newprotest.org: LOSING SALVATION #1 (JONAH'S STORY)

LOSING SALVATION #1 (JONAH'S STORY)

June 08, 2005
by: jovial_cynic
Since I don't think we can do anything to become saved, I don't think we can do anything to become unsaved.

The best biblical example I can recall regarding a person walking as far away as possible is Jonah - God told Jonah to do preach to Ninevah (the capital of Assyria, the enemy nation of Israel at the time), but because Jonah hated the Assyrians, he disobeyed God and ran away from Him. On his adventure away from God, he ended up being thrown overboard in the middle of a storm. Jonah knew that he would be thrown over - in fact, it was HIS choice to be thrown over. He even told the folks on the boat - "throw me over, and the storm will die down." (paraphrased)

So... it was like suicide, right? He was supposed to die. Some believe he did die (being in a fish for 3 days under water... not a lot of air to breathe down there). He ran away from God, and refused to forgive and love people. He wanted the people of Ninevah to suffer the full wrath of God for their wickedness. That's just like wishing people would burn in hell, right? Can you get much further away from God?!

Yet in the midst of Jonah's near absolute-wickedness, God spared Jonah from otherwise certain death. Jonah didn't crawl back to God so God would save him. In the midst of Jonah's departure from God, the word says that God had prepared a fish to swallow Jonah. Prepared it. As in, knew that Jonah was going to walk away from God, and knew that Jonah was going to be thrown over, and knew that Jonah was supposed to have died... yet God redeemed him. God saved him from complete destruction. God was not about to let Jonah's own sin and hatred of the Assyrians prevent him from seeing God's work in his life.

God chose Jonah from the beginning. And nothing... not even Jonah's own complete rejection of God, and not even death, could separate Jonah from God's perfect will. God preserved Jonah. God preserves those He has chosen.
np category: theology
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