Title Jonah Lecture 01 / Jon 1:01~03 Missionary
Contents
Jonah 1:1-3
missionary
The book of Jonah is like a fairy tale. His story of being in the belly of a big fish for three days is like something out of a fairy tale. Is Jonah a fictional character or a real person? Is the book of Jonah a fictional story or an actual event? The answer can be found in Jesus. When referring to the incident of Jonah, Jesus spoke of a very important truth: the death and resurrection of the cross. “Jesus answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign, but there is no sign to be seen except the sign of Jonah the prophet. As Jonah was in the belly of the great fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the earth three days and three nights.” When Jesus spoke of the death and resurrection of the cross while referring to Jonah, we can be sure that Jonah was a real person, and that the story of being in the belly of a big fish for three days was also a real event.
Who is Jonah? His name means 'dove'. These days, pigeons have become harmful birds, but pigeons originally symbolized peace. Perhaps God wanted to make peace with the people of Nineveh through Jonah. In 2 Kings 14:25, we see Jonah in more detail. “Jeroboam restored the territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the Sea of the Arabah, just as the LORD, the God of Israel, had spoken through his servant Jonah the prophet, son of Amittai, Gathheber.” Jonah's hometown was Gathheber. Gathheber is near Nazareth in Galilee. The area belonged to the tribe of Zebulun. The period in which Jonah was active was during the reign of Jeroboam II, the heyday of the northern dynasty of Israel. This was the age when idols and lawlessness were rampant, that is, the age when untruth prevailed. In today's text verse 1, he was the son of Amittai. The word ‘Amittai’ means ‘truth’. He was also the son of his father, Amittai, but spiritually, he was the son of the truth.
God raised Jonah as the son of truth in the age of untruth. You made me live as the son of truth. He appointed them as prophets to preach the word of truth. God works and works through the person of truth in any age. No matter how pervasive sin is, lawlessness is rampant, and untruth prevails, there are people who live as people of the truth. It was Enoch, it was Noah, it was Abraham. So was Job, so was Samuel, and so was Elijah. It was Jeremiah, it was Daniel, it was Nehemiah. Everyone, I hope that you will live as people of truth like Jonah.
In verse 1 of the text, the book of Jonah begins with the words, “The word of God came to Jonah.” Who is God? God is a speaking God. The characteristic of the book of Jonah is the fact that it begins with the word of God and ends with the word of God. God entrusted Jonah with a mission through the Word. Jonah was a missionary. God still works and works through the Word. So, what did God say to Jonah? Let's read verse 2 together. “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.” If we look closely at these words, we can see that God gave Jonah three commands. As a missionary, Jonah had to do three things.
First, it is a command to “get up”.
Second, it is a command to “Go to Nineveh, that great city.”
God said to Jonah, “Go.” have to go You must go to the destination God has set and fulfill your mission. Jonah's destination was Nineveh. At that time, Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, a great empire that conquered the world. We can only guess how big the city of Nineveh was. In Jonah 4:11, it is said that at least in the city of Nineveh there were a hundred thousand little children who could not distinguish between left and right. If so, we can see that Nineveh was a large city with a total population of probably over a million people. But in verse 2 of the text, the city of Nineveh was full of wickedness. Just like in the days of Noah's Flood, or just like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, sins were rampant and they were on the verge of being judged by God. God clearly stated his destination and sent Jonah.
Third, it is a command to “shout out toward it.”
God told Jonah to “shout”. You have to open your mouth and shout. The trumpet of the gospel must be blown loudly. Don't be a honey-eaten dumb. You have the right to remain silent. There can never be a sin in the world. You can exercise your right to remain silent if you are at a disadvantage when you go to the police or prosecutors to be investigated. However, if the missionary exercises his right to remain silent toward the world, it becomes a sin. “If anyone hears a curse, but becomes a witness and does not tell what he has seen or knows, he must bear his own sin, and his transgression will be on him.” Peter and John, who were brought to the Sanhedrin, were forced to remain silent by the authorities. I have been warned not to speak or teach, in the name of Jesus. But they risked their lives to say: “Judge whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, and we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
tidy up.
Jonah was the son of Amittai. He lived as a man of truth in an age when sin was rampant, lawlessness was rampant, and untruth prevailed. God spoke to him. He heard the word of God and became a missionary. God's command to him was threefold. First, it is a command to “get up”. I have to get up. If it doesn't happen, you won't be able to fulfill your mission. Second, it is a command to “Go to Nineveh, that great city.” have to go You cannot become a missionary if you do not advance toward the world. Third, it is a command to “shout out toward it.” have to shout If you do not shout, if you become a honey-eaten dumb, you cannot become a missionary. I hope that you will become a missionary who spreads the gospel boldly and fearlessly.