International Gospel Hour

Guest (Male): The Psalmist asked of God, "Where can I go from your spirit, or where can I flee from your presence?" God is always present and always near, and He wants all to come to Him and live. Let's think about this today here from the International Gospel Hour. Stay with us.

J. Webb: It's time for our broadcast from the International Gospel Hour. I'm J. Webb, and welcome to our study today as we embrace God's word to help us meet the challenges of today. Let's open our Bibles and open our hearts for this time of Bible study with our speaker, Jeff Archey, of International Gospel Hour, a broadcast of the Churches of Christ. Here's Jeff.

Jeff Archey: Well, thank you to our J. Webb, always, and greetings and hello everyone. Great having you with us. Let's begin our study from Matthew the 12th chapter, verses 38 through 41. The Bible says some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying in their answering Jesus, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from you."

But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and indeed, a greater than Jonah is here."

Friends, did you know that Jonah is the only shorter or minor prophet, as we call that section of scripture, that is the only prophet referred by Jesus? This prophet is the only Old Testament character to whom Jesus likened Himself. Oh, the book of Jonah. What a wonderful study about this prophet of God. Oh, there's so much written about Jonah, and we're going to consider Jonah 1 today as we think about God's presence when I flee.

Taken from Jonah 1 and verse 3, it says, "But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish, so he paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord." But you know, the presence of God is throughout the wonderful book of Jonah. His name appears 39 times in the 48 verses.

And when we look at Jonah and think about his decision, we want to ask where God was during that time, for God still had a presence. Just like we learn from Psalm 139, verses 7 through 10, we began our broadcast by asking, "Where can I go from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?" The Psalmist continued and said in verse 8, "If I ascend into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in hell or the grave, behold, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me and your right hand shall hold me." So friends, God's presence is always. Let's think about again our subject: God's presence when I flee. We'll be back to Jonah 1 in just a moment.

J. Webb: Hello friends, the previous shows tab is available at our website, internationalgospelhour.com, and also available on several podcast platforms. Maybe we are on your favorite podcast site. Just search for International Gospel Hour and you can find previous broadcasts. They're always there 24/7 for you to listen or even to download either at our website or your favorite podcast site. Check it out today.

Jeff Archey: Now, friends, let's consider when one flees from God's presence, one will board the ship of rebellion. I take us back to Jonah chapter 1 when Jonah did the opposite of what God said. God told him to go to Nineveh, yet Jonah chose Tarshish. In verse 3, the Bible said how Jonah paid the fare thereof. When an individual rebels against what God says, then that individual best be ready to pay the price. For in Romans 6:23, "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord."

When one rebels against God, one will move further from God, as we note in verses 3 through 5 of Jonah chapter 1. When he fled from Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, the Bible says he went down to Joppa, found a ship going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. But the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea so that the ship was about to be broken up.

Then the mariners were afraid and every man cried out to his god, and threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten the load. But Jonah had gone down into the lowest parts of the ship and had laid down and was fast asleep. Now, when we see Jonah was fast asleep, when we study that phrase, it means he was in a deep sleep. He was all the way, totally relaxed, not knowing what was going on around him.

Look what happened when Jonah fled from God. He went down to Joppa, down into the ship, down to the lowest parts, laid down to sleep. Folks, you just keep going down, down, down when you move further from God. When one rebels by refusing what God commands him to do and one is not being obedient to the will of God, then that individual has made the first move away from God and will continue to lead one further away. Don't forget, the wise man was the one who heard and did. The foolish man was the one who heard and did not. Matthew 7:24 through 27.

Let's stay off the ship of rebellion. Now, let's continue in our study of Jonah 1. When one flees from God's presence, one will find troubled waters. And that's verses 6 through 16. You see, when the Lord sent out that great wind, as we noted in verse 4, we see the Lord's presence, for He sent out the great wind. It was a mighty tempest, a major storm, but you know how God can take major storms in our lives and make a major difference? Like Jonah, when one is down, down, down, the only way to go is up.

Contrasted with the actions of Jonah is the behavior of the mariners. A writer by the name of Peter Lockwood summarizes the behavior of the mariners as opposed to that of Jonah when he said, "Jonah's descent is matched by the sailors' ascent." That's interesting. You see, in troubled waters, one must always look upward. Now, let's look at these mariners here. Verse 5 tells us that they were afraid and they cried out, every man cried out to his god, and god there is lowercase G.

They were crying out to a god that had eyes that could not see, ears that could not hear. They were throwing the cargo over the ship. They were trying on their own to fix things themselves, and nothing was working. Finally, in verse 6, the captain came to Jonah and said, "What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God. Perhaps your God will consider us so that we may not perish." Now in verse 10, we know the captain understood that Jonah did flee from the presence of the Lord.

But you know what's interesting? Jonah didn't pray. Jonah did not call upon God. He's still fleeing. Their way is not working. Their gods are not getting the job done. Finally, in verse 7, they're all saying to one another, "Let's cast lots, or let's see, that we may know from whose cause this trouble has come upon us." And when they did so, it fell upon Jonah, and they said, "Tell us what cause is this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? What people are you?"

He said, "I am a Hebrew and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and dry land." Now, folks, the whole ship knows. I wonder if this crossed their mind: His God is greater than all of our gods put together. Why would he rebel? This is not doing any of us any good. Again, their way is not working. Their gods are not getting the job done because they don't exist, friends. They are still searching to fix the problems themselves.

Well, we find how these mariners were exceedingly afraid and asked him, "Why have you done this?" in verse 10. They knew he had fled from the presence of the Lord, for Jonah had told them so. Then they said to him, "What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?" And the sea was growing more tempestuous. Verse 12, he said to them, "Pick me up and throw me into the sea, and the sea will become calm for you."

Nevertheless, the men continued to row hard to return to the land. They were not doing what Jonah had asked. Their fear keeps growing. Their way is not working. Their gods are not getting the job done. The storm is getting worse. There's something about them not wanting to throw Jonah in the sea. That was decent of them. They're trying to fix the problem themselves by rowing, the storm keeps getting worse, and then they cry out. Get this now, verse 14, they cried out to the Lord and said, "We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man's life. Do not charge us with innocent blood, for you, O Lord, has done as it pleased you."

Now finally, brethren, friends, are we getting this from a bunch of heathen mariners? Yes, your way is not working. They cry out to the God who will get the job done. They throw Jonah in the sea, verse 15, and the sea ceased. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows. How the Lord used Jonah to convert these men.

Friends, when the storms of life worsen, don't flee from God. Flee to God. That's what the mariners did. Don't try fixing things ourselves. We got into the problem; we need help getting out. And let's think about it. Are there things we need to throw off into the sea of life? In troubled waters, those that have fled remembered from whence they came, from whom they departed, and whose presence is still there.

Listen to Jonah's words, verse 9, "I fear the Lord God, the God of heaven." And verse 12, "Pick me up and throw me into the sea and it will become calm for you." Now Jonah is coming closer. We note how he acknowledges God, the Creator. All of this, that He is the God of the sea and of the dry land, back to verse 9. He figures, well, if the sea will be calm for them, it'll be calm for him.

But that's not the case, necessarily, because when he was thrown overboard, the presence of the Lord is still there, for verse 17 said He prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Now, I would say that was not what Jonah expected, but look at the text, friends. The Lord had prepared. When one flees, God is still near. He's still watching. When we flee and we choose the wrong directions in life that will lead us to troubled waters and then we are swallowed up, keep in mind, like Jonah, God is still present. That's a lot in Jonah 1, is it not? And for us to think about God's presence when I flee.

Friends, let's pause here. Might we help you not flee from God? Here is our J. Webb with our free Bible study course that's always available.

J. Webb: Our long-time free Bible study course by mail is always available. Have you tried it yet? Just call us toll-free at 855-444-6988 and leave your name, address, and just say home study. That's it. You may also go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com, click on the contact tab, and leave us the same information: name, address, and type "home study" in the message box. Study the Bible at your own pace. Again, it's free from your friends here at International Gospel Hour.

Jeff Archey: Thanks again for being with me today. I'm Jeff Archey, and friends, keep listening.

J. Webb: Thank you for listening today. To God be the glory, and we hope that our study today will draw you closer to His word to walk in His way. Feel free to listen to our other programs at our website at internationalgospelhour.com and join us next time.