Mercy Monster

Jonah 4:1-3 is both comic and remarkable, and not just because Jonah is a sulky grump.

...That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.

Jonah says he ran away from God because God is merciful! Usually, when stories about "gods" are told, people run away from them because they are scary, violent monsters. Think about this guy for a minute:

Rarrrr!

I can only imagine what Baal and Molech would've been like. Like Stay Puff, they'd leave a trail of destruction.

But, in contrast to these gods, as much as they bring desolation, the God of Israel leaves a trail of ... grace.

Weird maths

If you’re expecting to serve now so that in God’s kingdom you’ll be lifted up on shoulders and paraded like a World Cup winner, then you’re going to be disappointed.

When Jesus said “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all” (Mat.9:35), he wasn’t giving directions about how to eventually get the praise we crave. He was giving a description of what it means to be great: in God’s opinion, being a servant is great.

It’s not: Be last so you’ll be first.
It’s: Last = first.

Being a servant is not a means to an end; it's the end in itself.