Why??

“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.” (Jonah 4:1)

“Why?” I bet you’ve heard that question many times. If you have children, I guarantee you’ve heard it from a toddler thousands of times! But I’m not talking about the “Why is the sky blue?” kind of why, nor the “Why is water wet?” kind of why. My “why” question to you is this: “Why do you do the things you do?” What are your motives? I’m asking particularly in regard to your motives for obeying God.

You see, Jonah was a prophet–a disobedient prophet. He did not go to Ninevah when God asked him (Jonah 1) because he did not think that they deserved the chance to repent of their sin. Then he did go to Ninevah and preach the Gospel to the people (Jonah 3). They responded! Multitudes of people were saved and spared eternal punishment. God did not wipe out the city and its people. What cause for celebration! Except Jonah… well, you read the verse at the top. He was furious. He was furious that his selfish idea of justice was not meted out on these vile people. He was furious that his own life had been disrupted for the sake of others.

All Christ followers can have a tendency to be obedient for the wrong reasons. We can be obedient because we are afraid of punishment. We can be obedient because we want to look good in front of others. We can be obedient because we want God to bless us. Yet, there is only one pure motive for obedience–to bring honor and glory to God. Pure obedience comes from a heart of complete submission to Christ and a desire to see His name praised. Why do you obey?

-Pastor Mike