The gracious and merciful heart of God for people and cities full of people is revealed in the book of Jonah. God loves and cares much about people, thus He loves and cares much about cities which are full of people. God shared His heart and mission with Jonah by telling him to go and preach to “Nineveh, that great city” (Jonah 1:2 ESV). The purpose of God in sending Jonah to preach a message warning of judgment was to bring Nineveh to a place of repentance. Jonah would have preferred for a swift and sure judgment upon Nineveh. He knew that God is a “gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster”. So Jonah decided to “flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord” (Jonah 1:3 EVS). God’s heart of compassion for all peoples is great, which moves Him to give a great commission to His people. Those who are not connected to the heart of God will not partner in the mission of God. But those who carry the compassionate heart of God will be moved to pray for and proclaim the saving message of Christ to the lost. Christ told His disciples “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:37-38 ESV).Then He sent out His disciples to be the feet to those prayers (Matthew 10). After Christ sent them out, He himself “went on from there to teach and preach in their cities” (Matthew 11:1 ESV).

God is moved with compassion for people, are you? Are you living more like Jonah who was disconnected from the heart and mission of God or like Jesus who did what pleased the Father?
Will you pray for laborers? And will you go to where God sends you to proclaim the gospel?