Angry About Grace: Jonah’s Struggle with Mercy and Compassion

Devotional

Day 1: God’s Grace Is for Everyone, Not Just Us

God’s mercy and grace are not limited to those we think deserve it; He draws ever-wider circles of compassion, even for those we might consider our enemies. When we try to restrict God’s grace to ourselves or our group, we end up missing out on the joy and freedom that come from sharing in His redemptive work for all people. Jonah’s anger at God’s mercy toward Nineveh reveals how self-righteousness can blind us to the beauty of God’s inclusive love, and how our attempts to limit grace only imprison us in bitterness and isolation. [32:32]

Jonah 4:1-4 (ESV)
But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?”

Reflection: Who is someone or a group you’ve quietly decided is beyond God’s reach—will you pray today for God’s mercy and blessing on them, asking Him to expand your heart?

Day 2: Grace Is Ongoing—Not a One-Time Gift

Grace is not a transaction we receive once and move on from; it is the ongoing, undeserved favor of God that we need every day, and withholding it from others only blocks us from experiencing it ourselves. When we become self-righteous, thinking we are more deserving than others, we cut ourselves off from the flow of grace, punishing ourselves with bitterness and missing the miracles God is working around us. True spiritual maturity is marked by a continual dependence on God’s mercy, not by a sense of entitlement or superiority. [31:28]

Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV)
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Reflection: In what area of your life have you started to feel entitled to God’s favor—how can you return to a posture of humble gratitude and dependence on His grace today?

Day 3: Comfort Without Compassion Shrinks the Heart

When we prioritize our own comfort over compassion for others, our hearts shrink and we become numb to the needs and pain around us. God sometimes disrupts our comfort to awaken us to His greater purpose—inviting us to trade self-protection for self-giving love, just as He did for us. Jonah’s joy over a plant and his anger at its loss reveal how easily we can care more for our own comfort than for the lives and souls of others, missing the deeper joy of sharing in God’s compassion. [47:59]

Jonah 4:5-9 (ESV)
Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.”

Reflection: Where has your desire for comfort kept you from showing compassion—what is one step you can take today to move toward someone in need, even if it costs you convenience?

Day 4: Knowing About God Is Not the Same as Knowing God’s Heart

It is possible to know Scripture, doctrine, and all the right answers, yet completely miss the heart of God—His compassion, mercy, and desire for transformation in us and through us. Jonah could quote God’s attributes but turned them into accusations when they were extended to others; we too can become experts in theology while remaining untouched by God’s love, missing the invitation to intimacy and participation in His redemptive work. God’s gentle questions to Jonah invite us to reflect: Is our knowledge leading to transformation, or just to pride and resentment? [49:29]

Exodus 34:6-7 (ESV)
The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

Reflection: How can you move from simply knowing about God to truly seeking His heart—what is one practice you can adopt this week to cultivate intimacy with Him?

Day 5: The Path Back—From Entitlement, Comparison, and Observation to Gratitude, Confession, and Participation

The subtle shifts from gratitude to entitlement, confession to comparison, and participation to observation can shrink our hearts and blind us to God’s ongoing work in us and through us. But the way back is always open: confess where your heart has grown cold or self-righteous, remember your need for grace, and say yes to joining God’s mission of love and mercy for others. Revival begins not when God changes “them,” but when He changes us—when we let Him break our hearts for what breaks His and step into the work He is doing right where we are. [58:30]

Psalm 51:10-13 (ESV)
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.

Reflection: Which of the three shifts—entitlement, comparison, or observation—do you most recognize in yourself, and what is one concrete way you can turn back toward gratitude, confession, or participation today?

Sermon Summary

We all have moments when life feels unfair—when it seems like the wrong people win, the undeserving get ahead, or grace is given to those we think should be excluded. Jonah’s story, especially in its final chapter, is a mirror for us. He wanted a world where God was good to him but hard on his enemies. Yet, God’s heart is so much bigger, making His grace, mercy, and love available to everyone, even those we might write off.

Jonah’s self-righteousness led him to resist the very redemption he needed. He was so focused on who deserved God’s mercy that he missed the miracle of an entire city turning to God. When we draw lines around who is “in” and “out,” we don’t just withhold grace from others—we cut ourselves off from experiencing it, too. Grace is not a one-time gift; it’s the ongoing favor of God that we all desperately need, every day.

Bitterness and entitlement can quietly take root in our hearts. Like Jonah, we can become more concerned with our own comfort than with compassion for others. God’s lesson to Jonah through the plant, the worm, and the scorching wind was a vivid reminder: comfort without compassion shrinks our souls. When our comfort becomes more important than God’s compassion, we lose sight of His heart and mission.

It’s possible to know all the right things about God, to have the right theology, and still miss His heart. Jonah could quote Scripture, but his pride and resentment blinded him to the transformation God wanted to do in him. We can fall into the same trap—knowing about God but not being changed by Him, defending doctrine but resisting mercy.

Three subtle shifts can cause our hearts to shrink: moving from gratitude to entitlement, from confession to comparison, and from participation to observation. When we feel entitled to grace, compare ourselves to others, or sit back as critics rather than joining God’s work, we miss out on the joy and freedom God offers. But the path back is always open: confess where we’ve grown cold, remember our need for grace, and say yes to participating in God’s work of love and mercy.

God’s heart is for everyone, and revival begins not when God changes “them,” but when He changes us. May we walk away with hearts that are bigger, softer, and more like His.

Key Takeaways

1. Self-righteousness blocks us from grace When we believe we are more deserving of God’s favor than others, we not only withhold grace from them but also lose our own ability to experience it. Self-righteousness is a self-imposed prison, cutting us off from the ongoing, daily need for God’s mercy. True spiritual maturity is marked by humility and a continual openness to God’s transforming grace. [31:07]
2. Comfort without compassion shrinks the soul It’s easy to prioritize our own comfort and miss the call to compassion. When comfort becomes our shield, it numbs us to the pain and needs of others, and our hearts grow smaller. God’s compassion is meant to flow through us, not just to us, and when we let go of comfort for the sake of others, we find deeper joy and purpose. [48:19]
3. Knowing about God is not the same as knowing God Jonah had all the right answers and could quote Scripture, but he missed the heart of God. Information about God is not transformation by God. We can defend doctrine and still resist mercy, but God desires intimacy and a heart that reflects His own—one that is quick to forgive, slow to anger, and abounding in love. [49:29]
4. Entitlement, comparison, and observation are symptoms of a shrinking heart When gratitude turns to entitlement, confession to comparison, and participation to mere observation, our hearts drift from God’s purposes. These subtle shifts blind us to our own need for grace and keep us from joining God’s work in the world. The antidote is honest confession, renewed gratitude, and active participation in God’s mission. [54:42]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[25:08] - Fantasy Football and Fairness
[26:44] - Jonah’s Desire for Selective Grace
[27:39] - Praying for God’s Heart
[28:47] - Jonah’s Reluctant Mission Recap
[30:03] - Nineveh’s Repentance and God’s Mercy
[30:49] - Jonah’s Self-Righteous Anger
[32:32] - God’s Expanding Circles of Mercy
[34:55] - The Limits We Place on Grace
[38:44] - Forgetting the True Nature of Grace
[41:11] - Comfort vs. Compassion
[43:56] - God’s Object Lesson: The Plant
[47:34] - When Comfort Feels Like Betrayal
[48:39] - Missing the Heart of God
[54:42] - Symptoms of a Shrinking Heart
[58:30] - The Path Back to God’s Heart
[59:41] - Looking Ahead as a Community
[60:21] - Closing Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Jonah 4 (ESV) — > But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?”
>
> Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
>
> But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?”

Exodus 34:6 (ESV) — > The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness…”

Observation Questions

What is Jonah’s emotional response to God’s mercy toward Nineveh, and how does he express it to God? ([32:51])
What does God provide for Jonah outside the city, and how does Jonah react to both the plant and its destruction? ([44:21])
According to the passage, what is the contrast between Jonah’s concern for the plant and God’s concern for the people of Nineveh? ([50:22])
In the sermon, what are the three “symptoms of a shrinking heart” that the pastor identifies? ([54:42])

Interpretation Questions

Why does Jonah struggle so much with God’s decision to show mercy to the people of Nineveh? What does this reveal about his understanding of grace? ([33:10])
How does God use the plant, the worm, and the scorching wind as an object lesson for Jonah? What is God trying to teach him? ([44:21])
The pastor says, “You can know the words of God, but miss the heart of God.” What does it look like to have right theology but miss God’s heart in practice? ([49:29])
How do entitlement, comparison, and observation (instead of participation) show up in Jonah’s story, and why are they dangerous for our spiritual lives? ([54:42])

Application Questions

The sermon says, “When we draw lines around who is ‘in’ and ‘out,’ we don’t just withhold grace from others—we cut ourselves off from experiencing it, too.” Is there a person or group in your life you find it hard to want God’s grace for? What would it look like to pray for them this week? ([35:24])
Jonah was more upset about losing his comfort (the plant) than about the fate of 120,000 people. Are there comforts in your life that you prioritize over compassion for others? What is one comfort you could let go of to make room for compassion? ([48:19])
The pastor describes three subtle shifts: from gratitude to entitlement, confession to comparison, and participation to observation. Which of these do you most relate to right now, and how is it affecting your relationship with God and others? ([54:42])
“You can know a lot about the Bible, but not a lot about the God of the Bible.” In what ways have you focused on information about God rather than transformation by God? What is one step you can take to pursue intimacy with God this week? ([49:29])
The sermon challenges us to confess where we’ve grown cold and remember our need for grace. Is there an area of your life where you’ve become bitter or entitled? What would honest confession look like for you? ([58:30])
Jonah sat outside the city as an observer, not a participant. Are there places in your life or faith where you are sitting on the sidelines instead of joining God’s work? What is one way you can move from observation to participation this month? ([57:17])
The pastor says, “Revival begins not when God changes ‘them,’ but when He changes us.” What is one area where you want God to change your heart to be more like His? ([59:17])

Sermon Clips

Jonah finds himself in a spot where he wanted a world where God is good to him and hard on Nineveh. Really hard on anybody he felt like didn't deserve it. And the good news for all of us is that God doesn't work that way. God actually makes his grace and mercy and love available to everyone. And chapter 4 is where God finally turns the mirror. Not just on Jonah, but on you and me as well. [00:26:59] (27 seconds) #GraceForAll

Even when God is doing miracles around us. We often don't get a chance to see them. That's Jonah. God moves. People repent. Mercy floods an entire city. And Jonah he's sulking in the corner. Why? Well because for him God's mercy it didn't align with where he thought it was supposed to. For Jonah his pride had drawn lines of who was in and who was out. God's mercy kept drawing bigger and bigger circles. Of who it was available to. [00:32:08] (36 seconds) #MercyKnowsNoBounds

Some of you, if you're honest, you're really mad at God for doing some things in your life, but if you looked at the culprit of those things in your life, you are the culprit. Your self-righteousness, your determining what God should do and what he shouldn't do, who deserves it and who doesn't, is squarely on you. [00:36:17] (15 seconds) #OwnYourBitterness

Jonah would rather die than live in a world where his version of grace isn't true. He'd rather die than watch God be good to people who are bad. Well, he ignores the good that God wants to do with the bad that's left in him. See, he has forgotten what grace really is. [00:38:27] (18 seconds) #GraceOverJudgment

Bitterness may promise strength, but it delivers poison that you are taking yourself. You think you are punishing someone else, but oftentimes the bitterness that you're carrying in your life, the person that you are bitter towards or the group of people that you are bitter about, don't even know. You are the one living with the consequences of your choices. Self-righteous people punish themselves. [00:40:23] (23 seconds) #BitternessPoisonsYou

You can know the words of God, but miss the heart of God. I've been doing ministry for a long time, and I can tell you that, unfortunately, it's sometimes people that have been walking with God for decades that know a lot of information about God, but that information has never led to transformation from God, intimacy with God. You can know a lot about the Bible, but not a lot about the God of the Bible. Or what he wants to do in you. You can defend doctrine and still resist mercy. You can be a church person and still resent people who God longs to rescue. [00:49:31] (33 seconds) #KnowGodNotJustWords

Is your anger really helping you? Some of you are angry about something or a person or a problem that you have absolutely no power or influence or control over, and you're letting it derail your life. Is your anger helping you? Is snapping at your spouse healing your marriage? Is avoiding that family member bringing peace or only prolonging your pain? Is refusing to text back someone actually protecting you, or is it just proving that you're still wounded? Is venting about those people online or in that text thread, making the world better? Is replaying the hurt in your head bringing justice or simply stealing joy that God might have for you? You've been carrying this like armor, but it's become a cage. You think you're protecting yourself from something, but you don't realize you're protecting yourself from the grace of God to change you. [00:51:20] (56 seconds) #IsYourAngerHelping

It should be a sobering reminder to us about what self-righteousness can do in us. God didn't appear ever to punish Jonah. Other than killing a plant. Jonah punished Jonah. Some of you in your self-righteousness are punishing you. And it probably didn't happen overnight. It happens over time. Little by little compromises where we feel like we've earned it and others haven't. Where we feel like we deserved it and others haven't. Maybe we needed grace at the beginning but like a layaway program we eventually caught up. No, you didn't. [00:53:48] (36 seconds) #SelfRighteousnessPunishes

Comparison does not make us holy. It makes us blind. We only see the offenses of others. There's no more room to see what's really going on in us. Let me say that again. We become more fluent in calling out sin than confessing it. And getting it used to like even in our mouths and our hearts the thing that God wants to change in us we become blind and deaf to experience. If you spend more time pointing out the sin of others than admitting your own to God and to close friends this shift is already underway. [00:56:39] (36 seconds) #ComparisonBlinds

Remember your need for grace that God's reward at Christ's expense was never because of you it was never because of what you did it was not because he thought you'd be a good bet or a good investment it was because you deserved it more than someone else it's because God uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise it's because God's love poured out into your life and just like you didn't deserve it nobody deserves it that's really good news. [00:58:42] (24 seconds) #GraceIsUndeserved

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

What causes self-righteousness to punish oneself?

How does entitlement affect understanding of God's grace?

In what ways can believers miss God's heart?