Reflecting God’s Compassion … Submissively

As we come to the final chapter of the book of Jonah, we look back and remember to what we, as God’s people, have been called: To reflect God’s compassionate character to the world around us and to do so obediently (chapter 1), consistently (chapter 2), and indiscriminately (chapter 3). And, no doubt, we want to do those things! So, what stops us? Why do we still struggle from time-to-time like Jonah—with disobedience, with self-righteousness, and with biased love? Chapter 4 reveals what was at the root of the prophet’s battle, and what could be at the root of ours as well. In this concluding section of the book we find that what we, as God’s people have, is often not an understanding problem (a lack of information or clarity) but a submission problem (a lack of willingness to sacrifice). Key Passage: Jonah 4 Speaker: Josiah Boyd