Jon 1:5 Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.

 The story of Jonah is perhaps the most interesting book among all the prophetical books. The book centres on the prophet itself. It provides an interesting story of how the reluctant prophet Jonah, when called by God to go and preach to a Gentile nation, did not want to do it, and instead, ran away in the opposite direction.

In chapter 1, God directed Jonah to go to Nineveh. However, Jonah disobeyed, boarded a ship and headed for Tarshish. But God sent a great tempest which rocked the ship. The sailors of the ship became concerned because of the great storm and called on their gods but they were not of great help. They woke up the sleeping Jonah. Jonah told them this happened because he ran away from God. He asked them to throw him into the sea and the tempest would go away. The sailors were reluctant at first and tried to steer the ship to land. But they couldn’t. Finally, to save the ship and their lives, they threw Jonah into the sea. Immediately, the sea ceased from her raging.

Jonah was sleeping. How could he? How could anyone sleep in such situation?

But Jonah isn’t the only one who could sleep while the rest are busy trying to save lives. Our Lord Jesus was sleeping in a boat when the twelve were fighting for their lives in a tempest in the Sea of Galilee. But Christ is different. He is the Son of God and He was teaching His disciples about faith and trusting in Him (Matthew 8:23-27).

How about you? Have you been sleeping when the rest of the brethren are busy? The tribes of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh chose to settle on the eastern side of Jordan River. Moses asked them: “Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here?” (Numbers 32:6).

It is said that ten percent of the church members are doing ninety percent of the work of the church. The ninety percent are at ease while their ten percent brethren are busying themselves to ensure the every worship services and bible classes are running smoothly. The ten percent are trying to keep the church from dying and they provide the energy to ensure that there are programmes in place all the time. Where are the ninety percent? They are sleeping in the ship.

Wake up if you are asleep in the church. The Scriptures has this to say to you: “Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light” (Ephesians 5:14).

We have no difficulty in calling on sleepers elsewhere to awake when in danger; how can we have any difficulty when speaking to the sinner or a sleeping brother in the church? The church is called to arise and shine, and the apostle is reminding us of our lofty vocation.

Paul says the sleeping brother is to “rise from the dead”. The state of the sinner is often compared to death (Ephesians 2:1). They must rouse from this condition or they will perish. A Christian who is sleeping is dead spiritually too. He has no sense of danger coming his way; he is insensible to the beauties and glories of the heavenly world; he is forgetful of his true character and condition. He must rouse from this condition or he cannot be saved.

Jonah needed to be roused from his sleep. Many among us needed someone to kick them out of bed too. What about you? Are you busy in the Lord or are you sleeping while your brethren are working? “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.