“I called out to the LORD, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.
Jonah 2:2
Maybe you have the idea that you need to clean up your life before God can save you. That’s like saying, “If you swim to shore, God will send you a lifeboat!” Jonah shows us a better way.
God saves guilty sinners
“You cast me into the deep… your waves passed over me” (2:3). Inside the fish, Jonah thinks, “God did this. God sent the storm.” Behind the human events, Jonah sees the hand of God.
Some people see their lives as strung together by chance. They feel that they are lucky or unlucky. Others see their lives as controlled by other people. They feel that they are victims. Other people see their lives as controlled by themselves. They feel that they are heroes. But Jonah knew God was at work, exposing his guilt and rebellion.
Owning our sinfulness means getting beyond the idea that we deserve something better from God. God saves guilty sinners. Believing the gospel begins when you own your guilt before God.
God saves believing sinners
“I am driven away from your sight” (2:4). It isn’t easy to ask God for help when you know you have sinned. Jonah felt God was no longer interested in him. He felt he was beyond forgiving.
What he says next is amazing: “Yet I shall again look upon your holy temple” (2:4). That is a marvellous statement of faith. God was for Jonah even when He was against him! And God is for you even when He is against you.
God saves guilty sinners. God saves believing sinners. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).
*Do you feel like you need to “swim to shore” before God will save you? Or can you accept that He loves you even while you are a sinner?*
