Hey, fam! This week we are going to be in Jonah chapter four, the last chapter of this book of irony and mystery.
In chapter three, Jonah reluctantly obeys God (finally) and preaches to the Ninevites of their coming destruction. We hear his stubborn half-hearted sermon and witness all of Nineveh repent in sackcloth and ashes. God saw the people's repentance and had compassion on them. Instead of being overturned in the sense of being destroyed, Nineveh was overturned in the sense of being transformed. God extended his forgiveness to the Ninevites and reshaped them mercifully into new and more beautiful creations. God had not only done amazing things for Nineveh but also for Jonah in his ministry and in his life. In chapter four, however, we find Jonah less than grateful.
When God showed mercy to the Ninevites, Jonah grew angry, appalled that God would save the enemies of his people. Outraged, he cries, "Is this not what I said when I was still home? Is this not why I fled to Tarshish? I knew you were a God gracious, compassionate, and abounding in mercy." Jonah takes the words God uses to describe Himself in Exodus 34:6 and flings them in His face as an insult. Yes, our God is gracious, compassionate, and abounding in mercy, mercy that was extended to Jonah on many accounts. Like Jonah, we at times find God's grace hard to wrap our heads around, His mercy hard to fathom, and His compassion frustrating. In our finite human minds, we think those who do wicked against us must be punished, but we believe we are worthy of the forgiveness we have been granted (through Jesus Christ's death on the cross). We are not, we all have sinned, do sin, and will sin. So what makes us so much better than others, how do we reconcile this in our minds? There are many ways, but in Jonah's case, he was a Jew, one of God's chosen people, he believed he must have a ticket into heaven just for the lineage he was born into.
After Jonah's outburst, the Lord, infinitely patient, asks, "Is it right for you to be angry?" The question set Jonah off. He stormed right out of Nineveh, furious that God would question his anger. Ignoring the issue, he plopped down in the desert, pitying himself and wanting to die instead of face the misery he was in. Sulking, Jonah made a shelter, sat in its shade, and waited, watching the city in hopes that it would fall. Jonah must have had a pretty high view of himself, he must have believed he had made a point God could not deny, but like always, Jonah's prideful heart was mistaken. Jonah's anger was not righteous, and God did not destroy the city.
Stubbornly Jonah pushed on through the heat and rising dust of the day poutingly, waiting in the sweltering desert. Then up from the ground, a vine-like plant appeared, produced by God, to provide Jonah shade. Jonah was thrilled. Feeling more favored than ever, he gloatingly laid in wait for his enemies' ruin. At dawn the next day, God sent a worm to whither the vine and a scorching east wind to confront Jonah in the wilderness. Isn't this how we are always confronted?
It is not when the leafy covering of the Lord's favor and blessing covers us that we are tested in our faith, it is when the east wind blows, and the worms shrivel up the shade above our head that we struggle. It is when the sun, like fire upon us, presses against us, that we are refined. When the sand scratches our skin, and thirst exhausts our being that our steadfastness to the Lord is tested. Jonah is being tested.
As we read on, we find Jonah (still) wallowing in his selfishness and brooding in self-pity. "It would be better for me to die than to live." He groaned, lamenting his plight. "Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?" the Lord asks. "It is, and I'm so angry I wish I were dead," Jonah whined in reply. The Lord then said, "You have been so 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?" God is asking, "Aren't humans more valuable than vines? Shouldn't I be more concerned about Nineveh, a great city with many inhabitants than you are the plant I provided for you that you did nothing to help grow?"
That's all. That's the end. Jonah's answer is never recorded, and his fate is unknown. Jonah is a character whose story ends just as suddenly as it appears. We have little to no history about him and no information about what became of him. Based on his track record, I'm going to say he died in the desert, but who knows, God is capable of extraordinary things. If He could soften the heart of the Ninevites, He most certainly could soften Jonah's and lead him to repentance in the desert. The big question we are left with after reading this manuscript, however, is not what became of Jonah, but why was this account recorded, and why is it apart of the Old Testament?
The book of Jonah is included in the Old Testament for a reason. It is trying to mess with your head and stir something within your heart. It is to act as a mirror so that we may see ourselves more clearly. Although we would love to say we would never be as self-centered, disobedient, or prideful as Jonah, we would all be lying if we did. Every day we give in to one selfish desire or another simply because we are human. Jonah's ministry is a mirror to reflect our sin, our issues, our disobedience. The things Jonah wrestled with we fight every day.
We must ask ourselves, am I okay with God loving my enemies? Do I have more compassion for things that make me feel comfortable than for people who make me uncomfortable? Would I rather die than die to self and live for God?
The answers to these questions are hard to face, it would be much more pleasant to run from them than to meet them, but at some point, we must face them. Jonah ran from God, but eventually, he was forced to stand face to face with God in the barren wilderness. Just imagine how much easier it would have been for Jonah to die to self and follow God than to run till he was too worn down to flee.
God will never stop pursuing, that is something we must embrace fully. At times it is thrilling for our greatest desire is to be sought after, but other times it is terrifying for we do not want to be pursued for God's work when it forces us to face our sin and fight our fears.
Lord, I praise You for Your patience in pursuit. No matter how long I flee or how far I stray, I'm never too distant for You. I thank You that You are faithful when I am not. Lord, help me to be steadfast, give me forbearance, give me radical faith, give me divine selflessness. Help me to follow You in all that I do. Help me to love my enemies the way You love me. Let my grace be a reflection of Yours and help me to look past my immediate comfort and strive to do Your will no matter what situations it puts me in. Amen.
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