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The Call of Jonah

October 11th, 2010

The call of Jonah comes at the beginning of the book of Jonah.  “The word of the LORD came to Jonah, ‘Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.’”

Jonah’s response was to run away from the LORD.  Why might we run away from God when He calls us to serve Him?  Perhaps we don’t like the mission.  Perhaps we are afraid of failure, or in Jonah’s case, we might be afraid of success. 

It becomes clear as the story goes that Jonah lacked love for the people of Nineveh.  When Jonah eventually went to Nineveh and proclaimed impending judgment, the Ninevites believed God. They actually heeded Jonah’s words and repented.  God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways. He had compassion on them and did not bring upon them the destruction He had threatened. 

Jonah then becomes angry instead of rejoicing like the angels of heaven.  His lack of love for the Ninevites was exposed.

The story of Jonah is a lesson of faith for us to repent of our sins now, while we have time and trust in Jesus for salvation. Church leaders also are challenged to develop God’s heart of compassion for an unbelieving world that has drifted from God.

That’s today’s Mission Statement for representing Jesus in the world today.




  1. October 11th, 2010 at 15:39 | #1

    Great post, John. Jonah feared success .. I’ve never thought of the story in that light before.

    It’s an act of omission, compared to acts of commission, but we sin when we don’t live up to what we feel God has called us to excel at.

    It’s an encouragement to read these blogs. Keep up the good Work.

  2. Betsy Beck
    October 11th, 2010 at 19:59 | #2

    It’s amazing that God knew Jonah’s lack of love for the Ninevites and yet still called him to go and used him. That tells me that He will still use me.

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