Latest / Fairview Presbyterian Church (PCA) Sermons / The Divinely Appointed Fish (Jonah 1:17)- Pastor Kenneth Collins Maple

Transcript

The Divinely Appointed Fish (Jonah 1:17)- Pastor Kenneth Collins Maple · Fairview Presbyterian Church (PCA) Sermons

0:00
Jonah chapter 1 verse 17. To begin, I'm just
0:08
going to read one verse. And the reason for this
0:12
is, depending on your translation, you actually
0:16
may have Jonah 1 -17 lumped in with chapter 2,
0:23
because the Hebrew text gives it to us this way,
0:26
that 1 -17 is actually 2 -1. the Hebrew Bible.
0:30
So we're just going to focus on this one verse
0:33
today, but we'll draw in other scripture as we
0:37
go. And what you'll see here is something that
0:42
we all know about the book of Jonah. It's kind
0:44
of the moment that people have been waiting for.
0:47
For if you were to describe other books of the
0:49
Bible, you would certainly have to cover the
0:52
highlights that people have heard before. If
0:53
you're covering Exodus, you would talk about
0:55
the plagues. and the people of Israel getting
0:58
out of there. If you're talking about Daniel,
1:01
no doubt you'd probably draw in the lion's den.
1:05
Well, when you come to Jonah, you got to mention
1:08
the big old fish, don't you? And so let's hear
1:11
this from Jonah 1 .17. And the Lord appointed
1:18
a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was
1:24
in the belly of the fish. Three days and three
1:28
nights. This is God's holy word. Let's pray Father
1:34
we do once again come before you and thank you
1:37
for the book of Jonah I asked Lord that you would
1:41
open up our hearts and our minds to hear from
1:43
you and to see your incredible Mercy these things
1:47
we ask in Christ's name. Amen The book of Jonah
1:54
as we have seen, is a book of unexpected twists
1:58
and turns, isn't it? You remember how the story
2:03
begins. It's unexpected that a prophet of God
2:08
would be told not to just prophesy out against
2:11
a foreign nation, but that a prophet of God would
2:16
be told to go to that foreign nation, a nation
2:18
that was known as cruel. and idolaters, a place
2:23
of violence, right? He was told to go to Nineveh.
2:27
That's a little unexpected. It's also perhaps
2:30
unexpected that the same prophet would say no
2:33
to that call, turn right around and go the opposite
2:36
direction and flee from the presence of God.
2:40
It's unexpected that the prophet of God would
2:45
be the one who asked to be told to pray. The
2:48
sailors on board the ship are praying. They're
2:51
crying out to other gods. And finally, Captain
2:53
comes to Jonah and says, hey, get up. Call upon
2:57
your God. So Jonah, the prophet of God, is instructed
3:01
to pray for these reasons and for many more.
3:05
The book of Jonah is a bit unexpected, isn't
3:08
it? Well, here's another twist. That as those
3:13
sailors pick the prophet up and throw him into
3:17
the sea, Yahweh is not done with Jonah, is he?
3:22
He's not done with him. I mentioned a couple
3:25
of weeks ago that children's Bible that I have
3:30
that's got the picture of Jonah in it. Jonah
3:35
is depicted as sinking deep down into the water.
3:39
He's got seaweed all wrapped around him, right?
3:43
Jonah is, he's got a big old fish in the background.
3:47
That's the picture that I can remember from my
3:50
childhood. And because, maybe because it's so
3:54
gross to think about being inside the belly of
3:57
a fish, I always thought that the fish was the
4:02
punishment for Jonah. Perhaps you think that
4:06
as well. And indeed, I think there is an element
4:09
of truth there. But this great fish, is actually
4:15
a picture of God's mercy, isn't it? Because without
4:18
the fish, where is Jonah? He's on the bottom
4:22
of the sea, isn't he? And so what does the Lord
4:26
do here in verse 17? The Lord appoints this great
4:30
fish, doesn't he? This word appointed can be
4:34
translated in different ways. Your Bible may
4:37
have the word sent. It may have the word prepared.
4:41
It may have the word provided, all of this to
4:44
convey that the Lord is behind the action, this
4:49
divinely appointed fish. And this is not the
4:53
only place where we see this word appointed.
4:56
If you flip over to Micah, or not Micah, we're
4:59
still in Jonah. Jonah chapter four. Look in Jonah
5:04
4 6 through 8 because you see this same word
5:09
repeated in three consecutive verses Jonah 4
5:14
6 through 8 now the Lord did what? Appointed
5:17
a plant and made it come up over Jonah that it
5:21
might be shade over his head to save him from
5:24
his Discomfort so Jonah was exceedingly glad
5:28
because of the plant But when dawn came up the
5:31
next day what to God appoint it says he appointed
5:34
a worm that attacked the plant so that it withered
5:38
verse 8 when the Sun rose God appointed what
5:41
a Scorching East wind and the Sun beat down on
5:45
the head of Jonah so that he was faint you see
5:49
all of this action is attributed to the Lord
5:54
isn't it and so this is not a case of A great
6:00
fish being in the right place at the right time.
6:03
No, the Lord has him right there. This is not
6:09
left up to chance, is it? Matter of fact, I think
6:12
R .C. Sproul used to say, chance is nothing.
6:16
Chance is nothing whatsoever, but God's sovereignty
6:20
is everything. And so the Lord appoints this
6:25
fish. Now, what was the fish? Well, you can see
6:32
it there. The fish was to swallow up Jonah. Now
6:37
let me say something about this fish. Sinclair
6:41
Ferguson once said, this must be the most criticized
6:45
fish that ever swam the Mediterranean. Because
6:51
people doubt this story, don't you? Maybe you
6:55
even come to this story and you're like, Hey,
6:58
what's really going on here? Friends, we should
7:03
not doubt this story. This is not a fictitious
7:06
story. This is a historical story. But people
7:11
dismiss it because they just can't possibly believe
7:16
this. But if we dismiss this story, if we dismiss
7:20
this episode, what would we do? with the other
7:24
supernatural spiritual stories that we find all
7:28
throughout scripture. What would we do with Elisha?
7:34
Do you remember when Elisha raises the boy who
7:37
is dead? I don't hear anybody explaining that
7:40
away, maybe because they don't know the story.
7:44
What about Balaam's donkey? Do you remember when
7:48
God speaks through the donkey has this donkey
7:51
speak? Does anybody explain that away? What about
7:56
Jonah's friends in the fiery furnace, right?
8:01
And they come out of that furnace unsinged. Do
8:05
we explain away that story? We'd better not.
8:10
Because if we start doing that, if we start going
8:12
down that road, what do we do when we get to
8:15
the virgin birth? What do we do when we get to
8:19
Jesus' miracles? What do we do with the resurrection
8:23
of Jesus and his ascension in his return? Friends
8:28
the miraculous thing about miracles is they are
8:32
miraculous Let us not forget what we are reading
8:38
We are reading a book breathed out by the Holy
8:44
Spirit God has given us his trustworthy word
8:51
And God's ways are higher than our ways. God
8:54
is the creator. He's the omniscient one, the
8:57
omnipresent one, the omnipotent one. And so we
9:01
would be wise to receive this book, this episode
9:05
that is written as a narrative. We would be wise
9:08
to receive it as such. Now, some pastors and
9:13
some theologians and scholars and teachers like
9:16
to point out that there are other episodes of
9:20
people being swallowed by gigantic fish or whales
9:24
or sharks or whatever it might be. The problem
9:28
there is that for every instance of someone saying
9:31
that, there's somebody saying, no, that didn't
9:33
happen. But just because we cannot validate those
9:36
examples does not mean we invalidate this one.
9:40
For this one is true to its core. I'm going to
9:45
show you why. in just a couple of minutes. I
9:50
don't want to spend too much time on this fish,
9:53
but I do think we should take note of how the
9:57
fish is described. Look there in verse 17. The
10:04
Lord appoints what kind of fish. In the ESV we
10:09
see it's a great fish. This is in keeping with
10:11
the rest of the book of Jonah. We see the word
10:14
for great used several times. The city of Nineveh
10:19
was described as a great city. The storm that
10:23
the Lord brings up is a great storm. The fear
10:27
of the sailors is described as a great fear.
10:30
And so here, once again, we see this word for
10:34
greatness, friends. This might not be an ordinary
10:38
fish. Matter of fact, the word that is used for
10:41
fish here is a general word for fish. And our
10:45
designations for what makes a fish might be different
10:49
from what Jonah and others said about fish. So
10:53
this could be a whale. This could be a shark.
10:57
Depending on how you read, this could be a gigantic
10:59
sea monster. I think it's probably best to just
11:01
go with fish here. But this is a great fish.
11:06
meaning it could be referring to its incredible
11:09
size. Now, as I said, I grew up thinking the
11:13
fish was Jonah's punishment, and as I said, that
11:17
might be partly true for the act of swallowing
11:21
within the Old Testament especially, though some
11:24
of the New Testament often implies divine judgment.
11:28
But I think there might be a way that we might
11:31
explain it a little better than punishment. I
11:34
think the fish here is used for the purpose of
11:38
correcting. Because God does not immediately
11:43
deliver Jonah to shore. Jonah doesn't hop on
11:45
the back of the fish and surf all the way to
11:47
the shore, does he? He's in there for three days
11:50
and three nights. And so this is a means of correction,
11:53
which we will see, Lord willing, next time as
11:56
we examine Jonah's prayer. But certainly we must
11:59
also say this, the fish is a vehicle. through
12:03
which God shows his mercy. And so the fish has
12:09
a dual purpose, doesn't it? I like how one commentator
12:12
says this, the great fish that Yahweh graciously
12:17
provided for Jonah's transportation is parallel
12:21
to the ship that Jonah paid for out of his own
12:25
pocket. The ship carried Jonah close to the grave.
12:29
while the fish carry Jonah back to dry land and
12:33
life. And friends, this is this dual purpose.
12:36
I think it's in keeping with the rest of scripture
12:39
because doesn't God sometimes take his people
12:42
through the difficult things to accomplish his
12:45
purposes. God takes his people through the slavery
12:49
to to get them out of it. God takes his people
12:52
through the wilderness to get them to the promised
12:54
land. God takes them through the exile to bring
12:58
them home. God corrects his people. Do you know
13:04
what that's like? Have you ever found yourself
13:07
in a season of correction, a season of growth
13:11
in Christ? The Lord does this at times and we
13:15
might not understand it in the moment. We may
13:18
have to look back on it and see what the Lord
13:20
was doing, but the Lord is shaping us. after
13:24
the image of his son. And so I think this is
13:28
what God is doing with Jonah as well. He is correcting
13:32
him. Jonah is learning something about himself
13:35
and about the mercy of God inside the belly of
13:39
this fish. This also tells us here that God is
13:44
not being vindictive, is he? God is not up in
13:48
the heavenly places messing with Jonah. No, God
13:52
divinely appoints the fish for correction and
13:55
for our salvation for Jonah and in doing so directs
13:59
Jonah back to his mission. We might even say
14:03
the Lord is giving Jonah a taste of the medicine
14:07
that awaits Nineveh if the people of Nineveh
14:10
don't repent and so we'll see next time that
14:13
Jonah is humbled here. He had some learning to
14:16
do about the mercy and the power of God. And
14:22
so he's in the belly of the fish for three days
14:25
and three nights. Does this three -day motif
14:29
sound familiar to you at all? We should see heads
14:34
nodding here, shouldn't we? For naturally we
14:38
are to think of Jesus here. But that's not the
14:42
only case. The three -day motif is not limited
14:46
to just Jonah and Jesus. Let me give you a few
14:49
other examples. Do you remember perhaps Genesis
14:53
chapter 22? Do you remember Abraham and Isaac?
14:58
Of course you do, and the sacrifice, the near
15:01
sacrifice of Isaac. For a while Abraham and Isaac
15:06
are journeying with other people, but then the
15:09
text says the two of them go off alone for three
15:12
days. There. Isaac is nearly sacrificed, isn't
15:17
he? But the Lord does provide that ramp. And
15:20
so Isaac escapes death. What about Exodus 15?
15:25
The Israelites, after they get out of Egypt,
15:29
and they're in the wilderness, and they are wandering,
15:31
and they go for three days without water, and
15:36
then the Lord provides for them. What about 2
15:39
Kings chapter 20? Hezekiah, King Hezekiah nearly
15:43
dies. but he prays the Lord hears him and heals
15:48
him and on the third day on the third day Hezekiah
15:52
is back in the temple what about Hosea chapter
15:55
6 Hosea being a contemporary of Jonah chapter
15:58
6 1 through 2 it says come let us return to the
16:03
Lord for he has torn us that he may heal us he
16:08
has struck us down and he will bind us up After
16:12
two days, he will revive us on the third day.
16:15
He will raise us up that we may live before him.
16:20
There are so many episodes and instances of this
16:23
third day motif. There's one that's even greater
16:27
than the third day. You remember Jesus raising
16:30
Lazarus. Lazarus was raised on the fourth day.
16:35
Why? Because the scripture really wants us to
16:39
know and Jesus wanted the people to know at the
16:42
time that Lazarus was really dead wasn't he?
16:46
He was not merely sleeping as a matter of fact
16:49
one commentator says here in ancient Near Eastern
16:52
culture a Person was not officially declared
16:57
dead until the third day And so with that in
17:02
mind Let's turn Let's go to Matthew chapter 12.
17:11
Go to Matthew chapter 12. You could also see
17:15
this in Matthew chapter 16 and the parallel account
17:19
in Luke chapter 11. Matthew 12, beginning in
17:26
verse 38. This is important, so please listen
17:31
for this reading of God's word for you. Then
17:36
some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him,
17:39
him being Jesus, saying, Teacher, we wish to
17:43
see a sign from you. But he answered them. An
17:48
evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign,
17:52
but no sign will be given to it except the sign
17:55
of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three
17:59
days and three nights in the heart of the earth,
18:02
or so, just as Jonah was three days and three
18:05
nights in the belly of the great fish, so will
18:08
the Son of Man be three days and three nights
18:11
in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh
18:14
will rise up at the judgment with this generation
18:17
and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching
18:21
of Jonah. And behold, something greater than
18:24
Jonah is here. What is Jesus doing here and sharing
18:30
this? with these Jewish leaders. Jesus is pointing
18:36
us towards Jonah in saying the story of Jonah
18:40
previews the death and the resurrection of our
18:44
Savior. It's true then that Jesus is authenticating
18:49
the story of Jonah. Jesus wouldn't use a fictitious
18:53
story to talk about the reality of his death
18:57
and his resurrection. You can see from that text
19:01
what's happening there. The Jewish leaders demand
19:04
a sign of Jesus, don't they? Which is an incredible
19:08
thing to say considering this is what Jesus has
19:11
been doing the whole time. Do we not see Jesus'
19:14
miracles throughout the Gospels? But they say
19:17
essentially, prove yourself, Jesus. Look at how
19:22
Jesus responds. He says an evil and adulterous
19:26
generation seeks this kind of sign. Can you imagine
19:30
how the scribes and the Pharisees would have
19:34
felt hearing that they are lumped in with an
19:37
evil and adulterous generation? And imagine how
19:41
they would have felt when Jesus says that the
19:44
people of Nineveh would rise up to condemn them.
19:48
Why? Because we know this and we're gonna see
19:51
this as we keep going through Jonah. that the
19:53
entire city of Nineveh repents, don't they? Imagine
19:58
how this would sound to these Jewish religious
20:02
leaders to hear about cruel Nineveh. How cruel
20:07
Nineveh would condemn these pious Jewish leaders.
20:11
How could Jesus give praise to the Gentiles of
20:14
Nineveh? And then lastly, the thing that Jesus
20:17
says, hey, there is one greater than Jonah. You
20:25
see, there's lots of connections here between
20:28
Jesus and Jonah. I think we can even go deeper
20:32
than what I have said. Let's ask ourselves, how
20:35
accurate is the sign of Jonah? Well, firstly,
20:38
before we go any deeper, let us make sure we
20:41
do not associate Jonah's rebellion with Jesus
20:45
in any way. For as Jonah ran from the call of
20:48
God, Jesus ran to it, right? But I do think that
20:54
there are further associations between Jonah
20:56
and Jesus. And so just three points here. Don't
21:00
worry, I'm not just getting started on my sermon.
21:03
But three points, three points of connection
21:05
here. The extent of the sign of Jonah, the instrument
21:09
of the sign of Jonah, and the accomplishment
21:12
of the sign of Jonah. Jonah, as we have said,
21:17
was fleeing from God. He was fleeing from what
21:20
God was calling him. And we mention how it seems
21:26
the text is showing us again and again the downward
21:30
descent of Jonah. For Jonah went down to Joppa.
21:35
Jonah went down into the belly of the ship as
21:38
it were. And Jonah here, he's at the fullness
21:42
of his descent. Some people would say that Jonah
21:47
dies in the belly of the fish. I'm not sure I'm
21:50
willing to say that, but we'll see more of this
21:52
next time. But at the very least, we could say
21:56
Jonah is in effect buried alive. But the extent
22:02
of the sign here is that Jesus really did die,
22:05
didn't he? He really did die. He was really buried.
22:09
He was really put in the tomb. and the soldiers
22:13
were placed outside of the tomb because if Jesus
22:16
is raised, then everything he said would be true.
22:20
And we know that Jesus really was raised, friends,
22:25
that Jesus died for you and for me. That's the
22:31
extent of the sign. What about the instrument
22:33
of the sign? Well, for Jonah, the instrument
22:36
is this fish. But as I said, this fish seems
22:39
to have a dual purpose. the purpose of correcting
22:42
and the purpose of mercy. It's the same way with
22:46
Jesus, isn't it? It's the same way with Jesus
22:49
in the cross. The cross was a terrible instrument
22:52
of punishment and of wrath, but it's also the
22:57
instrument of our salvation. Our sins were imputed
23:02
to Jesus on the cross and the full weight of
23:06
the wrath of God came Upon him such that Jesus
23:10
cried out my God my God. Why have you forsaken
23:14
me? It was an instrument of wrath, wasn't it?
23:20
But we also have a cross on the wall behind me.
23:22
We sing the hymn the old rugged cross Why do
23:26
we cling to the old rugged cross because it's
23:29
not just an instrument of wrath The cross is
23:33
an instrument of salvation like the fish was
23:37
appointed for Jonah. So the cross was appointed
23:41
for Christ and for all of those who would believe
23:44
in him. Paul wrote this and said, Christ redeemed
23:48
us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse
23:51
for us, for it is written, cursed is everyone
23:54
who is hanged on a tree. Referring back to Deuteronomy.
24:00
I like how one of the church fathers put it.
24:02
Kirill of Jerusalem said Jonah was cast into
24:05
the belly of a great fish. but Christ of his
24:08
own will descended to the abode of the invisible
24:12
fish of death. He went down of his own will to
24:17
make death disgorge those it had swallowed up
24:19
according to scripture. I shall deliver them
24:22
from the power of the nether world and I shall
24:25
redeem them from death. That is what Jesus does
24:29
for us. He redeems us from what we deserve. And
24:33
so lastly, let's talk about the accomplishment
24:35
of the sign. What does the cross accomplish for
24:38
us? What does the life and the death of Jesus
24:41
accomplish for us? Well, you remember I mentioned
24:45
last Sunday that as Jonah is thrown overboard,
24:49
this is like a sacrifice of Jesus or of Jonah,
24:53
right? Who is saved in that instance? We know
24:56
immediately the sea became still and it became
25:00
calm. And so the sailors were saved. So it is
25:05
with Jesus. Listen to this quote from Rick Phillips.
25:09
Just as Jonah's death in the deep removed the
25:12
storm from the sailors above, so Jesus' cross
25:16
removes the wrath of God from our sins. Jesus'
25:20
death was substitutionary. By it, he accomplished
25:24
salvation for all who would trust in him. Friends,
25:29
I want you to know this. God always had a plan
25:33
to save you He always had a plan to save the
25:38
elect But his justice had to be satisfied because
25:43
he is a just God and so Jesus faced the wrath
25:47
for us Jesus faced all of it. So today if you
25:52
are in Christ You are safe in him. You are safe.
25:57
You are protected from the wrath of God But today
25:59
if you hear my voice If you have heard the scripture
26:03
and if you have not repented and if you have
26:05
not trusted in Jesus, you are facing the wrath
26:09
yourself. You are doing what Jonah was doing.
26:12
You are attempting to run from the presence of
26:15
God. It's been said, no one goes to hell against
26:19
their own wishes. Jonah. He thought that he wanted
26:25
to run from God until he got to this place. where
26:30
he was experiencing death apart from God. He
26:36
got what he wished, but when he got it, it turns
26:39
out this is not what he wanted. Friends, don't
26:45
write Jonah off as a book of fiction, and do
26:48
not write off the very word of God as fiction.
26:52
The book of Jonah points you to the one who died,
26:56
to the one who was raised for rebellious sinful
26:58
people. The book of Jonah is for all of us Jonas
27:02
out there. But God is merciful to all who repent
27:07
and believe. When we were running from God, God
27:11
sent his son to deliver us. Friends today, don't
27:18
be like the Pharisees. Don't be like the scribes.
27:24
Jesus has done us one better than give us a sign.
27:28
He has given us himself. Let's pray.