Is It Time for Some Sackcloth?
Dave Faust
The Bible stirs my imagination and piques my curiosity. Here are some questions that Jonah chapter three brings to mind.
After three days inside the great fish, did Jonah ever eat seafood again? I’m guessing probably not.
Do we appreciate the do-overs God grants? “The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time” (Jonah 3:1). Sometimes we resist God’s message the first time we hear it. There are three kinds of people in the world: (1) those who learn from their own mistakes, (2) those who learn from others’ mistakes, and (3) those who simply refuse to learn. Aren’t you thankful that you serve the God of second chances?
What was Jonah thinking as he prepared to enter Nineveh? He had plenty of time to ponder. I used to picture him walking into the city to preach immediately after the fish vomited him onto dry ground. A map of the region, however, reveals something different. Yes, given a second chance, “Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh” (v. 3), but Nineveh wasn’t a coastal city. It was situated far inland—approximately 400 miles east of the body of water the ancients called the Great Sea and we call the Mediterranean. When Jonah finally realized he couldn’t sail away from his prophetic work and ended up on the beach, he still had hundreds of miles to travel (presumably on foot). Even if he walked 30 miles a day, it took him nearly two weeks to reach Nineveh. No wonder his sermon was so effective once he got there; he had plenty of time to prepare! After Jonah’s “conversion,” there was still a long journey ahead as he fulfilled his service to God. So it is, I suspect, with the rest of us.
Are there individuals in our circles of influence who might be surprisingly receptive to God’s Word? When Jonah preached, “The Ninevites believed God” (v. 5). Who could imagine that those pagan Assyrians would ever listen to a Hebrew prophet? Likewise, who could have predicted that Saul of Tarsus would become a Christian? Never underestimate the power of God’s truth to penetrate and transform human hearts. Some individuals we consider hard-hearted are more open to God than we think.
Why did people wear sackcloth when they fasted (v. 5)? The scratchy fabric served as a sign of repentance and a reminder of their accountability to God. Discomfort isn’t always bad. Sometimes it encourages spiritual growth—a lesson worth rediscovering in a culture that idolizes comfort and personal pleasure.
What would happen if leaders today urged citizens to “call urgently on God” and “give up their evil ways and their violence” (v. 8)? The king of Nineveh removed his royal robes, “covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust” (v. 6). No government regulations can force anyone to believe and turn to God, but it’s tantalizing to imagine what might happen if our leaders would model genuine humility and repentance. Even the animals fasted and wore sackcloth in symbolic solidarity as the whole city bowed before the Lord (vv. 7-8).
In our day, will spiritual revival transform cities like it did in Nineveh? Jonah chapter three reminds us never to lose heart as we pray, preach, and work for that vision to become a reality.
QUESTIONS:
This column first appeared in The Lookout on May 21, 2017.
Inventory Time
A friend of mine recently completed a 360-degree performance review at work. Are you familiar with the practice? It’s called “360” because it requires asking everyone who works around you (as in a 360-degree circle) to evaluate your effectiveness on the job. My friend’s coworkers gave him positive marks, but their honest feedback revealed areas where he needs to improve.
Is the Bible Relevant?
Although he’s an atheist, Richard Dawkins admits that the Bible should be taught “because it underlies so much of our literature and our culture.” But, he insists, it should be taught “not as reality. It is fiction, myth, poetry, anything but reality.” TV host Bill Maher cynically quips, “To most Christians, the Bible is like a software license. Nobody actually reads it. They just scroll to the bottom and click ‘I agree.’” I wish these men would seriously consider the insights of brilliant thinkers like C. S. Lewis and Ravi Zacharias who hold the Bible in high esteem.