Are You Running From Something?
Revised: 4/26/03

Jonah 1:1  ¶Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,

2  Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

3  But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.

Like Jonah, we must often ask ourselves, as Christians, if there is something we are running from. Is there an element in our life we are refusing to take heed to or analyze in a fashion that will truly evoke change? It is one thing to recognize that we may be running, but it is another thing to actually do something about it.

Jonah was commanded by God to go and preach the Word of God to a stiff and stern group of people in Nineveh. He decided to take matters into to his own hands and fled in the opposite direction God commanded. Not only did Jonah flee in the opposite direction he also paid the fare to do it.

How often do we find ourselves going out of our way to refrain from doing the will of God? We often hear people say:

· I am too upset to repent

· I am too angry to release my grudge

· I am too young to live a life for Christ

· It is too many hypocrites in the church I don’t need that in my life

We know what His Word commands, but we end up wandering down Satan’s erroneous road, knowing the omnipotence of God is watching our every gesticulation. The scurry and sprint of Jonah did nothing but transport the wrath of God to the location of others. The Bible says in Jonah 1:4  But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. 5  Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. 6  So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.

If we fail to follow the commands of God we place ourselves and those around us in danger of His wrath. Once Jonah was removed, the problem for all the innocent people was erased. In Jonah 1:15 we read about the resolution to the persecution of the innocent inhabitants on the boat,  “So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.”

When we find ourselves disobeying the commands of God, we must surely expect a consequence. Jonah found himself in the belly of a fish for three days and three nights. How many times have you regretted an ungodly choice because of the wretched situation that resulted? Truly David wished he had never slept with Bathsheba because of the grief and death it triggered for him and his family. Surely Judas wished he had not betrayed the Anointed Christ for a meager thirty pieces of silver because the depressive and oppressive grief resulted in suicide. The prodigal son ran form his fathers care and virtually came back on his knees. We cannot make it attempting to do our own thing.

God urges us to follow His commands and we must constantly ask the question, "Am I running from something?" Yes we duck and dodge the ploys and onslaughts of Satan, but we we are to hearken to the Word of God. So ask yourself, "Am I running from the commands of God?"

· Am I teaching like I should?

· Am I attempting to remain in the in-crowd refusing to exude a life of Christ?

· Am living like I should?

· Am I walking in the spirit or running with Satan in lust?

Christ charged His disciples with the same charge we are left with today. In Mark 16:15 ...He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

This command continues for the Christian today and we must ask ourselves if we are living up to God's standards. Are we faking a Christian walk while secretly strutting for Satan? Are we in our middle schools and high schools studying Christopher Columbus and Tom Sawyer, yet failing to open the Book that brings eternal life? Are we in our universities studying the principles of epistemology, ontology and axiology, while failing to study and understand the deity of the Godhead and His doxology? Are we in our marriages studying stock options and money market schemes but failing to understand we belong to a royal priesthood? Are we in our congregations studying the notes to new songs, yet forgetting to study the Word of truth? We can find ourselves in various ways running from God and the list is endless.

Jonah was not delivered from his torment until he repented, willingly correcting his wrong, running in the direction of God and not of his flesh. He prayed to God in Jonah 2:1-9 and in verse 10 "...the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land."

Once we stop running from our God-given responsibilities we will be loosed from feelings of guilt and will be transformed into healthy and mentally free spiritual beings.

Stop Running!

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