Let’s dive right into it. Let’s begin with verse 1, The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, the great city, and cry out against it, because their wickedness has come up before Me.” 3 But Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship that was going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and boarded it to go with them to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord. Jonah had three bad attitudes that sent him running from God and into disaster. These three bad attitudes set in motion everything that follows.
- To begin with, Jonah had a wrong attitude toward the will of God. He was not willing to do everything God told him to do. God’s will for his life was to go deliver a message to the wicked people of Nineveh. Jonah was saying, “No Your will, but my will.” In contrast, for Jesus, He said, “Your will, not my will.” To Jesus, the will of God was food that satisfied Him; to Jonah, the will of God was medicine that choked him.
- Secondly, Jonah had a wrong attitude toward the Word of God. He had a take it or leave it approach to God’s Word. We have to be careful here because we can have the same approach to God’s Word. God’s Word says don’t do this and we think, “I like doing that and I want to do that, and it brings me pleasure so I’m going to do it, I don’t care what God says. Why is what I’m doing a sin?” Or God’s Word says do this and we think, “I don’t want to do that. It looks difficult, inconvenient, and it wouldn’t make me happy.” God spoke to Jonah, told him what he needed to do, but Jonah did not like nor obey it.
- Finally, Jonah had a wrong attitude toward circumstances. I think Jonah thought his circumstances were working for him when they were really working against him. He fled to Joppa and found just the right ship waiting for him! He had enough money to pay the fare for his long trip, and he was even able to go down into the ship and fall into a sleep so deep that the storm didn’t wake him up. It’s possible to be out of the will of God and still have circumstances appear to be working on your behalf. You can be rebelling against God and still have a false sense of security that includes a good night’s sleep. When in reality, all these circumstances that seems to favor Jonah’s decision to run from God is actually God’s providence preparing Jonah for a great fall in order to grab his attention and to draw Jonah’s heart back to Himself.
A Supernatural Storm
Jonah has heard from God. He has ignored God. He is running from God. He is disobeying God, and he is deep into his sin. So, what’s the Lord’s response to this? This brings us to verse 4, However, the Lord hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea, so that the ship was about to break up. 5 Then the sailors became afraid and every man cried out to his god…. These sailors were not new at this. They were seasoned sailors who had traveled this sea many times. They had faced storms on the sea before. They had dealt with rough waters before. Storms at sea were not strange to them. Why would it be there immediate reaction to cry out to their pagan gods for mercy and help? It is because this storm hit so hard and violently and so fast and suddenly that their immediate reaction was this is not a natural storm, but a supernatural storm. This storm was different and there was something strange about it.
Have you ever been in a storm, a conflict, a problem, or find yourself in trouble and it feels like there is something supernatural behind it? You might think God is behind it or the devil is behind it, but whatever is happening it feels spiritual, like there is an unseen force behind this problem.
Sometimes God is behind the storm, behind the trouble. Sometimes the devil is behind it. This is why Ephesians 6:12 says, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (NLT). Some storms, some conflicts, and some troubles in your life are devil induced. His army is doing everything they can to steal, kill, and destroy what God is doing in your life. And they will encourage you to rebel against God. But, there are some storms, some troubles, and some problems in life that are not induced by the devil or his army, but by God himself in order to reach your heart and bring you to a place of obedience.
The Sailors Prayed
When the storm hit the sea, the sailors responded correctly. They prayed. However, they prayed to the wrong god. They did not pray to the one true God. Later, they will pray to the one true God and become believers, but not yet. So, let me just point something out. Whether you are a believer or not, storms in life push us to pray to something. Storms in life cause us to want to believe or to believe that there is a higher power that we can call on. We are created and designed that way. When storms hit, a lot of people become spiritual who normally are not spiritual because God made us to respond to the storms in life in such a way as we naturally recognize we need Him to intervene. God sends this storm to get the attention and heart of Jonah, but as a side product it gets the attention of the pagans as well, as we will see.
The Sailors lost their cargo because of Jonah
Now look at verse 5 again, Then the sailors became afraid and every man cried out to his god, and they hurled the cargo which was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them (NLT). Before we move on, let me just throw this thought at you. When you attach yourself to someone who is running from God, you will get caught up in whatever storm, discipline, or punishment that God sends their way to get their heart’s attention. When you attach yourself with someone who is running from God, it will cost you. You will end up losing precious cargo because of them. That cargo can be anything. The cargo you lose because of their storm may be money, peace, happiness, relationships, marriage, job, your reputation, your testimony, your influence and so on. When you invite someone who is running from God into the boat of your life and attach your life to them, it will cost you a lot and that cost is going to hurt. Be careful who you attach your life to, because the damage can be costly, devastating and some of the loss you will never get back.
Decisions in the past cost the people in your life now
There is something else you need to see here. These sailors are paying a high price because of a sinful decision that Jonah made before they ever entered into their lives. There are decisions you made in the past, that are costing the people in your life now. Here is the deal, if that is you and you have made some poor decisions in the past that is costing and hurting the people in your life now you can redeem the time (Eph 5:16).
Not only did Jonah need to ask forgiveness from God, but he also needed to ask for forgiveness from the sailors for bringing this storm, this pain, this hurt, and this loss into their lives when they had nothing to do with it. Don’t think that the decisions you made in the past have no impact on today and don’t think the decision you are making today have no impact on tomorrow and those who will eventually come into your life.
Numbing the conviction of God
While the sailors are losing their cargo because of this storm brought on by Jonah’s rebellion, look at what Jonah is doing at the end of verse 5, But Jonah had gone below into the stern of the ship, had lain down, and fallen sound asleep (NASB). The one who new the one true God and the one who should have been praying to the one true God, was sound asleep in the bottom of the ship. When you run from God, you will find something to numb the conviction of God on your life. You will find a way to “sleep” or ignore away God’s conviction and call upon your life. This can take the form of anything. You may try to numb God’s conviction by becoming busy and working all the time or by drinking more or by doing more drugs or by having more sex or by eating more or by binge watching or by anything that helps you ignore God’s call upon your life. Whatever helps you to keep running and numbs the Spirit’s conviction on your life. Through the storm, God was calling out to Jonah and trying to get his attention, but Jonah was ignoring it all while sleeping.
We don’t see God trying to get our attention
Then look at verse 6, So the captain approached him and said, “How is it that you are sleeping? Get up, call on your god! Perhaps your god will be concerned about us so that we will not perish” (NLT). The captain wakes Jonah up and asked him a very good question, “How is it that you are sleeping through this storm? How can you ignore what is going on? Don’t you see this as a supernatural act of one of the gods?” It has always amazed me how we don’t see God’s hand in the storms of our lives when we are running from Him or we just simply ignore them.
I remember my dad running from God. One night, on his way home from the clubs, he was driving his convertible Corvette. It was sweet. While driving through our neighborhood he passes out drunk while driving and crashes his car. He totals the car. They ended up having to cut him out of the car, but he only had minor scratches. But he didn’t see that as a wakeup call to turn to God. One time he was so drunk that he was taken to the hospital, and his blood alcohol content was so high the doctor said most people would be died because of it. And things like that happened throughout his life. I’m convinced God was trying to get his attention, but he ignored God his whole life.
Back to Jonah. So, Jonah, how is it that you are sleeping through the storm? How is it that you are ignoring what is going on around you? God is trying to get your attention. Jonah you need to wake up and see what is happening around you. God is talking!
Casting lots
Then verse 7 we read, And each man said to his mate, “Come, let’s cast lots so that we may find out on whose account this catastrophe has struck us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. These sailors are spiritual men. I didn’t say Christian or followers of God. They have a spiritual side to them. They are seeing this freak storm as having one of the gods behind it. They don’t know there is only one true God, but they are thinking spiritually.
When catastrophe happens, everyone – without exception, becomes spiritual. Why is God allowing this? Why did God cause this? What have I done to deserve this? They begin to evaluate the catastrophe in their life through a spiritual lens of some sort. Is this happening because I’m not doing this or should have done that? Am I being punished? Is God mad at me? These men are thinking this way.
Then they do something that seems weird to us today, but it was a common practice during biblical times of acquiring the will of God or the will of the gods. They decided to cast lots. They said, “Come, let’s cast lots so that we may find out on whose account this catastrophe has struck us.” The practice of casting lots is mentioned 70 times in the Old Testament and 7 times in the New Testament. However, very little is known about it. They may have used sticks of various lengths, flat stones like coins, or some kind of dice; but their exact nature is unknown. The closest modern practice to casting lots is likely flipping a coin.
The last time we see lots being cast in Scripture is prior to the writing of the New Testament and before the day of Pentecost. Now that we have the completed Word of God and the indwelling Holy Spirit to guide us, there is probably no reason to be casting lots to make decisions. The New Testament nowhere instructs Christians to use a method similar to casting lots. The Word of God, the Holy Spirit, godly advisors, and prayer should be sufficient for discerning God’s will today – not casting lots, rolling dice, or flipping coins.
The storm is occurring because of Jonah
At the end of verse 7 we are told, So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Now they knew the storm was occurring because of something Jonah had done or was doing. Let me just say this, when you are running from God your family (those in the boat with you) are going to have to go through the same storm you are going through and that you brought on yourself and the family. When you run from God and make poor decisions that do not honor God, eventually a storm from God will come into your life but you will not go through the storm alone. You will drag your children through the storm, your spouse through the storm, your friends through the storm. When you rebel against God, it doesn’t just impact you. It impacts those in your life. It hurts you and it hurts them. And all he had to do to stop the storm and the pain and the fears of those around him, was to repent and do what God said to do. So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. They now know that Jonah is somehow the cause of this storm.
Your sin will find you out
Listen carefully, Jonah’s sin was hidden at first. He was running from God. He was in rebellion. He was acting selfishly and sinfully. He was able to hide his sin for a while. But then his sin was found out. God’s Word says in Numbers 32:23, “Be sure that your sin will find you out” (NASB). What that means is, the longer you run away from God in that sin, that sin will catch up with you, and others will find it out. You can only hide your sin for so long, before those who you don’t want to know about your sin find out.
Conclusion
Jonah is running from God. Maybe you are running from God. You are running from His will and His word for your life. Your running from God has created a lot of problems in your life and in the lives of others. Those problems that have come in your life as a result of your running is a God loving trying to get the attention of your heart and bring you to Himself, into His will and plan for your life. It’s is God’s love and mercy at work in your life.
If you are running from God, what should you do? Repent. I love Acts 3:19, Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord (NIV).
