March 10, 2024 – Jonah 2 – 3

Lesson Date: March 10, 2024

Focal Scripture Passage: Jonah 2:1 – 3:10

AIM: To lead students to discover the steps Jonah and the people of Nineveh took to turn to God, and to either (a) turn back to God if they have strayed from Him or disobeyed Him, or (b) turn to the Lord for the very first time for salvation.

Before class: Read the notes on Jonah 2 – 3 found in the Sunday School Teacher Book.

INTRODUCTION (Create Learning Readiness): Ask three volunteers to come to the front of the class and stand side-by-side, facing the other students.  Ask the two volunteers on the ends to each turn their bodies 90° so they are facing the person in the center.  Next, ask the person in the center to turn his or her body to face one of the others.

Ask the person in the center the following questions:

“Can you see the person you are facing?” (yes).

“Without turning your head or your body, can you see the person standing behind you?” (no).

“Can you face both people at once?” (no).

Stress the fact that it is impossible to face in opposite directions at the same time.

Tell the students to imagine that the person the one in the center is now facing represents sin, selfishness, and disobedience to God, while the person behind him or her represents God.  Ask: “If the person in the center wants to turn to God, what must he or she turn away from?” (sin, selfishness, and disobedience).

Ask the person in the center: “Can you turn your body completely toward the person representing sin while keeping your face turned toward the one representing God?” (no).  Tell the class the opposite is also true: we can’t turn our body completely toward God and still keep our face fixed on sin.  Stress the fact that we must turn AWAY from one in order to turn TO the other.  Thank the three volunteers and let them return to their seats.

Tell the class the title of today’s lesson is Turning To God.  Tell them in order to turn TO God, we must turn AWAY from sin; in today’s lesson we will discover some steps in turning to God.

HEART OF THE LESSON (Bible Study):

1. Review.
   • Be sure everyone has a copy of the new Sunday School Member Quarterly.
   • Remind them that we are studying the Old Testament book of Jonah.
   • Ask: “What was last week’s lesson about?” (Running From God; God told Jonah to go to Nineveh to preach against their sin, but he tried to run away from God; we discovered some of the costs and dangers of running from God).
   • Ask if any volunteer would recite the memory verse suggested at the end of last week’s lesson (1 Peter 5:6).
2. Jonah Turned To God.
   • Ask: “Where was Jonah at the end of last week’s lesson?” (in the belly of the great fish; Jonah 1:17).
   • Remind the class that Jesus used Jonah’s three days and three nights in the belly of the fish as a sign foreshadowing His own three days and three nights in the tomb (Matt. 12:38-40).
   • Ask a volunteer to read Jonah 2:1-2.
   • Tell the students that the chapter divisions in our Bibles were added centuries after the text was written to help us locate specific verses, which means there should be no break between Jonah 1:17 and Jonah 2:1.
   • Ask: “According to verse 1, what did Jonah do after being in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights?” (he prayed to “the Lord his God”).
   • Remind the class that previously Jonah was running away from God.
   • Ask: “According to verse 2, what caused Jonah to turn back to God?” (his trouble and distress).
   • Ask: “Do you think Jonah finally realized it was futile to try to run away from God and what He had told Jonah to do?” (yes).
   • Ask: “Put yourself in Jonah’s place; what would you pray for if you were in the belly of a fish?” (we would certainly ask God to get us out).
   • Read Jonah 2:3-6.
   • Ask: “According to verse 3, what did Jonah realize about why he was where he was?” (God put him there; he realized God was in control).
   • Tell the class in his prayer, Jonah recounted his experience of sinking in the sea.
   • Ask: “According to verse 4, where did Jonah look for help?” (to God’s holy Temple, which represented God’s presence).
   • Ask: “What did Jonah realize in the last half of verse 6?” (the Lord rescued him: in other words, the Lord sent the great fish to save Jonah, not to eat him).
   • Tell the students verses 7-9 describe the four steps of Jonah’s turning back to God.
   • Ask a volunteer to read Jonah 2:7.
   • Ask: “What’s the first thing Jonah did?” (Step 1: he remembered the Lord).
   • Ask: “What else did he do?” (Step 2: he prayed to the Lord).
   • Read Jonah 2:8-9.
   • Explain the following:
     • In verse 8, Jonah acknowledged that believing lies cuts us off from God’s mercy.
     • Jonah had believed the lies that he could disobey God and get away with it, and that he could run from God.
     • This was Jonah’s Step 3: he admitted he was wrong.
   • Ask: “What did Jonah promise in verse 9?” (to keep his vows; this was Step 4: he recommitted himself to the Lord).
   • Ask a volunteer to read Jonah 2:10.
   • Ask: “What happened as a result of Jonah turning back to God?” (the Lord miraculously brought Jonah alive out of the fish).
   • Summarize: Jonah finally realized that God was in control and he had been disobedient, so he turned back to God, confessed his sin, and recommitted himself to obeying God.
3. The People of Nineveh Turned to God.
   • Read Jonah 3:1-2.
   • Ask: “What did the Lord tell Jonah to do?” (go to Nineveh and preach what the Lord told him to).
   • Explain the following:
     • These were the same instructions God gave Jonah in chapter 1.
     • Nineveh was a very large city, which had a reputation for brutality and sin.
     • J. Vernon McGee described Nineveh as follows: “They were given over to idolatry, their cruelty and brutality to their enemies were unspeakable, and there was gross immorality in the city. It was a city of wine and women, of the bottle and the brothel, of sauce and sex.  These were the things that identified the great city of Nineveh.”^[i]
   • Ask a volunteer to read Jonah 3:3-4.
   • Ask: “What did Jonah do this time?” (he obeyed the Lord, went to dreaded Nineveh, and announced that God would destroy Nineveh in forty days).
   • Read Jonah 3:5.
   • Ask: “What caused the people of Nineveh to turn to God for the first time?” (being warned that God would destroy them because of their sin).
   • Tell the students verses 5-8 describe the three steps of the Ninevites turning to God for the first time.
   • Ask: “What do the first words of verse 5 reveal about how the people of Nineveh reacted to Jonah’s warning?” (Step 1: they believed God).
   • Ask: “What does the rest of verse 5 say they did next?” (Step 2: they humbled themselves before God).
   • Read Jonah 3:6-8.
   • Tell the class verses 6-8a describe more of their humbling of themselves before God.
   • Ask: “What does the last half of verse 8 say they did?” (Step 3: they stopped their evil behavior; in other words, they turned away from their sin).
   • Ask a volunteer to read Jonah 3:9-10.
   • Ask: “According to verse 9, what was the hope of the people of Nineveh?” (that God would turn away His wrath and spare their lives).
   • Ask: “What happened as a result of the people of Nineveh turning to God for the first time?” (God withheld His judgment and gave them a second chance).
   • Summarize: The people of Nineveh believed Jonah’s warning of God’s judgment, so they turned to God for the first time in faith, humility, and repentance.

PERSONAL APPLICATION: Remind the students that the title of today’s lesson is Turning To God.  Tell them in the scripture we studied today we learned that Jonah turned back to God, and that the people of Nineveh turned to God for the very first time.  Tell them in both cases the Lord was merciful, giving them another opportunity to do right and live for Him.

Remind the class of the opening activity with the three volunteers.  Stress the fact that we can’t turn TO God and keep our eyes on our sin, selfishness, and disobedience at the same time; we must turn AWAY from those things in order to turn TO God.

Tell the students that each of them probably needs to either turn back to God if they have strayed or disobeyed Him, or turn to Him for the very first time for salvation.

Ask: “What about you?  Do you need to turn back to God?  If so, why don’t you do the things Jonah did?”

Remind the students of the four steps Jonah took to turn back to God:

• He remembered the Lord (Jonah 2:7a)
• He prayed to the Lord (Jonah 2:7b)
• He admitted that he was wrong (Jonah 2:8)
• He recommitted himself to the Lord (Jonah 2:9)

Ask: “Do you need to turn to God for the very first time?  If so, you’ll need to do the things the Ninevites did.”

Remind the students of the three steps the people of Nineveh took to turn to God for the first time:

• They believed God (Jonah 3:5a)
• They humbled themselves before God (Jonah 3:5b-8a)
• They stopped their evil behavior (Jonah 3:8b)

Ask everyone to bow their head and close their eyes.  Ask: “Do you need to turn back to God, or do you need to turn to Him for the first time in salvation?”  Tell them to do what they need to do to be right with God, and to do it now.

Allow a moment for silent prayer, and then voice a closing prayer.

CONCLUSION: Offer to stay after class to speak with anyone who might have questions about salvation.  Ask everyone to memorize Jonah 2:9.  Urge them to turn to God and obey Him, because life will be much better if they do.

[i] Thru The Bible, J. Vernon McGee, Copyright © 1981 by Thru The Bible Radio