Anderson Hills

Jonah had experienced God’s grace in several ways through the storm—the captain, the sailors and finally the fish. We saw God’s grace capturing Jonah through his prayer and in giving him another chance. But when Jonah saw God’s grace poured out and lavished upon the Ninevites, he was angry. Jonah knew when God had called him the first time to go to Nineveh that there was the possibility that they might repent and he didn’t want anything to do with that. One of the most important commands Jesus gave to us is to love everyone as he has loved us. God wants none to perish; He wants all to come to a saving faith in His Son, and He uses us to help others see how loving and compassionate He is. We all need to have a heart for the lost as He does.

Despite Jonah’s failure to heed God’s call, God never gives up on him, and he never gives up on us. God is the God of the second chance. God surely could have let Jonah die and found a more willing servant; instead He showed him mercy despite his rebellion. Only after being plunged into the drowning waters and revived by his saving God can Jonah hear and respond to God’s second call. Repenting does not mean saying we’re sorry and continuing down the same path. It involves a total “about face,” where there is not only sorrow over sin, but a change in attitude, priorities, and lifestyle. We ought to be more like the sailors and Ninevites who responded in humble faith to God’s word, who put faith into action

Despite Jonah’s failure to heed God’s call, God never gives up on him, and he never gives up on us. God is the God of the second chance. God surely could have let Jonah die and found a more willing servant; instead He showed him mercy despite his rebellion. Only after being plunged into the drowning waters and revived by his saving God can Jonah hear and respond to God’s second call. Repenting does not mean saying we’re sorry and continuing down the same path. It involves a total “about face,” where there is not only sorrow over sin, but a change in attitude, priorities, and lifestyle. We ought to be more like the sailors and Ninevites who responded in humble faith to God’s word, who put faith into action

It wasn’t until he experienced fear and loneliness inside the big fish that Jonah reached out to the Lord through the words found in Psalms. While his prayer expresses the truth about the Lord, Jonah’s hypocritical, self-righteous behavior throughout the book forms a strong contrast to his prayer. It is questionable if Jonah is demonstrating true repentance. Despite this, God continues to deal with Jonah graciously by hearing his prayer, saving him from drowning and a permanent residence in Sheol, and by providing deliverance in the belly of the big fish. God answers us in our guilty distress to help us become merciful like He is

It wasn’t until he experienced fear and loneliness inside the big fish that Jonah reached out to the Lord through the words found in Psalms. While his prayer expresses the truth about the Lord, Jonah’s hypocritical, self-righteous behavior throughout the book forms a strong contrast to his prayer. It is questionable if Jonah is demonstrating true repentance. Despite this, God continues to deal with Jonah graciously by hearing his prayer, saving him from drowning and a permanent residence in Sheol, and by providing deliverance in the belly of the big fish. God answers us in our guilty distress to help us become merciful like He is

When Jonah made the decision to flee from God’s call, God did not choose to send someone else. Instead He sends the perfect storm; He employs the wind to bring order out of Jonah’s chaos. By interrupting Jonah’s plans to flee, God is saving him. Like Jonah who slept during the storm in the inner most recesses of the ship, we sometimes need to be awakened from our spiritual slumber. When the storm hit, the crew of the ship knew it wasn’t just an ordinary storm; the strength and suddenness of it was something they had not experienced before. They knew that something or someone had caused this storm to happen. And Jonah knew it too. God saw his repentant heart and He provided an extraordinary rescue.

When Jonah made the decision to flee from God’s call, God did not choose to send someone else. Instead He sends the perfect storm; He employs the wind to bring order out of Jonah’s chaos. By interrupting Jonah’s plans to flee, God is saving him. Like Jonah who slept during the storm in the inner most recesses of the ship, we sometimes need to be awakened from our spiritual slumber. When the storm hit, the crew of the ship knew it wasn’t just an ordinary storm; the strength and suddenness of it was something they had not experienced before. They knew that something or someone had caused this storm to happen. And Jonah knew it too. God saw his repentant heart and He provided an extraordinary rescue.

God sometimes calls His people to assignments that are not always convenient or comfortable. Jonah did not answer God’s call to preach His word to the feared and hated enemy in Nineveh with a resounding, “Yes, send me!” Instead he was silent. Without any arguing or debating, Jonah went to Joppa and got on a boat to go as far as he could in the opposite direction. He chose to blatantly ignore and disobey God. And like it or not, we all have pulled a Jonah in our lives, most likely numerous times. You see, the story of Jonah is really all of our stories. Each of us can look back and see where we have attempted to run from God in one way or another. The good news is that, like Jonah, we can run from God but we can’t outrun God

God sometimes calls His people to assignments that are not always convenient or comfortable. Jonah did not answer God’s call to preach His word to the feared and hated enemy in Nineveh with a resounding, “Yes, send me!” Instead he was silent. Without any arguing or debating, Jonah went to Joppa and got on a boat to go as far as he could in the opposite direction. He chose to blatantly ignore and disobey God. And like it or not, we all have pulled a Jonah in our lives, most likely numerous times. You see, the story of Jonah is really all of our stories. Each of us can look back and see where we have attempted to run from God in one way or another. The good news is that, like Jonah, we can run from God but we can’t outrun God

Once the lie we believed is exposed, we can begin the process of breaking free from the hold it has on us. Getting on your knees before God in prayer and claiming His truth is the only action needed. Your prayer must begin with confessing to God that you believed the lie more than you believed God’s truth, and asking for His forgiveness for doing so. The lie that has kept you bound in chains must then be renounced and rejected in Jesus’ powerful name. This is the action that will kill the spider and remove the cobwebs it created. But, you also must fill the space in your spirit that the lie vacated or the enemy will try to fill it with something else. Ask Jesus to come in to heal and restore this place in you by filling it with His truth