Jonah's Eight Word Sermon

Lessons from Jonah 3 – How beautiful are the feet that bring good news!

Photo by Max Böhme on Unsplash

“How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” – Romans 10:15

Jonah gets a second chance.

Jonah is back with the Prophet Program, days on the run, the voyage out to sea, revealing his hesitation to the Lord’s call, and three days in the belly of a whale, which was almost fatal, and the drop off onto dry land, have suddenly alerted him that he better pay attention when God has a message for him. The prophet motto, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8), has now motivated Jonah. Jonah is back!

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“Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, ² “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and proclaim to it the proclamation which I am going to tell you.” ³ So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the Lord” – Jonah 3:1-3

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Photo of Nazareth by Shalev Cohen on Unsplash

At this time, Jonah is living near Nazareth, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Nathanial would later ask (John 1:46). Jonah’s hometown (Gath-hepher) is just a few miles from Nazareth (2nd Kings 14:25). The journey to Ninevah is around five hundred (500) miles northeast into a foreign land and will take several weeks. This journey will be long, lonely, and uncertain but the Lord was clear to Jonah, Ninevah is the destination, and the Lord will give him the words to speak. Jonah surrenders himself to the call, without reservation (Romans 12:1).

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Background on Ninevah

Ninevah, at the time of Jonah, was a metropolis of the Assyrian Empire, it would take Jonah three days (Jonah 3:3) to go through city and get his message out. Historians think the city was spread out across sixty miles, located near modern day Mosul, Iraq along the Tigris River. Noah’s descendants of his son Ham (Genesis 10:6-14), founded Ninevah, before the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9) and the city is mentioned twenty-one (21) times in the Scriptures. For a time length reference of Ninevah, Abraham to King David was almost 1,000 years or fourteen generations (Matthew 1:17). Ninevah was established before Abraham and Jonah’s time as prophet was after David, giving Ninevah much time to grow and develop in what the text of Jonah’s refers to as a ‘great city’ (Jonah 1:4; 3:2; 3:3; 4:11). The reputation of Ninevah was  animosity to Israel, pride, violence, and wickedness, (See: Genesis 10:6-14, 2^nd Kings 19:36, Isaiah 37:1-13, Jonah 1:2)

Map Source: Blue Letter Bible

Sermon Prep on the Journey

Jonah would do his sermon prep along the way to Ninevah, plenty of time to walk and gather his thoughts as his feet stepped into new terrain and his eyes looked out to new lands and faces. I wonder if he looked out to the stars at night and what kind of questions he had for the Lord on the way. There is something about exploring a new environment that alerts the mind. Getting out of our comfort zone in life can help us be more aware of His Hand in all things (Isaiah 41:13).

Jonah’s message is just eight words

Weeks of sermon prep and travel, Jonah’s message is just eight (8) words, for those who appreciate brevity, this sermon is for you. The eight words were, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown” Jonah 3:4. Remember the Lord told Jonah he would give him the words to speak, “proclaim (the message to Ninevah) …the proclamation which I am going to tell you” (Jonah 3:2). In times of distress or crisis, brevity of words, directness, and clear call to action are usually valued more than many words (John 8:11, Acts 2:37-38).

“Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken in right circumstances.” – Proverbs 25:11

Jonah hits a home run

It has been said the late Billy Graham, raised on a dairy farm near Charlotte, North Carolina before he discovered a love for the Gospel and surrendered his life to Jesus, was a lover of baseball. He had dreams of playing baseball before crowds and being in stadiums full of people. My family has visited the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte a few times. To me it is interesting how God gave Billy a dream of playing baseball before crowds and replaced that dream into preaching before crowds of people in stadiums and venues around the world in calling millions to the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

My kids at the Billy Graham Library:

For Jonah, his message of eight words spoken at the right time, is a home run from a kingdom perspective, “from the greatest to the least” believed God (Jonah 3:5), in chapter four of Jonah, we learn the number of people was over 120,000 (Jonah 4:11).

“⁵ Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. ⁶ When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes. ⁷ He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water. ⁸ But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands. ⁹ Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish.” ¹⁰ When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.” – Jonah 3:5-10

Takeaway and application:

Why do you think people are sometimes hesitate to the Lord’s call? (see these references: Genesis 19:26, Jonah 1:1-3, Matthew 19:16-26)

What does surrendering to the Lord look like to you? (See Romans 12:1-2, Hebrews 12:14). Listen to the lyrics of Have It All by Bethel Music. What areas do you find it difficult to surrender to God?

Has God ever given you the right words for the right moment? Has a friend, pastor, or family member ever spoken the right words you needed in a certain circumstance? Reference these verses on words we speak (Psalm 19:14, 1st Peter 3:15-16, 1st Peter 4:11). How can you ask God in prayer for help in this area?

What do you make of the distance and time Jonah went to deliver God’s message and the connection to the gospel? If you could explain the gospel in a few words or verses what would you say? What brief words could you use to share about the bible’s main message?

What attributes of God are evident from this story of Jonah? (See Psalm 145:9, 2nd Peter 3:9).

In what ways did God’s word not return void with Jonah’s story? (See Isaiah 55:11)

Listen to this song, There’s Nothing That our God Can’t Do. How do these lyrics apply to you regarding Jonah’s story?

Email any prayer requests, comments, or other input to thesaltandlightdaily@gmail.com.

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