Unfair Graceናሙና

The story of Jonah might seem a little far-fetched for us today. But if we look at it closely, there is a lot we can learn from this tiny book in the Bible. Jonah was no different than any of us. He was just a regular guy. The Word of the Lord came to him. This was common in those days; God used prophets to bring His Word to the people. God’s message to Jonah was simple: go to this city of Nineveh and call them to repent for their sins. The purpose of preaching was to declare God’s hatred for sin and invite people constantly to accept God’s mercy.

The sins of this particular city, Nineveh, had reached a limit. It was so beyond God's limit that He had to intervene. Even though the city deserved God’s wrath, He did not order its destruction and was delighted to show His mercy. Here we learn more about the loving character of our God. He didn't wish anyone to perish. The Ninevites were not His people. They were a city made by a wicked but great king Nimrod. The people were sinful, idol worshippers, and an abomination to God. However, God wanted to offer them a chance to repent so that He could show his mercy to them. We see God’s big-heartedness not only to His own people but to “outsiders", people who were not part of the covenant.

Jonah’s problem was not that he didn’t want to go preach. His problem was that he was unable to deal with the mercy and grace that would be granted after the people would hear the word of the Lord and repent. We may think that’s messed up, but take a closer look at our own lives. Are we really “okay” with God forgiving others always? We see all the atrocities that happen within our city, our country, our world. The pain, persecution, countries at war…how can God possibly forgive these people who have done ….

After a few moments of introspection, we realize that we too are not too different from Jonah. Who are those people in our lives to whom we may not want God to grant his mercy? Let’s pray and ask God that we will be conduits of peace.