Quick Summary:

In the world of presidential politics, changing one’s mind on just about anything is tantamount to treason. But do we really want leaders whose ideology is so inalterably written in stone that they are incapable of changing their mind, no matter what evidence may arise to the contrary?

The church itself is hardly a “flexible” institution! Whole centuries have passed before points of view tip toward a new direction. And speaking of change, there’s one verse that rises to the top in our reading from Jonah. It’s verse 10:

WHEN GOD SAW WHAT THE NINEVITES DID, HOW THEY TURNED FROM THEIR EVIL WAYS, GOD CHANGED HIS MIND ABOUT THE CALAMITY THAT HE HAD SAID HE WOULD BRING UPON THEM; AND HE DID NOT DO IT.

As far as God is concerned, it seems that there are legitimate reasons and appropriate occasions for changing one’s mind, and mercy is one.