It was not a foregone conclusion that Jonah would go to Nineveh when God called him a second time. Nothing had changed in Nineveh, so Jonah still had at least four objections to overcome:

1. Fear
The Assyrians were still known for terror and torture. Jonah still had to face his old fears.

2. Shame
Jonah had failed the Lord greatly. His sin had been exposed, and he must have wondered, “How can God use me?” Jonah had to get over his shame to obey God’s call.

3. Self-Interest
The Assyrian army was the greatest threat to God’s people, and Nineveh was one of the great Assyrian cities. Jonah feared that God would have compassion on Nineveh (4:2).

4. Unbelief
Can God really change a wicked city through one man speaking God’s Word? Nineveh had not changed, but by grace Jonah had, and when God’s Word came the second time, Jonah rose obediently and went to Nineveh (3:3).

What happened in Nineveh was an extraordinary work of God. The Ninevites believed God, and they declared a fast and put on sackcloth (3:5). Even the king sat in sackcloth in the dust (3:6) — an expression of humility and penitence before God.

The king issued a proclamation that everyone “call out mightily to God… [and] turn from his evil way... God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish” (3:8-9). By any standard, this is an amazing transformation.

Which of these four barriers to obedience are you struggling with now?

Here are three things we learn from the ship’s crew about pursuing a God-centred life:

1. Turn to God and ask Him for mercy
“They called out to the LORD” (1:14).
The crew saw that their religion was worthless. They abandoned all other gods. What mattered was finding peace with this God who made the land and the sea, who sends storms, and who speaks through prophets to save them! So, they cried, “O Lord, let us not perish for this man’s life… for you… have done as it pleased you” (1:14). In other words, “Lord, have mercy on us!”

2. Abandon self-rescue and stake your life on Jesus Christ
“They picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging” (1:15).
These men saw their guilt in the sacrifice. Yet to their amazement they found salvation through the sacrifice. “We crucified the Son of God—that’s our guilt. Yet He laid down his life as a sacrifice to placate God’s wrath for us—that is our salvation.”

3. Pledge your redeemed life to Jesus Christ
“They offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows” (1:16).
Many people make vows to God in the middle of a storm. These men made vows to God after He delivered them. That shows a real change of heart. These men knew that they had come back from the dead. And their new life had been bought with a price (Jonah’s). They felt that they were no longer their own, so they pledged their redeemed lives to God.

Which of these steps could you take today?

How did Jonah know that the sea would become calm if the crew threw him out of the boat? There can only be one answer: God revealed it.

When Jonah’s sin was exposed, God’s silence was ended, and Jonah spoke as a prophet again. This prophetic word was a command from God: “Sacrifice Jonah and you will be saved.” The sacrifice of Jonah will be the salvation of the crew.

Notice that the crew’s first instinct is to refuse the sacrifice: Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land” (1:13). Feel the weight of this picture. God has spoken through the prophet. But these men think they can save themselves without the sacrifice!

The strength of this impulse to refuse the sacrifice is significant. A deep-seated pride in the human heart says, “We can make it through the judgement of God. We’ll just row harder.” That is the polar opposite of a God-centred life!

When the crew realised that they could not beat the storm, they turned in their desperation to what God had said through the prophet. They staked their lives on the sacrifice of Jonah.

God’s storm is stronger than you are. You can’t overcome sin enough or make yourself good enough to survive God’s judgement. The storm of His judgement will wreck you unless you are saved by the sacrifice of Someone else.

That is why Jesus Christ came into the world. That is why He went to the cross. He was cast out as a sacrifice to calm the wrath of God on your behalf. He died on that cross so that you should survive God’s judgement against sin.

Has pride been causing you to “row harder”? What will it take for you to stop refusing Jesus’ sacrifice?