Jonah Bible Studies - Ministry Exchange (MX)

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Jonah Ch. 1

Intro Question: Talk about a time when you felt God wanted you to do
something and you hesitated

Read to end of Ch 1 (Page 2, line 10).

Things to look for while you are reading: make lists

– How does Jonah view God? – How does Jonah view himself? – List characteristics you see of “running away”

Review lists

The Word of the Lord

How does Jonah hear the word of the Lord (It just “comes” to him.not
sure how) How does he respond to it? Why does he respond in this way? What is hard about the leading? How do WE hear the Word of the Lord? What are you afraid of when you hear it? (Whether or not it is God.
Distinguishing My voice from His voice) How can we be sure it is God (sometimes not until we try it) So which is harder for us..To Hear God’s leading/word or to follow
it? – The harder or scarier the word we are hearing, the easier it is to Be confused. Tendency not to act, but to question, rationalize, waffle, etc. – I wonder if we do hear the word more often than we think, but the real hesitation is in following it – instead we think that we just aren’t hearing clearly. Need more discernment here. Probably need to act more. It’s easy to be a Christian until God asks us to do something hard. What are some examples of Hard things God asks us to do? – “Speaking Against” people, like Jonah, especially people who don’t want to hear – Sacrificing secure way – Being vulnerable, – Etc.

Running Away

What does running away look like for Jonah? List characteristics. (Hiring a ship, opposite direction, hiding below the deck,
sleeping, self-pity) Why does Jonah say “throw me over”? Is this his only option? (A
real giving up) Compare and contrast Jonah with the Sailors? Sleep vs. Work Panic vs. Resignation Know little about God vs. Know lot about God ACT ON WHAT THEY KNOW (even the little) vs. Not acting on the much Sailors have faith in something.religious, just scattered.
Similar to campus world.lots Of Gods, bases to cover How does Jonah identify himself when the sailors ask? (Hebrew
who worships. Translation is better as fears God.either way, it is not
an accurate view of Himself in his current situation) Running away often includes false-projected images of self.we
don’t want others to Know, so we pitch ourselves in ways that are not true with
the internal.but Internal conviction will ultimately when out.consequences
become big enough. What does running away look like for us? – same characteristics: Hiding (not showing up to fellowship stuff), despondency, self-pity, elaborate plans of avoidance, false-projected images

Application:

What are hard things that God may be saying recently to you? Are
there ways you Tend to run away?

Jonah, Chapter 1 – Continued:

Review last week:

– What have we discovered about Jonah so far? Why does he do
what he does? – Acting on the Word of the Lord, not running from it.

Re-read all of Chapter 1:
This Week – focus is on second half to the chapter. Focus more on God’s
view, not Jonah
While Reading – What is God’s agenda for Jonah?

What happens after Jonah gets on the ship? (Storm arises).

Why does God send the storm – not just Jonah is effected, others too.. Is
this fair?
What is God ultimately trying to do with Jonah (pursue him, change him, get
his attention) Contrast the way Jonah sees the command to go to Ninevah and
the way God might see it?

(God sees an opportunity to love an enemy, to participate in mercy,
to Grow Jonah’s perspective of people God is concerned about.challenging
elite-ism)

Why go through all this trouble with Jonah – couldn’t he have used someone
else?

– What does God seem to care about? (Jonah’s personal growth and partnership). – How is this pursuit of Jonah for Jonah’s own benefit? How could this calling change Jonah’s life? ( Leadership if for us – God asks us to carry out things not just for the benefit of the receiver, but also for the benefit of ourselves- he involves us in his plan..our growth is connected to the growth of the people we influence and love). (Me- learning sensitivity, learning empowerment vs. control, etc.)

So what is God’s response to someone trying to “flee his presence”
(pursuit)
How has God pursued you in your life?

Storms & Discernment

God sends a storm to get Jonah’s attention . . . does God do
the same kind of thing with Us today? What storms have you experienced this year, i.e., places that
feel out of control.things That would make you want to head for cover and hide? i.e. – Roommate situations, Hard people to love, difficult classes, busy schedules. Is God trying to get your attention? How do you discern
simply difficult circumstances From circumstances that may be from God to get our attention?
(ruthless look at sin in Own lives..bring peers into it as well. Ask the questions). Recognizing the storms and reasons for them in our lives is not
very easy: – What was the sailor’s initial response to Jonah? Did
they recognize what was really going on for him at first? – When does it become clearer to them? – Note: Self-diagnosis is often not possible.takes our friends noticing the “Storms in our lives” and helping us realize what God may wanting to say through them. Disobedience can often be confused with Depression..ex., Joseph
just looks like Someone who is depressed, wants pity, resigned to dying, asleep
in boat – Avoidance, but he is really disobedient. Why is disobedience harder to see in ourselves? Have there
been times in your life when You’ve attributed disobedience to circumstances, to depression,
or to feeling like a victim? Remember..God pursued Jonah, even with a life-threatening storm,
because he LOVES Him! That is God’s ultimate motivation for discipline.

Application Homework:

One other observation in Chapter 1 – what happens to the sailors
during this whole Interchange? What do they believe in the end? Our lives and what God does IN US can impact non-believers
without us even knowing: Try this: Share with a non-believer in your life something
that God is convicting you of In yourself.talk about it and see what happens.

Jonah 2:10-3:24 (Ch. 2 & 3)

Study Question: Trace Jonah’s Feelings throughout these two chapters

What is happening to Jonah during this time in the belly of the whale?
Describe his circumstances.

How has Jonah’s view of God changed from Ch. 1 (God listens, rescues,
shows compassion) ?

Why can we be confident that God hears our prayers even when we are in a
pit or are experiencing the consequences of our disobedience? (Character
of God.doesn’t give up on Jonah, etc.)

What worthless idols do you think Jonah is referring to in line 21?
-Interesting way he puts it.. “forfeit Grace” when people cling to idols.
What worthless idols are available in our lives today?

What does Jonah vow? (To sacrifice.to reconnect with God, return to God)
Is there an area in your life where you can return to God? What would it
look like?

What does REPENTANCE mean for Jonah? Describe it. (Recognize God,
recognizes where he’s been, returns to God, pledges obedience)

Page 3 – Let’s look at Ninevah. A lot of things parallel Jonah’s
experience in Ch. 2

What happens when Jonah starts preaching? (Huge city.takes 3 days, but in
just one day.radical repentance).
How significant is their response?
What does the King represent? How are his actions symbolic? (gives up
power, prestige, dignity, etc.)

What does REPENTANCE look like for the Nenivites? How doe they do it?

What do you think Jonah expected?

Compare/Contrast REPENTANCE as we see it in Jonah and in Ninevah.
Make a list of Principles of Repentance (Come up with it in the group and
write on white board)
Some examples:

– Recognition of sin, rebellion, error – Understanding of WHY you went there (“vain idols” can be compelling) – Humility – know what you deserve – Outward symbol. Public – Actions demonstrate sincerity – Change of allegience/direction

Application:

– Describe one area of your life where you feel a need for repentance, or an area where you are beginning to feel some conviction. What actions can you take to be radical. to demonstrate your sincerity? – How do you tend to respond when challenged in an area of spiritual growth?
Jonah Ch. 4

Introductory Question:

What things make you angry? What do you do when you are angry?

Hand out
Discuss on White Board

Read Jonah, bottom of page 3 til the end. You can make a list of
“Jonah’s Problems”

Review Context.. What has God done so far in the book of Jonah?

(calls Jonah, pursues, saves sailors, saves Jonah, recalls Jonah,
radical repentance in Ninevah, God repents from impending judgement on Ninevah) Given this whole context leading up to a radical response to the
message of God, what is Jonah’s response on the very next line? (ANGER!) Very
surprising. Gives us insight into the inner stuff of Jonah. Ch. 4 is a character
thing. Let’s look into it.

Jonah’s Problems

– Anger. – What is Jonah angry about? Why? – What does he SAY to God? —clear that J. has been angry ALL ALONG! – Describe the emotion of Anger. Is it good? – How does Jonah see his anger..how does God see his anger? (Jonah.a “right” to be angry.Ninevites are enemies. God..anger is really blocking compassion/mercy) – Has a problem with Grace and Compassion. – Line 21: “I Knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God..” But Jonah is not. Why does Jonah have such a problem with Grace? – What is hard about extending grace to someone you are angry or frustrated with? Tell some stories – Hand out the “How Gracious Are We” Quiz. Give a few minutes. – Talk about extending Grace when others don’t deserve it..any other recent scenarios? – Judgmental – frustrated with other people’s sin. Sees non- Christian harshly – Jonah had to go to a city hated by the Jews, and to see HIS God showing compassion was too much for him. Nationalistic Pride – What does Jonah think the Ninevites deserve? – Why do we sometimes get frustrated or judgmental with other people’s sin? (it works for them, why not me?..no 1-1 correspondence between sin and consequences) – Where have you noticed Judgmental tendencies in yourself? – Doesn’t love people, especially the Lost – How does God see the Ninevites? – Revisit the List you made of Non-Christian Characteristics..How many are negative? What does that say about the way we look at the lost? How can we effectively love people who are lost if we see them this way? Jonah was paralyzed from loving the lost – Quits, runs away when frustrated – “made a shelter and sat down” – sulked, withdrawn.. Similar to Ch. 1 – Just for thought..do you see this pattern in your own life? Withdrawing when you are frustrated with something/someone? – Circumstantial faith – idolatry of the vine – Jonah cares more about the Vine than with what is going on in people – His emotions are way out of wack. – This totally happens to us.how easy is it to be distracted by minutia when God wants to do bigger things in us. – What things do we get distracted with in our lives?

God’s Responses

1. Patient – lets him do his own thing. Quiet way of continuing to pursue him 2. Parental – teaching him, object lesson. What is God trying to Teach Jonah through the Vine? (You didn’t cause the Growth. ITS NOT ABOUT YOU, STUPID!!) (Same thing as with people.its not about you with others! People way more important than vine – you truly have the capacity to care) How can this lesson transform how we see other people and our call to be God’s ambassadors on campus or in life? 3. Reveals his OWN feelings for the Lost 4. Merciful with Ninevah AND Jonah – Jonah has false perception of self. doesn’t see how often God is merciful with him..how much he also needs compassion/mercy. God’s Mercy is beautiful.