Passages: Jonah 1-4
Big Idea: God is kind to people who don’t deserve it.
Ages: 8-11
Four lessons exploring the book of Jonah.
Too often children have a positive view of Jonah because they often hear only half the story. But Jonah really is the saddest prophet of all. His failure to love the lost is clearly demonstrated in his disobedience in chapter 1. He does not want the people of Nineveh to experience what his people had experienced, the undeserved kindness of God – God’s amazing grace.
The sailors, non-Jews, are the ones at the end of chapter 1 found worshipping the one true God. The God who made the land and sea. The inescapable God, who knows all, is all-powerful and is everywhere.
God does for Jonah what Jonah does not want for the people of Nineveh – God has mercy on him. In the end, Jonah was right. God does what Jonah had feared - he shows mercy to the people of Nineveh, who fear the Lord and repent. And Jonah becomes angry, so angry he could die.
Jonah’s story is the story of God’s mercy - extended to those who do not deserve it - to us.
The unit comes complete with stories, pictures, suggested songs/memory verses, games and drama activities, crafts, large and small group activities. A resource pack of crafts and worksheets is also included.