The Encourager

But Jonah…Jonah 1:3

Instead doing what God asked of him, Jonah ran the other way. The Bible says he went to Tarshish, which is the opposite direction of Nineveh. Jonah reminds us of the times we ran the wrong way. We have all missed those opportunities when the door was wide open. Thank God for His mercy and grace.

Eventually Jonah went to Nineveh. And the sinners in that great city did exactly what Jonah was afraid they would do: they repented. Jonah did not like the people of Nineveh. He thought they all deserve God’s wrath. But he knew if they repented God would forgive, which God did; He forgave. This is the power of grace.

Prayer is the power of life. Forgiveness is the fuel. This is what Paul experienced on the road to Damascus; divine forgiveness. This is what Paul wrote to the churches: even as God in Christ forgave you, Ephesians 4:32: And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. And again, in Colossians 3:13: bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.

Paul is bringing forward the relief Jonah received to the church. Once Jonah saw the light, literally, he knew what to do: go to Nineveh. Likewise, once we have experienced The Light and His grace, we know what to do. Unless we enjoy the confines of the very unpleasant three days and three nights of Jonah, we move on. Note: forgiveness comes from the same Greek root word as grace. Not a coincidence! This is having the heart of Barnabas the Encourager.