Passage Read: Jonah 1-4
Meditation Verses: 1:14-16
Thought
Jonah is fleeing from God's presence (as if) because he knows God is compassionate enough to forgive Nineveh if they repent. And somehow, he guesses that Nineveh will in fact repent if he preaches the Lord's message. That is confidence in God! That is confidence in his understanding of God and His will! Jonah fears God, but it shows up in a backwards way. His confidence is so great that it doesn't undermine his testimony before these unbelieving sailors. The storm that comes and clears as soon as Jonah is thrown overboard cements Jonah's testimony about God. Though their vows and sacrifices don't mean they have abandoned their gods for Jonah's God, yet the experience has left these sailors with a mighty witness.
Application
There is carelessness of God's ways because we don't fear God, and there is resistance to God's ways because we do. The former leads to my own condemnation, but the latter could lead to a testimony before unbelievers. Fear of God should always lead to obedience, because God doesn't promise me a Jonah experience just because I don't like what may come from obeying Him. But if my disobedience is consistent with my understanding of the goodness and might of God, it could still work in God's favor, especially if He shows up to crush my resistance. That's not a good thing to test. I want Jonah's confidence in God and His character, with the addition of full submission even to things I don't like. I want Jonah's confidence that God will turn hearts at the preaching even of fire and brimstone promises of judgment--because that is what is coming if people don't repent.