Series: Simply Complex
Message: Complex Expectations
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Daily Walk: Japhet De Oliveira

Refresh: Open with prayer. Ask God for the understanding through the Holy Spirit.

Read: Jonah 1-4 (NLT). As you read the New Living Translation, note 1–3 insights.

Reflect: I was recently talking with a close friend of mine, who shared the insights he’d discovered through a sermon he had preached on Acts 22. He was particularly struck by the fact that Paul of Tarsus was sent, and recognized that each of us is sent as well. God calls us. This is the call that was laid on Jonah who fled to Tarshish. While we don’t know where exactly Tarshish is, and most would like to say it was simply a name for a place far away, I tend to concur with those who suspect that it could the same place that Paul came from originally. God called Paul from there and Jonah tried to run to there to hide from the presence of God.

I have met people who believe that there are places that God will never go—bars, nightclubs, the cinema. I believe that their motive in making this argument is to encourage young people to stay away from certain places where they might encounter problems that will test their faith. The problem is that it implies that evil—Satan—is stronger than God. Jonah’s way of thinking is similarly problematic. For him to imagine for even one moment that there is anywhere in this planet that one can hide from God diminishes all that God is. For him to imagine that there is anywhere in this eternally expanding universe that God is not aware of or present in equally dismissive and foolish. The author, I would imagine, is being intentionally dramatic by setting up Jonah’s predicament in this way. The author wants us to think, “Well, that sure is silly! What in the world is Jonah thinking? God certainly knows where he is.”

The Bible is full of stories of God sending people on missions. He sent Abraham from Ur to the Promised Land. He sent Moses back into Egypt to rescue the children of Israel. Often these missions cause the people called to want to run away—immediately. Sometimes in an entirely different direction. Sometimes by refusing to move. Sometimes by ignoring the voice of God and pretending it is not real. Sometimes by creating obstacles. Sometimes by trying to outsmart God. Sometimes by actively seeking out alternative commitments or parallel commitments that almost mirror God’s call to mission—but are not the real call.

We have to ask ourselves why? Why do we make excuses and resist the call to go where God has called us to go? Jonah’s struggle was very intense—and we will explore that tomorrow, but let us focus for today on our own struggles. I was recently discussing the idea of people inviting their neighbors to their houses. The aim would be to get to know them better and to learn to love them as Jesus has called us to love our neighbors. It seems that it is easier to love a stranger then a neighbor. Especially if that stranger lives far away . . .

Recalibrate: ​​​Where has Jesus asked you to go recently?

Respond: Pray for the heart to listen and respond.

Research: What are some reasons that Jonah would have not liked people from Nineveh?