Jonah: When God Loves You Enough to Interrupt You
If youknow anything about the NFL, you know there’s a provision made that severaltimes a game one of the head coaches can throw a red flag onto the field andquestion a certain call. When the coach does this, he’s pretty much saying the judgmenton the field was not right, and they need to re-evaluate the decision. Manytimes these challenges will altar the game, changing an interception into anincompletion, or a set back into a first down.
Challengesare interruptions. When that red flag is thrown, everything stops and thingsare re-evaluated and often times re-routed. I read recently there’s an actualproposal on the table to give coaches the right to challenge every play. There’sno chance that’s going to happen. People don’t like interruptions.
Neitherdo I. I hate getting interrupted. Ask my kids. It’s not a good thing if theytry to cut in while their mother and I are having a conversation or on thephone. Interruptions like canceled flights and flat tires drive me up a wall. Butthe older I get, the more I’m warming up to the idea that interruptions arejust part and parcel of what it means to be human.
Interruptionsare also how God works. He cuts in on Abram (Later to be called Abraham),calling an audible and telling him to leave his home. God shows up abruptly toMoses through a burning bush, re-routing him back to Egypt. And on a Damascusroad, Jesus blinds Saul, transforming him from a persecutor to a preacher. Godhas an uncanny habit of interrupting us.
Thisweek we start a new series at ALCF on the life of Jonah. There’s no way we canunderstand him without getting our arms around a God who interrupts. Thedictionary defines the term interrupt as tocause to make a break in continuity. To interrupt is to break away from thenorm. We see this immediately with Jonah. God tells him to go one way, Jonahgoes another, and God interrupts him by sending a storm and a whale to get himback on course. No, God didn’t interrupt Jonah to be mean or vindictive. Infact, God’s interruption of Jonah was actually the most loving, kind andgracious thing he could do. Think about it. If Jonah doesn’t get interrupted byGod, he has no real legacy outside of the one other verse in which he’smentioned in the Bible (When Jesus mentions him in other places it’s inconnection with the book of Jonah). We’re talking about Jonah today onlybecause of God’s gracious interruption in his life.
WhatJonah teaches us is that there is a direct relationship between the legacy ofour faith, and our willingness to embrace God’s interruptions in our lives. Thepeople I mentioned before—Abraham, Moses and Saul—are all men we continue tolook to for guidance. Why? Well, let me say it this way: I don’t think we’retalking about any of them, if they had not yielded to God’s gracious interruptions.If we want a life that really counts trans-generationally, we must be willing tobend to God’s interruptions. This is the lesson of Jonah.
Why doesGod interrupt us? How do I know He’s interrupting me? What are some practicalways that I can respond to God’s interruptions? We’ll begin to answer thesequestions this week at Abundant Life. If you’re not a part of our church, youcan track with us via podcast.
I’m soexcited to share this word with you, beginning this week.
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