“Who Cares? God Cares!”
Jonah 4:1-11
Pastor John Bright
Jonah 4 “1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. 2 So he prayed to the Lord, and said, “Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. 3 Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!”
4 Then the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
5 So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city. 6 And the Lord God prepared a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah was very grateful for the plant. 7 But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered. 8 And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”
And he said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!”
10 But the Lord said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”
There are many different gospels out in the world today.
One says that if you let God fill the hole in your heart – all your problems will suddenly and completely disappear.
Another gospel says bad things only happen after you are sinning against God – He is simply removing the prosperity and blessing promised to you as a punishment.
Neither of these sound like what we read in our Bibles. Jonah chapter 4 is very clear in this area.
The Cullinan Diamond is the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found, weighing 3,106.75 carats, discovered in 1905. It was named after Thomas Cullinan, the mine's chairman. In 1907, it was presented to Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom, who had it cut by the Asscher Brothers. in Amsterdam. On February 10, 1908, the rough stone was split in half by Joseph Asscher. This happened only after months of planning that marked a place on the stone for an incision that was a half inch deep. This enabled Joseph to cleave the stone with one blow. Making the incision took four days and their first attempt broke a steel knife. The whole process took eight months, with three people working 14-hour days.
The end results:
• the Great Star of Africa, weighing in at 530.4 carats, it is the largest clear-cut diamond in the world
• the Second Star of Africa, weighing 317.4 carats
• seven other diamonds that totaled 208 carats
• With a final total of the stones above equaling 1,055 carats – that means they lost 2000 carats
God sees each of you as a precious jewel. In Ephesians 1, Paul prays for the church – “17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power…”
Right in the middle of that, we are described as “the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” WOW! We must be really precious!
Maybe you don’t feel that way. I’m not surprised. Some of us still need to be cut and polished to truly shine the Light of Christ. Some of us, like that Cullinan diamond, may have to lose a lot in the process. You see – the True Gospel calls you to die to self in Matthew 16” 24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”
This True Gospel, that is God’s plan for my life, has one big problem… it doesn’t fit with what I want!
Jonah didn’t care much for God’s plan, either. He says so in v.9 “, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!”
He knew the Assyrians were blood-thirsty savages. He wanted them judged and destroyed. (Good thing we don’t look at anybody that way – wink, wink.) Remember the boat ride from Chapter 1? God told Jonah to go east and he got on a boat going west. Now he sees the Ninevites forgiven by God. It was painful for him to watch.
We will always experience pain in this life. We live in a “fallen world.” What is hard to understand is that pain can be a part of God’s plan. Too often, it’s pain that causes folks to question the goodness of God.
Don’t miss this part of the story – the worst part of this Old Testament book – the city of Nineveh is spared by that mean and nasty God of the Old Testament. Listen to how Jonah describes that mean and nasty God of the Old Testament – v. 2 “for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm…” That really sounds like a God of Grace – like we think of in the New Testament. Is this the only place in the Old Testament we hear these words? Nope!
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” Genesis 6:8
“The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” Psalm 103:8
“The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness…” Exodus 34:6
‘The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression…” Numbers 14:18
“The Lord is slow to anger and great in power...” Nahum 1:3
“But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Psalm 86:15
I think you get the idea – the God of the Old Testament is a God of Grace. He has a plan for Jonah and a plan for you. In Jonah’s case, God’s plan included a supernatural plant - v. 6 “And the Lord God prepared a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah was very grateful for the plant.”
In the very next verse, the God of Grace sent a supernatural worm – v. 7 “But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered.” Jonah did not care one bit for God’s worm.
Gardeners keep a sharp eye out for one especially destructive pest – the cut worm. They will destroy the entire plant by eating through the stem, sometimes they do that just below the surface of the soil. They are a nuisance that has to be dealt with quickly. For Jonah, this supernatural worm didn’t take away his home-grown tomatoes – that worm took away what give him comfort.
Here’s a little quiz – whose vine was it? ______________________ It was God’s. It was a gift to be used by Jonah. So, Jonah was it’s steward or manager.
Everything we have, who owns it? ______________________ God owns it and we manage it.
Job had it right when he said, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21)
Jesus told a parable about building barns in Luke 12 – “16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
What is around this area that has survived from 200 years ago? What that is here right now, will still be around 200 years in the future?
Our money and our health is God’s. Every penny and every breath is a gift from God.
Jonah has no care or love in his heart for the 120,000 people in Nineveh – lost people. He cared more for his own plan and his own comfort. Does this sound familiar? So, Jonah struggled with a merciful God of Grace. He had a hard time imagining a God who cared more for the lost than for his own personal comfort.
Last week – told you – God has a plan to use you!
The cruise ship RMS Titanic carried 20 life boats that were capable of holding 1,178 people. There were 2,208 passengers and crew on board when it struck an iceberg on April 14, 1912. They loaded 18 of the 20 lifeboats – most were half full. Some of the last to launch were over filled. They were trained to row away from the ship. Only 2 turned back for people in the water. That night, their cries filled the night. Cries for help as they drowned. Only 705 people survived.
Those lifeboats have been used as a metaphor to describe the church of today. We gather in our life boats, comfortable and well decorated lifeboats. We sing our lifeboat songs and say our lifeboat prayers. All the while, we steadily row away from a world crying out for help – for salvation.
Part of God’s plan is for each of us to reach out. He has a plan for you and me reach others, but do we care?
Do……..
We……..
Care?
Amen.
TEACHING SHEET
Jonah 4:1-11
Series: “Jonah: God’s Reluctant Prophet”
“Who Cares? God Cares!”
The Cullinan Diamond was the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found, weighing 3,106.75 carats. In 1907, it was presented it to Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom, who had it cut by Asscher Brothers in Amsterdam. On 10 February 1908, the rough stone was split in half by Joseph Asscher at his diamond-cutting factory in Amsterdam. After weeks of planning, an incision 0.5 inches deep was made to enable Asscher to cleave the diamond in one blow. Making the incision alone took four days, and a steel knife broke on the first attempt. In all, splitting and cutting the diamond took eight months, with three people working 14 hours per day to complete the task.
To get the most beauty out of the life God designed for you… it sometimes takes a mighty blow. And why not? You are a most precious jewel in the eyes of God!
Jonah didn’t care for God’s plan: v. 11 “Should I not be concerned…”
There will ALWAYS be things in life that cause us pain but they can still be part of God’s plan. Do you question God’s plan for your life?
Old Testament God vs New Testament God
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord” Genesis 6:8
“The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” Psalm 103:8
“The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness…” Exodus 34:6
‘The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression…” Numbers 14:18
“The Lord is slow to anger and great in power...” Nahum 1:3
“But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Psalm 86:15
Jonah didn’t care for God’s worm: v. 7 “But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm…”
Job 1:21 “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;
Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Luke 12:17-20
Is there anything you have that will still be here in 200 years?
Jonah didn’t care for God’s people: v. 11 “…more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left…”
Are you able to imagine a God who cares more for the lost and lonely than for your personal comfort?
Of the 18 lifeboats that launched from the RMS Titanic, only two turned around to get folks out of the water. Their cries for help filled the ears of those in all the boats.
Is this a picture of the church today? Remember – God has put you here to use you, not please you. God has people for us to reach this very day… right here… do we care?
