Lessons From Jonah
Jonah, son of Amittai, is a famous prophet in the Old Testament. Many of us grew up learning the Bible lesson about Jonah in Sunday school. This last Spring when I began my adventure preparing for the World Race, the story of Jonah kept popping up in my everyday life. I’d hear lessons preached on it from various ministers. I’d hear people talking about it randomly. I even found myself in Missouri going to an amazing play about Jonah at the beautiful Sight and Sound Theatre! Eventually, I realized God was trying to use the story of Jonah to tell me something. When I took the time to really study the book of Jonah, I found all kinds of valuable lessons that I can take with me in life, and especially on the World Race.
The Story of Jonah
The story of Jonah opens with God telling him to go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against the wickedness there. God had given Jonah a clear mission and purpose, to arise and go preach to these people so they could turn from their sin and be delivered. If they did not, God was going to destroy the city. Jonah was supposed to be a messenger of God’s mercy and forgiveness for all those who repent and believe. He was chosen to help carry out God’s will. However, Nineveh was a very evil place, and this frightened Jonah. The task he had been called to was difficult and Jonah didn’t even believe these people deserved mercy or to be saved.
As the story goes, Jonah ran away from the Lord. He went to the sea port of Joppa and boarded a boat to Tarshish. The Lord was not pleased and sent a violent storm upon them. As the storm raged, Jonah knew it was because he had disobeyed the Lord. The other sailors were afraid, praying to each of their own Gods. The sailors cast lots to find out who was responsible for the storm, and the lot fell on Jonah. Jonah told them he was running away from the Lord and to throw him overboard so the sea would be calm. The storm calmed when Jonah was thrown overboard and it was a testament to the sailors for the power of God.
As Jonah sank into the sea, the Lord provided a huge fish (whale) to swallow him up. Jonah awoke in the stomach of the whale. He was stuck inside the whale for three days, giving him plenty of time to think about what he had done. Jonah knew the Lord had saved him. He prayed to the Lord (Jonah 2:1-9). Then the Lord commanded the fish to spit him out onto dry land. Again, the Lord came to Jonah a second time and told him to go to Nineveh and proclaim the message he had given him. This time, Jonah obeyed and went to Nineveh.
When Jonah arrived in Nineveh, he walked through the streets proclaiming “40 more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” To his astonishment, the Ninevites were receptive and believed what he said about God. On the brink of collapse, the Ninevites were suffering. All of the Ninevites fasted, put on sackcloth, and started asking God for His mercy and forgiveness. They repented and acknowledged their sins. When the Lord saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring destruction. This upset Jonah because he still didn’t think they deserved mercy. He couldn’t understand why God would show them mercy and save them.
Jonah pleaded with God, saying “I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” The Lord’s reply was “Is it right for you to be angry?” Jonah had left the city to wait and see what would happen to the city. During this time, God provided a leafy plant for shade to ease Jonah’s discomfort, which made him happy. However, the next day God also provided a worm to eat the plant and Jonah grew faint from the sun. Again, Jonah pleaded with God to end his life. The Lord asked him if it was right for him to be angry about the plant. Jonah was stubborn and replied “It is, and I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” The Lord responded, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
What Lessons Can We Learn From This?
- You can’t run from God. Everyone has a Nineveh! What are you running from? There is always an opportunity to disobey the Lord, but God will always be there and he seeks to restore relationships with his children that stray.
- Sometimes God calls us to do difficult things…like leaving your family for a year to travel and grow His Kingdom. Let God give you the strength to arise and go! Trust the Lord.
- Mercy is a gift, it can’t be earned and no one deserves it. God’s love always seeks to save the lost.
- Salvation comes from God. God gives us an opportunity to live free from sin. When we fail and repent, God is gracious and compassionate.
- God is in control. He commands everything in His creation to carry out His will. A good example is the fish (whale) and the plant that provided shade. Sometimes God provides supernatural means of rescue.
- Jonah questioned God and thought he knew better than God. He ended up learning a valuable lesson about the Lord’s mercy and forgiveness to all who repent and believe.
- It’s interesting that Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days. Christ was also in the tomb for three days. Both also preached salvation to the lost.
- You reap what you sew.
Statue outside the Sight and Sound Theatre
