Jonah 1:3

New International Version

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.

For Meditation

Many of us struggle with obeying God’s word for varied reasons. A notable example in the Bible is the prophet Jonah, who defied God and got into serious trouble.

When God told Jonah to go and warn the citizens of Nineveh, that great city of the Assyrians, to repent and receive deliverance from His wrath, Jonah hated the idea (Jonah 1:1-3). Why should such wicked and sinful people receive God’s mercy? Jonah did not know that he needed deliverance from himself as much as the Ninevites needed salvation.

The prophet needed to know himself and his heart in a manner he had never known. Hatred had filled his heart as much as disobedience, which is sinful and abhorrent to the Almighty. God graciously worked on Jonah and finally got him to turn from disobedience to yieldedness after spending three days and three nights in the belly of the gigantic fish God provided (Chap. 2).

Even when Jonah finally obeyed God, his reaction to the city-wide repentance of the Ninevites showed his displeasure and a sour heart (Chap. 3). Again, the loving God Yahweh is, He graciously taught the sulking prophet a valuable lesson through the leafy plant and east wind episode in the end (4:1-8). Nothing is more precious than human beings God created in His image and likeness and redeemed through Jesus from sin and death (9-11). What a fresh perspective for Jonah!

We are so much like Jonah. We hate it when God shows mercy to people we dislike. Out of anger, we walk away from God and all that is good. Sometimes we flee to Tarshish, but how ridiculous to think we can hide from God (Psa. 139:1-12). The issue is not the physical separation, but our disobedience to His call.

Thank God, He does not leave us in our self-destructive ways. Our loving God pursues us, rebukes us where necessary, removes our camouflage, disciplines us, and refocuses us on Jesus to get right with Him.

May His rule never fail us, to protect and guide us from the enemy, the world, and our destructive tendencies.

Pray with Me

Father, help me to yield to your ways even when my limited understanding fails me. You loved the world so much; you gave your Son to redeem us from sin and death. Empower us by your Spirit to share this good news with all you send us, regardless of our feelings about them. In Christ our Lord, amen.

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