Hello All,
(Just a general disclaimer that I must insert here at the beginning. I am but a lay person, like most of you. And these weekly “thoughts” are but my own. Not the definitive word on this or any topic. Just my own conclusions derived from my own study and faith in God. The greatest hope I have for these weekly “thoughts” is to have them be a springboard for further study on your part. Not to be a weekly treatise to be blindly accepted. So, please read them with this intent, this motive in mind).
This week’s lesson from “The Adult Sabbath School Guide” is titled “The Restless Prophet“. A treatise on Jonah. This time, in terms of rest. Interesting is it not? We usually look at Jonah regarding his reluctance and his mission. But not about his rest. I do hope you read, study, and enjoy this week’s lesson. For this thought, though, I would like to look at some of the lessons for us from Jonah’s trials.
Jonah ran away from his conscience. Whether God spoke audibly to Jonah or he was impressed by the Holy Spirit is really irrelevant. Either way, Jonah was running away from what he was confident was God’s will. Have you ever done that? Have you ever been convinced of God’s will, but did not want to do it? Have you ever, figuratively or literally, run away from God? When you run away, you usually take an escape route that has a measure of respectability to it (like Jonah… a trip to a distant location). And likely some avoidance and hiding as you run away, too. But whether figuratively or literally, you actually are moving in a diametrically opposed direction from where your Holy Spirit inspired conscience leads. From where you know you need to be, doing what God is leading you to. Your efforts are moving you away from God. Away from peace. Away from joy. Away from your true self. And toward sin. Toward the natural consequences of sin and self. Toward your false self. And what happens when you do that? Your life becomes a mess… a storm.
This storm for Jonah can be symbolic of what happens to you and me when we walk away from God… from His leading… from what our Holy Spirit led conscience leads us to. A storm of gigantic proportions. And in this storm, we are prone to jettison some very good things from our lives. Things that likely have some inherent value. We will jettison these things because we are not willing to submit ourselves to God. We will destroy everything (almost) before we will submit ourselves to God’s leading. And when we are finally left with everything lost, it is usually then that we will submit. We are swept-up in the storm we have been fighting, engulfed by the unknown (symbolized by the fish) and are dragged into the depths. Which may seem to be the end. All is lost. I am lost. Away from everyone who might possibly care for me. Seemingly away from even the God to whom we submit. We wonder if there is even life left for us. Because we have ruined all we know.
But in the dark, in the depths, in the inevitable consequence of our self and sin, something remarkable takes place. We find that God has not left us. As we contemplate the consequences of our actions… to wonder if there is even life after the wreckage our choices have made… when we are humble and submitted to the consequences… and in our moments of contemplation, God’s voice can be heard again, speaking to our conscience. When we are experiencing this hopelessness over our lost lives and lost self, God’s voice directs even more patiently and passionately. Inspiring us with hope.
Surprise! Wonder of wonders! Contrary to our impressions and feelings, we do not die when we finally submit to God. There is life after all. In fact, God treats us as if we had never rebelled! He actually calls us back to the place where we first rebelled. To do His will, just as He had led in the first place. Amazing! He does not hold our rebellion and failure against us. We start again. We turn from our self-destruction and toward God and His plans. And we start again.
Contrary to popular belief, the Christian walk is not henceforth all roses. We can still be somewhat reluctant (like Jonah on his way to Nineveh). We can still be skeptical of God’s way. But we go (like Jonah). We will submit to God’s leading. And lo and behold, God’s way works! It accomplishes the very thing He wanted. We should be glad. But we often are not. We still have a heart that seeks to justify itself. Seeks to be right. Thus, there are still lessons for us to learn. It is not enough that God’s way is the only way and we see it as such. It’s not enough that mercy wins out. Our heart can still be far from God. The lessons are not over. Actually, God’s lessons are never over. Ever. Even as we bask in God’s victory of mercy, patience, and love toward others and as we chafe over His so-called unfairness of it all… that God is not the God of retribution or pay-back… God reminds us of His mercy, patience, and love toward us. How He has worked with each of us. He has treated each of us with mercy, patience and love despite our rebellion.
The lesson of resting in God has no conclusion in the Book of Jonah. We are not told if God’s mercy, patience, and love wins Jonah like it did those in Nineveh. And so for you and me, too. Will God’s dealing with us win us? Will we embrace His leading in our lives? Will we insist on our own way? Our own understanding? Our own selfish, sinful ways? Will we run away from God as we have so often in our lives? I hope not. The decision is in our hands.
With brotherly love,
Jim