When God exercises mercy, when you see God forgiving people, you cannot forgive.

Are you not like John?

Who had more compassion on a gourd than he did on a horse?

The story of Jonah might seem like a fun Sunday school lesson for children, and although

there are elements of the story that capture our attention, even as adults, it is a story with

significant lessons and warnings for you and me.

This is the Friday edition of renewing your mind, and with great passion.

Today, R.C. Sprole examines the life and lessons for us from the account of Jonah. This message is from

Dr. Sprole's 13-part series, Great Men to Live By, And you can have lifetime digital access to this series,

plus a hardcover copy of his book on Joseph, another great man to live by, when you donate

before midnight tonight at renewingyourmind.org or by using the link in the podcast show notes.

Well, to help us understand mercy and compassion from the book of Jonah, here's Dr. Sprawl.

Right in this session, we're going to look briefly at the prophet Jonah.

Perhaps there's no prophet in the Old Testament whose work has engendered more debate and more controversy than this prophet with his little book, with the story of being swallowed and

delivered by the great fish, the story of the gourd that grows overnight and then is destroyed by the worm.

Many have argued in the last hundred years or so that this book represents a clear example of

mythology, the mythological intrusion into the sacred scriptures, indicating the kind of style

of literature that is found in antiquity

in other mythical stories. Others have looked at it as being symbolic through and through

and merely symbolic and not to be taken as a historical narrative. Some have argued that it is an

extended allegory and so on.

Not going to get into any great discussion tonight about that. It's just let you know where

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