Jonah 1:3 - The Price of Disobedience (Part I)

Wednesday 4/11/12 – The Price of Disobedience (Part I)

Jonah 1:3 But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.

Devotional:

     Ah, obedience! We come to that classic topic which, as any scholar of the Bible already knows, can be found multiple places throughout God’s Word. When we approach a certain area of Scripture that talks about obedience, we get to see a little more of God’s perspective of obedience unfold before us as He shows us His attitude about obeying. For instance, we learn that God values obedience more than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22); that if we love Him, we should keep His commandments (John 14:15); and that keeping His commandments should not be burdensome (1 John 5:3). But as we approach this verse, there is yet another lesson we can learn in the area of obeying – and that is, the price of disobedience.

     When God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah chose instead to flee to Tarshish. Having made up his mind to disobey, Jonah went to Joppa to find a ship to run away from God. Interestingly enough, Joppa means “beautiful.” As it says in Romans 10:15, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” God had called Jonah to go and preach to a whole city who would repent and turn to God. Yet, instead of obeying God, Jonah goes to Joppa and runs away as he turns down the beautiful opportunity God gave him to have an impact on so many lives.

     Although the Bible teaches that obedience to God brings beautiful blessing, it must also be noted that disobedience, on the other hand, will always come with a price. Choosing to disobey, Jonah would have to pay a fare for the ship. But the fare was such a minimal price for disobedience compared to what he would pay. He was in for quite a bit of trouble that could have easily been avoided. Even the words picked out for this verse seem to cast a gloomy shadow over Jonah’s decision: “down to Joppa,” “paid the fare,” “went down into it.” But there’s one phrase in this verse that sticks out. It’s repeated twice, and it’s almost as if God is trying to emphasize one general consequence of disobedience. By disobeying God, Jonah was fleeing “from the presence of the Lord.” That’s what disobedience will always do – when you choose to disobey, you’re fleeing from the presence of the Lord. Among the other consequences of disobedience, one big price you pay for disobeying is you forfeit the wonderful fellowship of God in your life. Granted, God says in Hebrews 13:5 that He’ll never leave us nor forsake us, but when we disobey, we’re the ones that are forsaking Him and resisting His presence. Some verses in the Bible even seem to imply that we can set up a type of wall in our relationship with God when we hold on to sin: “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear” (Psalm 66:18) and “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). God loves us and desires a relationship with us so much that after seeing how disobedience messes with our relationship with Him by eclipsing His presence in our lives, there’s no wonder why God compares the sin of disobedience and rebellion to witchcraft (1 Samuel 15:23).

     Especially in ministry, however, it is so important that our own hearts are always right with God and that we are obeying anything and everything He’s telling us to do. If not, how then are we to show God’s presence to others when we ourselves have fled from it through disobedience? How are we to be used by God, when we’re not right with Him ourselves? Granted, God can (and many times does) use us when we’re not right with Him, but that’s in spite of ourselves and in keeping with His magnificent grace and mercy.

     So in light of any other specific consequence that our disobedience brings, willful disobedience will always make us lose the presence of the Lord in our lives –  that rich fellowship that we could be sharing with Him. And when the presence of the Lord is lost, our lives, relationships, and ministries inevitably suffer. So tell me, is the price of disobedience really worth it?

Prayer:

     Lord, please give me an obedient heart that is willing to obey anything and everything You call me to do. I thank You for the close fellowship I can have with You every day and I pray that I’d never jeopardize Your presence in my life by choosing not to obey You. I thank You that You are slow to anger, abounding in mercy, and willing to forgive my disobedience and rebellion when I mess up. May Your presence and the relationship I share with You shine through my life as I minister to others today that they may see You and give You all the glory. Amen.