Jonah 4

, Rough Draft

Big Idea - Those who are forgiven much love much.

Opening illustration -

In the 1990’s Ruwanda was a killing field. 2 African ethnic groups hated each other. The man on the left, Godfreed lived in the same town as the woman on the left Evasta, he hated her because she had a different Ethnic background. He hated her so much that he tried to kill Evasta and her children by setting their home on fire while the were at home. Before the attempted murder Evasta had never offended Godfreed or lashed out at him. He simply hated her for who she was.

on the right simply because she was from a different ethnic group. In the US - we would say thatsays this about his hatred of the woman on the right.

MUDAHERANWA: “I burned her house. I attacked her in order to kill her and her children, but God protected them, and they escaped. When I was released from jail, if I saw her, I would run and hide. Then AMI started to provide us with trainings. I decided to ask her for forgiveness. To have good relationships with the person to whom you did evil deeds — we thank God.”

Godfreed said this: “I burned her house. I attacked her in order to kill her and her children, but God protected them, and they escaped. When I was released from jail, if I saw her, I would run and hide. I decided to ask her for forgiveness. She forgave me.”

It is critical to understand this truth -

Evasta on the right said this: “I used to hate him. When he came to my house and knelt down before me and asked for forgiveness, I was moved by his sincerity. Now, if I cry for help, he comes to rescue me. When I face any issue, I call him.

Godfreed has even helped build a house for Evasta and her family.

Why is Godfreed willing to help Evasta when she needs it, why is he now willing to protect her if she cries for help? Why is he willing to help build her a new home?

Because - He has been forgiven much.

Godfreed loves much and has compassion on Evasta because he has been forgiven much.

He has been forgiven much. Godfreed loves much and has compassion on Evasta because he has been forgiven much.

”It is critical to understand this truth -

The degree to which you understand how much you have been forgiven, the more your heart is tenderized toward others.

Spiritually we say it this way, The more you understand your spiritual failure and how much you have been forgiven by God the more you’ll love the Lord for saving you.

However, WHEN YOU DO NOT SEE AND KNOW HOW MUCH YOU HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, YOU DO NOT LOVE WELL.

Today we will see with Jonah that he had no compassion on the people He was told be God to go and preach to -Ninevites.

Transition - Today we will see that Jonah had a problem with seeing his own spiritual failure and forgiveness by God & therefore would not offer compassion to others.

Transition, Let’s begin our message today with remembering what has happened so far in the story.

Review -

Chapter 1

Jonah is called to preach to a people (Ninevites) that were hated because of their cruelty. In war they would torture those who resisted them.

Jonah and many others hated the Ninevites.

Jonah is told to go preach a message of salvation to them.

Jonah refuses to have compassion.

Jonah runs away from God - taking a ship for Spain opposite of the direction (north east) to Nineveh.

Jonah runs away from God - taking a ship for Spain opposite of the direction (north east) to Nineveh.

Jonah is thrown overboard during a terrible storm that God sent, swallowed by a fish.

Chapter 2 - Pay attention to this. Jonah repents from running from God. ...Cries out to the Lord from the stomach of the fish. Jonah receives compassion from God, is forgiven, is spit out of the fish’s stomach and lives.

Chapter 2 - Pay attention to this. Jonah repents. Cries out to the Lord.

Chapter 3 - Jonah preaches a message of judgement and the Ninevites turn to God. A miracle takes place 120,000 people who had very little understanding of the Bible and the God of the Bible are saved.

Chapter 4 -

Jonah is angry with God because God did not give the Ninevites justice.

Jonah is angry that the Ninevites (his enemies) were not destroyed.

Jonah hated the Ninevites.

He wanted them to be destroyed.

Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. Assyrians terrorized those peoples or nations who did not immediately surrender to them.

Side application -

When you live in fear you start to hate those who dominate you or threaten to dominate you. (Repeat)

-There are those in this room who have lived in fear of a parent

-Not the fear of righteous hard discipline.

-The fear of abuse, verbal and physical.

-Some in this room have feared sexual abuse from someone stronger than you.

The one abused can struggle with anger or hate toward that person who abused you or threatened to abuse you.

The Israelites would hate the threat of being terrorized by the Ninevites.

Jonah and the Israelites wanted justice for the Ninevites.

Here is Jonah’s problem - God did not give the Ninevites justice.

Because the Ninevites repented God gave them mercy.

-The whole city (120,000 turned from their evil to God and God chose not to destroy them. He showed them mercy. )

120,000 people repented and turned to God.

Many in this room would give their left hand if God would use you to speak a message that brought 120,000 people to salvation.

This is an absolute miracle! God saved 120,000 pagan people.

God did not give the Ninevites justice.

Transition - Check out Jonah’s attitude

Jonah 4:1 ESV

1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.

Jon

Jonah had no desire for the people to receive mercy. He wanted them to receive justice.

Jonah wanted the people get what they deserved. Jonah wanted justice - their destruction.

Look at what Jonah Complains to God about in verse 2.

Jonah 4:2–3 ESV

2 And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. 3 Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.”

The irony with Jonah is this - Jonah deserved just as much justice as the Ninevites did.

Jonah - IN chapter 1 Jonah heard a clear command from God and disobeyed. God clearly spoke to Jonah and he refused.

-The Ninevites were more tender spiritually than Jonah. They heard their first warning from God, and immediately took action and repented.

-Who is the greater offender, the one who has the Bible & hears a special word from God and refuses to obey… or the one who has never had the scripture and at their first warning from God they respond immediately?

Who is the greater offender?

In many ways Jonah was the greater offender, but God still showed him mercy.

Now he is angry at the mercy shown the Ninevites.

Hang on to this - Jonah doesn’t know how much He as been forgiven. (Repeat)

Point - He who has been forgiven much loves much (loves God and others much)

Ephesians 2 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. 11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Question (transition), If you are Christ follower, do you know how much you have been forgiven?

For a Christ follower to love God deeply and have compassion on others - it is critical to know how much we have been forgiven.

Would you turn with me to :1-5

Ephesians 2:1–5 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

If you are a fully trusting Christ follower, this is who you were.

If you have not surrendered your life to Christ this is who you are.

Vs. 1 Dead in sin - we were spiritually helpless, blind because of our sin

Vs. 2, Following the rebellion of the world, we went our own way

Vs. 2 Following Satan, “Prince of the Power of the Air”

Yes - you followed Satan.

Doing what we wanted - selfish

Vs. 3 Doing what we wanted - selfish, not what God wanted.

Vs. 3 Children of wrath - God’s smoldering furry was pointed at us

We were absolutely lost and headed to Hell. Unable to help ourself.

Illustration - A friend of mine describes us this way.

We were so lost that we were laying dead on the deepest ocean floor.

God reached down, scraped his knuckles on the bottom and lifted us up.

God has shown you mercy and forgiven you. He poured out His love on you.

Then after salvation - there have been some pretty heavy spiritual failures.

God has still shown us mercy

Our response? - We worship this merciful God

show compassion to others

Love God, love others

Central Truth - He who has been forgiven much loves much.

He who has been forgiven much loves God much and loves other much.

Closing ----

You say, I’ve been struggling to love God much and love others much.

-Would you pray and ask God to open your eyes to how much He has forgiven you for. Read back through .

You have a desire to love others well..

Who is God calling you to show mercy to?

Who is He calling you to have compassion on?

How will you have compassion?

What will you do?

Let’s pray.

Question - Did the Ninevites deserve justice? Did they deserve to be destroyed? Yes

Just because you repent, doesn’t mean that your past sins are paid for by your repentance.

Illustration of God’s justice - If someone stole your car and wrecked it … and the judge at the thief’s trial just let the thief off … no punishment … would he be a good judge? No - he would not be a good judge. Even if the thief repented.

God is a good judge. How is He a good judge if he shows mercy to the Ninevites who deserve destruction?

Answer - Because the punishment of the repentant Ninevites will be placed on the coming savior.

Just as we today look back to the Cross for salvation. The people of the O.T. looked forward to the work of the Cross for their salvation. Clean this up.

Mercy is not getting what you deserve.

Clean this up.

When the Judge of the earth gives mercy, it is a perfect mercy.

Why?

God’s mercy is based on the future payment of the God man - Jesus Christ.

One of the greatest spiritual errors of our time is the belief that everyone one deserves a second chance.

Christ took on the punishment of the guilty (not sure if this is weeds).

We all deserve justice - we all deserve to go to hell.

You know what is

If in some very odd (unbiblical) scenario, If God changed His mind and sent true Christ followers to hell - we would get what we deserve. God would be fare.

Jonah deserved justice as well.

Jonah was given a prophetic message to proclaim and He ran from God. He should have been killed immediately.

Instead - God sends mercy.

God sends a fish and convinces Jonah to repent.

Why did Jonah have such an unmerciful and unloving attitude attitude toward the Ninevites?

Answer, He did not understand how much he personally had been forgiven.

Point 2?

I must remind myself what I have been saved from.

Enter

Ephesians 2:1–3 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Saved from:

deadness

Following the world

following Satan

(yes, this is your children too)

the passions and desires

Our position

Wrath - just like everyone else.

Illustration of the Plant.

God grew the plant, God removed the plant, God can do what He wants.

God in His kindness and mercy sent a message of salvation to the Ninevites and softened their hearts to respond to it.

Jonah didn’t save the Ninevites, God saved the Ninevites.

If you are a Christ follower - God has sent a message of salvation too and softened your heart to respond to it.

God

Let me give you an example.

-You didn’t choose your family, but maybe through your family you heard the Gospel.

-You didn’t choose where you would be born, but maybe due to the area you would be born (Bible belt), you heard the Gospel.

-You didn’t choose the church or school you would attend as a child, but through God’s mercy, you heard the Gospel.

-You didn’t choose if you would have a tender disposition to the Word of God, but you were tender and God gave you that tenderness. Others in your same situation rejected the Gospel, but you beleived

Why and how did you believe?

By God’s kind mercy He worked a miracle of grace in your life.

Illustration - YDC Boy raped his younger handicaped brother. What’s the difference between you and the rapist? God’s kind mercy.

When you soak in God’s kind mercy - you extend God’s kind mercy.

The book of Jonah does not have a happy ending … It ends with Jonah having a proud confused heart.

It ends with him sitting down outside the city hoping that God would still destroy it...

(Enter - when you are forgiven much, you love much)

Jonah did not know how much He had been forgiven.

When you know how much you have been forgiven you extend mercy to others.

Why? Answer - That person in that broken situation could easily be you. The only reason it is not is God’s grace on your life.

The greatest mercy you can give someone is sharing the Gospel with them.