Jonah 3:1\u20144:11<\/p>\n\n\n\n
September 18, 2011<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before our granddaughters, Sage and Story heard about Jonah, they knew about Pinocchio and the whale. No wonder whenever we read about Jonah, we immediately believe that the big fish is a whale. And the two stories have similarities. Pinocchio was disobeying his creator, Geppeto by not going to school and Jonah was disobeying God by not going to Nineveh to deliver God\u2019s message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But recently, we heard from Sage that she learned about Jonah and how God used him as a reluctant prophet. While I was worried if Sage would understand the difference between Pinocchio and Jonah, God is at work in Sage\u2019s life already.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All of us here probably know about the story of Jonah. You can\u2019t graduate from Sunday school without learning about Jonah and the whale. The characters, storyline, and dramatic events make great children\u2019s books for us grandparents to read to the little ones. But today, I want to go beyond the colorful images of Jonah being tossed about on the ship and being swallowed up in the belly of the big fish. I want us to grapple with why in the world is this small book of Jonah, merely 2 pages in the Bible has any significance for us today. It\u2019s a story that is more than how similar it is to Pinocchio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jonah<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Just as we believe that God is at work with Sage, God is at work in our lives and in the lives of others who currently do not believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord. There are times when we feel the nudge to speak of matters of faith with another person yet we feel uncomfortable. While we seemingly live in a time when we might chat about anything with almost any body, we would rather not talk about matters of faith. When an opportunity arises, but we become reluctant, we soon forget about it. Jonah didn\u2019t want to talk about matters of faith either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, but he did not want to go. Besides having the reputation for all sorts of violence and wickedness, the people of Nineveh were enemies of Israel\u2014the Assyrians. Jonah thought he had good reasons to refuse God\u2019s call. I suspect that Nate Lee\u2019s parents thought that about Chicago when Nate wanted to do his Mission Year there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s always trouble when we think we know better than God, as Jonah would discover for himself. So Jonah decided to take a cruise and go on vacation. He headed as far away from God as possible. You know that there\u2019re no cell phone signals on a cruise. What he did not count on was that you can never escape God. There is nowhere we can go that God does not know our cell phone numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God not only knew where Jonah was, God knew why he was fleeing. God sent a \u201cgreat wind upon the sea, and a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up.\u201d In a moment of panic the sailors on board the ship were afraid, and each began praying to their god. They began throwing cargo overboard hoping to lighten the ship. About this time, Jonah was beginning to think that maybe he might be the cause of the storm. After all he was deliberately disobeying God by heading in the opposite direction. They cast lots to determine who was to blame. As you would expect the lot fell on Jonah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The sailors questioned Jonah, \u201cWhat is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? What people are you?\u201d Jonah told them that he was a Hebrew and that he worshipped the Lord, the God of heaven who made the heaven, the sea and the dry land. When the sailors learned that Jonah refused to be the prophet that God planned for his occupation and that he was fleeing from God, they decided to throw Jonah overboard, and just as suddenly as the storm began, it ceased. The ship and the crew were now safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of allowing Jonah to perish, God provided a large fish to swallow Jonah and for three days and nights, Jonah had a lot of time for soul-searching. We have had times like these when the unexpected crisis comes and we have an opportunity to think about our life and what is of ultimate importance. With time to reflect and little distraction, Jonah used this time to pray. Maybe he thought he should have done what God wanted him to do in the first place. After confessing his sin Jonah was given a second chance. The big fish \u201cspewed Jonah out upon dry land.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Conversion of Nineveh<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In most of the children\u2019s books on Jonah, they end about here. Jonah confesses his sin and he gets spat out onto the beach. But the real significance of the story of Jonah is in chapters 3 and 4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God told him a second time, \u201cGet up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.\u201d Nineveh is an \u201cexceedingly large city\u201d taking three days to walk across it. You can say that it would be three times as large as San Francisco. In the center of city like in Union Square, Jonah proclaims, \u201cForty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!\u201d That was all he said. End of sermon. Just five words in Hebrew. If I preached a five-word sermon, you would say, \u201cIt\u2019s not enough!\u201d His message was one of judgment and not grace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If Jonah was so reluctant to obey God the first time, I\u2019m wondering if Jonah\u2019s heart was really into this. He would rather be somewhere else, doing something altogether different. Maybe Jonah was only going through the motions. I wonder if there are times when we, like Jonah, are simply going through the motions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the reaction to Jonah\u2019s message was astonishing. The people believed in God right away, and they turned from their sinful ways. To demonstrate their changed behavior a fast was called. Even the animals fasted. \u201cAnd everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.\u201d Even the king got down from his throne; removed his robe, cover himself with sackcloth and sat on a pile of ashes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What was it that caused this massive change in all the people of that wicked city? Certainly it wasn\u2019t Jonah\u2019s well-prepared 5-word sermon or his attitude for that matter. God has been working in the lives of the people that very moment, to bring about this change. God used Jonah\u2019s half-hearted effort to bring about the desired results, namely that the people of Nineveh would turn from their sinful ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Loving Our Neighbors<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We do not know or understand how God is at work in other people\u2019s lives. All we have to do is speak of God\u2019s love at the right moment, and the person will respond. I know that I am often guilty of not speaking about Jesus when an opportunity comes and I regret it afterward. We may need to confront someone we care about when they are behaving in destructive ways. We may need to stand up for the hotel workers at the Hyatt hotels who are being exploited without a contract and inhumane workloads. Rather than to be consumed in my own work on the plane, I should take every opportunity to talk about matters of faith with the person seated next to me. We need to be open to the Spirit\u2019s leading to discover those moments when we can reach another person. Just like Jonah, we do not bring the change\u2014God does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God saw how much the people changed, how much they turned away from their wicked ways, and God did not send the planned calamity. During this year, we have been trying to answer the question, \u201cWho is my neighbor?\u201d While we might never be able to answer this question satisfactorily, we know that God loves our neighbors. God loves and cares for all people, even people we might not see eye to eye with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who cares for the sinners? God does. Who cares for the lost? God does. Who cares for the increasing number of homeless and panhandlers? God does. If God cares so much for the lost we should care as well redoubling our efforts to reach persons who have not yet profess Jesus as Lord and Savior. There might be people we know who are searching for what we have found in Jesus Christ. They are searching and cannot find, so with the promptings of the Holy Spirit we say the right words at the right time and the person responds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jonah, at this point, is the most successful reluctant prophet of all time in spite of himself. But from Jonah\u2019s perspective, things aren\u2019t working out as they should, because Jonah still feels that he knows more than God. He became angry at God for not punishing the people of Nineveh. For Jonah, the world is separated into Jews and Gentiles, his kind of people and outsiders. Jonah doesn\u2019t want to know that God loves people whom he wouldn\u2019t even sit down to eat with. Jonah\u2019s problem is that God will love anybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We may want to think that we like the idea of God loving everybody, but we live with Jonah\u2019s attitude. We spend our time with people who make us feel comfortable. We help people we know. For the most part, we are friends with people who look like us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jonah sits and sulks. He watches the city from the outside and hopes that God will come around and send fire from heaven. What God sends is a plant to give Jonah shade. Just when Jonah was happy about the shade, God sends a worm to kill the plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jonah wishes he were dead. God asks if Jonah has any right to be angry: \u201cWill you look at yourself? Do you think I should care more for this plant than for my children? If I didn\u2019t care for my children, what kind of God would I be?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n God\u2019s Patience<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n From this story we learn that God is incredibly patient and merciful. God wanted the people of Nineveh to turn from their wicked ways to embrace the life God desired for them to live. God gave the people more time to turn from their sinful ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n God was patient with Jonah too. Even though Jonah disobeyed God by running away, God still preserved Jonah\u2019s life by directing a fish to swallow him and not harm him. Even though Jonah was disappointed that God didn\u2019t caused calamity to happen to Nineveh, God still provided a plant to shade him from the sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you think of it, Jonah does not deserve God\u2019s patience. But God is patient with us as well. God gives us time to turn our lives around, to repent of our sins, and follow Jesus. God is giving us more time to reach out to others too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Are there things you wanted to do but for some reason have never followed through? Maybe you wanted to make some changes in your life, telling yourself that you would, but so far have made little progress. Or maybe there was a friend you wanted to talk to about Jesus Christ but felt uneasy bringing up the subject. Maybe there was that new family that moved into your neighborhood that you\u2019ve been meaning to meet and invite to church. Or maybe you wanted to become more involved in the church yet you\u2019ve managed to come up with several good excuses. Now is the time to act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Oct. 16th<\/sup>, I\u2019ll be beginning our Fall Inquirers\/Church Membership class and perhaps this time you will act to learn more about Jesus Christ and to be his disciple. The Nominating Committee is already at their task of inviting new people to serve on boards and committees and perhaps this is the year that you will say\u2019 \u201cYes\u201d to the invitation to serve with your God-given gifts and talents. In October, you\u2019ll be encouraged to learn more about missions with Mission Sunday on Oct. 9th<\/sup> and the World Mission Offering that we\u2019ll be receiving and perhaps you might step up become a mission advocate and consider going on a mission trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh. He had several good reasons too. Jonah was reluctant to go even after being rescued from the belly of the whale. Let\u2019s not keep the story about Jonah only as a children\u2019s book along with Pinocchio. If anything, let\u2019s be honest and identify with how we are so much like Jonah who was reluctant but God used him anyway to save people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jonah proclaimed the word of God, and the people responded in a way that no one could have predicted. God is able to use each and every one of us to God\u2019s own honor and glory. God is calling you to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to our neighbors today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let us pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gracious and patient Lord God, forgive us when we run away from your calling and sending us to speak about your love and mercy with others. Reveal to us the truth that your love for our neighbors is more pervasive and expansive that exceeds our own imaginations. Grant us courage and the willingness to share your love for us that we may become instruments of your plan for the world. If Nineveh can be saved from destruction, use us to save our city from evil ways and to turn to you for hope and the joy of being your people. In the name of Christ who came to save the whole world, we pray. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Jonah 3:1\u20144:11 September 18, 2011 Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco. Before our granddaughters, Sage and Story heard about Jonah, they