Christ Kona?

would think he follows the order, and
he does to an extent. Jonah indeed gets
up but he then flees and descends. He follows
the command only as long as it is
convenient for him. The key to this
entire sequence is the verb descend. 3 The
word denotes more than just spatial
direction. From chapter 1 to chapter 2
Jonah takes a route that is diametrically
opposed to the divine coordinates of his
destination. It’s as if Jonah ignored the
divine GPS and keyed in his own route.
He had to get up to go—instead he
descends.
He was to go east—he bears west.
He was to traverse land—he decides
on a Mediterranean cruise.
He is to preach judgment and salvation—
he decides to stay silent and take a nap.
Jonah’s descent is not just geographical;
it is moral. I often wonder about the
direction of my life. What direction is
my ministry going? What direction is
my church going? The agenda will set
the course; and only an honest look at
our agendas allows for an honest evaluation
of course of action. Are we following
God’s course, or are we following
our own convenience? Yet, there is a second
problem. In order to evaluate our
agenda, we need to discover its origin.
Our Agendas Are Highly
Influenced by Our
Selfish Little Selves
Jonah’s decision to flee is not based on
fear. Rather, it represents a desire to
break the bonds that tie him to the One
that gave him the order. He is intent on
separation from God. 4 A careful reading
of the biblical narrative shows that
Jonah’s flight was not the result of fear of
the audience he is commanded to speak
to. The prophet is not in the business of
saving souls; he is in the business of
enforcing judgment. Jonah is not paralyzed
by fear; he is propelled by anger. He
is certain of God’s grace and the power
of the message—so much so that it is the
focus of his angry rant in chapter 4. 5
Jonah has his own selfish agenda, and
he is so bent on carrying it out that he
decides to attempt the impossible. He
attempts to flee the “Spirit of God.” In a
true act of lunacy he, out of all people,
decides to have an episode of selective
amnesia and forgets the words of Psalm
139:7: “Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?”
The word of the Lord came to
him, and rather than receive, accept, and
obey, he rises to flee from the Presence
that came to seek him. There is an element
of sad comedy in this story. The
image is that of a little boy throwing a
tantrum, and then attempting to hide in
broad daylight behind a lamp from his
father who can see everything. It makes
me ponder our ability to make fools of
ourselves when we follow our own
agendas. We can stipulate complex reasons
to justify our actions, and we can
pile on addendums that may make our
actions look intelligent, truthful, wise,
or even fair. Nevertheless, at the end of
the day it is nothing more than a facade;
a masked exterior that cracks from the
pressure of the true intention of our
self-driven agenda. The true intention
of the agenda always defeats the
masked intention it hides. Words cannot
drown the sound of actions.
Agendas Often Complicate
Things Unnecessarily
The fugitive is now fast asleep. But his
life is going to suffer under unnecessary
duress. It seems to be the natural consequence
of being driven by a plan that
stems from our dark selves and that is
counter to divine direction. Jonah is
complicating his life and endangering
the existence of those around him, all
because he decided to follow his own
“JONAH IS NOT PARALYZED BY FEAR; HE IS
PROPELLED BY ANGER. HE IS CERTAIN OF GOD’S GRACE
AND THE POWER OF THE MESSAGE—SO MUCH SO THAT IT
IS THE FOCUS OF HIS ANGRY RANT IN CHAPTER 4.”
16 (432) | www.AdventistReview.org | May 16, 2013