Readings for the day: Jonah 1-4
Jonah is a great book. Especially when we read chonologically. We just finished reading about the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel by the Assyrians and now we read of God’s prophetic attempt to call those same Assyrians to repentance. Jonah is an unwilling prophet to say the least. He must have had a tremendously frustrating career. His own people refuse to follow the Lord. They keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again. They are unfaithful. They are unworthy. They are idolatrous. They are evil. As a result, God sends the Assyrians to punish them. To drive them to their knees in humility and repentance. When that doesn’t work, those same Assyrians become the instrument of His righteous judgment on His own people. One can only imagine the hatred a man like Jonah would harbor for such people. They are Gentiles. Unbelievers. Unclean. Unworthy of God’s grace. But then he receives the call to go and preach the gospel to them. What the heck?!
Jonah is a great book to read today. Our world is full of hatred and enmity. Social media gives full vent to our anger and rage. Judging others seems to be the order of the day and grace is in short supply. If someone disagrees with you, they are almost sub-human. Worthy only to be unfriended, unfollowed, and publicly shamed. If someone questions you, they become a target. Attacked. Torn down. Their character assassinated. If someone doesn’t affirm you, they get cut out of your life almost immediately. It is sad and disheartening and ultimately self-destructive.
Perhaps this is why Jesus calls us to love our enemies. Love humanizes. Love requires grace and forgiveness. Love requires listening and humility. Ultimately, love is selfless. It forces us to take a good hard look at ourselves, our motives, our intentions, and lay them aside before engaging others. It celebrates diversity and assumes the best of others. It honors difference and dignifies those who disagree. It is deeply practical. And it is what should set believers apart from the rest of the world.
Unfortunately, believers seem to have forgotten this command. They explain it away. Rationalize it. Reject it. And the result is only more pain as the vicious cycle continues. Every believer should ponder and pray over the closing words of Jonah...“When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, "It is better for me to die than to live." But God said to Jonah, "Do you do well to be angry for the plant?" And he said, "Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die." And the Lord said, "You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?" (Jonah 4:8-11) We need to ask ourselves if we do well to be so angry? So enraged? We need to ask ourselves if we pity those who are like us more than those who are different? Pity those who agree with us more than those who disagree? Pity our friends more than our enemies? Should God not pity Democrats and Republicans? Liberals and conservatives? Whites and blacks? Asians and Latinos? Aboriginal people as well as immigrants? Should God not pity Americans as well as Mexicans? Israelis as well as Palestinians? North as well as South Koreans? Should God not pity Trump supporters as well as Hilary supporters? Rich as well as poor? Privileged as well as under-privileged? The list is infinite but thankfully so is God’s grace.
Who are you at war with in your life today? Who engenders hatred in your heart? What enemies is God calling you to reach? Will you go? Or will you run?