Jonah
Salvation is for all men, not just the Jews.
Not really about the life of Jonah- it’s about God and his purposes.
Jonah-prophet in Israel 775 BC. His job? Keep close to God and tell the people of Israel what God thought of them and what he would do for them. But he wasn’t very good at his job.
God had plans for the whole world to hear his message not just the Jews, his special people. Jonah wasn’t too happy about that… he wanted things to stay focused on the Jews.
Israel had sinned against God and experienced God’s judgement- but also his rescue- totally undeserved.
When God tells Jonah to tell that same message to the Assyrians (his country’s enemies) - Jonah is having none of it.
When Jonah finally takes them the message, they repent and God forgives them.
Jonah is furious with God…
Jonah learns the hard way that God is concerned about all people. That his plan is to reach all people with the news of himself, so that they can be rescued for heaven.
The book ends with question… who is God concerned with?
Jonah 1: God’s Priorities and Jonah’s priorities
God is everywhere, we cannot run from him.
God gives Jonah his mission to go and preach a message of repentance to the wicked people in Nineveh.
Jonah runs away- and gets on a boat taking him to Tarshish (in the other direction).
God is in control of what is going on and causes a big storm to happen.
Each man on the ship prays to his god except Jonah who is below deck sleeping. He shows no concern for them men on board with him.
The sailors come to realise that Jonah is responsible for the danger they are in…
Jonah tells them who he worships – but still makes no effort to repent, even though he knows it is his fault that everyone else is in danger.
Jonah tells the men to throw him over board. He’s still not repenting- death is more preferable to repentance. The men are scared, and try other means but finally agree to Jonah’s request- and the sea grows calm.
These men- subsequently fear the Lord.
The men turn to God- but we still don’t know what Jonah does.
Jonah is not killed, but God, still in control, sends a fish to swallow him for 3 days and nights.
God’s plan was not stopped… he is firmly in control.
Activity Suggestions:
Cannot hide from God…
Have an item that one child hides, as another child is blindfolded. The item must then be found…
It may be easy to find it might be harder…
Today’s story we’ll learn about someone who tried to hide from God. But discovered that it was impossible.
Disobedience
Play a ‘follow the leader’ type activity. Before the game, prime one of the leaders to disobey everything you say, by doing the opposite or just a completely different movement. Play for a few minutes, and then ask the children what is going on.
If they just say that he is getting it wrong, ask the leader if he can hear the instructions and knows what to do. His response should be, yes- but I wanted to do something different.
Draw out from the children that he is disobeying your instructions.
Talk about us disobeying instructions… parents/teachers/livewire leaders etc…
Not a good idea.
Man in the story today… disobeyed God’s instructions and learned how foolish that was.
Jonah 2:
Jonah recognises that salvation comes from God alone
Nothing was going to stop God’s plan for the people of Nineveh to hear about him. Jonah was part of that plan, and nothing was going to stop him doing God’s will.
Jonah’s experience of being swallowed by the fish- completely changes his attitude towards God’s mission for him.
As Jonah goes to the depths- as low as he can go, he realises that he cannot run from God anymore, and he also starts talking to him again.
In his prayer, Jonah constantly says ‘You’ and Your’ he is re-focusing on the fact that God is completely in control, that he is in and over all things.
He realises that as he’s been to the depths and been raised up again by God, that God is in control of his life. He recognises that clinging to idols is worthless- and that turning to God and his grace is the only way to gain salvation.
He is confident now, not in his own strength, but in God’s faithful promises.
Fully dependent on God… God causes the fish to spit him back onto dry land.
Activity Suggestions:
Who has the power to save us in different situations?
Who would be the best person to save you?
If you were stuck in a burning building?
If you were in a boat that was sinking out at sea?
If you fell and hurt yourself on the side of a mountain?
There are special people who are trained to rescue or save us from danger that we may get into.
Jonah was in big danger… and God has rescued him- by having a big fish swallow him so that he did not die when he was thrown into the sea.
We’re going to see how Jonah realised that God was the only one who could save him and why.
Jonah 3
God has mercy on those who repent
When God again tells Jonah to go to Nineveh, he obeys. He travels to the great city of Nineveh and preaches the God’s message (v4). The people are told that they have 40 days and then God’s anger will burn against their wickedness.
The Ninevites hear God speaking through Jonah’s message and they repent. It wasn’t enough just to be sorry- they also had to change their behaviour and stop doing wrong things. Even the King repents, and produces a decree that all men must fast and must turn to God (v9) hoping that God will withhold his anger.
God will destroy evil- he judges because he cares. His compassion shows his care, and here he relents from his anger.
So the Ninevites are saved (v10)
Is it fair for God to stop punishing the Ninevites?
We should think so… God judges all people who sin… and shows mercy to those who repent (ultimately through the death of Jesus)
If God didn’t show mercy, we’d be in big trouble…
How should it make us feel about people who aren’t Christians?
Activity Suggestions:
Drama:
Someone does something incredibly nasty to another person, ruins something very precious of theirs… and doesn’t seem to care at all. Eventually someone tells them what they have done, and what will happen to them if they’re not sorry…
The person and the owner meet. The owner forgives the person who broke their possession.
Jonah 4
God shows his concern for all people… he wants all people to learn of him and turn in repentance.
Jonah is angry… very angry- with God. When he hears that God is no longer going to punish the Ninevites- he cries out to God. What he says about God in v2 is true, but he wants God to confine himself to caring for the Jews. He prays in anger to the Lord (v2). He did not want to pass on the message because he knew that God was the sort of God that would forgive.
God challenges Jonah, and asks him what right he has to get angry (v4)
Jonah should have begun to learn that God was in control- and that he knew what he was doing. It was not for Jonah, or anyone else to question what he did.
Jonah sees the world from his eyes, rather than through God’s eyes. It seems that he doesn’t want people to be saved… seems strange, but maybe he hasn’t realised that God’s saving power is for all people.
It seems that Jonah would have been much happier for God to have shown his anger- and annihilated the Ninevites.
Jonah decides to wait for the destruction… he’s not happy with God’s care.
As he waits: God provides him with a leaf as shelter from the hot sun, Then God sends a worm to eat it up- leaving him vulnerable again. Jonah was angry when the shelter was taken away from him, and again says it would be better for him to be dead.
God points out that Jonah has concern for the plant even though he had played no part in creating or cultivating it. How much more concern should God show for a people whom he has created- and were ignorant of God and his laws?
God tries to teach Jonah a lesson… but still Jonah thinks that he knows best and it is ok for him to be angry with God.
God questions Jonah about his actions and his attitude.
He still cares for Jonah, despite his attitude towards sinners.
He shows that his priority remains for people to turn to him and be forgiven. Throughout the book of Jonah- we see God in control in 4:4-11 we see God’s provision for Jonah.
The answer to the question in v11b, must surely be yes.
Activity Suggestions:: Map of the world… name some obscure countries-
Does God care about the people in these countries?
Does God want to be friends with them too?
Why? What should that mean for us?