Jonah: A Fishy Tale About a Faithful Godಮಾದರಿ

Rescuing Runaways

As we saw in Jonah chapter one, God has asked Jonah to go and do something he clearly does not want to do (preach to the Ninevites their need to repent). So it is also good for us to ask ourselves, how should we respond when God asks us to do hard things and why should we respond that way?

The “correct” answer and the way we should respond, is to do what God tells us to do. But why? Jonah chapter two gives us some insight.

Here, inside a great fish, Jonah cries out to God for help. Ironically, it is in the darkness of the fish that Jonah has clear sight. Even though it is difficult, rock bottom is sometimes the most freeing place to be. It is there that we are most willing to be honest about our brokenness, and our need for God and others to help us.

As we see in Jonah chapter two, Jonah has reached this point and recognizes that only God can rescue him. And this is true for all of us. It’s why in Romans chapter three, the apostle Paul writes that everyone, Jew and Gentile, is guilty of breaking God’s perfect law. We are all broken on our own.

Yet God still rescues us. He still forgives, redeems, and loves anyone who will turn to Him. In his disobedience to God, Jonah experiences forgiveness when God rescues him from the fish. At that point, Jonah had done nothing but repent! He hadn’t proven himself or even yet gone to Nineveh to do what God asked him to do. He simply repented and was forgiven.

Jonah chapter two leads us to examine ourselves and ask what am I running from today? Where do I need to be honest and repent, knowing God longs to forgive me? The reality is that hopeless times reveal helpless pursuits. When life is hard we see more easily the things we turn to, which cannot do for us what we want them to do. None of these other things can be God.

This is why Jesus tells the religious leaders in Matthew 12 that he is the true and better Jonah. That anyone who turns and trusts in him and his sign (death, burial for three days, and then resurrection) will be redeemed. No matter who you are or what you may have done.

Jonah chapter two, and all of Scripture, shows us that God doesn’t despise the runaways, he rescues them. Will you let him rescue you?

Today’s reflection

Is there something you find yourself often turning to for comfort before turning to God? What would it look like, to be honest with God about what that thing is, and then to ask God to help you turn to Him, first, in the future?