Sunday: Jonah in Nineveh
Read Jonah 3:4-4:6. What serious attitude problem does this prophet have?
In Jonah 4:1-11, the prophet Jonah sits down east of the great city of Nineveh. He has delivered the message of doom that God has entrusted to him. He reflects on his journey, his reluctance to come to Nineveh, his runaway tactics, God’s insistence in getting Jonah back on mission, the three-day episode in the fish, and the long journey inland from the coast.
Image © Lars Justinen Goodsalt.com
And for what? For God to turn around and show His grace on these despicable people? The people repented, but Jonah now feels betrayed. He feels dishonored and used. His hope had been that the destruction of this heathen city of 120,000 inhabitants would show God’s preference for His chosen people and vindicate Jonah’s hatred for the Ninevites.
Read Luke 19:38-42. What is happening here, and what is Jesus’ attitude toward the city of Jerusalem?
Eight hundred years after Jonah, Jesus rides on a donkey over the crest of a hill overlooking Jerusalem. Shouts of praise to the “King who comes in the name of the Lord” are heard, along with echoes of hope declaring “ ‘peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’ ”(Luke 19:38, NIV). In the midst of this triumphal entry Jesus, as He approaches the city, stops and weeps, saying, “ ‘If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace’ ” (Luke 19:42, NIV).
Note the contrast. Jonah reluctantly obeyed the command of God, caring little for the good of the inhabitants of Nineveh. Jesus approaches Jerusalem with one burden on His heart: that they might have the salvation He offers, and at such a high cost.
Two cities: Nineveh and Jerusalem. Two messengers: Jonah and Jesus. The difference is obvious. Jesus exemplifies the selfless, caring attitude that desires the good of the people. May we, through God’s grace, reveal that same attitude as Jesus did toward the lost.
| How might selfishness play into the attitude that leaves someone unconcerned about the salvation of others? |
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Today people's attitude reflect there feelings. Love is the core of a christian. But it is rarely shown.
Just as in society. Those who have looks down on those who do not. Jonah looked down on Nineveh because he believe that the chosen of God was more important. Jesus shows that all are sinful but his love and mercy is for all. That shows what and how a christian should be.
Today Christians are like Jonah, we feel that the message given is for us alone. But it is for everyone. No matter what religion. Showing love and helping where there is need is more than doctrine. If we loved and acted like Jesus we would have a rich harvest of friends and brothers and sisters in Christ.
LORD JESUS ,i pray let us see the beauty of you character and seek after it,for like Jonah we are uncaring when our neighbors are dying without hope and without God.Fill us with your holy spirit and our attitude will change.Did you not promise to change us from inside out?
Jonah cherished a proud and uncharitable spirit towards the people of Nineveh. He first ran away from Ninevah, infact fled from the face of God and only came back to declare a message of doom expecting to witness their destruction, by so doing flew in the face of God. He had little or no affection for the Ninevites. He seemed to exhibit typical characteristics of sinful human beings viz selfishness, judgemental, hypocritical etc He even dread the success of his laudible effort. As such the incident has a number of lessons for us:-
(1) our ways are not God's ways - God is merciful, compassionate, loving and gracious to forgive us if we are willing to confess our sins;
(2) As we saw in last week's lesson we are to propagate the gospel with empathy as Jesus did;
(3) its not our place to judge others instead God wants us to be involved in His redemptive work;
(4) no one need to be lost, there's hope for the penitent sinner
God is pleading with you and me to come and reason with Him (Isaiah 1:18-19). He is yearning to restore the broken relationship with humanity. We are to manifest God's character
Matthew 13:The Parable of the Net
47“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The net is cast into the sea to gather all kinds of fishes, it is not the job of the net to decide which fish is good and bad but just to collect the fish. we too are like nets cast in the sea, we are to preach the gospel to all nations without preferences. It is the job of the fisherman to decide which of the fish is bad and which is good. We are not to judge because there is coming a time when the separation will be done. Just as the fisherman separated the good and the bad fish Angels too will separate those that belong to God and those that don't.
The story of Jonah should teach us a great lesson for us to love our neighbor as our self.
True Isaac; but how do we express that love in a practical way. Maybe you have some suggestions.
Here is something to think about. We live in an age where we often have as many "Internet" neighbors as physical neighbors. Using the word "neighbor" in the sense of someone who we interact with, how do we love our neighbor?
What are the great principles of Christian neighborly interaction that we can apply in the digital world?
This is taken from Lesson 5 (Jesus on community outreach, Monday, Loving Your neighbor)
Loving Your Neighbor
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself” (Luke 10:27).
Read Luke 10:25-37. What message is given here to us in regard to the whole question of helping those in need?
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The expert in the law understood that all the commandments revolve around loving God with all you have and loving your neighbor as yourself. The question that remained to be answered was “Who is my neighbor?”
Given that the prevailing thought among the people of Israel in Christ’s time was to favor their own kind as neighbors and relegate all others as outsiders, this expert in the law sought to have Jesus clarify the issue. The parable that Jesus tells reveals a totally different perspective. Our neighbor is anyone we encounter who is in need. Being a neighbor is meeting the needs of a neighbor. The priest and the Levite were more concerned about defiling themselves and protecting their godly duties from contamination. What a convenient way to use their religion as an excuse not to have to die to self in order to help someone who, most likely, could never pay them back.
In contrast, the Samaritan saw this wounded “outsider” and “enemy” as his neighbor, mercifully meeting his needs rather than his own. The point is that instead of asking “Who is my neighbor?” we need to be asking, “Who will be a neighbor to the downtrodden and oppressed?” It doesn’t matter who a person is: The one in need is the one whom we should help-period.
“No distinction on account of nationality, race, or caste, is recognized by God. He is the Maker of all mankind. All men are of one family by creation, and all are one through redemption. Christ came to demolish every wall of partition, to throw open every compartment of the temple, that every soul may have free access to God. His love is so broad, so deep, so full, that it penetrates everywhere.” - Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 386.