Holy Week is the most important week in the Church year. It is a time when we celebrate in a special way the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We remember His actions, reflect on His messages, and recommit to living as His disciples in the world today. We will use the readings from Luke this week as we prepare for Easter.

Holy Week is the most important week in the Church year. It is a time when we celebrate in a special way the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We remember His actions, reflect on His messages, and recommit to living as His disciples in the world today. We will use the readings from Luke this week as we prepare for Easter.

When asked by the Pharisees for miraculous proof that He was indeed the Messiah, Jesus answered them by saying that none would be given except the “sign of Jonah.” Jesus recognized the religious leaders’ hardness of heart and refused to give them further proof of His identity. It wasn’t long after this encounter that Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The leadership turned up the fire on Jesus and was successful in ending His ministry—and His life. But the “sign of Jonah” would turn out to be Jesus’ greatest miracle of all. His resurrection from the dead would be God’s primary sign that Jesus was Israel’s long-awaited Messiah and would establish Christ’s claims of deity. Even after this, many in leadership still did not believe in Jesus as the Christ and prevented others from doing so. We need to help others overcome anything that would hinder them from putting their faith in Jesus.

When asked by the Pharisees for miraculous proof that He was indeed the Messiah, Jesus answered them by saying that none would be given except the “sign of Jonah.” Jesus recognized the religious leaders’ hardness of heart and refused to give them further proof of His identity. It wasn’t long after this encounter that Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The leadership turned up the fire on Jesus and was successful in ending His ministry—and His life. But the “sign of Jonah” would turn out to be Jesus’ greatest miracle of all. His resurrection from the dead would be God’s primary sign that Jesus was Israel’s long-awaited Messiah and would establish Christ’s claims of deity. Even after this, many in leadership still did not believe in Jesus as the Christ and prevented others from doing so. We need to help others overcome anything that would hinder them from putting their faith in Jesus.

Jonah had experienced God’s grace in several ways through the storm—the captain, the sailors and finally the fish. We saw God’s grace capturing Jonah through his prayer and in giving him another chance. But when Jonah saw God’s grace poured out and lavished upon the Ninevites, he was angry. Jonah knew when God had called him the first time to go to Nineveh that there was the possibility that they might repent and he didn’t want anything to do with that. One of the most important commands Jesus gave to us is to love everyone as he has loved us. God wants none to perish; He wants all to come to a saving faith in His Son, and He uses us to help others see how loving and compassionate He is. We all need to have a heart for the lost as He does.

Jonah had experienced God’s grace in several ways through the storm—the captain, the sailors and finally the fish. We saw God’s grace capturing Jonah through his prayer and in giving him another chance. But when Jonah saw God’s grace poured out and lavished upon the Ninevites, he was angry. Jonah knew when God had called him the first time to go to Nineveh that there was the possibility that they might repent and he didn’t want anything to do with that. One of the most important commands Jesus gave to us is to love everyone as he has loved us. God wants none to perish; He wants all to come to a saving faith in His Son, and He uses us to help others see how loving and compassionate He is. We all need to have a heart for the lost as He does.

Despite Jonah’s failure to heed God’s call, God never gives up on him, and he never gives up on us. God is the God of the second chance. God surely could have let Jonah die and found a more willing servant; instead He showed him mercy despite his rebellion. Only after being plunged into the drowning waters and revived by his saving God can Jonah hear and respond to God’s second call. Repenting does not mean saying we’re sorry and continuing down the same path. It involves a total “about face,” where there is not only sorrow over sin, but a change in attitude, priorities, and lifestyle. We ought to be more like the sailors and Ninevites who responded in humble faith to God’s word, who put faith into action

Despite Jonah’s failure to heed God’s call, God never gives up on him, and he never gives up on us. God is the God of the second chance. God surely could have let Jonah die and found a more willing servant; instead He showed him mercy despite his rebellion. Only after being plunged into the drowning waters and revived by his saving God can Jonah hear and respond to God’s second call. Repenting does not mean saying we’re sorry and continuing down the same path. It involves a total “about face,” where there is not only sorrow over sin, but a change in attitude, priorities, and lifestyle. We ought to be more like the sailors and Ninevites who responded in humble faith to God’s word, who put faith into action

It wasn’t until he experienced fear and loneliness inside the big fish that Jonah reached out to the Lord through the words found in Psalms. While his prayer expresses the truth about the Lord, Jonah’s hypocritical, self-righteous behavior throughout the book forms a strong contrast to his prayer. It is questionable if Jonah is demonstrating true repentance. Despite this, God continues to deal with Jonah graciously by hearing his prayer, saving him from drowning and a permanent residence in Sheol, and by providing deliverance in the belly of the big fish. God answers us in our guilty distress to help us become merciful like He is

It wasn’t until he experienced fear and loneliness inside the big fish that Jonah reached out to the Lord through the words found in Psalms. While his prayer expresses the truth about the Lord, Jonah’s hypocritical, self-righteous behavior throughout the book forms a strong contrast to his prayer. It is questionable if Jonah is demonstrating true repentance. Despite this, God continues to deal with Jonah graciously by hearing his prayer, saving him from drowning and a permanent residence in Sheol, and by providing deliverance in the belly of the big fish. God answers us in our guilty distress to help us become merciful like He is