[0:00] Welcome to our services today as we come together around the Word of God. We would seek that it would please the Lord to bless his word to us, that everything that we endeavour to do in his name, that it would be to his glory.
[0:25] Let us join together in prayer. Eternal and ever-blessed Lord, as we come together in this act of worship, we give thanks unto thee for the great privilege that thou hast given to us, that we can draw near to God.
[0:51] And we give thanks unto thee, O Lord, that we have that privilege to come with boldness and with confidence, because of the merits of thy Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, whoever liveth at thy right hand, and whoever maketh intercession for his people.
[1:19] We give thanks that we can come to a throne of grace, and that in order to obtain mercy and to find grace to help us in our time of need.
[1:30] And we pray, O Lord, that we today may know the blessings that belongs to the person who walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor in the way of sinners, nor who sitteth in the seat of the scornful, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on that law day and night.
[1:58] O Lord, we pray that we may know thine own blessing as we come together to read thy word and to meditate upon a portion of thy word.
[2:12] O grant to us the liberty of thy spirit in proclaiming thy truth and the liberty of thy spirit in hearing thy truth.
[2:24] O may thy spirit open our hearts to receive it. May it be lodged in our heart. May it bring forth evidence in our lives to the glory of thine own name.
[2:38] And we pray, O Lord, that as we come together today around thy word, that we would be rejoicing in the Lord.
[2:50] Although we may at times be discouraged, and although we may at times be down in our minds, yet let us rejoice in thee.
[3:03] Let us be as thy servant of old who said, Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither fruit be on the vines, the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat.
[3:20] The flock shall be cut off from the fold, and, O, herd in the stalls. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation.
[3:35] And we pray, O Lord, that today, that whatever circumstances or situations may be ours, all that our focus would be upon Christ, that we would also be enabled to rejoice in him, the joy of the Lord, the God of my salvation.
[3:57] We pray, O Lord, that thou would bless our homes and families. Bless, we pray thee, those who are ill, those who are upon the bed of affliction.
[4:08] We pray that thou would draw near to them, and bless those who care for them. We ask thy blessing to be upon those who are mourning today.
[4:19] May thy comfort be their portion, for thou alone can bring true comfort to those whose hearts are broken and pained today.
[4:31] We pray, O Lord, that thou would bless our young people and our children. O may they grow up in the fear of the Lord. Bless thy people, those whom thou hast redeemed for thyself.
[4:46] Grant to them that they may have a faithful witness in the world. Remember the careless and the indifferent. O Lord, that through thy spirit thou would reach them, that thou would stir them up from their nests that they have built for themselves, knowing, O Lord, that the only shelter is in Jesus Christ.
[5:11] We pray, O Lord, that thou would draw them through the power of thy Holy Spirit, enlightening their understanding so that they may know how they stand with God, that by nature and outside of Christ we are sinners, that we are the enemy of God, but that through Christ that we can be brought to be reconciled to our God, to be at peace with God.
[5:38] And to that end, we pray, O Lord, that thy spirit would accompany the gospel throughout our islands and throughout our land, even into the ends of the earth, that it may go forth in the power and demonstration of thy spirit.
[5:54] We pray, O Lord, that thou would continue with us as we come to read thy word and meditate upon it. O Lord, we pray that we may not be distracted by anything that is around us, but that our focus would be to hear what thou hast to say to us.
[6:14] We ask all these things for the forgiveness of our sins. In Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. Let us now return to the Old Testament and to the book of Jonah and chapter 1.
[6:31] Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah, the son of Hamittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it, for their wickedness is come up before me.
[6:45] But Jonah rose up to flee into Tarshish from the presence of the Lord and went to Joppa. And he found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare thereof and went down unto it to go with them into Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
[6:57] But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea and there was a mighty tempest in the sea so that the ship was like to be broken. Then the mariners were afraid and every man cried into his God and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea to lighten it off them.
[7:17] But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship and he lay and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper, arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us that we perish not?
[7:34] And they said every one to his fellow, Come and let us cast lots that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So the cast lots and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us.
[7:49] What is thine occupation? And whence comest thou? What is thy country? And what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and dry land.
[8:03] Then there were men who were exceedingly afraid and said unto him, Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord because he had told them. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee that the sea may be calm unto us?
[8:18] For the sea wrought and was from Jesus. And he said unto them, Take me up and cast me forth into the sea, so shall the sea be calm unto you. For I know that for my sake this great temptation is upon you.
[8:31] Nevertheless, the men rode hard to bring it to the land, but they could not, for the sea wrought and was tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life and lay not upon us innocent blood.
[8:49] For thou, O Lord, has done as it pleased thee. So they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea and the sea ceased from a raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord and made vows.
[9:03] Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. May the Lord bless that portion of his word to us today.
[9:22] Now as we seek the blessing of the Lord we'll return to the portion that we have just read, the book of Jonah and chapter 1.
[9:34] And we can read at verse 14. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life and lay not upon us innocent blood.
[9:49] For thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee. And we shall take for our text these words of the sailors. For thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.
[10:06] God commands Jonah to go to the great city of Nineveh. This city was one of the greatest cities in the ancient world, located in what is now northern Iraq near the present-day city of Mosul.
[10:23] Jonah was commanded to do one thing, to go and preach against Nineveh. We would expect the prophet of God to comply, so we would expect to read that Jonah got up and went, but instead we read that he got up to flee.
[10:41] Jonah is so determined that in verse 3 the writer shows in great detail how determined Jonah was in his efforts. Jonah went down to Jehovah and when he did, he found, on his arrival, he found a ship that was going to Tarshish.
[10:58] There was room for him on the ship and he was able to pay the fare. Now, so far in our study of Jonah, we have noted the importance of the word of God and our response to it.
[11:15] We see here that Jonah made a hundred and eighty degree turn from the plain called commandment of God's word. We read, but Jonah rose up to flee into Tarshish from the presence of the Lord and went down to Joppa and he found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare thereof and went down into it to go with him into Tarshish from the presence of the Lord and as we noted, the presence of the Lord means here from serving the Lord.
[11:47] We noted that the frightening thing is that Jonah felt that he had confirmation in his disobedience. Jonah determined to go in the opposite direction and to go to Tarshish, he found a ship going to Tarshish.
[12:01] It sounds like success for his plan. He probably convinced himself that he was right and he had a precise fare to pay for his travel and he went down into the ship and he slept.
[12:18] He must have been thinking that all was well. It seemed as if providence had worked out for him, but as we noted, the circumstances of providence is not to be our guide.
[12:29] our guide must be the word of God. And as we come to verse 4 and onwards, a new scene opens before us.
[12:43] Although Jonah was disobedient to the word of God, the Lord is not letting his servant go, and so we read, but the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
[13:00] Now, important for us to note that the writer describes this storm as God sent. And here the writer doesn't use the ordinary word for sent, but a word meaning throw or hurl, the same word that is later used of the cargo being thrown into the sea, and when Jonah was cast into the sea.
[13:24] And we know that it is not a pleasant thing to be caught up in a storm at sea. But, we also know that there are many storms that can come into our experience, and these storms likewise are not pleasant, and they are God's call to us, just as this storm was God's call to Jonah.
[13:50] The record of Jonah's flight involves two buds. The first is in verse 3, but Jonah rose up to flee into Tarshish, which tells of the prophet's unwillingness to heed God's sovereign call and to serve the Lord.
[14:12] The second is in verse 4, but the Lord sent out a great wind. Although Jonah fled from God's presence, from serving God, taking a ship to go far off, to go to Tarshish, the Lord did not let him go.
[14:30] We can imagine him and his sailing vessel having pulled out from the harbour and thinking, well, I've made it, there will be no preaching to the hated Ninevites, but God had other plans.
[14:45] He was not going to let Jonah go so easily, for attemptest arose on the sea. As John Calvin explains, this storm was not by chance, but by a certain purpose of God.
[15:00] So that being overtaken on the sea, Jonah acknowledged that he had been deceived when he thought that he could flee away from God's presence by passing over the sea.
[15:13] and these storms that come upon believers, the storms that come into our experience, into our life, God is manifesting his love and mercy.
[15:30] We acknowledge that for those caught up in the storm here, it may not look like that, and also those caught up in the storms of life, that may not look like it is God manifesting his love and mercy.
[15:44] But for Jonah at this time, we can see that the storm was the chastening hand of God towards the seven. The wind begins to blow, and the sea is stirring. Remember how the writer to the Hebrew reminds us, for whom the Lord loves, he chastens and scourges every son whom he receives.
[16:03] As one commentator says, Jonah thought he could walk away from a divine assignment, but the Lord was to make Jonah's voyage into a teachable moment. And these are particularly important words, a teachable moment.
[16:21] God teaches his own children through the many storms through which they must pass in life. Now, as we said, the storm that Jonah experienced is a classic example of divine chastisement.
[16:38] Remember, this was a servant of the Lord. We are not told how old Jonah was, but he was not a novice believer, but very much an experienced believer.
[16:51] Here was a man who had prophesied already in Israel, although there is all a possibility, as we noted last week, that in Jonah's case there had been a spiritual decline for some time prior to his commission from God to go and preach at Nineveh.
[17:08] The lesson that Jonah was to learn, and that is also the message for me and you today, are that God's commands cannot be lightly rejected or successfully evaded.
[17:26] You know, I believe there came a day when Jonah would be thankful that such a storm came into his experience. I wonder how many people today are thankful for the storms that came into their experience.
[17:39] It was not easy, it was not pleasant, but it was one of those storms that carried a blessing with it. It is always a blessing when God sends a storm that wakens us up, that brings us to ourselves.
[17:56] The Lord sends many storms to bring his people to repentance. repentance. You know, it is not a sign of mercy to get away with unrepented sin.
[18:08] It could be today that you are persisting in a sin that nobody knows about, and you have got away with it, but that is no sign for you of God's mercy. If you are permitted to go on and on in unrepented sin, it is more likely a sign that God has given you over.
[18:27] But here, what we find is that the Lord is not giving up. He is pursuing his servant. He sends a wind, a storm, and he is going to manoeuvre the situation in such a way that Jonah will conform to the Lord's will.
[18:44] You know, God targeted Jonah's ship with precision, accuracy. The wind can take many forms in our lives, but God has the precise way of halting us in our sinful ways and our sinful paths.
[19:04] God was teaching Jonah an important lesson. And for me and you, also, this lesson has to be heeded. And that is, as we have already noted, that his message and his commands cannot be lightly rejected or successfully evaded.
[19:25] we may ask, well, why was God pursuing Jonah? God pursues Jonah and me and you because he desires to bring us back to himself.
[19:40] That is God's desire, to bring us back to himself. God's love. Now, the storm must have been ferocious because experienced sailors on the sea do not grow uneasy quickly at the first sight of a storm.
[20:00] Passengers on the ferry can be frightened by a storm on the sea. But sailors are used to quite violent winds and waves.
[20:10] But here we are told that the mariners were afraid and cried every man unto his God. These sailors are frantic and it tells us that this was no ordinary storm.
[20:26] The sailors of Ireland shows that this was a most terrific serious storm threatening their ship and threatening their lives. This storm was so savage that the ship herself threatened to break apart.
[20:41] And so frightened are these sailors by this terrible storm that they experience that each man of them cries to his own God.
[20:55] Man after another cries out to his own God. And they even begin to throw the cargo overboard. Then the mariners were afraid and cried every man unto his God and cast forth the whales that were in the ship and to the sea to light in it of them.
[21:15] What we find here in the action of the sailors and what happens so often, something that many of us are guilty of, and that is they cry to God in their extremity.
[21:32] And so many of us are guilty of that. That the only time we think and cry to God is when we come under extremity, when a person is left in an undisturbed condition, that person has no thought of God.
[21:49] But when the person becomes disturbed by whatever means, maybe problems in the family or problems at work or perhaps health issues, you will often find that such persons become very religious.
[22:03] But once the problem is over, there is no more thought of God. Has that been true in your own experience at any time? The actions of these frightened sailors and praying to their gods and throwing out not only their possessions but also their profits, their own wealth, and yet they were totally unaware that the root cause of their problem was not the weight of the cargo, nor even the violence of the storm which they had here encountered.
[22:40] The root problem was the sin residing under the ship's deck. But the attitude of these sailors in the storm demonstrates for us what is true of mankind.
[22:55] Like the sailors in the storm, natural man who seeks God's self in removing the storm seldom gives any thought to removing the sin that lies in their heart.
[23:09] We are casting over both the whales and the cargo, but the storm continues to rage because sin continues to roll in the heart. Oh, as it was true for those sailors and for us all, the greatest problems arise from the guilt and misery that is incurred by sin.
[23:32] As we said, the storms may come into our life, problems in the family, problems at work, health issues, and when these things are resolved, there is no more thought of God.
[23:48] You know, we tend to forget that the root problem of all the ills of life is sin.
[23:59] here we are told that the mariners were afraid and cried every man into his God. Those heathen sailors instinctively realised that a personal divine power stood behind the storm and so each one cried to their God.
[24:20] Each sailor cried out to whatever God he thought might help him. The captains plead to Jonah later on, arise, call upon thy God if so be that God will think upon us that we perish not.
[24:34] He says to Jonah you call out to your God maybe he will be able to help us out so that we perish not. You see this is a tragic problem of the world in which we live.
[24:48] Although man knows that there is a divine power man knows that God exists yet man does not know who God is. This is why God gave us that special revelation in the Bible and that is why the word of God is so important.
[25:05] God has given us the ultimate revelation of himself through Jesus Christ for Jesus said he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. That is why we have to learn about Jesus in the Bible and seek that the Holy Spirit would impress his truth upon our hearts so that we can have a personal knowledge of God.
[25:30] And that is so important when we come to pray that we know the God to whom we pray that we can have that personal relationship with him through his son Jesus Christ.
[25:41] What a privilege it's ours to come and to pray to God to know that God to have a personal relationship with that God through his son Jesus Christ.
[25:57] Do you know that privilege of prayer today? However not all those who were on board were that frantic.
[26:10] The wind is howling the waves are crashing the ship is fondering and while the sailors cried where was Jonah?
[26:21] Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship and lay and was fast asleep. While the heathen sailors were crying out to their gods Jonah was fast asleep.
[26:39] Now the captain of the ship comes to Jonah and he says what meanest thou O sleeper arise call upon thy God if so be that God will think upon us that we perish not.
[26:59] Here is a heathen captain rebuking and calling upon Jonah to pray. While the wind was rocking the ship and the sailors were throwing the cargo overboard and each sailor crying to his God Jonah was asleep.
[27:22] Some say that he was probably tired on his journey and that he fell asleep. But as we noted last week this may be telling us more about his spiritual state.
[27:38] How could he sleep in a storm? The tragic is that he was fast asleep because it was very probable that Jonah had persuaded himself that he was safe when in fact he was in serious danger.
[27:58] We are warned in the Bible against the deceitfulness of sin. Sin deceives and when we are in the path of disobedience sin can convince us that all is fine when the very opposite is true.
[28:18] Sin lulls us to sleep and hides that we are accountable for our sin and that repentance is required. That is why so many are at peace despite the fact that they are in the way of sin and disobedience and in their way of neglect of God.
[28:42] You may be at peace today and what is true is that you are only a breath away from eternal destruction. Jonah had not only disobeyed the clear command of God but take notice that he was dangerously involving others in his attempts to escape.
[29:05] The sailors were in extreme danger and it all could be traced to the prophet's sin and disobedience. O' Palmer Robertson says you will invariably bring trouble to the life of others as well as to your own life if you are walking contrary to the will of God.
[29:26] God it's an important lesson for us that all our action involves others in our family life in our work life in our community life.
[29:38] We see so often how children follow the example of parents when parents neglect the word of God and the preaching of the gospel very often you will find that families follow the same pattern.
[29:51] This is where we must scrutinise our own lives. What example am I to others? Do they see anything of Christ in me?
[30:07] Do they see someone for whom it is easy to neglect the word of God and the corporate worship of God? Jonah asleep in the middle of a storm is not a particularly good example.
[30:24] The church being rebuked by the world to pray it is not a very good example and this is an awakening warning for us all just like Jonah and the ship that the Christian can be fast asleep.
[30:46] There were the sailors crying out to their many gods throwing overboard the cargo and yet Jonah was fast asleep and aware of the cries and actions of the sailors.
[31:01] There is always a danger that the church can be fast asleep while the world cries out. My friend, there's a world out there today and that world is crying out.
[31:15] There's a world out there today looking and seeking for the meaning of life. There's a world out there today that is all totally confused.
[31:28] There's a world out there today that is looking for help, that is looking for guidance. And the great question for me and you today is are we asleep?
[31:43] Are we asleep? are we not hearing the cries of the world today? Neglect of prayer, lack of corporate Christian fellowship, lack of concern to witness the gospel to the resounding world are all signs that we have fallen asleep.
[32:13] God could have left Jonah to sleep all the way to Tarshish. But in his grace and mercy he sent a storm. The howling wind and the crashing of the waves were all tokens of God's grace and mercy towards Jonah.
[32:32] And the same can be true in your life. The storm can be a token for me and of you of the grace and mercy of God. Because God uses storms to awaken people.
[32:46] He uses storms to awake his own people. He uses storms to awake the church. And we should all respond to God's storm by searching our hearts, by searching out our own sin.
[33:06] Notice here how the sailors decided to try and find out who was to blame. And they said everyone to his fellow, come and let us cast lots that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us.
[33:21] So the cast lots and the lot fell upon Jonah. The practice of casting lots are referred to in several parts of the Bible.
[33:33] It is difficult to determine what the exact procedure was. We will not go into any detail on that matter just now. But this is the method to which the sailors resort in the story of Jonah.
[33:46] Come and let us cast lots that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. Now what is interesting here in their action of casting lots is the reason for which they cast these lots.
[34:05] You know it shows us a picture of the natural man's sense of sin. Their mindset was if one of the gods are angry he must be angry with someone among us with someone else.
[34:20] No one says he is angry with me but he is angry with someone else. That's their mindset. If one of the gods are angry he must be angry with someone else.
[34:34] Come and let us cast lots that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. Each sailor is pointing the finger away from themselves and pointing the finger to someone else.
[34:49] Don't we see that all the time? I have to ask myself am I guilty of doing this? Am I guilty of pointing the finger to someone else?
[35:04] To pointing the finger away from myself instead of pointing the finger towards myself? death? People are willing to admit that they have faults and even that they commit sins but they will not admit that they are justly come under the condemnation and wrath of God.
[35:28] Oh yes, they will confess that they are not perfect. They will confess that they do commit sin. They confess they're false but once you speak to them about God's wrath and condemnation that they are justly under God's wrath and condemnation for their sin, ah, that's a different story.
[35:51] And very often what you find is that they'll point the finger at someone else and say well that person is far worse than me. That person deserves God's wrath and curse.
[36:02] But not me. Although I am not perfect. You see, it is our tendency, is it not, to point the finger away from ourselves instead of pointing the finger towards ourselves and suching our own hearts.
[36:23] You'll always find people justifying themselves with the phrase well no one is perfect. And dear friend, I have to such myself and make sure that I don't fall into that category when I excuse my own sins and my own failings and point the finger and say well no one is perfect.
[36:49] That's the mindset of these sailors. And let us not cast a stone upon them, but confess that very often, it is mine as well.
[37:02] however, having received the answer, the Lord fell upon Jonah. Jonah is their man and they proceed to press Jonah with questions.
[37:16] Then said they unto him, tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us. What is thine occupation and whence comest thou? What is thy country and of what people art thou?
[37:29] an onslaught of questions and Jonah takes up the last question first and he said unto them, I am an Hebrew and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven which hath made the sea and the dry land.
[37:47] It is obvious that Jonah boarding the ship did not tell them who he was, that he was a servant of the Lord.
[37:59] And you know, sometimes it is so easy for us to slip here and there and never confess that we are the Lord's.
[38:10] How difficult it is for us to witness that we are the Lord's. Oh well, in the path of disobedience it is very easy for us to slip away from confessing that we are the Lord's.
[38:26] And this is Jonah and they have to ask, these questions, what is thine occupation, whence comest thou, what is thy country, or what people art thou?
[38:39] And Jonah said, I am a Hebrew and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. It is as if it's pressed out of him.
[38:52] But what is interesting in his replies is that Jonah rather uses the covenantal name of God, Yahweh. Yahweh, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
[39:06] Now, Jonah uses here a certain illiterate device. For instance, when a person says that he or she has been sick day and night, what that person means is that they have been sick all the time.
[39:23] We sometimes say, well, we have such high and low, meaning that we have such thoroughly. So, what Jonah says, which hath made the sea and the dry land, what he is saying is, Yahweh, the creator of everything that exists.
[39:40] And the reaction of the sailors to Jonah's reply was that these men were exceedingly afraid. Jonah has just told them that his God is Yahweh, and he is the creator of everything that exists.
[39:56] And Jonah's answer terrified them, for they were in the midst of a storm that threatened to destroy them. And here is Jonah and he's telling them that his God is the creator of all things.
[40:09] In other words, the wind and the sea is all under his control. This storm is under his control. They are confronted with the sovereignty of God.
[40:20] And when the sovereignty of God is impressed upon us, it can be quite awesome. Then were the men exceedingly afraid and said unto him, Why hast thou done this?
[40:34] For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. Obviously, Jonah gave them a fuller explanation of the events then, that had transpired in the recent past of his personal life, although that is not stated in our text.
[40:52] For they said to him, Why hast thou done this? What a searching question that was, coming from heathen sailors. You know, the world can sometimes ask the Christians very searching questions.
[41:09] Sometimes even the world itself can be surprised at the conduct of Christians. That's a very searching question, is it not, for me and you today.
[41:24] Is the world surprised at the way that I behave myself? Well, they were surprised, and they say, Why hast thou done this?
[41:41] The sailors strike Jonah with another question in verse 11. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us?
[41:52] For the sea wrought and was tempestuous. The sailors had no doubt that Jonah is responsible for the storm, and Jonah himself understands that he himself is responsible for the storm.
[42:04] The divine control of the sea was a constant theme of the praise of Israel. In the book of Psalms, we read Psalm 24, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein, for he hath founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods.
[42:23] Psalm 89, verse 9, Thou rulest the raging of the sea, when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them. So Jonah told the sailors, Take me up and cast me forth into the sea, so shall the sea be calm unto you, for I know that for my sake this great temptation is upon you.
[42:44] Well, this is not what the sailors expected to hear, but Jonah tells the sailors that if they do as he says, then the storm will abate and the sea will grow quiet.
[42:57] There are no clues here to direct us to Jonah's thinking, why he gave such orders. Some say that he wanted to remove himself from action, in other words, that the Ninevites would not receive the warning, and Ninevites destruction would be certain, Jonah would drown, the sailors would survive, and Nineveh would hear no warning.
[43:21] Well, we're not sure if that was his way of thinking. Whatever may have been Jonah's mindset, in his order to the sailors, his reply put the sailors into a bit of dilemma.
[43:35] They do not want to be guilty of this man's destruction. And so they started rowing towards the shore, but unable to row to shore. Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to bring it to the land, but they could not, for the sea rowed and was suggestious against them.
[43:51] It would seem that the storm was getting worse and worse. Then the sailors cry on the name of the Hebrew God, wherefore they cried unto the Lord, Yahweh, we besiege thee, O Lord, we besiege thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood, for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.
[44:19] They pleaded that they do not perish, and they asked that they not be guilty of innocent blood. But the end of the sailors' prayer is most instructive, for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.
[44:35] The sailors came to acknowledge the sovereignty of God. A question always arises at this point as to whether this account of the sailors reveal a true conversion.
[44:51] Calvin, among others, conclude that there is not sufficient reason to see this as a true conversion. But Douglas Stuart supposes that they only added Yahweh to their gods that they already believed in, that they only added this name to the other gods that they believed in.
[45:12] However, others like Hugh Martin think that there is ample evidence to believe that they were truly converted. However, the sailors stood as Jonah said, and the outcome was exactly as Jonah said, because the sea ceased from its rage.
[45:32] So they took up Jonah and cast him forth into the sea, and the sea ceased from her raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord and made vows.
[45:45] You know, this phrase, and the sea ceased from her raging, suggests the suddenness and the completeness of the change that took place upon the sea.
[45:57] The storm is changed into a certain calm. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
[46:08] We know another example in the Gospels, where this example of the power of God left the disciples filled with fear. When Jesus arose and rebuked the wind and said into the sea, peace be still, and the wind ceased, and there was a sudden, complete calm.
[46:26] And we are told that the disciples feared exceedingly and said one to another, what manner of man is this, that demon the wind and the sea obey? Well, among the sailors, their fear of the storm and of their circumstances now changes to a fear of the Lord, to a fear of Yahweh.
[46:51] It is probable that they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows when they got back to land, because it would have been quite difficult for them to offer sacrifice on board the ship.
[47:04] But in making vows, they were committing themselves to making an ongoing sacrifice to the Lord. This was not to be a one-off sacrifice, a one-off thanksgiving for their deliverance, but they were committing themselves to a continuous sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord.
[47:25] what does this teach us? Well, it teaches us many things, and we have spoken about some of these things as we went through this text today.
[47:37] But may we live obedient lives. May we learn the lessons through the storms of life.
[47:48] may the word of God be our guide. May we, as we earlier saw, live lives that are worthy of the gospel of Christ.
[48:06] May the Lord bless our thoughts. Let us pray. Eternal and ever blessed Lord, we give thanks to thee for thy goodness and for thy kindness to us.
[48:22] And we pray, O Lord, that through thine own spirit that we may be led to learn lessons from thine own word, from the examples that thou hast given to us in thy word.
[48:38] Oh, we pray that we may live obedient lives, and as we go through the storms of life, that we may learn the lessons that thou hast intended to give to us, that we would have that teachable heart as we go through the storms of life.
[48:58] We pray, O Lord, that thou would continue with us for the rest of this day, that thou would bless thy day to us when we come together to worship thee, that it would not only be on a certain day, but that our lives would be a worship unto thee.
[49:20] We pray, O Lord, that the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit would be with those who have gathered with us to hear thy word.
[49:35] And all that we ask is in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. Amen.