January 20th, 2021

Jonah 4:1-4  “But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.  And he prayed to the LORD and 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 that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.  Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.  And the Lord said, ‘Do you do well to be angry?’”

The Big Picture

Assyria (where Nineveh was located) was the greatest power in the world, and the cruelest.  No wonder Jonah didn’t want to go and preach to the people in the capital city.  The story of repentance in the city of Nineveh is proof of the power of the word of God.  But there was something going on in Jonah’s heart that revealed a deeper, troubling character trait.  God doesn’t leave us where we are to wallow, but He is an intentional teacher and a loving Father.  Jonah couldn’t reconcile the justice of God with the love of God.  How could God be both of those things to perfect fullness.  We would even grapple with the reality of that truth.  Jonah was struggling in his heart.  “When Christian believers care more for their own interests and security than for the god and salvation of other races and ethnicities, they are sinning like Jonah” (Keller, p103).  

How To Pray

• Today, ask God to rid any self-righteousness that lives within us and comes to the surface when we are more concerned about our own interests over the interests of others.

• Ask God to fill you with His Spirit as you live out the fruit of the Spirit. Pray over the fruit and ask God to amplify the fruit in your life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.