This morning I would like to share with you why I believe that we are all a lot like Jonah. But first let’s set the stage. What do we know about Jonah? In verse 1 we read that Jonah was the son of Amitti. From verse 9, we know Jonah was a Jew and from II kings 14:25 we know that Jonah was a prophet from the town of Gathhephner who prophesied during the reign of King Jeroboam II. This was around 782-753 BC. Remember, a prophet was a person who delivered a message they had received from God to people or to a nation. The prophets brought a message from God to man!

God called Jonah to go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim God’s word to them. Jonah’s prophecy was that God was going to destroy Nineveh in 40 days if they did not repent of their sins.

Nineveh was the capitol of the Assyrian Empire and it was situated on the east bank of the Tigris River in what is now Iraq. Nineveh’s population was estimated to have been a third of a million people and in verse 2, God said the Ninevites were wicked people. In chapter 3 we read that it was a 3-day journey across Nineveh which has been estimated to be about 45 miles in diameter.

Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh. Assyria was Israel’s enemy. So Jonah decided to run away and hide from God. Jonah went to Joppa and bought a ticket on a ship going to Tarshish, which was in the opposite direction of Nineveh. Tarshish is about 2000 miles west of Joppa where as Nineveh is 600 miles east of Joppa. In fact Tarshish was the furthest point west in the known world at that time

Think about how silly and futile it is to try and hide from God? After all God created the universe and God is everywhere. In Psalm 139 we read "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea even there your hand will guide me."

If we are honest with ourselves we will admit that we all are a lot like Jonah. We try and avoid God’s calling. In addition we sin and if no human finds out about it, we think we have gotten away with it. In fact, the moral code of many people today is, "do your own thing. The only wrong is getting caught!" How foolish this is and as Jonah found out, God is still in charge of this universe and God is everywhere, even at the bottom of the ocean.

Jonah definitely did not want to go to Nineveh. Going to Nineveh for Jonah would be like an American Christian going to Baghdad Iraq today and telling the Iraqi’s that God was going to destroy them for their wickedness. Not only was Assyria Israel’s enemy, Assyria was a pagan nation that was noted for their brutality. God did not give Jonah an easy job and Jonah ran away. It wasn’t that Jonah didn’t love God. It wasn’t that Jonah wasn’t sure that God was calling him. Jonah was afraid of what would happen to him. Are we afraid to tell our non-Christians neighbors the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Are we afraid to stand up for our faith in a crowd?

God uses ordinary people like you and me to do his work. The Bible heroes were ordinary people that made mistakes; people that let God down. They were nothing without God but they were heroes because they trusted God and they allowed God to use them. They put their lives in God’s hands and said, "Use me!" What about you?? Can you honestly say, "Here am I Lord. Use me?"

Jonah apparently thought he was getting away with running from God. When he got on the ship he went below deck and went to sleep. Then a storm began. This was no ordinary storm. This storm was so violent that the sailors thought that the ship was going to break apart. These seasoned sailors were afraid. This storm was a wake up call to give Jonah another chance. This storm was a wake up call to let Jonah know that he had done something that he was going to regret.

Jonah wasn’t only asleep physically; he was asleep spiritually as well. Jonah was asleep spiritually at the time when Jonah should have been concerned about all the people in Nineveh who were scheduled to die. Jonah should have been concerned about the spiritual lives of the sailors. What about us are we spiritually asleep? Are we concerned about the unsaved people around us? Yes we are a lot like Jonah.

Notice, it was the ungodly captain who woke Jonah up and told Jonah to pray. Jonah was supposed to be the one telling others to seek God, but instead he was asleep and the unsaved captain tells Jonah that he needs to wake up and pray. How ironic?

But Jonah came through when the chips were down. When the storm was raging and the ship was tossed to the breaking point. When the sailors put the finger on Jonah as the cause of the storm Jonah said, "I am a Hebrew. I worship the Lord the God of Heaven, who made the land and the sea." Jonah told the sailors he was running away from God. Jonah gave a real testimony. As a result of Jonah’s testimony we read that the sailors asked Jonah what they should do (1:11). Because of Jonah’s testimony the sailors feared God. The sailors offered a sacrifice to The Living God and they made a vow (1:16). Remember the sailors were non-believers who had previously worshiped false gods. But as a result of Jonah’s testimony they turned to the one true living God.

What about us today? Do we live our lives so that non-Christians know about Jesus Christ? Do people turn to Christ after hearing our testimony? Or, Are we even afraid to mention the fact that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior? Jesus said, "Everyone who shall confess me before men, I will confess him before my father who is in heaven. But, whosoever shall deny me before men, I will also deny him before my father, who is in heaven." (Matthew 10:33)

In verse 12 we see that Jonah knew his disobedience was the cause of the storm. Jonah knew that the storm was a wake up call for him but Jonah choose an apparent certain death in the sea rather than seeking God’s forgiveness. Sadly many people choose a certain spiritual death rather than seeking God’s forgiveness by accepting Jesus as their Savior.

Running from God never works. Jonah must now face the consequences of his disobedience. He tells the sailors that what they must do is throw him overboard. In spite of the fact that the sailors knew the storm was the result of Jonah’s disobedience, they were still not willing to throw him into the storm. The sailors knew that throwing Jonah overboard would mean certain death for him and they did not want that. Now compare the sailor’s attitude with the attitude of Jonah. Another one of the great tragedies of Jonah is that the ungodly sailors appeared more committed to trying to save Jonah’s life and doing what was right than Jonah did.

Jonah told the sailors that the only way to stop the storm would be for them to toss him into the sea. In spite of the fact that the sailors did not want to throw Jonah overboard, they eventually decided that they had no choice and they did it. When Jonah hit the water, the raging sea grew calm immediately. This is the first miracle in the book of Jonah.

In verse 17 God provided a great fish to protect Jonah. God loved Jonah and God did not give up on Jonah. God used Jonah in spite of Jonah’s disobedience and in spite of Jonah’s indifference to people’s lives. God gave Jonah another chance to be used. This is so comforting to me. Even when we have let God down, God does not wipe His hands of us and say, "I won’t give them another chance. They should have known better." In God’s mercy God sent the fish to protect Jonah. God gave Jonah another chance to repent and another chance to go do the job that God called him to do. God has given us one more last chance over and over. If God were not a God of mercy, none of us would stand a chance!

I want to conclude with this question "Are you running away from God?"

First let me first direct that question to you if you are not a Christian, i.e.; you have never asked Jesus into your heart to be your personal Savior. You know you should ask Jesus to save you from your sins but you have not done it. You keep putting it off or you are afraid that you will have to change and get out of your comfort zone. Friend it is time to stop running away from God. You can not hide behind excuses and fears for very long. Won’t you accept Jesus as your Savior this morning?

If you have already made a public profession of faith in Jesus Christ the question is; "Are you trying to run away from a job God has called you to do"? Jobs like telling an unsaved neighbor about Jesus Christ. Jobs like taking a leadership role at the church. No, most of us do not physically run away. We just shirk our responsibility and rationalize by saying "it is not the right time" or we tell God He needs to get someone else who is more qualified. If we are honest we are a lot like Jonah and we do try to run and hide.

We are a lot like Jonah in that many times we are spiritually asleep. Jonah had become self-centered. Jonah did not care about other peoples. Jonah did not even care about himself. People are dying and going to hell all around us because we are spiritually complacent; people we work with and people we live near. Are we going about our Lord’s business or our business? If you know The Lord, but haven’t been living for Him as you should, will you quit running? If we are not doing these things, then we are just like Jonah. We are disobedient. If so it’s time to turn around and run into the arms of our Heavenly Father who is waiting for us to return. God always accepts us with open arms when we turn to Him.

The book of Jonah has fascinated people for centuries. Maybe it is because Jonah tried to run away from God. Maybe it is because Jonah spent 3 days and 3 nights in the belly of a fish. Maybe it is because of all of the miracles recorded in the book of Jonah. But we do not want to get side tracked and miss the main point of the Book of Jonah. The book is not about Jonah although we can learn a lot from Jonah because we are a lot like Jonah. The book of Jonah is about a loving and merciful God dealing with a rebellious Jonah and with a rebellious people.

The good news is that even when we are disobedient, God does not leave us alone. God will try to get our attention and God will use discipline. In Hebrews we read "Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it". (Hebrews 12: 10-11) God loves us far too much to leave us in a rebellious state so he disciplines us. This is what happened to Jonah.

The Book of Jonah is truly good news because many times we like Jonah try to run away from God. AMEN