Jonah: God's Relentless GraceSample

Prophet who runs 

God’s word comes to Jonah, the prophet, but he decides to flee in the opposite direction. Instead of going to Nineveh, he travels to Tarshish. 

People run from God for various reasons. Maybe you are like Jonah in some sense. We tend to run from God in specific ways. It could be because of sin, habits, resentment, bitterness or anything that the Bible forbids but we hold on to for various reasons. People tend to run from God because of pain and suffering. It could be the loss of a friend, a suffering family member, personal suffering, disappointments, crushed dreams, financial crisis or situations like these. We end up blaming God and so we run. 

Some run because they think they will miss out on fun and God is viewed as someone who takes away our freedom. When we decide to run, there is always a ship waiting for us. 

Maybe you are someone who is involved in church and ministry. You read your bible and pray regularly. You are considered a good Christian. Is it possible for you to run from God? Yes. Remember Jonah was a prophet and he still ran from God. His heart was far from God. 

We all run from God in some way or the other. The extent to which we can admit our tendency to run from God is the extent to which we can experience the grace of God in our lives. When we don’t admit our tendency to run, we can’t experience the depth of God’s grace and the power of the gospel. 

The essence of sin is to run from God. And when I admit my sin, the gospel penetrates into the dark corners of my heart and heals me. There is victory and joy. I don’t have to run anymore. 

Ask God to show you in what ways you run from Him. Maybe you already know. Instead of running from God, would you run toward Him? 

The story of Jonah points us to someone greater. It points us to Jesus who is the greater Jonah. Jonah was thrown into the stormy seas for his own sin. But Jesus was thrown into the ultimate storm on the cross for our sin. Do you see how much Jesus loves you? Why would you run from a Savior who gave His life for you?