Dave Stone told about a mother who called up to her son to get out of bed. “’It’s time to get ready for church.” He yelled back, “Mom I’m not going.” She said ‘Why?’ He replied, ‘The people are mean to me and the service is boring. Why should I go?’
‘I’ll give you two reasons,’ she shouted. ‘One, you’re 40 years old; and two, you’re the preacher!’”¹
That preacher had Jonah’s mindset. Masses of people are familiar with Jonah’s response to head for Tarshish—the very opposite direction to Nineveh, where God had charged Jonah to go preach (Jonah 1:2f). You have likely encountered someone with Jonah’s frame of mind: a young person who didn’t want to shut off the TV and come to the table to eat; a tired mother who didn’t want o get up to feed a newborn at 2 AM in the morning!
Jonah’s mindset can affect church members: a dozen works in the fire, and someone asked you to repair the plumbing in the ladies’ restroom at the church building; you are to be gone a week, and you were asked to teach the Bible Class the day after you return; something has gone wrong at work just when you were asked to go see one sick or shut-in; Jesus asked you to go teach every creature, and you are disgusted with some of your neighbors!
Ninevites had been enemies to Israel, and Jonah was in no mood to visit them, much less seek to convince them to be brethren! If they started attending his congregation, it would not be natural to extend a welcome hand. Even three nights in a big fish did not completely change Jonah’s mindset! After he preached and Nineveh repented, pleasing God, Jonah still wasn't joyful with their response (chapters 3 & 4).
God had that story recorded in the Bible so His people would see the sadness and immaturity of Jonah’s mindset. Have You been there??
Since Jesus left heaven, came to earth, living and then dying for sinners (Rom. 5:6-8), wanting us to follow in His footsteps (I Pet. 2:21-24), we need to be like the one who said, “I’m just nobody, trying to tell everybody, about Somebody, who can save anybody” (II Cor. 5:14f; Heb. 7:22-25)!
¹Dave Stone, I’d Rather See A Sermon, College Press Publishing Company, Joplin, Missouri, 1996, p. 31.