The Church Called Jonah

  # 15 – The First Death Wish   Jonah 1:12: “And he said to them, ‘Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know that this great tempest is because of me.’”   In our previous devotion we saw how the sailors asked Jonah what they should do to him so that the sea would become calm for them. In this devotion, we look at Jonah’s response to that question.   “And he said to them, ‘Pick me up and throw me into the sea…” The response by Jonah to the sailors to pick him up and throw him into the sea must have been most unexpected and would have shocked them out of their wits. How would throwing a man overboard solve a problem like a tempestuous sea? Discarding cargo didn’t help any, discarding a man couldn’t make much of a difference. But Jonah seemed to have a different way of thinking to the sailors. We’re not told why Jonah arrived at this solution but let’s look at two possible reasons. Firstly, perha...

                                                             # 14 - The Decisive Question Jonah 1:11: “ Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?”—for the sea was growing more tempestuous.” “What shall we do to you…” In our last devotion we looked at the first question the sailors asked Jonah – “What have you done?” Even before Jonah could respond to that question, they throw him the next question – “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?” If you look carefully at this question, it’s really a loaded one. Let’s look at it a little closer. Sometimes when questions are asked, it isn’t so much because answers are required but more as a means of suggesting an answer. Such questions are called suggestive questions. Though the sailors were not asking an outright suggestive q...

  # 13 - The Terrifying Question   Jonah 1:10 – “ This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the  Lord , because he had already told them so.)”   “This terrified them…” In our last devotion, we saw how Jonah introduced himself to the mariners as a Hebrew who worshipped the Lord   - the Lord who made the sea and the dry land. This introduction of Jonah to the mariners was enough to instill fear in them. Let’s look at other possible reasons for this fear. Did the fact that he was a Hebrew itself say enough to them, as the Hebrews were known as God’s chosen people, who had been delivered by the Lord Himself, from the land of Egypt and who had led them through the years in amazing ways like no other nation had been led? Or were they terrified of the God of the Hebrews as they had heard that He was powerful and had destroyed nations on their behalf? Or were they afraid because of the words of Jonah, who said th...

  # 12 - THE MAN Jonah 1:9 - So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the  Lord , the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”   “So he said to them…” Since Jonah had been both awoken from sleep, and had been identified as the man who was behind the tempest they were facing, and since he was asked questions pertaining to his identity, it was time to respond to these very important questions. Just as Jonah had sought to flee from God’s presence (and the call of God to be His messenger), we The Church have, to a large extent deliberately and consistently done the same. But there’s only so long we can run away from God; only so long one can blend in with the crowd, to hide our true identity as the people of God on a global mission. The Lord knows what it takes to get us talking, and the first message we will be called to give the world, is not so much about what we are about but rather, who we are and that’s what Jonah was ma...

 # 11 -  The Culprit   Jonah 1:7-8: “ So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Then they said to him, ‘Please tell us! For whose cause is this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?’”   So they cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah To every investigation, there’s got to be the discovery of the culprit – sometimes it takes a while and sometimes it happens instantly. In this case, it was an instant revelation – Jonah was the culprit responsible for the storm. What a sad turn of events. The man who was chosen by the God of the Universe to go and give a warning message to sinful people is now at the receiving end. He’s the one who’s the culprit, responsible for the trouble that both he and many others are facing. The man who thought that the people of Nineveh were too sinful to go and talk to, is now the one who’s guilty of sinful rebellion. We know what God thinks of...