But the plant wasn't an act of divine mercy it was part of a divine lesson. (6) When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 12 Jehovah is nothing like the rigid, cold, even harsh God so often portrayed by religious leaders. Lesson 48, November 21-27. It had all the elements of a spellbinder: a reluctant prophet fleeing God, a sinking ship, a man thrown overboard into the maw of a sea. Are we there yet? God have mercy! The first gentile revival just took place. After all of this, had Jonah learned to show mercy to others? For in the name of Jesus Christ I make my requests. Instead of punishing Jonah for his disrespect, Jehovah simply asked him one gentle, probing question: Have you rightly become hot with anger? (Jonah 4:4) Did Jonah even answer? For, Jonah, its an insult to Israel. Yes, that. Jonah was called to go and to preach to Nineveh. Obedience is the key to receivingGods benefits! Side note on Vs 15- 16 (Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. The mission of God is a guaranteed success because of the sovereignty of God. Jonahs message was simple and not likely to win him any favor. It has spiritual ramifications that affects both our spiritual life, and daily life. The fish did not chew him up - it just swallowed him and Jonah was safe inside. i. Jonah knew God heard him before the answer came. In the same way, God is not quitting on us. And is the founder of Think About Such Things. He asked him to go somewhere Jonah would NEVER want to go. Did not his anger over Nineveh spring from motives that were likewise selfisha prideful desire to save face, to be proved right? 16. Then all of sudden God decided to come between Jonah and his patriotism. California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information. What does it mean to dwell in the secret place of the Most High (Psalms 91:1)? The sign of Jonah was an expression used by Jesus to refer to Jonah's three days and three nights in the belly of the fish (Jonah 1:17). Nineveh was a great wealthy city with many people ( Jonah 4:11 ). Get a focused-Bible-teaching on various subjects as they may apply to our today's lives. (Read Jonah 3:5.) Image what some of the Nineveh locals would think and say if they saw Jonah get vomited up out of a fish onto the beach. 20 Gods saying that those people did not know right from left suggested their childlike ignorance of divine standards. Then he asked to die, saying that death would be better than life.Read Jonah 4:2,3. Or trouble within your church? I have learned 5 keys from the life of Jonah that I want to share with you! He is the weeping God ofJonah 4in human form. That is where the Gourd and the Worm come in. (John 4:11). He was to call Nineveh to repentance. Imitate Their Faith, Share Only Jehovah can read what lies within the human heart. A bad storm happens and Jonah actually has the courage to let everyone know its his fault because hes running away from God. (a)How did the people of Nineveh respond to Jonahs message? Some may believe that Jehovah should have prevented a tragedy or that he should have executed swift judgment against the wicked or even that he should have brought an end to this whole world system of things before now. The book of Jonah is short and a lot of time we can read through it quickly. He and his wife, Mae, reside in Western North Carolina. They are just nothing but mere pretension. 1) God gave Jonah a job, but Jonah didn't want to do it. In the same way that God's mercy to Nineveh was "exceedingly evil" (it was evil, a great evil), so God's mercy to Jonah is "exceedingly joyous" (Jonah was joyous, a great joy). When God speaks, it is up to man to obey. God let Jonah eat lavishly, then sent him to a place of famine. Sep 5, 2014 | AAAA AskGramps Website, Bible | 3 comments. We read in Jonah 3:4: Yet, forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.. Am I Less Worthy Not Being From the Tribe of Ephraim? Three days later, Jonah was vomited out alive onto a beach, an awed and more compliant man.Jonah, chaps. (a)What object lesson did Jehovah teach Jonah? | You see, the Day of Atonement is a reminder that part of humbling ourselves and repenting of our sins is to do the work God has called us to do. 2 One thing Jonah knew for certain: He could not turn around and run away from this assignment. But Nineveh was a very wicked city. God often only tells us what we can handle at the time. If you want to learn more, read, 13 Best Lessons We can Learn from Jonah.. We read: "Now Nineveh herself proved to be a city great to God." ( Jonah 3:3) Three times, the record of Jonah quotes Jehovah as referring to "Nineveh the great city." ( Jonah 1:2; 3:2; 4:11) Why was this city great, or important, to Jehovah? God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, but Jonah tried to run away from God. We must realize we dont see it all, we dont understand it all. On the way, however, God caused tragic things to happen. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!. Nineveh had a huge population for that time. Yet the city of Nineveh had sixscore thousand people (Jonah 4:11) who didnt know any better and Jonah thinks their preservation is a bad thing? What gets missed is Jonah's repentance . So what are the lessons we can learn from the book of Jonah? The Bible record is silent. However, as the story unfolds we can see how the Lord draws him from fear . Could you imagine how many times you would hear your kids say. 10,11. Jonah, of course, tells God, it aint going to happen! and runs away in the polar opposite direction of Ninevah. God gave us the ability to choose - Joshua 24:15. What does the story of Jonah and the whale teach us? There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. There are no limits to God's grace and love, and there are no limits to his ways and means of attaining His goals for salvation. We could be studying the word of God, but our hearts are not into it. All people will one day glorify God - Psalms 86:9. But did He? As soon as Jonah has settled gratefully into its shade, God sends a worm to chew the roots of the plant, killing it so that Jonah is left exposed once again. What can we learn from Jonahs attitude toward the repentance of the Ninevites? God's Mercy on a Repentant People. Jonah believes that the Ninevites dont deserve Gods mercy and forgiveness. RAPTURE IS IMMINENT, CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN 2 Peter, THE ANTICHRIST EVIL MARK OF 666 SYMBOLIZES DESTRUCTION Revelation, GOD HATES SIN; COVET HOLINESS AND STAY STRONG Zechariah, GODS JUDGMENT IS INEVITABLE Revelation, 7 REASONS TO BELIEVE CHRIST ROSE FROM THE DEAD, Subscribing I accept the privacy rules of this site, JESUS PURCHASED THE CHURCH WITH HIS BLOOD Acts, JESUS COMMANDED HIS DISCIPLES TO PREACH THE GOSPEL Luke 9, KING JEHU KILLED IDOL WORSHIPERS 2 Kings, THE DEFENSE FOR GODS SERVANTS Jeremiah. Jonah would have to travel this by horse/camel. God was telling Jonah to take a message of repentance to an empire destined to destroy his own nation and people. It is an astounding admission of the true nature of Gods covenant given to Abraham. So, Jonah has a pity party and God tries to show and teach him His compassion towards mankind with a plant giving him shelter and worm. Im having trouble understanding the story. Was it not because Jonah had allowed his thinking to become selfish? How grateful we should be that Jehovah patiently teaches us to be more selfless, more compassionate, more mercifulas he is! So he goes to Nineveh and calls them to repent or be destroyed. Finally, after he was spit out by the fish, Jonah found himself in dry land. Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm (Jonah 4:2 NKJV). Whereas if they did not repent, then the Lord would destroy them, and they would no longer be a danger to Israel. A gourd, an easterly winder, and even a worm, all over the Lord without any protests. He would also know that if he disobeyed the commands of the Lord, he would bring down the wrath of God on himself. 18 Overnight, Jehovah caused a bottle-gourd plant to sprout up. Introduction. Im sure it will bless you like it has blessed me. When he determines to bring punishment on the wicked, he first uses his representatives on earth to issue warnings, for he is eager to see the wicked do what the Ninevites didrepent and change their ways. Today you'll discover an important lesson: God forgives us. But dont forget to download my free Jonah character study pdf! I love looking for signs so i looked at the paper. He sent a mighty storm while Jonah's ship was at sea, and the storm endangered the lives of everybody. The only disobedient figure in the book of Jonah is Jonah. Let us see what we can gather from Jonahs struggle. It states, "Yahweh scolded him for taking pity on a plant that he did not make grow, while feeling no sorrow for thousands of people in Nineveh." For this article, we will take a quick look at some things that Jonah's life and ministry teaches us today, in a world where man-centered Christianity has grown, and many are looking for the real deal about Christ. Jonah 3 & 4. Perhaps, even us today, we'd be hesitant to go to somewhere chaotic and full of wickedness to preach the Gospel. Disobedience is a big deal when it comes to God. So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Obedience is the key to receivingGods benefits! The people of Nineveh, from the king to the poorest, repented and held a fast. No; it fulfilled its purpose as a warning. (a)Why might Jonah have found Nineveh intimidating? (Ezek. Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish? The story of Jonah was a popular tale in Jesus' time. We need to realize who the Ninevites were. Jonah went outsidethe city, hoping to witness its condemnation, but Jesus Christ went outside the city to die on a cross to accomplish its salvation. However, Bible scholars have noted that a movement of that kind was not out of keeping with the superstitious and volatile nature of people of such cultures in ancient times. God punishes Jonah by having a large fish or whale swallow him whole, but Jonah is later reconciled and forgiven. Jonah is depressed and miserable due the the fact that the city would not be destroyed. How well are we doing our job? Thank you for having available online. Stay up to date with the latest Christian news! Instead of repenting, Jonah justified himself, saying: I have rightly become hot with anger, to the point of death. The stage was now set for Jehovah to drive the lesson home.Jonah 4:9. He does all this to get Jonah to Nineveh. That warning was based on the Ninevites bad ways, which subsequently changed. God chose Jonah to go to the Ninevites and tell them that unless they turned from their wicked ways they would face God's punishment. Wahooooo! Nahum 3:1-4 gives us an idea of just how wicked the people of Nineveh were: "Woe to the bloody city! Jonah then goes to Ninvaha, tells them to repent and the whole city believes Jonah and repents. He had tried that before. Instead, we see the exact opposite. PDF to print for family reading. This is why its great to do a Bible study on these types of books in the Bible. Enable me with the strength to be conscious of your expectations and meet them! Though He is now in Nineveh, he was just dragging his feet to preach to the people. 12,13. The minor prophet, Jonah, takes place when Nineveh, that great city, was the largest city on the face of the earth. Jonah Goes to Nineveh Main Point: We should share God's grace with others. He wanted to reach Jonahs heart. The psalmist in Psalm 139 makes it pretty clear: Where can I go from your Spirit? The Lord provided a gourd or plant that protected Jonah. (Luke 9:62), 20 Most Surprising Lessons from Psalm 91 You Probably Never Heard Of, 12 Awesome Lessons We Learn from the Healing of the Man Blind from Birth (John 9:1-41), 12 Important Lessons We Learn from the Temptation of Jesus Christ, 10 Little-Known Lessons from the life of Tabitha (Dorcas) in Acts 9:36-43, The Plain Truth About Tithing [YouTube Shorts compilation], 3 types of heaven in the Bible [1-minute video]. It is all full of lies and robbery. Whenever we come to think that someone is beyond Gods love, or they have committed acts so vile as to be forever separated from God, then it is time for us to return to the book of Jonah. Its like what my pastor says, Earthly obedience, brings forth spiritual release. If that were so we would never be saved. God loves us as much as He loves the people outside of the church. 5) He is thrown into the water. (b)How did Jehovah deal with his distressed prophet? 7,8. Jonah found Nineveh to be a huge city full of wrongdoing. How much more will God hear your prayers as you cry out for a wayward child? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. The Lords states that Jonah mourns the loss of the Gourd which came up in a day and was lost in a daya nothing and trivial thing. I hope they will fail., Oh why cant my angry boss just be gone., At times, we are so busy in saying that, I hope he gets what he deserves.. Im having trouble understanding the story. The book of Jonah is often characterized by liberal theologians as a metaphorical story to teach Israel to be more open to others. As Jonah obeys God the people of Nineveh believe God's message and repent. Jonah was the man who prayed to God from the belly of the great fish, seeking God's mercy Praising God because He was a God who heard his prayer The God Who Jonah declared was the one responsible for salvation His mercy isnt just limited to His people, but He also extends it to those outside of Israel. The book is historical and refers to what became one of the greatest revivals in the history of humankind. Long story short they toss him overboard, but before doing so they ask God to forgive them. Under the intolerably beating sun, Jonah cries out to God in anger, and this time simply begs for death. Jonah is mad at the Lord, so the Lord tried to teach him. Jonah's ordeal inside the belly of the whale certainly evokes Christ's death and resurrection over the same time period. He sovereignly orchestrates creation by appointing it to do his will. *. We read: To Jonah, though, it was highly displeasing, and he got to be hot with anger. (Jonah 4:1) Jonah even uttered a prayer that sounds like a rebuke of the Almighty! Evidently, though, Jonahs merciful God still saw good in this distressed prophet.

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