It was a Saturday, and that means my kids were watching kids’ shows. I had been working around the house, and decided to sit down and take a break. And I started paying attention to the show they were watching. It was an animated story about Jonah. I have studied the book of Jonah in detail with my Ladies' Bible Study group, but still something about this animated version spoke to my heart. And then, on Sunday morning, our pastor continued his sermon series on the book of Jonah, and it just so happened that he was preaching on the exact part of the book that I watched on the cartoon. I had started the blog on Saturday night and then changed my mind about writing it, but after hearing the sermon, I realized that God really did have a lesson for me...and maybe for some of you.
Just a quick synopsis: God wanted Jonah to go to Ninevah to tell the people to repent. Jonah said no. God said yes. So, Jonah ended up in the belly of a big fish. Then Jonah had another chance. This time he said ok. So he went to Ninevah. But his attitude was still pretty stinky. He didn’t think that it was very fair for God to forgive the people of Ninevah after all they had done to the Israelites. Jonah couldn’t believe that if they repented they could be forgiven. Basically, Jonah still had such a hardened heart toward the people of Ninevah, that he didn’t want them to taste the goodness of the Lord. He didn’t want them to have the same opportunity that he did for forgiveness and eternal life.
And we look back at the story of Jonah and we just shake our heads, ashamed that Jonah would feel this way, don’t we? We think, “Wow! Can you believe he wouldn’t want those people to be right with God?” What was Jonah’s issue? Was it hatred? Was it bitterness? What could make someone cry out, “It is better for me to die!” He looked at the people of Ninevah and told God that he would rather die than see God forgive them. Wow. That's a pretty bold statement, isn't it? I believe that it was hatred and bitterness, but I believe that all of these ill-feelings toward the Ninevites stemmed from one key problem: Jonah was self-righteous. He thought that he, and the rest of the Israelites, were better than any of the people from Ninevah. According to Jonah, the Israelites were well-deserving of the forgiveness and love that God had bestowed upon them. He seemed to forget about the years and years of disobedience in the nation of Israel. He also seemed to forget about the short time he spent in the belly of the fish.
Self-righteousness can rear its ugly head all over the place. And it’s not always something as “drastic” as what Jonah did. We don’t have to be angry that an entire people have been given the news of repentance. Sometimes self-righteousness comes in the form of tattling. My children are good at that! Sometimes self-righteousness comes in the form of complaining about others. We don’t like the way they do things, we don’t like choices they’ve made, or we don’t like them personally, so we think we’re better than them. And sometimes self-righteousness just comes in the form of unforgiveness and bitterness. When we feel like someone has wronged us or someone we love, we often hold that bitterness in our hearts and think that we can’t or shouldn’t forgive them because it will “let them off the hook.”
God’s Word tells us that “There is none righteous, not even one.” (Rom. 3:10). Period. I’m not better than you. You’re not better than me. But for the blood of Christ, we would all be doomed to spend eternity in hell. But, praise God, He made a way. And to be honest with you, there is something freeing in admitting that I’m not better. That I have my own failures. That I have my own faults. And also in knowing that you all do, too. We are on the same level. We don’t have to play games. We don’t have to pretend we’re something we’re not. We can be real and accept one another for who we are…and love one another as we grow to be more like Christ every day. Because you see, accepting that we have faults is not enough. We have a goal…a prize…that we are striving toward. We don’t want to stay the same! We want to be like Christ. In fact, I want to be more like Christ tomorrow than I was today. Don’t you?
So, how can we guard ourselves against being a Jonah? How can we keep ourselves from being self-righteous and pouty, like he was when he sat outside the city gates? First, acknowledge that you have faults. We all do. And that’s ok! Remember, God is the potter and we are the clay. He is molding us into the person He wants us to be. That takes time, and that takes work. And that takes us being malleable. Second, be willing to forgive. When someone wrongs you, whether it’s something small like pulling out in front of you, or something terrible, be willing to forgive. And notice, you can choose to forgive without hearing an apology. I promise…it works. Third, be willing to humble yourself. This may come in the way of serving others, of apologizing, or of just acknowledging that you were wrong in your views.
I don’t believe that self-righteous people think that they are self-righteous. I think Jonah thought he was completely justified. And that’s why we need to be so very careful. It is one of those sins that can sneak up on you. Most of the time, I don’t think we even realize we’re doing it. We're just moving along, passing judgement on others, and then it hits us. And it’s serious. Remember God’s words to Jonah. “Do you have good reason to be angry?” Ouch. Can you imagine hearing those words directly from God? I think I would just want to crawl under a rock! Jonah probably wished something similar....or maybe he just wanted to be back inside that great big belly. Don't be a Jonah. We are never told that his heart changed. I don't want that to be my legacy. Do you?
