jonah and the whale

This is the first episode of a 4-part series on Jonah.  This series looks at the life and ministry of Jonah in regards to his reluctant obedience as a prophet of God.  In this first episode (corresponding with Jonah Chapter 1), we see Jonah's flee from God's call.  We see his disobedience causing consequences for Jonah and even the men on the ship (innocent bystanders to what Jonah has done).  We also see God's care and compassion for the lost.  This first episode is the springboard for where the rest of the book will take us.  Encourage you to listen in and please share with someone who you think will be impacted by this message.  

FT7 examine the little known prophet, Jonah ben Amittai from Gath-Hepher (commonly known as Jonah and the Whale), and his obedience and disobedience to God where the former foretold of God's mercy to the northern kingdom of Israel and the former rejected God's mercy for Israel's enemy.   Terrill quizzes each member on the history, science, and God's message to all who read the Book of Jonah. This story serves as an example to all that God says, "...thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak" (Jer 1:7 KJV), and it's usually only a matter of how we finally submit to the Lord. Where Jonah failed to submit to God's order to go to prophecy to Nineveh, the great sea creature obeyed the Lord "... thou shalt go..."

In today's episode, the guys talk about the story of Jonah, one of the stories of the Bible which is most mocked by atheists because it is seen as impossible. However, as Christians we know that with God nothing is impossible. Listeners are reminded that God created heaven and the earth out of nothing, therefore anything is possible. As students of God, we need to allow His Word to say what it says and be what it is. Jonah’s story is presented as history, not fiction. God is a miraculous, extravagant God who holds the whole world in His hands. When we begin to explain God’s Word away to make it more acceptable to the present culture, we are denouncing God’s truth. 

The most fascinating thing about Jonah’s story is just how short the book of Jonah could have been. If he had obeyed God’s order to cry out against the wickedness of the city, he never would have endured the belly of the whale. Jonah’s sin was not disobeying God, but that he was angry with God for loving his own enemies. However, God loves everyone, enemy or not. As Christians, we must also go out to spread God’s Word with love in our hearts for our own enemies. Jonah’s story goes to show how blinding hatred can be that it dims our view of Christs’ love and compassion. 

When talking about these figures from the Bible, we should remember that we have something they don’t: the cross, which serves as evidence of God’s love for us. Thus, we should be forgiving of our enemies and love them just as God does. While Jonah spent three days in the belly of a whale, Jesus spent three days in the tomb. It is the very same power of God which caused the whale to spit Jonah out which also resurrected Jesus from the dead. Jonah’s sin was what put him in his predicament, but it was our sin which sent Jesus to the cross. In this way, Jesus is the better Jonah. We should all aim to be men who God may use at all costs. 

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Oscar Navarro

Outline:

What Does the Sign of Jonah Mean?

The Prophet from Galilee

Prophet to the Gentiles

Calm Seas

The Sin of the Older Brother

What Happened to Nineveh?

Charge

Saint Athanasius Church

Contra Mundum Swagger

Video Version 

Saint Athanasius Church

Contra Mundum Swagger

Video Version

You may not be sitting in the belly of the whale, but it might feel like it. We have all found ourselves in situations that seem dark and hopeless. My guest, Pat Hail, Jr. and I are talking about those dark moments paralleled with the story of Jonah. Yep, that  story about a man who gets eaten by a fish and vomited back out. However, there is a lesson to be learned about the presence of God during times of struggle or during your own big fish moments. We chat about God’s faithfulness during hard times, how he is already preparing the way for us in those struggles, and how we can find joy and gratitude in our own hearts.

Show Notes

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Did you know that there's a Scriptural analogy between Jonah and Jesus? If you don't know how to look for signs, you'll miss it! Listen as guest speaker Steven Matthews helps us "dive" into The Sign of Jonah.

In the final episode we see Jonah's response when God forgives his enemies. He's hot with anger and chews God out for being to gracious.

This part of the story challenges us to reconsider Jesus' teaching to love and forgive our enemies, those people in our lives who are the most difficult.

Jonah goes very much against his own desires to the ancient city of Nineveh. He utters a very strange five word sermon and the people of Nineveh have a very interesting response. Also, we discuss the meaning of the biblical word “repentance” and what it does and doesn’t mean.

In this episode we ponder the very strange and beautifully intricate poem that Jonah utters in the belly of the fish. This is a powerful and heavily ironic moment in the story.

This poem represents a moment when one of God’s people is in crisis. Jonah discovers that his crisis is actually God’s work to bring him to the end of himself. Jonah’s experience in this story forces us to think about similar moments of crisis in our own lives.

Jonah is ironically portrayed as God’s own prophet, but he is the only person who really refuses to listen to God. This episode explores how Jonah is “asleep at the wheel” and deaf to God and everything that God uses to communicate to him.

This story invites us in to think about our own lack of perception and awareness of the ways that God might be trying to get through to us.

In this episode I’m laying the groundwork for exploring the story of Jonah with new eyes: Who is Jonah? Why did he flee and get on a boat to Tarshish? And why is his story in the Bible?

We also ponder the question of why Jonah ran from God. He thought he was saving his own life, but in reality, he was running from real life. Followers of Jesus face the same choice today, whether or not we will let go of our own vision of the “good life” and instead take up Jesus’ vision for our lives.