Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish? Jonah 3:9
The hope of salvation to which the Ninevites could reach was slim. They had no revelation of the character of the God of Israel. They knew nothing of an atoning sacrifice. They had received no invitation to seek the Lord; not even a command to repent. Jonah came only with a warning—a warning that Nineveh would be overthrown in 40 days (Jon. 3:4).
Yet based on that warning, the whole city repented before God and He relented from His wrath! Jonah was no loving, tender pastor, anxious to gather lost sheep. In fact, he disliked the ministry he was called to. He had no sympathy for the Ninevites and offered no prayer for them. He was even displeased that the city was spared from God’s impending judgment. Yet the people believed his word and they believed his God. Now hear what Jesus said in Matthew 12:41, “The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.”
Indeed our Lord Jesus is greater than Jonah. He is our good Shepherd, and with loving kindness and tender mercies, He calls us to repentance. Isaiah 42:3 says this of our Lord, “A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.” Yet so many times we take the kindness and goodness of God for granted and are not quick to respond to Him in godly fear and reverence. Many times the Lord has corrected us, warned us and admonished us, and still we are unrepentant. Nineveh enjoyed no such privileges. Nineveh heard the prophet Jonah only once—it was an open-air sermon and the message was incredibly short! They had not received any hope or any assurance of God’s salvation; only a warning of His judgment.
In comparison, we are much better off. We are living in the new covenant where the atoning sacrifice for sin has been offered. The penalty for our sins has been paid. We are a new creation in Christ and we have become the temple of the Holy Spirit. It is no excuse, therefore, that we should receive the grace of God in vain (2 Cor. 6:1-2). Let us not put off till tomorrow our decision to obey the Lord. Let us examine ourselves and purify our hearts today. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
The hope of salvation to which the Ninevites could reach was slim. They had no revelation of the character of the God of Israel. They knew nothing of an atoning sacrifice. They had received no invitation to seek the Lord; not even a command to repent. Jonah came only with a warning—a warning that Nineveh would be overthrown in 40 days (Jon. 3:4).
Yet based on that warning, the whole city repented before God and He relented from His wrath! Jonah was no loving, tender pastor, anxious to gather lost sheep. In fact, he disliked the ministry he was called to. He had no sympathy for the Ninevites and offered no prayer for them. He was even displeased that the city was spared from God’s impending judgment. Yet the people believed his word and they believed his God. Now hear what Jesus said in Matthew 12:41, “The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.”
Indeed our Lord Jesus is greater than Jonah. He is our good Shepherd, and with loving kindness and tender mercies, He calls us to repentance. Isaiah 42:3 says this of our Lord, “A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.” Yet so many times we take the kindness and goodness of God for granted and are not quick to respond to Him in godly fear and reverence. Many times the Lord has corrected us, warned us and admonished us, and still we are unrepentant. Nineveh enjoyed no such privileges. Nineveh heard the prophet Jonah only once—it was an open-air sermon and the message was incredibly short! They had not received any hope or any assurance of God’s salvation; only a warning of His judgment.
In comparison, we are much better off. We are living in the new covenant where the atoning sacrifice for sin has been offered. The penalty for our sins has been paid. We are a new creation in Christ and we have become the temple of the Holy Spirit. It is no excuse, therefore, that we should receive the grace of God in vain (2 Cor. 6:1-2). Let us not put off till tomorrow our decision to obey the Lord. Let us examine ourselves and purify our hearts today. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
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