But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry

Jonah 3-4 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

3 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, ² “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and proclaim to it the proclamation which I am going to tell you.” ³ So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three days’ walk. ⁴ Then Jonah began to go through the city one day’s walk; and he cried out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

⁵ Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. ⁶ When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes. ⁷ He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water. ⁸ But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands. ⁹ Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish.”

¹⁰ When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.

4 But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry. ² He prayed to the Lord and said, “Please Lord, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. ³ Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for death is better to me than life.” ⁴ The Lord said, “Do you have good reason to be angry?”

⁵ Then Jonah went out from the city and sat east of it. There he made a shelter for himself and sat under it in the shade until he could see what would happen in the city. ⁶ So the Lord God appointed a plant and it grew up over Jonah to be a shade over his head to deliver him from his discomfort. And Jonah was extremely happy about the plant. ⁷ But God appointed a worm when dawn came the next day and it attacked the plant and it withered. ⁸ When the sun came up God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he became faint and begged with all his soul to die, saying, “Death is better to me than life.”

⁹ Then God said to Jonah, “Do you have good reason to be angry about the plant?” And he said, “I have good reason to be angry, even to death.” ¹⁰ Then the Lord said, “You had compassion on the plant for which you did not work and which you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. ¹¹ Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?”

Today’s text, the account of the repentance of the city of Nineveh, takes place after the more familiar story when Jonah, trying to run from God’s will was swallowed up by a great fish. We sometimes here comparisons to that when people today, running from or avoiding God’s will find themselves stuck in a place where God has their full attention. In this account, I believe we see a situation or attitude that plays out more frequently in our own lives.

Most people in the church say they want to do God’s will. Many say they want to be used mightily for God’s purposes.  Look at what Jonah says after the entire city turns, repents and is spared from destruction at his preaching:         “ But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry. ² He prayed to the Lord and said, “Please Lord, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity.”       Rather than celebrate the deliverance of Nineveh and rejoice that he had been privileged to participate in God’s work, Jonah was angry, he felt as though the city deserved judgment rather than God’s grace.

We too often reveal our hearts when we seek God’s judgment or wrath on others rather than His grace. God see all of the evil in people and God knows the hearts of people. He does not need us to point out there unrighteousness and darkness. We, as believers, as those who have received God’s grace, need to remember: Regardless of the darkness of people,  ^“our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”(Ephesians 6:12)  Let me clarify one thing; this is not about the governments mandate to defend and protect its citizens by whatever means and force it deems necessary, the government may at times need to use destructive force against the enemies of its citizens. As believers, we should support our own government and pray for them to have wisdom in carrying out their mandate to protect and defend.

I want us to consider the mandate of the church and believers. Along with praying for and supporting our government in its responsibility to protect and defend, we need to remember what Ephesians 6:12 says. Our primary focus as believers, when we engage they enemies should not be the flesh and blood, but rather the forces of evil and darkness which drive them. We should remember what Paul writes in Romans 12:19.     “ Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.”     We should also keep in mind what is written in 2 Peter 3:9,    “ The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”      We have looked recently and are continuing to look at what will happen in the last days, both before and when Christ returns. We see and understand in scripture that when that day of Christ’s return comes He will no longer be the babe in a manger, He will no longer be the meek and mild servant of others, when Jesus Christ returns He will be a conquering King. He will return as judge of all and He will take vengeance against His enemies.

Still God says:  “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,”   When we confront the evil that is in the world we should remember the time and season of the Lord we are in. We who have come to know and experience the love and grace of God should desire that for others, not the judgment they may deserve. There are two thrones in heaven upon which God and Christ are seated. One is the Judgment seat, where everyone who has ever lived will appear before God and His Christ to be judged. We will either be judged for our own actions or judged according to the righteousness of Christ. The other throne in heaven is the throne of grace. Hebrews 4:14-16 says this:

 Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵ For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

For those of us who are in Christ, who have experienced the forgiveness of His grace, we can come boldly to the throne of grace. We cannot though, go to the throne of grace to seek judgment of others. We need to remember that when we go to God seeking judgment we ourselves will be subject to the judgment we seek. Matthew 7:1-2 says:      “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. ² For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.”         This does not mean that we accept or tolerate the sin and darkness of others. It means only that we should seek first that they come to see and choose the light rather than darkness so that they too may be judged by God’s grace.

We, like Jonah, may be called to deliver a hard message of the coming judgment of the righteous king. We though should seek for and rejoice at the turning and repentance of our enemies. The message we are to preach is the good news of the gospel. The good news that “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”     We are to share the good news that the same one who will judge each person is the one who died to save them.   How wonderful to look into the face of the judge of all mankind and to know Him as Lord and Savior.   

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit forgive me for the times when I have, like Jonah preferred to see Your judgment on men rather than Your grace. Holy Spirit keep me in tune with the will of God the Father and Jesus Christ, His Son, my Savior and Lord.  Thank You for those whose job it is to protect and defend, grant our leaders in government and the military wisdom and discernment and grant all those who serve to protect and defend safety and peace. Guide me in Your will and I will count it a privilege and a blessing to be used for Your glory.  Amen.