What Was Wrong With Jonah?

You've probably read the story of Jonah. If you went to Sunday School as a kid you probably read about him and the whale. The classic moral of the story is that Jonah disobeyed God and so God threw him into the sea, a fish swallowed him and he repented of his disobedience. I think that's not the real heart of the story.

Did Jonah reject God? No. When the men on the ship asked Jonah who he was he replied, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven." (1:9). Was Jonah running away from God? No. In the fish he cried out to God, knowing that He was there too. Then was God's ultimate purpose in Jonah to simply bully him into submission? I don't think so.

I think that what is really being called into question here is not Jonah's obedience but his attitude towards God's mercy.

When Jonah went to Nineveh and proclaimed God's judgment against sin, the people repented - and that made Jonah mad. He said, "O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew you that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster." (4:2)

Jonah simply didn't want God's mercy to be shown to these people. Perhaps it was because of the trouble Assyria had caused Israel. What ever the reason, Jonah did not want God's love extended to them.

How about you? Do you know people who have hurt you - are hurting you? Do you know people who have done things that deserve a slow painful death (or at least a slow painful embarrassment)?

My encouragement to you is to not withhold God's mercy from them either. Shower them with love, cover them in prayers. As Jesus said, bless instead of curse. God may be more merciful than we are, but that's because He can change the cold heart into one that is warm towards Him and His gift of life.

Pastor Tom

Sowing and Reaping

OK - I know its been a while since I've posted. Things have been really busy lately (and will continue to be for the next month). But I couldn't resist making a small comment about something I read today in Hosea.

Hosea 8:6 "...The calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces. 7 For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind."

The king of Israel, Jeroboam, didn't want his people going to worship Yahweh in Jerusalem or they might heal the civil war between the southern and northern tribes. So he created calves for them to worship instead.

It might have seemed like a small thing at the time, a political expedience, perhaps. But it turned into a giant thing that sucked all those tribes away from a relationship with God and into captivity.

For us, giving into a sin for expedience might seem small - a little lie here, a little dalliance there - but sowing to the wind reaps a whirlwind that you cannot control.

My word of encouragement today is when you are faced with a choice, obey God with your whole heart, or give into temptation (even a little one) that you pray in this verse:

1 Corinthians 10:13No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

Pastor Tom