Sermon Study Guide | Series: Numb and Numb-er | Sermon: Angry About Grace | Scripture: Jonah 4 | Date: November 9, 2025

CONNECT - “A Personal Reflection”

This section is designed to help you relate personally to the theme of the sermon. It encourages you to reflect on your own life experiences and how they connect to the message.

Have you ever watched someone get something you felt they didn’t deserve—a promotion, a second chance, or forgiveness—and felt anger rise up in you? Jonah did too. He couldn’t stand the thought that God would show mercy to people he despised.

As you begin this week, take a moment to reflect: When have you struggled to celebrate God’s grace in someone else’s life? What might that reveal about how deeply you understand His grace for you? Share with your group

ENGAGE - “Exploring the Scripture”

This section invites you to dive into the biblical passage, discuss its meaning, and apply it to your life through thoughtful questions.

Read Jonah 4 together. 

• Jonah is angry that God shows mercy to Nineveh. What does this tell us about humanity’s view of justice versus God’s?
  
  
• God asks Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry?” How might that question speak into your own life right now?
  
  
• Jonah had correct theology but a resistant heart. What are some ways we can know the Bible well but still miss the heart of God?
  
  
• God provides the plant, the worm, and the wind to teach Jonah. What might be the “plants” or “worms” God is using in your life to shape your compassion or humility?
  
  
• Jonah’s comfort mattered more to him than compassion. How do we see that same struggle play out in our culture or in our hearts?
  
  
• Of the Symptoms of a Shrinking Heart—moving away from gratitude to entitlement, from confession to comparison, from participation to observation—which one do you most identify with right now?
  
  

APPLY - “Putting the Scriptures into Action”

This section challenges us to take what we’ve learned and implement it in practical ways in our daily lives.

• Gratitude: Where do you sense bitterness, resentment, or entitlement taking root in your life? What would repentance look like in that area?
  
  
• Confession: What is one relationship or situation where you need to choose compassion over comfort this week?
  
  
• Participation: How can you actively participate in God’s mercy—instead of merely observing it—in your home, workplace, or community?
  
  
• This week, when you feel angry or resentful, pause and ask yourself: “Is being angry helping?” How might that question help soften your heart toward others and toward God?
  
  • Grief sometimes manifests as anger; is there something you haven’t grieved yet?
    
    

PRAY - “Seeking God’s Guidance”

This section offers a short prayer to help us center our hearts and invite God to work in our lives through his scripture.

Gracious God, thank you for being slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Forgive us when we, like Jonah, resist your mercy or try to decide who deserves it. Soften our hearts where they’ve grown hard. Break the bitterness that blinds us. Teach us to rejoice when your grace reaches others, and remind us that we never outgrow our need for it ourselves. Make us people who love mercy, walk humbly, and extend your compassion in a world desperate for grace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.