JONAH 1:4
CRAFTY CLERGYMAN CHALLENGES COMPASSIONATE CREATOR
I. CRAFT:
A. Course.
B. Confidence.
C. Credibility.
II. CONTRAST:
A. Creator.
B. Concern.
C. Control.
III. CONSEQUENCES:
A. Caldron.
B. Consternation.
C. Carrier.
Jonah is safely on board the ship and he feels enough at ease to descend down into the hold to find a good spot for a long nap. He has successfully made it to Joppa; he has found his vessel; he has paid his fare; and, now he is ready to take a long repose from his plan to avoid going to Nineveh. This thing of fleeing from God must be exhausting and he needed time to refresh himself and restore his depleted energy. He would need all of his renewed energy to continue his flight from God, once he landed at Tarshish. How much better could life be for this renegade clergyman? He was certainly a crafty clergyman who challenged a compassionate Creator and he was about to lose the challenge.
As I look at the text, I cannot help but notice that there are some fine points to this verse which stems from verse three. Verse three reveals a man made scene. It is all about man and man’s plan to go his own way. There is no concept nor concern for God nor anything to do with the Divine. Man has done all of the arraigning, seeking, buying and resting. God is no where to be found in this verse. However, in verse four everything changes and it is all about God and His actions. He does not appear in verse three but comes roaring to center stage in verse four as He takes charge of the whole affair concerning Jonah and his flight from his God given duty. May we take these two verses to heart and remember, that without having God in our plans-there is no room for advancement.
I see three things relating to these two verses. The opening scenario begins in the previous verses, but the actions begin in verse four and the rest of the chapter and indeed the entire book.
I note the contrast between these two verses with that little conjunction, “but.” This little three letter word caries such an impact in the story of Jonah. Everything was fine until that word, “but” is introduced. That little word changes everything. It changes the whole picture of what went before and what follows. That three letter word, reveals all about Jonah before it is used and then it shows God’s actions after Jonah makes good on his flight from God. May we ever live on the clear side of that little word. “but.” May we ever live so that people will not have to use that word in our relationship with God. May people never have to say, “He was a good man, but he was not a Christian.” Regarding this one little conjunction, I note the CRAFT in which the renegade clergyman was sailing before that word, “but” was introduced into verse four. I also note the CONTRAST between these two verses since that word was placed at the beginning of verse four. Lastly, I note the CONSEQUENCES which follow that little word.
I. CRAFT: As I noted, verse three is all about man (Jonah) and what he wanted and what he did. However, when we get to verse four and once we read that little word, “but” everything changes from man’s perspective to God’s actions.
I first notice the CRAFT in verse three as it was intended for man’s benefit then I notice what happened to that very vessel once God entered the picture.
True to form the ship wherein Jonah was resting was designed by man; made water tight by man; floated by man; and, sailed the Sea many times by and for man’s well being. Like so many times before, this craft left port and began to set sail on a marked Course which it had taken many times before. It was no stranger to the water and once loaded with its goods for sell to foreign ports, its Course was well learned and well attended by the sailors on board. There was no cause of alarm when the boat was tied to the shore line; everything was working as it should be working; there were no apparent storms brewing in the distance; and, everything pointed to a good and fast sail to Tarshish for a good and hefty profit for the boat’s owners. If only the boat would have stayed moored to its tether, things might have been different. However, the lines were pulled onto the deck, the sails were unfurled, the helm was engaged and slowly the ship began to drift away onto a calm sea. All was under man’s control and everything was fine.
Besides the man made boat; besides the man made charts for the sailing the Sea; there can be added that this ship bred Confidence of making the trip posthaste. There was no need to worry. The ship was checked at Joppa for any possible leaks, breakage, or problems which needed to be addresses while in port. Once on the Sea, little untended problems could and would develop into big problems. Everything was checked and the ship was given the thumbs up to set sail. No man had any reason to fear for his life, because this was a sea going vessel and it would make its run successfully to the ports of call and eventually come back to Joppa. Man was in control of the boat and all was at rest. Everything was a go and everything was so thoroughly checked that Jonah had no qualms about settling down in the bowels of the craft and going for a good nap-everything was perfect. Everything was perfect because man made it as perfect as man could make it.
Besides this man made CRAFT being a star product of man’s ingenuity, this boat was secure in its chosen Course and it inspired Confidence. All of these points, plus the Credibility of all concern pointed to success. Man had done all of the work; man had made the boat safe; man had fine tuned everything; man had proven the reliability of this vessel before; and, now man was going to sail it one more time. Man had every reason to believe in man’s ability to sail safely upon the Sea one more time. All would be okay and man would have made everything just fine except that three letter word, “but.” Verse three ends with man’s glory and verse four opens with God’s wrath. What follows this small conjunction changes everything in this chapter and this book. From now on, God is in control and He never relinquishes that control at all. He is in charge and man must answer to Him as we shall see later on through out this wonderful book of Jonah.
II. CONTRAST: The difference between verses three and four are marked for us by the conjunction, “but.” This little word carries so much power in the English language that it is impossible to ignore, especially when it is located here in the opening verses of Jonah. As I noted earlier, the first three verses of Jonah Chapter One are almost all centered around man and what man wants as seen via the character of our main protagonist-Jonah. Verse four marks the shift away from man and God becomes the central character.
The first part of this CONTRAST of which I wish to address has to do with God being the Creator in this story as well as in all aspects of our lives. Man built the boat which was holding Jonah, but God grew the trees which made the boat. Also, there is the fact that since God was the One who had created and who has formed all things, it is imperative to view this entire scenario from this aspect. Jonah overlooked this simple fact that God was the One who was ultimately in control of both the boat and the water upon which the bark was set to sail.
Man is so proud of his accomplishments that he often overlooks the One who is the Creator of all things. It is God’s blessings upon mankind for mankind’s advancement in all fields of science, medicine, engineering, etc. Without God’s blessings, man would still be in his darkness, alone and with no advancements. Jonah did not take God into his plan of escape and felt that he was in control of his own destiny, but God who created all things-even Jonah himself, was not going to let man think that he could overthrow the CREATOR of all things and run away from His presence. That little conjunction, “but” made all the difference in the world between the created and the CREATOR.
Next, I note the Concern which God had for Jonah. Jonah had no concern for God, but God had all the care and watchfulness for Jonah. It is so like man-to be so callous that he excludes God from all of his equations, but God reaches out and includes man in His care. Jonah was going to go alone without God, but God was not going to go alone without Jonah. He had the final word and He was not going to let his servant run away from Him. How like Jonah is every selfish person who refuses to take God into his sphere of influence. Verse three was all about Jonah’s Concern for a safe journey to Tarshish; verse four is all about God’s Concern for his prophet. May all preachers, Sunday School teachers, church people, yes, all Christians realize that we are special in the eyes of God and He is very mindful of all of us-so much so that he sent His Son to die for us.
I have looked, briefly, at two aspects of the CONTRAST as I see them in verse four. May I add one more? I see in this verse that God is the One who has the ultimate Control of all situations. Jonah thought he had everything under his control in the first three verses, but then verse four shows us that God was the real One who had the final say and Control of the events which were about to unfold. Jonah should have known that God was God and that he was going to have His way regardless of man’s wishes, rebellions and plans. How like Jonah is modern man.
Poets, writers, actors, politicians, skeptics and others think they are in charge of their own life and their own destiny and leave God out of their equation. God may be insulted, denied, rejected, scorned and pushed to the background, yet He is still in control and it should behoove everyone to remember this simple fact.
III. CONSEQUENCES: I now turn to the results of the differences between verse three and verse four where I see what God did to the boat, to Jonah and to the sailors who were already sailing on the Sea.
The first thing I note is that God waited until the bark which was ferrying His renegade prophet was away from port and was sailing out to deep waters. God could have sent a squall on shore while the ship was loading but He waited, on purpose, so as to make sure that all on board would have to look to Him for help. If God would have allowed a storm to brew while the ship was docked, Jonah would simply have waited until the storm passed and found another ship or would have done something else. By waiting until the ship was far enough from shore where it could not return to safety, God began His method of reaching Jonah’s heart and mind. The ship was too far out to sea for it to turn around and head for shore and safety-it had to endure what God was going to do to it and to the Sea.
As I study the text, I cannot help but to note that the Bible says that God sent a “great wind into the sea.” This is unusual wording for a storm’s description. We usually read where the wind was sent onto or over the waters, but rarely do we read where the wind was sent into the sea thus making the sea a boiling Caldron upon which to sail. The effects of such a tempest meant that the sea was churning from below the vessel and boiling upward. The sailors were used to facing a storm on the sea where the wind was upon the water not in the water. It is no wonder then that the sailors were seized with fear due to the usualness of such a violent storm.
Not only was the wind whipping the waters underneath the vessel and making the water boil as hot water boils in a tea pot, but the wind was also tossing the vessel mightily. This storm, which came upon the boat which was far from safety, was perhaps the most unusual type of storm these sailors ever experienced. The results of such a storm both as it blew into the waters and above the waters, caused great Consternation by the entire crew. The text states that at first the sailors were pagans, but when this storm arose and after it battered the vessel mightily, these sailors came to the realization that there was only one true God who was the Creator and Sustainer of this world and they all turned their hearts over to Him. Jonah was asleep but he was already an indirect means for God to reach and convert some hardened, pagan sailors.
Lastly, I note the CONSEQUENCE to the Carrier, the vessel in which the people were sailing. They all thought that the ship was safe. Many had no doubt sailed in it before this time and never had a worry about its durability. Yet now, with such a violent and a most unusual storm raging, the Bible says that there was great fear that this boat would be broken and all would be lost. Reading the rest of this chapter we know that the ship was spared and it was not broken nor sent to the bottom of the Sea. However, at the time of the tempest, all those who were awake thought the worst. As I read this verse, I cannot but help to draw some comparisons between this vessel and the vessel of our being. Sometimes, when we think all is safe and all is sailing along so smoothly, then out of nowhere a storm hits us. Maybe it is an unexpected death in the family; maybe it is a loss of a job; maybe it is the loss of health or position or the betrayal of a friend; or, something so horrible we cannot even comprehend. And, it is at these times that we might think that our vessel is going down and will be broken to lie at the bottom of our hopes and dreams. When those times come, may we remember Jonah chapter one and remember, that God allows these storms and even though we might have to pass through some troubled water, He will not let us sink nor allow us to suffer beyond what we can endure. The boat in chapter one made it and so will we. Let us keep our eyes on God and trust in His goodness not our own doings and we will make it.
As I conclude this sermon, I notice Jonah is still asleep in the hold of the ship, but a revival is about to break out among some hardened sailors and in the end-God will be glorified.
