Skip to main content

115. The Sign of Jonah


Matthew 12:38-42
Key Verse: "Now one greater than Jonah is here." Matthew 12:41C &
"Now one greater than Solomon is here." Matthew 12:42C

My goodness! After everything Jesus has done, the religious leaders still have the audacity to say, "We want to see a sign." I must admit that, reading this myself, evokes a comment within me something like, "Get your eyes checked. Haven't you been paying attention? I mean you've practically criticized every sign you've been given!" While this wasn't exactly Jesus' response, He did make note of the foolishness of their request.

He knew that the Pharisees were only asking for another sign so that they could do more of the same, that is, ridicule His ministry and belittle the ones drawn to Him. The signs that He had already given, they had attributed to satan. Jesus knew that without the gift of the Holy Spirit, and a willing heart, the situation was pretty hopeless.

So, He compares them to the Ninevites, a Gentile enemy of Israel more than seven hundred years in the past. The Ninevites were a brutal people who were working their way toward conquering the northern Kingdom of Israel. God sent a prophet, Jonah, from northern Israel to call the Ninevites to repentance. Understandably, Jonah didn't want to go and tried to run away. God sent a large fish to swallow up Jonah, after he had been thrown off the ship that he had boarded for his escape vessel. The fish got Jonah back on course and, three days later, coughed up Jonah who then obeyed God's command and preached to the Ninevite enemy, who did indeed respond in repentance. While Jonah was unhappy with the results of his mission, he actually bought his people, one more generation worth of time, to turn to God themselves to avoid annihilation at the hands of the people of Nineveh in Assyria.

Jesus tells the people that the Pharisees are worse than the Ninevites. They responded to a man who had just spent three days in the belly of a fish, but someone greater than Jonah was here, who would spend three days in the earth, but their religious hard hearts would still keep them from responding to God with repentance of their own.

Then there is the queen of Sheba who sacrificed a great deal of time and effort to talk with Solomon who could do nothing for her but amaze her with his wisdom and riches in a human way. Now, the creator of the universe, the creator of wisdom and material things was among them and all they could do was criticize. They weren't willing to sacrifice anything, especially their opinions of Him.  Yet, one day, this One who was so much greater than them would pay the ultimate sacrifice out of love for them. They continued to refuse to see His love and demanded more proof because of their stubbornness.

There comes a time when we all need to stop demanding proof and start believing. We have so much evidence through creation, historical evidence and God's word, that there is really no excuse. Yet, as we learn from the Pharisees today, our minds are capable of explaining anything away if we have a will to do so. If this is you, perhaps you need to ask the question, why is it important to me that Jesus is not God? The Pharisees were threatened. They saw Jesus as a loss of power and influence for them, a change from life as they knew it. What will you lose if Jesus really is God? Let me assure you, what you gain, in the end, will be worth it.

Song: “We Believe in One True God”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

258. "Remember, Always Remember!"

Exodus 12:1-30 Key Verse: "This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord a lasting ordinance." Exodus 12:14 "Celebrate the feast of unleavened bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come." (Exodus 12:17) "And when your children ask you, "What does this ceremony mean to you?" then tell them, "It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when He struck down the Egyptians." (Exodus 12:27) The original act was an act of worship as the first true act of freedom for the people of Israel. They had been brought to Egypt by Joseph during a time of famine so that through Joseph God could preserve their lives. ( Genesis 37 , & 39-50 ) After Joseph died, however, instead of heading back to C...
Post a Comment
Read more

August 13 What Is Fitting

It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury—how much less for a slave to rule over princes! ~Proverbs 19:10   On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man!” Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. ~Acts 12:21-23  Wow! Well, what in the world can there be to benefit us here? First of all, perhaps we should review the first Biblical definition of a fool, penned by no other than Solomon’s Father, David himself. “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 14:1 and Psalm 53:1) It is not fitting for the fool to live the blessed life. Why should they when they deny from whom all blessings flow?  King Herod was a fool. Now, just to be clear, this is not the Herod who ruled at Jesus’ birth and ordered the slaughter of the male children in Bethlehem. He ...
Post a Comment
Read more

July 26 Time for A Wellness Check Up

This too is a grievous evil: As a man comes, so he departs, and what does he gain, since he toils for the wind? All his days he eats in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger. Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work, this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart. ~Ecclesiastes 5:16-20  I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret to being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everythi...
Post a Comment
Read more