Thank you so much for encouraging me. Thank God you learnt something. With people like you out their, I can keep writing!
I believe the story of Jonah is to show the nature of man and the unending love and mercy of God upon man.
What prompted me to put up the write up is the way Jonah had no remorse despite his disobedience since his call, but because he knew God as his father, he had the boldness before Him.
This is different from our attitude as pastors and leaders in the present dispensation. A child of God falls into sin, we refuse to forgive him in our hearts, we don't encourage them to go back to God. We fear God legally as if He is one big fearful horror looking image, with a big stick in His hands looking for any Christian who falls into sin!
So instead of running to Him when we fall and asking for His mercy and strength, we run away in fear like Adam in the garden of Eden!
Jonah had a human heart, not a merciful one. He had heard of how wicked the people of Nineveh were, and actually, he wanted his God to punish them!
He had judged the city and condemned them!
"Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed"
Preaching without passion for soul, preaching to condemn, preaching just because it is a great commission, no pity in the heart for the sinner, no passion to bring them out of darkness, no grace in the heart to draw them out from eternal fire and the wrath to come.
We have many of them today in the body of Christ! Some do the preaching because of what they will get! They are cousins to Prophet Jonah.
Jonah had his pride! He didn't want his words to fall to the ground unfulfilled. He was angry at God because his pride was hurt! A mighty prophet that prophesied doom, it did not come to pass! Look at his complain:
Jonah 4:1-4 NLT
This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry. [2] So he complained to the LORD about it: "Didn't I say before I left home that you would do this, LORD? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now, LORD! I'd rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen."
"The LORD replied, "Is it right for you to be angry about this?"
Every servant of God is a work in progress in the hands of the Almighty!
The more we know Him, the more we are known of Him.
God had to allow the gourd to grow over Jonah's head to teach him an everlasting lesson and to show any servant of God what the heart of God looks like!
God bless you for your time!
Did I try to answer your question?
Of course it's answered. I can say he was angry because of his Adamic nature..
If he happened to be God, he would just destroy the city in a terrible of an eye
This is very inspiring, this was actually my message for the mother's day celebration. If i knew this was hear i would have photocopied it in my mind. Weldon! May the grace of God on you increase greatly.
If every Christian read/study the account of Jonah, with the help of the Holy Spirit , I believe that our homes and society will be a better place.
Thank you once again . Get yourself encouraged in the Most High God.
Ohhhh! Thanks so much for stopping by! May the true church emerge from this corruption and worldliness!