Is the book of Jonah really just about some rebellious prophet getting swallowed by a big fish? Or could this captivating little story contain surprising gospel connections?
See unexpected links between Jonah’s descent into the deep and Jesus’ ultimate despair, death and exaltation for humanity. Grasp the ironic role reversals and radical compassion that refuse to let one lost sheep remain in the dark.
When God's mercy spills beyond borders we impose, grace invariably disturbs - as Jonah's resentment reveals. Still the Spirit patiently reasons, confronting prejudice embedded in God's people against unlikely recipients. Where our hearts contradict lavish compassion, take responsibility to align beliefs with practice. Celebrate redemption however packaged.
Join us this Sunday as we explore Jonah's calloused heart toward God's enemies—and how the Ninevites end up responding better to truth than even the reluctant prophet!
We'll discover why judgment and love make surprising teammates working toward redemption. And we'll discuss as a church family how to defeat religious hypocrisy with humility, allowing God's lavish grace to reach people we prefer to avoid.
Join us as we dive into Jonah's poetic prayer for deliverance in chapter 2. Though extolling beautiful theology, his later actions expose religious hypocrisy. Still the Lord refuses to abandon stubborn Jonah, lavishing relentless grace on this rebellious prophet, exemplifying how God tirelessly woos back his defiant children. What if authentic repentance is not an event, but a perpetual lifestyle beckoning us to greater surrender through encounter with radical love?
Last Sunday the spotlight revealed a prophet running from God's call. This week traces Jonah's descent into spiritual apathy. See how his defiant disobedience leads to religious hypocrisy & shocking role reversals with unbelievers. Absorb unnerving warnings about how stubbornness breeds numbness over time; yet witness grace pursuing this runaway prophet even to the very depths of the sea. Could tendencies lurking in Jonah actually reside within us as well?
Discover the Book of Jonah as you've never encountered it before - subversive satire concealing commentary on religious prejudice. Through outrageous plot twists involving a rebellious prophet swallowed by a giant fish, the story upends pious hypocrisy and spotlights the boundless scandal of grace. Laugh and squirm as God exposes our stubborn disobedience, then relentless pursues even the most defiant with compassion. This odd little book will challenge many of our notions.