#124 – No Right

Good morning loved of God

Jonah 4:5-11 Jonah went out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the LORD God provided a vine and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the vine. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?” “I do,” he said. “I am angry enough to die.” But the LORD said, “You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?”

Jonah got upset because God spared Nineveh. He threw a tantrum and went off sulking into the desert to see what God would do. The sun was causing him discomfort so God caused a vine to grow over him to protect him and he was happy. The next day a worm ate the vine and he got so upset he wanted to die again! God told him he had no right to be upset because he didn’t do anything to get the vine in the first place; it was God who had provided. God was also saying to Jonah he had no right to get upset about Nineveh because God was the one who directed what happened there. He had no right and many times we have no right to carry around the offences we do and throw tantrums when things don’t go the way we want. Let’s be careful how we respond to God’s sovereignty in situations that we would do something different if we were God; let God be God. He is gracious and compassionate and He loves us all very much.