“Forty more days and Ninevah will be overthrown.” (Jonah 3:4)
Expanded Passage: Jonah 3:3-8
What would you do if a doctor informed you that you had only three months to live? In one course I teach, I send students out with that question. Speaking to family, friends, coworkers, or strangers, students take a poll. The answers they receive often surprise them. In the latest batch, one person replied he would indulge all the sinful desires he could think of—and then ask God for forgiveness. Ouch!
Jonah told the Ninevites that they had only forty more days to live. These pagan people listened to Jonah as if God himself were speaking. Immediately they ceased their sinful practices and entered a time of serious repentance. They changed into their mourning clothes. They stopped eating and drinking to show their earnestness. God gave them a reprieve, a taste of new life.
How would you handle the news of your imminent death? I bet your priorities would change pretty dramatically. You might quit work to spend more time with family and friends. You would make sure your house was in order.
Typically, my students come back from their interviews sobered. If respondents gave flippant answers, my students shudder. If they hear more serious responses, they take note. This experience changes many students, who end up asking themselves, “Why should I wait until the end to do what is most important? Why don’t I start today?”
Strive to follow God each moment.
Phil Bence is a retired pastor living in Nampa, Idaho. He and his wife, Kathy, have two adult daughters and three nearly adult grandsons.
© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
