“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.” Matt. 12:39-41
By Michael Adekoya – Dear Reader, glory be to God for another season of Easter period. The Bible says, “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”” Matt. 12:38. The mere statement of Jesus that “… indeed a greater than Jonah is here” really validates the book of Jonah and everything we read in the book. Many scholars as well as many Theologians have doubted the story of Jonah, “how can a fish swallow a human being?” “How can a man survived after being swallowed by a fish for three days?” “Where is that fish in the world that is big enough to swallow a man for three days and did not destroy him?”. Some even went as far as saying the book of Jonah is just a fiction or parable to demonstrate the relationship of Israel and her surrounding nations at the time.
My friend, sceptics, doubters and scorners have always being and they shall never seize. For the fact that the story is in the Bible, to me, it’s real and for Jesus to liken the sign of His death and resurrection to this much doubted, disputed and misunderstood historical account, validates and authenticates the book and it’s contents. So therefore, the question now is, what are the lessons in that short book or in the story of Jonah for us to learn in this Easter season?
Firstly, our God loves everyone in the world and does not want anyone to perish. This confirms the popular New Testament verse of John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It’s not the will or the desire of God that the people of Nineveh as wicked as they were to perish without giving an opportunity to repent and to forsake their sins. Prophet Jonah like a lot of religious people today thought that the wicked should not be given an opportunity to repent or did not deserve the mercy of God, so why should God warn them of the impending doom and judgement? Why should we preach salvation to them? Why should we show them the love of God? Or why do I need to repent as sinful as I am? Truly the Ninevites were the most dangerous, wicked, cruel and merciless nation of their generation. Still, they qualified for the mercy of God because they were His creatures.
Don’t write yourself off, don’t disqualify yourself and never doubt the mercy of God over your life. No matter how sinful you may think you are, you still qualify for God’s mercy if you repent and forsake your sin. Despite Jonah’s reluctant, “repent or burn message“. “And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”” Jonah 3:4. The Bible says, the king proclaimed a national fast, asked his people to repent of their sins and turn away from their wicked and evil ways. When they did, both young and old as well as their animals, God forgave them of their sins, the impending doom, judgement and destruction was everted. “Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.” Jonah 3:10.
My friend, that same God is still on the throne today. He has never changed (Heb. 13:8), His mercy has never changed, and that’s part of what we should remember and celebrate during this Easter season. I don’t care how far you might have gone in occultism, how many abortions or people you might have killed, how many lives you might have destroyed, how sinful, bad, terrible, stinking, ungodly you might think you are or people think you are, the truth is, you still qualify for God’s mercy like the Ninevites if you confess, repent and forsake that lifestyle and embrace Jesus. The Bible says in the New Testament, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,” Acts 3:19. Now the problem is not the depth, nor the breath or the multitude of your sins, but about you coming in humility to God, to acknowledge, to confess, repent and forsake those sins, the mercy of God has never changed.
To the religious people like Jonah, “holier than thou”, who think some people do not deserve or qualify for the mercy of God, therefore they don’t need to be preached to, they don’t need to be warned, they don’t need to be shown the love of God, they don’t need to be forgiven, sorry to tell you, you’re as rebellious as Prophet Jonah. If you don’t repent of your religious pride, arrogance, blindness and ignorance, you may miss your reward. “Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward.” 2John 1:8. Never write anybody off, it’s not yours to judge if someone has committed an un-pardonable sin or not, who are you to disqualify, condemn or disqualify others? Be careful, be warned go out there and preach the Gospel in this season to the prostitutes, murderers, evil doers, drunkards, drug addicts, robbers, bandits, thugs, embezzlers, occultists, atheists, witches, wizards, diabolical people, idol worshippers, idolaters, satanists and so on. They are loved by God, Jesus died for them too. Who knows, they may repent like the people of Nineveh and turn to God.
My fellow Kingdom Citizens, don’t be discouraged in telling others about the love of God. You don’t know those that have been chosen and elected for salvation but only need to hear the Gospel. You never know who God has prepared his/her heart for salvation and you never know the next Apostle Paul or Billy Graham. Keep on praying for those you think they can’t be saved, keep on showing them the love of God, keep on telling them about the Gospel. God shall surely reward your efforts. Please don’t write off your spouses, your neighbours, your colleagues, your persecutors, your despisers, your scorners, your so called “enemies” and those diabolical and wicked family members. Who knows probably God has brought them on your life journey for you to show them the way of salvation. Don’t let God down, don’t rebel or disobey God like Jonah. Jesus loved and came to die for everyone including those “terrible, ungodly and wicked” people. The story in the book of Jonah has shown us that no one or no nation is outside the reach of the mercy of God.
The second lesson to learn in this book of Jonah is that God is not only the Creator but also in control of the universe. There are three distinct classes of people on this issue. Some who believe that there is no God, that no one created this world and as such no one is in control of it. They call themselves Atheists but the Bible call them “fools”, (Ps. 14:1) we shouldn’t write them off, we should still preach the Gospel to them probably the spiritual blindfolds that the devil used to cover their spiritual eyes could be removed (2Cor. 4:4). The second class of people where unfortunately many Kingdom Citizens unconsciously belong to are those who believe that God is the Creator of the universe but He’s not in control of it or has lost the control of it. They are called Deists. The Deists are individuals who believe in the existence of a creator or supreme being who does not intervene in the affairs of the world. They believe that the universe is governed by natural laws and that humans can understand these laws through reason and observation. Deists reject the idea of divine revelation, miracles, and the supernatural, and instead, rely on human reason and critical thinking to understand the world. Unfortunately, many Bible carriers today belong to this group, hopefully you’re not one of them?
The last class of people which every genuine Kingdom Citizen should belong to are the Theists. That is, those who believe that God is the Creator and He is also the Controller of the universe. We can see these in all the eight miracles in this short book of Jonah. That is, 1. “the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea” 1:4. 2. “the lot fell on Jonah” 1:7. 3. “the seas ceased from its raging” 1:15. 4. “the Lord had prepared a great fish” 1:17. 5. “The Lord spoke to the fish…it vomited Jonah onto dry land” 2:10. 6. “the Lord God prepared a plant” 4:6. 7. “God prepared a worm” 4:7 and 8. “God prepared a vehement east wind” 4:8. In all these eight miracles, we can see that God is in control of all things, in control of all creatures and in control of all circumstances. No creature is out of the control of God. My friend, do you believe this? Well you can say yes but sometimes like Jonah we sometimes forget. If not so, Prophet Jonah wouldn’t have “run away from the presence of God” Jonah 1:3.
If God is Omniscient – “For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.” Psa. 139:4. Omnipotent – “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Matt. 28:18. And Omnipresent – “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” Psa. 139:7 , how can one “run away from His presence?”. Prophet Jonah’s theology like some of us too needs to be corrected, we need to renew our minds, change our mentalities and possess the New Testament mentalities (Rom. 12:1-2). We may not say it, but many of our actions demonstrate that we don’t believe that God is in control of all things. If not, why do we worry, panic, fear, anxious, discouraged, overwhelmed, doubt or quit? If we believe that God is able to make all things work together for His own people (Rom. 8:28), if we believe that if God is for us, no one can successfully be against us (Rom. 8:31). If we believe that “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” Pro. 21:1. My friend, although God gave man through Adam the dominion of the universe and man delivered it over to Satan (Luke 4:6) but God is still in control of man, Satan and the universe. He is still a Sovereign God. He chose to bound Himself by His own word, He’ll not do anything to violate His word, His character or His promises.
The book and the story of Jonah demonstrates this truth about the living God we serve. Jesus also demonstrated this through the occurrences of the first Easter. He demonstrated His supremacy over the actions of the religious leaders who “orchestrated His crucifixion”, Judas who betrayed Him, His disciples who forsook Him, all the suffering that He went through, the means of His death – crucifixion and His resurrection on the third day. All these went according to all what had been written and prophesied about Him. All showed that God was in control of all plans, of all plots, of all people, of all decisions and ultimately, of all outcomes. My friend, this God is worthy to serve, worthy to be obeyed, worthy to be trusted, worthy to rely on, worthy to depend on and worthy to wait on His promises. This is the God of the Bible, be a Theist and don’t be a Deist Bible carrier. Trust Him to come through for you, trust Him to make all things work together for your goodness, never be too concerned or worry about the evil plots, wicked plans and evil agendas of the people, God is always in control. You too be conscious of His sovereignty, let this motivate you to desist from evil or any sinful lifestyle as there’s no “secret” thoughts or actions before Him.
In conclusion, as we celebrate this Easter season, let’s remember that the mercy of God is for everyone, show the love of God to everyone during this period as always, preach the Gospel to all people no matter how “wicked” you think they are, you too repent of your “hidden sinful” lifestyle, His mercy is always available at any time and for everyone. In the same vein, be reminded that God is both the Creator and the Controller of the whole universe. You may be a leader, He puts you in charge, the ultimate control is not yours, use that position wisely, use that privilege and opportunity for His glory. You may be rich, influential, well connected, well-respected, anointed, a CEO, a Director, an Overseer or Prime Minister, God is the ultimate and overall ruler of all things and of all people. Whom we shall all be accountable to one day. But let this motivate you to love, serve, reverence and obey Him at all times. Knowing fully well that He is in control of life and death. Nothing escapes His memory, He cares and number the hairs on your head and He controls even the rise and falls of the birds in the sky. “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.” Matt. 10:29. Although He didn’t create human beings as robots, He gave us freewill, He possess the power to control our freewill for His own course (Phil. 2:13). Therefore, give Him the honour, the glory and all accolades that He deserves at all times. We shall continue the remaining lessons of the book of Jonah in “Greater than Jonah – Part 2” next week by God’s grace. Have a lovely Easter season and remain blessed!
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