Jonah and the Relentless Love of God: Week 6

Discussion Questions

1. Today is the sixth week of our sermon series on the book of Jonah. Last week we finished the fourth and final chapter of the book of Jonah. What has stood out to you so far in this teaching series? Has this series opened your eyes to the depth of the book of Jonah in a new way? 

2. We have covered every chapter, but there is still one more thing to look at. I suspect this whole time we have been putting ourselves in the shoes of Jonah, thinking about his life and his decisions and wondering if we would have made the same choices. But there is another way to read Jonah. What if you aren't Jonah, what if you are Nineveh? Have you ever read Jonah and tried to put yourself in the place of the Ninevites? How does this change your reading? 

3. If we are Nineveh in the story, then we are the ones far from God. We would be the ones who “don’t know our right hands from our left.” We are the ones who are leaderless, the ones who consistently go left when we should be going right. We are the ones in desperate need of someone to come save us. The good news is that if we are Nineveh, we can be so thankful that Jesus Christ isn’t like Jonah! How do you see Jesus’ actions in the Gospels as standing out in contrast to the actions of Jonah? What did Jesus do differently? 

4. John 3:16 tells the story of Jesus as the better Jonah. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus didn’t run from us in our time of need, He ran to us. He didn’t give a short sermon, and then stepped outside the city to see if God would destroy us. Jesus walked with us, He instructed us, He died on the cross in our place, and He sent His Holy Spirit to be with us forever. Take out a sheet of paper and make a list of ways you are thankful Jesus is the better Jonah. Take time to pray to God thanking Him for sending Jesus to us all.