Chapels

This week, we’re going to start to look at the book of Jonah through a story called “Big Fish, Bigger Mercy.” Sometimes when we think about the account of Jonah, we can misplace the hero of the story. Jonah may be the main character, but he’s not a hero. He pouted, disobeyed, and chose to follow his fears rather than follow God’s plan for his life. Being one of the most famous stories of the Old Testament, it’s no secret that Jonah was swallowed up by a great fish and he repented and obeyed God by going to Nineveh and preaching to the people who all then also repented and followed God. But did Jonah really obey? Did he really repent? Even his “sermon” (“forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned”) is only 5 words in Hebrew. In his half-hearted obedience, he pouted. And then, in verse 4, he pouted even more. He cared more about his comfort than anything else, and he was bitter that God would choose to save people like the Ninevites.

This week, we’re going to start to look at the book of Amos (specifically in chapter 5) through a story called “Let Justice Roll Down.” In it, we’ll hear about how the Lord told his people that he didn’t want their offerings, their animals, or their music.