Going Against God Usually Ends Up Going Against Yourself

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘(9) <Jesus said to Paul,>“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. (10) That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”’ (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

There are hard decisions we need to make from time to time, if not daily.  When do we need to replace the roof of our homes, or when does our car need to be traded in?  Should we seek a new doctor or dentist if our current one seems inattentive?  We don’t make these decisions likely, as there are costs involved, in time and money.  A roof replacement or a new car costing tens of thousands of dollars is a lot of money, while a new doctor requires several visits over the course of year or two to create a working, trusting relationship toward your long-term health.

We can either resist or go along with God, but in either case God’s Will is going to be done.  For myself and my spouse, the roof was replaced just prior to Ian when it looked like some of the shingles (being around 20 years old) started to lift up, so our timing was fortuitous.  Our cars we usually keep long term (10 years or longer), in part due to my dislike of car shopping. 

At some point in the not-to-distant future, a trip to the dealership will be made.  In spite of experiencing the short-term unhappiness of car-shopping or parting with a large sum of money, things need to get replaced so we act accordingly (as having it rain inside your home or having to walk more than a mile to go shopping would bring even deeper unhappiness). 

In 2 Corinthians 12, we see the great contrast between Paul, who met his unhappiness with Joyful acceptance; and Jonah, who met his unhappiness with joyless resistance.  Jonah was resistant to God’s will when it didn’t fit into what Jonah thought was prudent.  Going to Nineveh, Jonah?  ‘Nope, I’m going to vacation poolside in Tarshish.’ 

Of course, we know that Jonah got on the cruise ship bound for Spain but instead got tossed overboard, swallowed by perhaps (in poetic justice) a Jewfish (aka Goliath Grouper) and became the first submersible-launched ballistic missile when he was projectile-vomited out onto a Jewish beach 3 days later (‘Oy vey!  You smell like a sardine, Jonah!  And put some pants on, please.’). 

Jonah then sighed, and said ‘Okay, God, you win.  I’m going to Nineveh’ and did, and even though he evangelized the Ninevites to turn to God, he still was angry as he was forced to do so.  Jonah resisted God, but in the end, he did do God’s Will, despite not having God’s Joy through his resistance.

Paul, on the other hand, was more like ‘I don’t think I’m up to the task, but I’ll do it if you will help me, Lord.’  He knew that there were things he didn’t want to do, but accepted that he had to do them since God wanted him to do them.  His issue was perhaps a chronic affliction of health, or of a sinful nature, or a desire not to go somewhere, but when the Lord told him ‘My Grace is sufficient’,

Paul put those afflictions and doubts aside and willingly did as he was told.  If God told Paul to go to Nineveh, Paul’s answer may have been ‘I don’t want to go, but I’ll take the next Greyhound to Nineveh, Lord’ and avoided all the problems Jonah went through.   Paul went with the flow of God’s will, and we see that Paul had God’s Joy.

We know, through Jonah and Paul, that we will run into issues when doing God’s Will.  For Jonah, he ran into issues in going against God.  Paul ran into issues for following God.  Both had God with them and directing them.   But with Jonah, God made him into an example of why it’s not good to resist God; he gets thrown off a ship, he got swallowed then vomited out of a big fish, he ends up getting heat stroke after taking a ‘hissy-fit’ in evangelizing the Ninevites. 

With Paul, God made him into an example of why it’s good to be in lock-step with God; he survives a shipwreck, and is lauded for evangelizing in Rome despite being a prisoner.  Both got on ships that ran into trouble, but Jonah got on his to spite God, Paul got on his to follow God. 

Both suffered, both did God’s Will, both were not happy, but Jonah was miserable while Paul was Joyful.   We need to ensure as Christians we don’t pursue the easy way (Jonah’s cruise ship to Tarshish) for us and spite God; we need to pursue God’s way (Paul’s cargo ship to Malta) and follow God.