His Saving Grace

Jonah 2

I was asked to join a church plant in Omaha about 20 years ago. It was a replant from a church that had closed. The church was a weight from the start – the people from the previous iteration of the church couldn’t let go and kept creating problems. It ultimately failed, where in the closing of that effort I fell into an eruption of anger (two very difficult church ministry experiences) and ran away from God. I wanted nothing to do with Him – no praying, no church, no Christians. I was 24, immature, emotionally exhausted and hurt by people I trusted. I blamed God and decided I wasn’t going to let Him keep putting me through it, so I ran. Kinda like Jonah. He didn’t want to preach to Ninevah as God told him to do (he figured the Ninevites would repent and he didn’t like them) so he jumped in a boat headed the opposite way and ran from God.

Jonah’s reasons may have been slightly different, but the idea is the same – he didn’t like what God was doing and ran – from his calling to minister (like me). Jonah’s story offers a lot of hope for people who have struggled with their place in God’s story and His work in their life. God’s saving grace is a powerful thing, whether you are a follower of God or not. Let’s look together at some key aspects to God’s saving grace.

God’s Discipline Can Feel Like Punishment (v3)

Jonah’s story certainly feels like the standard disobey and run turns into punishment scenario. Jonah ran from God and got in a boat headed in the opposite direction than Ninevah. God brought a storm that led to the boaters throwing Jonah overboard and him being swallowed by a fish. Definitely seems like a punishment for his crime. But it wasn’t—even though God was intimately involved in each aspect of this situation. After the church closed, I went job hunting, looking for something away from Christians. No matter what I tried, I couldn’t get a job away from the church and ended up having to settle for a job at a Bible college – last thing I wanted. I felt I was being punished. The problem was that while it felt harsh, it was actually a pathway out of the trouble and back towards Him. I just didn’t know it at the time. God is always working on us, bring us to completion in Him at the day of Christ Jesus (the end), not the day of initial salvation (Phil 1:6). I, like Jonah had more journey to walk before getting out of the trouble.

God’s Saving Grace is Always at Work (v6)

Verse 6 refers to the roots of the mountains. Jonah was at the bottom of the sea inside a fish. This scenario is not like the children’s books that show him sitting on a stool with a candle inside a giant whale. The oxygen was gone and death was closing in. One of my biggest issues were some of the people from the replanted church. They were incredibly hurtful and for a time I wanted away from Christians. I didn’t like them anymore. That’s when God brought a new group of friends into my life – friends from the Bible college – other people who just cared about me and began to invest God’s love back into me and bring me around to desire him again. They didn’t try to push me back into church, but loved me unconditionally, showing me that God’s love never left. God never stopped working in Jonah’s life as well – verse 6 continues on to show God’s saving grace for Jonah in the deepest part of the ocean. Scripture tells us even now, Jesus is still hard at work for us, interceding for us at the right hand of the Father (Hebrews 7:25). God has not stopped saving you. Much like Lois Lane, we are always needing God’s saving grace in our lives!

God’s Ear is Listening (v7)

It is often at the point we begin to turn our focus back to God that we realize He never left. I eventually realized that no matter how hard I tried, I wouldn’t stop seeing God at work in me. He simply wouldn’t let me go. Whether it was friends, the job, the still, small voice in my heart, or even the new girl that He brought into my life (Nita), God was still there, He still cared, and He was still listening. I started praying again and turned my direction around. Jonah did the same – while still in the belly of the fish, he recognized his savior and vowed to turn around, which he did. Oxygen would once again fill his lungs. Nothing can separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:38-39).

Next Steps

No matter how difficult the situation, remember that it is NOT punishment, but a journey that is designed to bring you back to the One who loves you with salvation love. Here are some ways to show your thankfulness for His saving grace:

1. Obey him in the first place. Don’t put yourself in my or in Jonah’s shoes by running away from God. It doesn’t work!
2. Trust Him—the hard path is only a part of the journey that leads to life.
3. He is actively working on your behalf now – commit to work together on your relationship.

He loves you. He is not punishing you. He is saving you. Always.