By Pastor John Pruitt
Last issue we began to look at some things that Jonah learned while in the belly of that great fish which was prepared by the Lord to swallow him up. Jonah 1:17 “Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah…” First, we learned that, when God speaks we should listen. It was not that Jonah didn’t understand what God said, he just didn’t agree with what God said. Next, we saw that in is easier that out. It is best to stay in the will of God and stay out of trouble. Now, we shall look at a few more points about this subject.
It Is Easier To Die Than To Live: Jonah learned that sometimes, in the physical realm of things, living can be worse than dying. Jonah 1:17 “Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.” Don’t assume that God, in chastening, is going to kill you, He may let you live. You might want to check with Job who, in his trial stated that he wished he had never been born. Nevertheless, even in our trials and yes, chastening, our loving God is with us and sustaining us as he did Job and Jonah.
God’s love is sometimes tough: Jonah learned that his God was in fact, a God of love. Jonah 2:1 – “Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly, And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice…” Our beloved king David admitted, Psalm 119:71 “[It is] good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.” Then in that same chapter he states, verse 75 “I know, O LORD, that thy judgments [are] right, and [that] thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.” And then see what wise Solomon said in Proverbs 3:12 “For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son [in whom] he delighteth.” Go to the book of Jonah and read his great testimony in chapter two. As parents, we should know that strict discipline is not easy, but necessary and is a sign of true love.
God’s word is sure: Jonah learned that God means what he says, every time. You may ignore God’s direction for you, but be assured that He will not. It is foolhardy to test God. He always does what He says, and expects us to do what He says or pay the consequence for not.
God’s work is not always tasteful: Jonah learned that you don’t have to like it, but you do have to do it. He learned that a person does not get to pick and choose which job he or she wants to do. Actually, most of the work of the Lord, whether it be benevolent or spreading the good news of salvation, is hard and unpleasant; otherwise, everyone would be doing it. These things require sacrifice and many times pain and suffering. The consolation is found in Matthew 5 where our Lord gives us the so-called beatitudes. He taught us that, in this life we are laying up treasures for our life in heaven which is well worth it all.
Oops, I am about out of space. I have four more points to cover; so stay with it and I promise to finish this lesson the next time. In the meantime, the reading assignment will be to read the first four chapters of Job.
johnpruitt@frontiernet.net