Daily Devotional for Thursday, July 30

Jonah in Discouragement

“Therefore now, O Lord, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live,” Jonah 4:3.
We live in an extremely wicked world, filled with all types of unthinkable hatred and violence. It is especially shocking to see violent acts being committed on the most defenseless; the elderly and children. It stirs anger within. I find myself screaming inside, “put down your phone and help those poor people!”. Brutality is happening around us daily and many have become apathetic. Jesus said, “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Matthew 24:12). As God’s people, we desire swift punishment for such cruel behavior, and rightly so. But how often do we consider the spiritual condition of the wicked? It is not natural to pray for those who have committed such atrocities, yet, we must remember Christ died for them too.
Nineveh was filled with wickedness and violence (Jonah 1:2; 3:8). Jonah must have been greatly impacted by the brutality of Nineveh, either directly or indirectly. God’s Word does not specifically give us that information. But Jonah was not rejoicing that the people of Nineveh repented and turned to the Lord. Rather, he was angry that God withheld judgment and showed mercy toward them. He became so downcast that he wished himself dead.
It is sometimes easy to forget that Jesus died for every person and that salvation is offered to all (2 Corinthians 5:15; Hebrews 2:9). We may be so disgusted at the level of sin of an individual, that we deem them unworthy of God’s mercy. Yet truly, none of us are worthy. “For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared” (Titus 3:3, 4). The love of our Lord Jesus Christ can change the most wicked heart.

REFLECTION
Have you judged someone unworthy of the gospel?

Darla Goodrum