Brokenness—The Protest - In Touch Ministries - Charles Stanley

The Lord calls us to share His love with others—even those who have hurt us.

Jonah 1:1-17

The children’s story about Jonah and the big fish presents the prophet in a rather rosy light: After three days in the fish’s belly, Jonah relents and goes merrily on to Nineveh. End of story.

The narrative in the Bible has the same components (storm, big fish, repentant Ninevites) but the context is totally different. From the moment Jonah chose to flee from God’s plan until the end of the book, his heart was in rebellion.

The inhabitants of Nineveh were Assyrians, a people known for their aggression and cruelty. They were the sworn enemies of Israel, so Jonah had good reason to despise them. But God loved the Ninevites and desired their repentance. The challenging task of ministering to them carried an additional purpose: breaking Jonah’s unloving spirit—an attitude so strong that he preferred to die rather than see t