started a devotional page on my web site and would check and no one was visiting the site. The devotionals
were not getting read because no one was going to the page to read it. After a couple of times I decided to go and
send the message out via e-mail. Now I have over 40 people that are reading it and when I am a little late in getting it
out people ask where it is. I could not count on people coming to get the message. I had to get it to them.
So God told Jonah to go to Nineveh. Now I remember when God called me into the ministry. I had already been singing
in front of people and I was ministering through music, but God spoke to me. He had a different plan for my life. Now
just like Jonah I told God I wasn’t the man for the job. And just like Jonah I ran from God. My friends the one thing I can
tell you is that you can’t run from God. Psalm 139:5-10 says
5 Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:8-10 tried to hide from God. 8And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the
garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the
trees of the garden.
9And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? 10And he said, I heard thy voice in the
garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
Now when God asked Adam where are you, he was speaking about spiritual things. God knew that Adam was in the
garden. God spoke to Adam right where he was.
Now isn’t this the way people act today. We try to hide from God knowing full well that He sees all and knows all.
Now Nineveh has a very wicked city. Nahum chapter 3:1-4 gives us some insight about the city of Nineveh. 1Woe to
the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departeth not; 2The noise of a whip, and the noise of the
rattling of the wheels, and of the prancing horses, and of the jumping chariots. 3The horseman lifteth up both the
bright sword and the glittering spear: and there is a multitude of slain, and a great number of carcases; and there is
none end of their corpses; they stumble upon their corpses: 4Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the
wellfavoured harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her
witchcrafts.
No wonder Jonah was so reluctant to go to Nineveh. They made the Romans look like a bunch of boy scouts. The
people of Nineveh were people to be feared, and if you were a prisoner you wouldn’t get out alive.
So God has given Jonah the command to go to Nineveh and instead of being obedient to God, Jonah runs in the
opposite direction. Jonah knows what God wants him to do, but he runs out of fear of what might happen.
Most any preacher will tell you that when they were called, the first thought that came to mind is WHO ME. Now no one
ever said ministry was easy. In fact almost always God will call us to do things that are out of our comfort zone. I can
just imagine how Ananias felt when the Lord in Acts 9:10 felt when he was called upon to go to the house of Judas and
there he was to lay hands on Saul, the vary man who had persecuted the church and had the authority of the chief
priests to take his life.
Now most who are called by God don’t face the loss of life, but God will sure put them in places there not comfortable
with. I remember when I preached for the first time. I got up in front of about 50 people and I wasn’t very comfortable. I
could sing and I didn’t have to worry about what I had to say because I had memorized the words to the songs and
what to say with each one. It was a whole different story when I had to get up in front and go off of an outline.
The other thought that came to mind was, I am not worthy to preach the gospel. I was not holy enough. I was not good
enough.
Now Satan will do almost anything to stop us from doing the will of God. He will go to great lengths to discourage us
and sidetrack us from the work God has called us to do. He kept on telling Jonah how evil these people were and how
they didn’t deserve to live. They were beyond saving. They were beyond Gods grace.
Now for anyone who has ever felt this way, let me tell you some of the people God had used and what they had done.
Noah was a drunk, David was an adulterer and a murderer, Moses was a murderer, Saul persecuted the church, Peter
denied Jesus three times, and then there was Matthew, a tax collector.
All of these men were used by God in a mighty way. Noah built the ark. David was called a man after Gods own heart.
Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. Saul was converted on the road to Damascus and was given a new name, Paul,
who wrote most of the letters of the New Testament. Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and over 3000 were
saved. And yes, lets not forget Matthew who wrote the first book of the New Testament.
Friends you need to be willing to go outside your comfort zone. God’s word never said ministry is easy. In fact Jesus
tells us to take up our cross and follow Him.
Now we also see here a shadow of the New Testament. Jonah was a Jew and he was not only afraid of the people of
Nineveh, but he thought as most Jewish people did that the gentiles were not worthy of being saved. Just as Paul was
called to bring the message of salvation to the gentiles, Jonah was sent with the same message several hundred years
earlier.
In Acts 13:46-47 we see the message God gave to Paul 46Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was
necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; (speaking of the Jewish people) but since you reject it,
and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. 47For so the Lord has commanded
us:
I have set you as a light to the Gentiles,
That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.
Jonah was told to bring the salvation message to the people of Nineveh. Repent and save yourselves. God had
pronounced judgment on the pagans. The message was for the people to turn from their wicked ways, and God would
save them.
Jonah 1:3 3But 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.
God wanted Jonah to go to Nineveh 500 miles northeast of Palestine. Instead of going east, Jonah went 2000 miles to
the west. God wanted Jonah to take an overland trip but instead Jonah took a disastrous sea voyage. Jonah not only
ran from God, but went to great lengths to avoid going to Nineveh.
Now you notice that each time Jonah gets further away from Gods will we see that Jonah went DOWN. He went DOWN
to Joppa, then he went DOWN in the ship. Just when you think things couldn’t get any lower, Jonah goes DOWN in the
sides of the ship and was asleep.
Jonah 1:4-5 4But 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. 5Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the
wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and
he lay, and was fast asleep.
Now Jonah had deliberately disobeyed God, but I will tell you from experience that God will keep after you till you head
His calling. I remember for weeks arguing with God. I couldn’t think straight. I would lay awake nights thinking of all the
reasons not to do what God was calling me to do. But God was persistent. Just like a mule, the more God was pushing,
the more I dug my feet in the ground. But even a mule will get tired eventually and gives in.
Needless to say, some people are more stubborn than others. God needed to get Jonahs attention. Sometimes He
needs to get our attention as well. A storm here, a battle there. But as I said some people are more stubborn than
others. A storm was raging and Jonah was fast asleep in the bottom of the boat.
Now I want you to notice a trend here. Jonah went down to Joppa. Then he went down into the ship. Each time Jonah
went lower and lower. Then to top that Jonah was sleeping through it all.
While Jonah was asleep, people were in danger of perishing. Friends, there is a world out there of people perishing,
people who don’t know God. How can we like Jonah lay asleep and not notice what’s going on around us. More
importantly, how can we sit back and do nothing?
While speaking in London, evangelist D. L. Moody was approached by a British companion who wanted to know the
secret of Moody’s success in leading people to Christ. Moody directed the man to his hotel window and asked, "What
do you see?" The man looked down on the square and reported a view of crowded streets. Moody suggested he look
again. This time the man mentioned seeing people--men, women, and children. Moody then directed him to look a
third time, and the man became frustrated that he was not seeing what Moody wanted him to see. The great evangelist
came to the window with watery eyes and said, "I see people going to hell without Jesus. Until you see people like that,
you will not lead them to Christ." What do you see in five o’clock traffic, a busy restaurant, a crowded waiting room,
your neighborhood, or your extended family?
6So 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.
This is the mentality of most people today. People want us to pray for them, but they are not willing to come to Christ.
Give me the title but not the responsibility.
Then look at what the sailors say. 7And 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. 8Then 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?
Now we really have two parties that are responsible for the fact that they are in danger of perishing. Now when you first
read this passage you would say that Jonah is solely responsible for the situation they are in. The truth is that they are
all responsible. The sailors are responsible because they had heard about God and chose to worship idols. Jonah on
the other hand had a greater responsibility, and an opportunity to share the message with them about God.
We all have a responsibility to share the gospel of Jesus every chance we get. There is a world full of souls that are
perishing. Romans 10:14 14How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
If we don’t share the gospel with those who are lost, we are responsible for them perishing. The lot will fall on us. Every
day there are people who come across our paths, who need to hear the gospel. People at home, on the bus, at work,
and even at the park. They need to hear the massage, but no one is there to share it with them.
Wouldn’t you be ashamed if the first impression people had of you was that you were running from God? Well in this
case it worked out for the better. The people started asking questions, so Jonah answers. 9And 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. 10Then 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.
Why hast thou done this?
God will often place people in our paths to minister to. Greg Laurie, in his book How To Share Your Faith, tells about a
young man who had just gave his life to the Lord. The young man didn’t know the first thing about how to share Christ,
but he knew that this is what God wanted him to do. The man then took a gospel track and found a middle aged
woman at the beach and thought she might have some sympathy for him. So very nervous the young man walked up
to her and asked, Can I talk to you about something?
She said Sure. What about. Well about God and stuff.
To his amazement the woman said Go ahead. Sit down. Let’s talk. He pulled out an evangelistic tract and started
reading it to her. The whole time the young man was shaking like a leaf. The woman patiently listened to him reading
the track. The whole time the young man was thinking This isn’t going to work. Why am I doing this? This is not going
to reach her. Then he got to the point in the track where it asks the question, is there any good reason why you
should not accept Jesus Christ right now? The woman replied NO. The woman accepted Jesus right then and there.
You see some times we may mess up big time, but God will still use us in spite of ourselves.
On the other hand people can also be ship wrecked by our actions. Many a person will see how we act out side of
church and our testimony will be tarnished.
11Then 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. 12And 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.
The question was posed, and the answer is given. What must we do? Jonah says take me up, and cast me forth into
the sea. Why is it that when we know what needs to be done, we say sorry, we’ll do it our own way?
13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to return to land, but they could not, for the sea continued to grow more
tempestuous against them.
You see we can’t save our selves. It’s impossible. No mater how hard we try, we will never be good enough. Isaiah 53:6
6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the
iniquity of us all.
14Therefore they cried out to the LORD and said, We pray, O LORD, please do not let us perish for this man’s life,
and do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O LORD, have done as it pleased You. 15So they picked up Jonah
and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging.
A sacrifice needed to be made. The price had to be paid. The wages of sin is death. Romans 6:23.
We serve a holy God who can not look upon sin, but as a child of God we are covered by the blood of the lamb who
was slain on mount Calvary. He stood in our place and paid the price we could not pay.
As Jesus hung on the cross He said It is finished. The price had been paid and is all we have to do is receive Jesus as
our Lord and Savior. Once we receive Jesus in our lives, we are covered by the blood of Jesus. Just as I am without
one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me.