Session 5 Jonah 1:15–2:10
changes in Jonah’s attitude.
5 The water engulfed me up to the neck;
the watery depths overcame me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 I sank to the foundations of the mountains,
the earth’s gates shut behind me forever!
Then you raised my life from the Pit,
LORD my God!
7 As my life was fading away, I remembered the LORD,
and my prayer came to you, to your holy temple.
8 Those who cherish worthless idols abandon their faithful love,
9 but as for me, I will sacrifice to you with a voice of thanksgiving.
I will fulfill what I have vowed.
Salvation belongs to the Lord.10 Then the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
consider how Jonah’s response changed to thanksgiving
for God’s provision and a willingness to obey God’s direction.
Call attention to the Key Doctrine:
God’s Purpose of Grace (p. 47).
Invite two volunteers to read aloud
1 Kings 8:33-34 and 1 John 1:7-9.
1 Kings 8:33-34 NASB
33 ¶"When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy,
because they have sinned against You,
if they turn to You again and confess Your name
and pray and make supplication to You in this house,
34 then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel,
and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.
1 John 1:7-9 NASB
7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves
and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous
to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit,
will never be out of the reach of His grace, but will persevere to the end.
Jonah’s prayer contains an irony that focuses the entire book.
Jonah was ready to receive God’s grace in the face of his own disobedience.
But he later would be unhappy that God was willing to extend that same grace
to the people of Nineveh who were willing to turn from their sin and seek after the Lord.
Lead the group to quietly reflect on the question set
under Apply the Text on page 51:
Recall a time when you ran from God.
How did He get your attention?
What did you learn about yourself and God during that time?
How can you share with others the lessons you learned?
As time allows, encourage volunteers to share their experiences with the group.
Be prepared to share a personal experience of your own.
Point to the question set under Apply the Text on page 47,
leading the group to respond:
Discuss in your group ways of helping others express faith in God.
What actions can the group take to encourage each other to share the gospel with all people?
Close in prayer,
thanking the Lord for His great compassion
and mercy even in our disobedience. Pray that He will lead the group to share the lessons we’ve learned with others.
Reinforce the study by encouraging the group to share with others what they’ve learned about themselves and about God through times of disobedience.