God's Reluctant Servant

by Scotchbrook, A. J. | Category: General | Dec 1995

Running away from God:

Jonah was God's servant, but a reluctant one. His heart was not in harmony with the God he served. Born in the 8th century B.C., of the tribe of Zebulun, he came from a village in Galilee between Nazareth and Cana. God called him to preach to Nineveh, the capital of powerful Assyria, a message of judgement because of their sin (Jonah ch.1). But Jonah knew the character of the God he served, that He was full of compassion and gracious, and that if Nineveh repented He would forgive their sin, and that was not what Jonah desired. So he decided to disobey, and taking a ship going in the opposite direction he began his futile attempt at running away from God. It was a downward way. The path away from God always is. The ocean which he saw as a way of escape became a threat to his very existence. But the God whom he served was full of compassion and gracious to His disobedient servant also, and in the belly of the great fish He gave Jonah opportunity to repent.

Returning to God:

'Out of the belly of hell cried I' (2:2). In the fish's belly Jonah had a dealing with God. He knew his Bible, as the numerous quotations in chapter 2

prove, and be applied its promises to his own situation. In the heart of the sea he repented of his disobedience, and resolved to pay his vows to the Lord.

Obeying God's Word:

'The word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time' (3:1). That is a

word of pure grace, reminding us that there is forgiveness with the Lord, that He may be feared. He is the God of the second opportunity. Jonah, a resurrected man, was now prepared to obey the Lord. And the word of the Lord in his month was powerful, for 'the people of Nineveh believed God and they turned from their evil way'. When the Lord Jesus spoke about Jonah, it was not to his disobedience and failure that He referred,' but rather to his greatness as a preacher, for He said 'A greater than Jonah is here' (Mat. 12:41).

Learning of God:

'Doest thou well to be angry?' (4:4). It was a heart-searching question. Despite being so powerfully used of God' Jonah's attitude of heart had not changed. In the provision of the gourd and then its removal, God spoke to His servant' showing him that he cared more for a sheltering gourd than he did for a city full of people who were in danger of being removed just as the gourd had been. His attitude was selfish and shameful. If Jonah cared so much about the gourd could he not understand God's concern for the great city of Nineveh?

Scotchbrook, A. J. | Dec 1995
General