In today’s blog post, we continue to examine the life of Jonah and see what lessons we can learn from him. In today’s post, we are going to be looking at Jonah Chapter 2, and we will discuss having moments of Communion and Confession with God.
Today I have three C’s for you, and the first one is…
Jonah's Confinement
Jonah's story is simple. Jonah, a child of God, ran from his Father. Jonah even decided to go overboard to avoid God’s plan! But know this… that was never God’s plan for Jonah! God just wanted the boat to go in the opposite direction to Ninevah.
Chapter 1 ends with God sending a great fish to swallow Jonah. And so often, we are trained to look at this as if it were a punishment. But it wasn’t!
This prayer in Chapter 2 shows Jonah’s experience in the waters leading up to the great fish. We don’t see mention of the fish in this passage, other than God telling the fish to vomit Jonah up on the land.
We tend to think that God is distant or removed during times of crisis. Sometimes we even interpret His silence as indifference. This passage from Jonah reminds us that God's presence enables us to endure the trials we face – even the ones we create through disobedience.
Some see this fish simply as God's judgment on Jonah. But God used the sea as His hand of correction. On the other hand, the fish represents much more than God's correction.
Jonah experienced Confinement within the fish. and that confinement provided an atmosphere that allowed for our second and third C’s
Jonah's Communion
While offering this prayer, Jonah often quoted from the Psalms.
Here are six specific references.
"Your billows passed over me"
"I have been driven away from your sight"
"My life was fainting away"
"Into your holy temple"
"to vain idols"
"Salvation belongs to the Lord"
Why was the Word of God so critical to Jonah's spiritual recovery? God speaks through His Word to the heart, and guides our thoughts by His thoughts. And ultimately, when we allow God's Word into our lives it has a cleansing effect on us
Notice that Jonah's rebellious heart was softening in this moment. God's Word will always guide us back to Him if we follow it. In the midst of this confinement, Jonah experienced some real communion with God, and it did well for his soul. And that communion leads us to our third c…
Jonah's Confession
When you come to the place where you know God has your attention, and you know that you must return, what might you say to Him? Notice four responses that Jonah made concerning God's correction and drawing.
· I recognize Your hand at work here
· I turn my eyes back to You
· I thank You for Your compassion
· I renew my commitment to You
So in conclusion, the confinement that felt like punishment led to communion and confession. Don’t look at moments of confinement n your life as if God does’’t care about you. Look at them as opportunities to draw closer to God. But remember, we need to continue to come back to moments of communion and confession, otherwise we will wind up like Jonah in Chapter 3! But that’s next week’s post.
If you want to dive deeper into chapter two, watch the full sermon on YouTube!