A Dilemma of Disobedience
Oh, the joy that children bring to a home! The laughter, the giggles…the tantrums. Although children are truly a blessing, they can be, and often are, very self-centered. They scream when they don’t get their way. They pout if they don’t get the food THEY want…
“Now, honey, you have to eat your vegetables. They’re good for you. They will help you grow up to be stro…”
“I don’t like VEGETABLES! I want CANDY!!!”
Sadly, we are very much like children when it comes to our walk with God. We love Him. We want to do what He wants. But, you know, sometimes we just want what we want, and WE. ARE. GOING. TO. GET. IT!
If you take a look at the account of Jonah, you will notice that he had some of the same tendencies. He didn’t like to listen to simple directions. He had a dilemma of disobedience. In Jonah 1:1, it says, “Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah…” The grammatical sense of the original language makes it clear that this word did not come from a third party to Jonah (“Hey, Jonah! I heard some rumors that God said…”), nor did it arise from surrounding circumstances (“As a result of the things that are happening, I feel that God is telling me…”). This word, this particular command, came directly from God Himself and there was nothing ambiguous about the instructions: “Arise and go to Nineveh.” (verse 2). Not too difficult to grasp the meaning or intent, right?
First, Get up. Secondly, go. Thirdly, to Nineveh. God was not unclear about the directive. He didn’t come to Jonah and give him vague directions (“Hey, Jonah! Ya’ know, if you ever feel like going somewhere, you might want to head over to Nineveh. They need a little direction down there.”) God’s command to him was plain and simple: “Get up from where you are and go to where I tell you.”
As you read further into his account, you will see that Jonah, being the godly and obedient servant of God that he was, immediately got up and did as God had told him to do. Or not! He did, in fact, rise and get up. He got that part correct. It was the direction of travel that got him in trouble. In fact, he didn’t just mess up the itinerary that God had set for him, but willingly disobeyed God and went to a place of his own choosing. The Lord gave Jonah more instructions, but none of that mattered until he obeyed the first part of God’s command, “Go to Nineveh.”
Isn’t that where we mess up also? We do things of our own choosing. Instead of listening to and obeying God’s Word, we decide what is best and “follow our heart.” Or, because it may be a bit uncomfortable, we keep quiet when we should speak up. In the current political and cultural climate we experience today, we may think it best to keep a low profile. However, our first priority should not be worrying about who we may offend but Who we obey. It is imperative that we speak the Truth!
Obedience occurs one step at a time. We may not be called to preach to the masses, but we are called to obey. Obedience, not great oratory skills, is what matters.
