bChurchSchoolLessonb - Saint Matthew A.M.E. Church

THE IMPROVED ADULT TEACHER QUARTERLY

Lesson 2 March 14, 201O

COMMUNITY TO REDEEM

LESSON SCRIPTURE: JONAH 3:10-4:11

PRINT: JONAH 3:10-4:5

Key Verse: O, Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious
God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. Jonah 4:2. (NRSV)

JONAH 3:10-4:5 (NRSV)

10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

4:
1. But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry.

2. He prayed to the LORD and said, "O LORD! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tar'shish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing.

3. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live."

4. And the LORD said, "Is it right for you to be angry?"

5. Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city.

JONAH 3:10-4:5 (KJV)

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

4:
1. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.

2. And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.

3. Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.

4. Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?

5. So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.

HOME DAILY BIBLE READINGS
March 8-March 14

Monday — Psalm 130 (Great Power to Redeem)

Tuesday — Isaiah 59:9-15 (The Need for Redemption)

Wednesday - Isaiah 44:21-28 (The Lord, Your Redeemer)

Thursday — Isaiah 48:17-22 (The Lord Has Redeemed)

Friday — Ephesians 1:3-12 (In Christ We Have Redemption)

Saturday - Acts 26:12-18 (The Forgiveness of Sins)

Sunday — Jonah 3:10-4:5 (Being Right or Being Gracious)

INTRODUCTION

The Assyrians were a warrior nation that conquered many cultures, including the nation of Israel. Of all the nations on earth, why would God redeem Nineveh, the capital city of a backsliding nation? This is the country reputedly named Asshur, after Noah's grandson through Shem. He was worshipped by the Assyrians as their patriarch and chief god. Assyria, in a sense, was an example of the people of God who in the arrogance that accompanied their rise to power, considered God as obsolete and irrelevant to their community.

Jonah had a fierce dislike for the Assyrians. First he refused to answer God's call to go and "cry against" the Ninevites so that city could become the Gentile miracle child. This would be a stand for God's omnipotence among those who served idols or no god at all, a lost sheep welcomed back to the fold. Now, in today's lesson, we find that Jonah had another problem. He has completed the job God gave to him, but not without a great deal of animosity. He is jealous of God's new relationship with Nineveh.

BIBLE STORY

The Book of Jonah is the only book in the Bible whose central theme is the prophet and not the prophecy. Only one verse summarizes God's prophecy to the Ninevites - a one liner: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." The message was short and sweet, but Nineveh was super important to God. Even though Nineveh was destroyed one hundred years later in 612 B. C. by the Babylonians and the Meads, God gave the entire city an opportunity to repent and to turn to him.

Jonah could have ended with chapter three showing God's willingness to forgive the Ninevites. Like the Prodigal Son's father, God had compassion for his sons and daughter when he saw the complete flip-flop taking place in their lives. Immorality gave way to moral living, violence and destruction turned to opportunities to rebuild and shore up one another, deceit, corruption, abuse was transformed into a new, "Yes We Can," political system. And so a merciful God had a change of heart, as well. This city was worthy of more than the plight of Sodom and Gomorrah. God reversed his decision and spared the city from destruction.

But Jonah had an anger issue. Fueled by his jealousy of Nineveh's new relationship with God, Jonah had a hissy fit. He needed to be in control. Despite his role as God's messenger, Jonah just couldn't come to terms with his old perceptions of Nineveh before its change. Jonah's eyes were so blinded by his perception of religious Tightness and often insensitivity to those who are different that he could not see God's goodness; God's light shining within them.

So Jonah does something remarkable. He began berating God for being the gracious, forgiving, merciful God he knew him to be. Imagine Jonah saying with his mouth, that God is slow to anger, and not taking note of his own inability to hold his. Imagine Jonah taunting God for showing mercy, love, and justice without a hint of the Nineveh miracle as reason for acting justly, loving the Ninevites with new found tenderness, and walking humbly before God with praise and thanksgiving. This was the last straw. It was time to refer Jonah to an anger management class.

God was anger management counselor extraordinaire. God listened to Jonah's angry complaints and then affirmed Jonah's right to be angry. This was not a time to use force. It was time for Jonah to discover the depth of God's character. As Jonah marched to the edge of the city and threw up a booth or sitting place stewing in the heat of his own passions, God put a treatment plan together. He planted a bush next to Jonah. It rose quickly over Jonah's head like Jack's beanstalk. When the heat of the day added to Jonah's discomfort the bush provided a cooling shade both from the sun's heat and from Jonah's temper, which was at the boiling point. Jonah was feeling pretty good by the end of the day, both inside and out.

For session two of Jonah's anger management class, God sent a worm to attack the roots of the tree. As quickly as the bush grew, it withered into a pile of dead, lifeless mess. Then God threw in a fierce east wind. Jonah needed to both see and feel his own spiritual waywardness.

Again Jonah could not bear the stress. Sanctified Nineveh and this scorching heat! Even the bush that made this place bearable could not survive. How can I? And how can my Lord's demands on these wicked people! Again, he, like the Ninevites of old, turned from the God with him. Perhaps in the heat of the moment, Jonah forgot the God within him. He pleaded for his cooling board; death was more appealing than life. Enough was enough!

God brought Jonah back to the reality of his situation. He was the One who gathered the dust, added the water, molded and shaped those humans with his own hands. And the crowning achievement of his work was blowing his breath into them and giving them abundant life. Shouldn't he, God the Creator, love and show compassion for them? Jonah didn't do a thing to make the bush grow for his comfort. That was God at work. Why should Jonah have a reason to complain? God was in control doing the God thing when and where God wanted.

LIFE APPLICATION

Contrast the jubilation of the penitent pagans with the attitude of Jonah. Jonah was angry. He sulked. The scripture says that he removed himself and went a ways from the city and sat to see the outcome of his preaching. He sat and he waited and he waited. What, no fire? No brimstone! And while Jonah sulked in a pool of self-pity, jealousy and racial hatred, the Ninevites had experienced the greatest thing that could ever happen to them through his efforts on God's behalf.

There is a stark reality in the end of Jonah's story. The reality is that we work to evangelize and bring the unsaved into the church. Then we forget the reason for our success and become angry with them when they begin to rise to leadership positions, to become the lead soloist in the choir, prove to be outstanding Church School teachers and are the first to volunteer for mission projects.

What is it in the human condition that makes us tear down what God has given the energy and know-how to build up? Is it that our anger and jealousy stem from an uncertainty about our real worth in our eyes and that of the world. Did Jonah sit at the edge of the city to watch and wait for disaster? Was the miracle too large for him to comprehend and appreciate? Or was Jonah reacting like a jealous lover; one who doesn't trust the depth and durability of his relationship when someone else appears on the scene, not necessarily as an adversary but as a fellow journeyman heading for overwhelming joy and contentment in community with God? Jonah failed to recognize that God's love and mercy is boundless. It encompasses all who would sit under God's umbrella to avoid hell's fiery heat and act with cool deliberation to free God's people from themselves and their past.

Jonah, a disobedient called-out believer, could not see that God loved him enough to not only save him, to anoint him to do what even he considered an impossible job. Perhaps he was angry and jealous because of his own low spiritual esteem, even while obeying God. Perhaps Jonah was driven by an inner force, which sometimes drives us as finite humans to believe that the powerful infinite God would choose us do an impossible task.

We see this in scripture many times.

Abraham didn't trust God to make him the father of nations so he bowed to Sarahs insecurities and took Hagar as a concubine. Moses became angry after God supported him for almost forty years in the wilderness and lost the chance to see the Promised Land. David continually broke God's laws despite being the apple of God's eye. Jonah knew the history and should have acted better. But perhaps Jonah's faith had not matured enough to overcome his personal hang-ups.

The question becomes, "Where are you today? "Are you mature enough to celebrate and thank God when he uses you in a miracle-making situation? Or do you feel that your success, your closeness to God, gives you the authority to judge and prejudge others, especially those whose new-found relationship with God has set them on fire for the Lord?

SUMMARY

Jealousy, rather than money, can be the root of all evil depending on how we exercise control over our actions. Jealousy can be the driving force behind our anger, to need to kill others and their ambitions, to stealing a good name, or even your neighbor's husband or wife. In fact jealousy puts our obedience to all of the Ten Commandments in jeopardy. It can debilitate us to the point where death becomes the only option for dealing with the reality of others' prosperity whether in personal achievement, financial or political status, or social relationships.

Jealousy is only positive when we are discussing a jealous God whose mercy, love, and goodness compels us to continually give back to Him without reservation and with joy. Our jealous God makes it impossible for us to be self-serving, seek self aggrandizement, or impose our lack of control of our emotions on others.

Is there a once lush bush dying before your eyes? Perhaps you should examine your spiritual condition? Are you in need of a spiritual anger management class?

QUESTIONS

1. Should passion and compassion be a part of our ministry? If so, how do we learn to have passion and be compassionate, without being impatient and angry with others?

2. Has your anger with someone or over some situations caused you to sin and fall short of God's expectations for your life?

3. What is the connection between an unforgiving spirit and anger? In what ways have you shown that you have difficulty in forgiving and accepting the unsaved or backslider fully into your faith community?

CLOSING PRAYER

Holy Father, we bless your holy name. Help us to endure in the work you have given us to carry out the ministries you have given us with joy and vigor. Keep our anger and need to control in check as we remember we are all sinners saved by your grace. We fervently

thank you for all that you have done for us. We cry Abba, Heavenly Father, in the sweet, wonderful and adorable name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.

APOSTLES’ CREED
I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried; the third day He arose from the dead, He ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Church Universal, the communion of the saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

D E C A L 0 G U E

Superintendent-And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

School-Lord, have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep this law

Superintendent-Thou shalt not make unto thyself any graven image, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.

School-Lord, have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep this law

Superintendent-Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.