"And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice." Jonah 2:2
Two things every believer in Jesus Christ can always know, God hears our cries and God will never leave us or forsake us. We may sometimes think that God may not have heard us and even sometimes think that He has forsaken us but be assured He has done neither. Jonah brought on himself this punishment, if he had obeyed God the first time The Lord commanded he would have never have been in the whales belly. Sometimes God's children just fail to obey the Lord and His commandments and God has to get us in line with His thinking again. Sometimes we need a little chastening by the Lord, this is why Jonah wounded up in the fishes belly. The writer to the Hebrews reminds us "And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:" Hebrews 12:5 Believer don't be surprised that if you fail to follow Gods commands if you do not wind up in a fishes belly for three days and nights. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 3:11 "My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:" A. W. Pink once wrote "But while the believer’s sins cannot be punished, while the Christian cannot be condemned (Rom. 8:3), yet he may be chastised." Therefore the believer does not need to be so surprised when God drops the hammer on them when they step out of line. When Jonah was let go out of the whales belly he knew what had to be done. "And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time...So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD..." Jonah 3:1,3 If God has to hit us in the head with a ball bat then He will. God knows everything and He knows what it takes to get our attention just as He got Jonahs attention. But even though Jonah had not done what God said the first time he did do it, and believe me if God wants you as a believer to do something you will do it. Gods ordained will is always done. God chastened Jonah for the same reason He chastens us; He loves us. Hebrews 12:6 "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth." While the chastening of the Lord can be hard on us, it is only out of love that He does it. If Jonah had went unto Nineveh when the Lord commanded he would not have had to have been chastened by the Lord. Therefore as believers in Christ and church members let us all remember if God wants something He will get it and if He wants you to do something He is not going to find another to do it, He will make you willing in the due time. As believers let us examine ourselves to see if God is chastening us for something that we have not done. And may I also add this, that if you are not in step with Gods commands then that may be the very reason that your world seems to falling down around you. We are God's children and He loves us and therefore it is incumbent upon us to do and walk as He commands. If you are not in church then you are most certainly not doing as the Lord commanded. Joshua told us "And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve...but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15 While salvation is not a choice in life sometimes God allows us enough rope to hang ourselves and then chastens us for hanging ourselves. This is what God showed in Jonah but God also showed His will was completed. When the Y in the road comes it is better to choose to serve the Lord rather than serving the will of the flesh. Sometimes there is a war within us and always trust; God will always win, no matter how much chastening He does. It is always better to be looking to serve the Lord.
