I think we've all felt that way at one time or another. Or perhaps several times. Somebody wants us to go somewhere and do something ... but we don't wanna.
In Dan's case, there was no option. He had to go, because, you see, Dan was a time-traveler ... a very reluctant one. He could be walking along, or sitting at his desk, or even at home with his toddler when, with almost no warning, he would be swept away into the past.
The disorientation, alone, would be reason enough to not desire the experience. Add in that upon his return to the present —also beyond his control— he could not provide a credible excuse for his absence ... well, let's just say his personal relationships suffered.
Dan is the main character from the short-lived (but much missed) TV show, Journeyman, and is, of course, fictional. Whatever force jerked Dan from his life as a husband, father, and reporter, it seemed to have zero concern for Dan. And, of most importance, Dan never had a choice.
That's the main way we differ from Dan: For most of us, living in the first world as we do, there is almost always a choice.
We can say no.
You might think Jonah was more like Dan than us, but that would be wrong. Not only did Jonah have free will, he so strongly objected to what God had instructed him to do, he actually went the other way!
Jonah is told to go and preach in Nineveh, a very wicked place. Jonah resists. God insists. Jonah goes ... but in the opposite direction. God prepares a "great fish" to swallow Jonah. Eventually, Jonah prays and (somewhat) repents. Upon his release from the fish, Jonah goes to Nineveh and preaches what God had instructed him to preach ... but he is not happy about it.
The book of Jonah, though, is not really about Nineveh, nor about the sailors on the ship, and certainly not about the fish.
The story is about Jonah's relationship with God. Don't think for a minute God had to send Jonah to Nineveh. He could have sent anyone. He chose Jonah for a reason. Jonah needed a lesson about obedience, a lesson in God's priorities, a lesson about grace, a lesson about second chances.
And a lesson about God's sovereignty.
Unlike our reluctant time-traveler, Dan, Jonah had —and exercised— free will. He chose to disobey God. And why? Because he didn't agree with God's willingness to redeem some wicked people.
There's a similar problem in the parable Jesus tells in this week's selection from Matthew. Those who have labored in the vineyard the longest (all day) are angered that those who worked only an hour received the same pay. Like the laborers, we can become so invested in our own spiritual journey that we discount the journey of those who are newly redeemed.
The landowner's answer to the angry workers is really the same as God's answer to Jonah in Chapter 4: "Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?"
God is sovereign. He can do as He wants ... and what He wants is to forgive people their sins. We're on the wrong spiritual journey if we're not on board with that.
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Proper 20 (25) (September 24, 2017)
http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/
Exodus 16:2-15
Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45
Jonah 3:10-4:11
Psalm 145:1-8
Philippians 1:21-30
Matthew 20:1-16
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Lectionary Breakfast continues to meet Friday mornings at the Waco "Egg and I" restaurant. Join us at 8:00 for a piece of the journey unlike any other. Food and fellowship topped off with a satisfying time in the scriptures.
Blessings,
Steve
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