Go Beyond

Reflections on Jonah 1:3-10

Jonah heard God’s call but responded by running in the opposite direction from Nineveh. He did not want to deliver God’s message nor did he want God to show mercy to the notoriously cruel Assyrians. Jonah therefore “went down” to the coastal city of “Joppa” and boarded a ship bound for “Tarshish” (Jonah 1:3) — a city at the southern tip of Spain. God however, did not allow Jonah to run away from his responsibility. Instead, He “sent a great wind” (Jonah 1:4) to intercept the Tarshish-bound ship (see Ps. 135:7 and 104:4). The sailors, probably Phoenicians, became frightened by the “violent storm” (Jonah 1:4). Each sailor “cried to his own god” and then “threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship” (Jonah 1:5). The sailors hoped their prayers combined with practical action would save them from the storm.

Jonah did not hear the panicked cries of the sailors on the upper deck of the ship because he was sound asleep “below deck.” Sadly, God’s only representative aboard the ship was sleeping while others cried out in vain to their false gods for salvation. Today, multiplied millions of people are crying out in vain to impotent gods for salvation. Moreover, millions of people in our world speak a language with no Scripture — not even one book of the Bible in their language. Imagine being a member of one of the people groups that doesn’t have a written copy of God’s universally relevant message. We must not sleep in self-security while so many people have little or no access to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Jonah was roused from his sleep by the captain of the ship (Jonah 1:6). The sailors, fearing greatly for their lives, determined by “lots” (see Prov. 16:33) that Jonah was responsible for their “calamity” (Jonah 1:7). They asked Jonah a series of questions (Jonah 1:8). Jonah identified himself as a “Hebrew” (Jonah 1:9), the term by which Israelites were known to foreigners. He told the sailors everything that had taken place between him and the Lord (Jonah 1:10).

Running away from God’s call is tragic and foolish. Like Jonah, believers hurt themselves and others when they disobey God’s call. Some believers run from specific missionary callings. Still others refuse to run with God on mission. Evading our responsibility to share the gospel has tragic consequences. Today, three of every four persons in the world have not accepted Christ as Savior. One of the three unsaved has never even had the opportunity to hear about Him. Every hour, 1,400 people die without ever having heard about Jesus Christ. I am thankful that the person who shared the gospel with me did not evade his responsibility. We must do no less. We must hear and heed God’s persistent call to join Him on mission. What we do with the truth of the gospel is a matter of life and death for those still waiting to hear. So, don’t run away from God and don’t fall asleep with the truth.