- Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. Jonah 1:5 – We are stepping into the story of Jonah, the rebellious prophet. In this chapter we see Jonah seeking to run from God’s presence by getting on a boat and heading as far in the opposite direction as one could go. On that voyage a deadly storm rages threating then lives of everyone on board. The crew is franticly throwing cargo overboard and praying to their idols. They know if some sort of salvation doesn’t come then death is what is ahead in this storm. Yet where is Jonah, the one man on board that is supposedly a follower of Yahweh? Asleep to everything happening. Asleep to the cries of anguish and fears of the crew above. Let’s ask the hard question of ourselves as we sit here judging Jonah, how asleep are we to the cries of the world around us? We have people around us crying out for peace, when we know the giver of peace. We have people around us crying for help, when we know the giver of help. Are we on board speaking to those in despair, pointing them to the One True God or are we down below, avoiding the storm, asleep to their need? It’s a tough question to be faced with for we all look at Jonah as obviously in the wrong and it’s difficult to see ourselves making the same sort of choice as Jonah did. Let’s wake up then from our slumber, get on board, and help those in anguish know there is a God who calms storms. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3299
- Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me. Jonah 1:2 – We may not like to relate with Jonah here, but I believe far too often we do with how he reacted. God made it clear that He saw the people of Nineveh, but not only saw them, but wanted to give them an opportunity to repent. Have we ever gotten upset that God was open to giving someone a second, or more than second, chance? See God’s love and salvation is available to the rapist in jail or the person who hurt your family tremendously. His arms are open to all who choose to turn from their sin and come to Him. We must not fight against God’s decision to offer salvation to the entire world. We must follow His choice and share His love with all that He leads us to, even if sharing means discussing His love with someone you at one time thought shouldn’t be offered it. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 658
- He said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” Jonah 1:12 – While this may look like an admirable act on Jonah’s part, to sacrifice himself for the crew, it truly was the most selfish choice Jonah could have made in that moment. One, he had multiple times to cry out to God yet chose to continue in his “running away” from God. Two, this act of being thrown overboard he thought would end him exactly where he wanted, far from Nineveh. Three, he carelessly was putting his blood on these innocent sailor’s hands. When choosing to pursue sin, selfishness often becomes the motive behind your future actions. We begin finding ourself careless of how our choices effect others and only thinking about how we can remain in the sin we’re enjoying currently. What is seen in this first chapter is the results on the lost world when a follower of God chooses sin. We leave them confused, unsure of where to look for help, and hopeless. Let go of the selfish pursuit of sin so the lost can have someone pointing them to Jesus. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2089
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