Episode Surprise! | Week 1
Daniel Ryan Day leads the conversations with Mart and Elisa and Bill about the surprising story of the Old Testament prophet Jonah. Jonah’s primary fear was that a loving God would be gracious to the Ninevites and show them mercy. He did everything he could—including offering to die a few times—to keep from preaching to them. In the middle of 39 Old Testament books that seem almost solely focused on one people group, God worked through Jonah’s obstinance to show mercy, compassion, and love to one of Israel’s enemies. Discover some of the significant surprises in the story of Jonah that inform us about God’s love for all nations and that foreshadow the gospel of Jesus.
Chapter 1
The story of Jonah is one of the most fantastic tales in the Bible. But could such a bizarre story really be true? In this chapter, you’ll discover whether Jonah was a historical person and whether his encounter with a great fish really took place. Was Jonah a real dude?
Chapter 2
The Bible teaches that we’re to love our enemies. Simply avoiding them isn’t good enough! In this chapter, you’ll look at the time when God told Jonah to go to an enemy of Israel—and Jonah wasn’t exactly on board!
Chapter 3
When in trouble, even the staunchest unbelievers resort to prayer. In this chapter, you’ll learn about the time when the ship Jonah was on got caught in a terrible storm and the crew begged Jonah to pray on their behalf. Does God hear us when we pray?
Chapter 4
Sometimes the storms of life are enough to bring us to our knees! In this chapter, you’ll consider the great storm that came upon Jonah’s boat at sea. The crew was sure they were going down. But this week’s series is called “Surprise!” . . . so discover the crew’s surprising response to a life-threatening storm!
Chapter 5
It’s much easier to praise God when life is smooth sailing than when you’re in the throes of a storm. In this chapter, you’ll look at the time when Jonah found himself in the belly of a fish, but surprisingly still chose to worship God.