Key Verse: Verse 12 - “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 tempest is upon you."
Key Words: this great tempest is upon you
...cast me forth into the sea...for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Jonah 1:12
During the 1930's, officials of a steamship company gave missionaries free passage to and from their fields. They considered this policy their best insurance because they believed these people enjoyed God’s special protection. I can think of one biblical account which shows that unbelievers do reap benefits when God’s children are in the center of His will. Joseph’s presence in the home of the Egyptian officer, Potiphar, brought Divine blessing upon the entire household. And conversely, the storm recorded in Jonah makes it clear that disobedient Christians can bring great distress to unsaved people.
A French scholar elaborates on this. He sees Jonah, chapter 1, as illustrating the truth that all humanity rides through the sea of life in the same boat. The sailing conditions are partly determined by the character and conduct of the Christians on board. In Jonah’s case, the raging tempest sent by God terrified pagan sailors. Their futile struggling may be taken as a picture of the efforts of the unsaved to solve the problems of mankind. They do their best but they can’t correct the difficulties caused by the spiritual failures of believers.
Christian friend, our disobedience may well account for some of the problems in today’s world. We are therefore called to confess our sins, forsake them, and obey our Master. Like Jonah, we may be contributing to the tempestuous circumstances of our day, but like him we can also contribute to the solution.
What to do:
✞ All of us are the problem, and a solution to the problem.
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