RUNNING FROM GOD (or HOW NOT TO RUN FROM GOD): Running from God 1-7-24

RUNNING FROM GOD (or HOW NOT TO RUN FROM GOD): Running from God 1-7-24

 

Text: Jonah Chapter 1

 

Thesis: Running from God gets you nowhere (except in the belly of a stinky, smelly fish).

 

INTRODUCTION

 

When I was a young boy, I knew I was going to be a preacher.  How did I know?  I couldn’t tell you.  I just knew.  Even before I accepted the Lord, I knew He wanted me to preach.  Shortly after giving my life to Him at 14, I preached my first sermon.  That 7 ½ minute theological wonder was the beginning of a great adventure for me.

 

While I knew God wanted me to preach, I was content to do anything but that.  As high school came to a conclusion, I had determined to enter Bible college and become a psychologist and help families with mentally handicapped children.  What a noble cause?  Who could argue with such a self-less career?

 

As God worked with me to change my views, preaching and ministry opportunities kept coming my way.  For the money and need of activity, I continued to work as a minister with my own career plans clearly in my sights.  While fulfilling my duty as a recruiter for the college, the responsibility fell on me to deliver a convicting message to a group of high school kids about the call of the Lord.  I have never seen the preacher be the first to accept his own invitation, but it happened that day.  As I stood there weeping before a bunch of kids, I committed myself to the ministry which God called me to.

 

The story of Jonah is not so different.  Who he was.  What he did.  We don’t really have all the answers to those questions, but one thing is for certain . . . he was a man running from God.  

 

Historical background on the Book of Jonah from The Minor Prophets: Jonah by Al Maxey

 

Jonah is the only "minor prophet" ever to be mentioned by Jesus Christ. He is also the only OT figure that Jesus Himself likens unto Himself (Matthew 12:39-41; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32). Although some contend this book is a fable and that Jonah never actually lived, the biblical evidence is to the contrary. II Kings 14:25 speaks of him as an actual historical figure. So does Jesus Christ. Josephus (an early Jewish historian) also regarded him as historical rather than fictional (Antiquities of the Jews, Book 9, Chapter 10, Sections 1-2). Also, when Paul wrote that Jesus "was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (I Corinthians 15:4), he may well have been alluding, at least in part, to Jonah’s experience.

 

As we look at Jonah, may we learn from his story and discover 3 tendencies of people who are running from God.  Jonah chapter 1 shows us how (1) Jonah ran away from God, (2) Jonah ran toward ungodly people, and (3) Jonah ran in his own direction. 

 

Let us read the Word and pray.

 

”The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. 

 

Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 

 

So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 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.) The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” 

 

“Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” 

 

Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him. Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.“

               Jonah 1:1-17 NIV

 

  I.  We Run Away from God. (vv. 1-3a)

 

”The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.“

               Jonah 1:1-3a NIV

 

JONAH MAP

 

               Joppa to Tarshish is about 2,500 miles.  Joppa to Nineveh is about 550 miles.  Similar to New York to LA.

 

               A.  We go in the opposite direction of God’s command.

                             1.  Refuse the ministry; you lose the intimacy.

                              2.  Reject your call, and you will fall. 

                              3.  Run away, and you will pay. 

               B.  We go our own way.

                              1.  West, not East

                              2.  Pay to play

 

 II.  We Run Toward Ungodly People. (vv. 3b-5)

 

”He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.“

               Jonah 1:3b-5 NIV

 

               A.  We seek those not going God’s way.

                              1.  We want to know their destination.

                              2.  We choose the one going the farthest from God’s direction.

 

”Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.“

               Proverbs 13:20 NIV

 

               B.  We join their voyage.

                              1.  We become one of them.

                              2.  We give up our holiness. (“Hebrew”)

               C.  We give up a lot to follow them.

                              1.  There is a price to pay.

                              2.  The fare may or may not be.

 

III.  We Run in Our Own Direction.  (vv. 6-17)

 

”The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 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.) The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.“

               Jonah 1:6-16 NIV

 

               A.  Our running puts others at risk.

                              1.  Our punishment may become theirs.

                              2.  Not listening to God keeps the answer away from everyone.

               B.  Our running leads to death.

                              1.  Our solutions lead to a common end.

                              2.  The final attempt to overturn God’s will is to take our own lives.

 

”Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.“

               Psalms 139:7-12 NIV

 

               C.  Our running leads to grace.

                              1.  You can run, but you cannot hide.

                              2.  The God of the land and the sea can find you anywhere.

 

”Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.“

               Jonah 1:17 NIV

 

A Fish Called “Grace”

 

CONCLUSION

 

Are you in the belly of a whale?  Have you been running from God, and He has had to swallow you up to keep you from killing yourself?  What is your big fish?  What is God doing to keep you in His plan and not your own?  Do you see His grace or only the uvula of a big fish?  Follow His calling.  It’s much easier than surfing inside a fish.

 

INVITATION

 

It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word.  You may want to follow Jesus.  You may want to proclaim your faith.  You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things).  Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church.  If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now.  If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.