JONAH - PART 2

PRAY TO BEGIN

Read Jonah 1:4-16

4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.

But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”

7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”

9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”

10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)

11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”

12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”

13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What stands out to you from the passage and what questions does it raise?

2. What does this passage reveal about Jonah’s heart?

3. Jonah sleeping in the boat is an image of a man who is unwilling to come to terms with the ramifications of his sin? How do we tend to avoid dealing with the impacts of our sinful decisions?

4. In verse 9, Jonah describes God as the one who “made the sea and the dry land.” In light of that, his attempt to flee seems quite foolish. Can you think of a time when you acted in a way that now seems foolish, considering what you know about God?

5. What might it look like to ‘Run away from God’ today?

6. Despite Jonah’s reluctance to obey his call to prophesy to a pagan nation. God uses this opportunity to reveal himself to the Pagan Sailors, what does this teach about God’s ability to reach people.

7. Read the following quote:

Some men are brought to God by gentle means—they are drawn by soft but mighty bonds. Still, a much larger class of persons remains. They must not be handled softly but must be dealt with heavily. The picklock will never open their hearts—there must be the crowbar, or even the battering ram. Some hearts can never be captured for God and for truth except by storm. – Charles Spurgeon

Can you think of an unpleasant time in your life where God used it to refocus your attention back to him or to break a pattern of sin in your life?

8. Obviously not every negative experience is a direct intervention meaning that you have been ‘running from God’. How might you start to discern what God is doing in your life when in the midst of some storm or trouble?

APPLY:

1. Are you sensing that God is currently trying to get your attention in some way?

2. Are you currently experiencing a ‘storm’ where things are out of control and you don’t know what God is doing?

Pray for those who have shared in response to the questions above.