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Jonah was a man much like all of us. He heard the word of God and ran in the opposite direction. His assignment seemed too far out and he assumed he could outrun God. What a joke! David writes in Psalm 139 verses 7 to 12, of how we can never escape God. Jonah somehow is brought back on track by God’s power and might and eventually sees the salvation of Nineveh. He misses the point though by ranting and raving about God’s grace and kindness towards an otherwise wicked nation forgetting just how much grace was shown to him.
How often have we looked at someone else and written off on behalf of God? We assumed their sin was too big, their life too vile or their choices too poor for God to intervene and change things. We forgot how gracious God has been toward us in forgiving us of our innumerable sins and shortcomings. We withheld grace, mercy and kindness from those who needed it most. In Jesus, grace was given to us when we put our faith and trust in Him. We didn’t earn or deserve it. it was a free gift- one that we must offer others as often as we can.
The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.
Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it.
But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. He prayed to the LORD, “Isn’t this what I said, LORD, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” But the LORD replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?” Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the LORD God provided a leafy plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” “It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” But the LORD said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
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2 Responses
Such a good lesson & reminder. So
Many times we judge in our
Mind before we even realize it, and forget what we have done and the grace God has given us!
We have preconceived ideas about who can be saved and who is worthy to be saved. But God is able to soften the hardest of hearts as He did mine. We should always be ready to give the reason for the hope that we have.