Jonah and God's Big Mercy

If you were a Jewish man in the 900 B.C., the last place on earth you wanted to visit was the city of Nineveh! Nineveh was full of Assyrians—a group of wicked and violent people who did not follow God. Going to Nineveh to tell them about God was a dangerous—and possibly a deadly mission. No wonder Jonah didn’t want to go!

The real reason Jonah didn’t want to go to Nineveh was because he felt like these wicked people didn’t deserve God’s forgiveness. They were wicked and cruel, so how could God show them mercy? What Jonah didn’t understand is that God cared for the people of Nineveh as much as He cared for the rest of the world.

God wanted to see the Ninevites turn away from sin and trust in Him. So much so, that God used a big fish to get Jonah back to Nineveh when he tried to run away. Finally, Jonah reluctantly preached the message God had given and warned the people about God’s judgment. The people repented and God spared their lives.

The Bible tells us that God shows mercy on whomever He wants to show mercy. Jonah didn’t think the Ninevites deserved God’s mercy, but the truth is that none of us deserve His mercy. But God loved the world so much that He shows us His mercy through Jesus. Unlike Jonah, Jesus was willing to accept the mission God gave Him. Jesus came to save the sinners who God cared so much about.

God called Jonah to go to his enemies and call them to turn away from their sin, but Jonah refused. Instead, he ran away. Later, God sent Jesus to His enemies to call us to repentance. Jesus willingly obeyed. Jesus died on the cross to rescue us from sin.

Pray Together

God, thank You for showing mercy that we do not deserve. Thank You for sending Jesus to make Your mercy available to those who believe in Him. Help us to remember that Your mercy is great and extends to all who repent and believe.

For Fun Together

Take your family fishing. Or simulate fishing using sticks and string. See who can catch the biggest fish. (Or if all else fails, there’s always fish and chips!) Ask kids to retell what they remember from the story of Jonah. Discuss how Jonah did not want God to show mercy to the people of Nineveh, but God’s mercy is greater than anything we can imagine. 

Thank God for the ways He has shown His patience, mercy and loving kindess to your family. Thank Him for the ultimate display of mercy when Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sin. How has God shown His mercy to you? How does God’s mercy compel you to show mercy to others?