Sign of Jonah, Part 2

Jesus often said things that confused people. “I am the bread of life (John 6:35, 48)... “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” (53). Or John 2:19, which takes place after Jesus cleared the temple and the religious leaders said, “What gives you the right to do that?” Jesus’ response: “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” Their response shows us they didn’t have a clue what that meant. They said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” There are other verses, but you get the picture. Jesus said things that either wouldn't have been understandable at that time, or things that would’ve required a spiritual revelation.

1 Peter 1:10-12, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.” 

Without the Holy Spirit, as 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 describes, we wouldn’t understand. “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived; the things God has prepared for those who love Him, these are the things God has revealed to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God…” 

All this helps us realize some of what Jesus said in His “sign” He gave to the Pharisees in Matthew 12:39-41, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here.” 

It’s helpful to try to determine if the story of Jonah was really about the miraculous acts God orchestrated in order to bring a message of mercy to the Ninevites? Or was it about the hard-heartedness of Jonah for refusing to see what God saw in the Ninevites? How does that matter? Why? Whatever the answers, Jesus saw this as a great sign of God’s authority for his Pharisee antagonists. How do you apply the story of Jonah?

The Sign of Jonah

Jonah… He’s a childhood storybook favorite. He’s the prophet of God who was swallowed by a great fish! His story is one of the more familiar of the “Bible stories” in American culture. Many storybooks end with Nineveh’s repentance to God because of Jonah’s short, but obviously effective, message. “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown” (Jonah 3:4). But how important is that story? How does it fit into the overall story of the Bible, or of Jesus and salvation? The difficult parts of that story often are overlooked, to make it more kid-friendly. Unfortunately, many people don’t quite grasp the significance of this 8th century B.C. prophet and how his story helps to “make straight the way of the Lord” (Isaiah 40:3, Mark 1:3). 

During Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders failed to see any of the “signs” in the prophets that pointed to Jesus as the Messiah, even though He fit every prophecy made about Him. So, when the Pharisees began to criticize Jesus’ teachings or actions, they said in Matthew 12:38, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you!” Ultimately, they were asking Jesus to prove He had the authority to cast out demons, heal the sick, or do any of the things He was doing, something they had already recognized, according to Nicodemus’ statement in John 3:2, “We know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with Him.” 

Jesus’ response to the pharisee’s demand for a sign was “the sign of Jonah”!? Was it about repentance? After all, the Ninevites “believed” the message of Jonah (Jonah 3:4, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”) Or was there something else, a sign that would later be understood by its accurate, and impossible fulfillment. Jesus said in Matthew 12:39-40, “...For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth…” 

Jesus’ big “sign” for them was going to be His resurrection! This was the sign for all believers, forever. It’s what compels us; it’s what gives us hope. This is why Paul claimed in 1 Corinthians 2:2, “I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” Later in that same letter (1 Corinthians 15), he focuses on Jesus' resurrection as the pivotal part of that event. Whether or not Jesus’ sign was sufficient for the Pharisees, they didn’t want to believe that His supreme power over all things, including death, was real. 

What sign are we looking for to determine if God’s promises are true? The Bible is packed with nuggets that point to Christ and His power over all things both in the Old and New Testament, our job is to have “eyes to see, and ears to hear” (Matthew 13:15). 

Who is Jesus?

"Who do people say I am?" This is a question Jesus poses in Matthew 16, Mark 8, and Luke 9. There were a lot of ideas being circulated, most of them false. Peter nails it: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God! " (Matthew 16:15). 

We may be tempted to overlook the significance of his answer in our Christian culture today. By this time, Jesus was under heavy scrutiny by the religious leaders, His followers were fluctuating, and Jesus was revealing how different His kingdom really was. All of these things could have played a role in Peter's conviction. 

The question of who Jesus is, is an important one and is often unanswered by many Christians. But who He is greatly impacts how I follow Him. 

In 2022, we are going to dive into an in-depth study of the life of Christ and the culture He came to live in. In the meantime, how do you answer the question Jesus asked His followers? 

Years later, after denying Christ, stumbling in his leadership (Galatians 2:11-14), persecuted by some (presumably 2 Timothy 3:12); he had this to say about who Jesus was: "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy, He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time… (19) the precious blood of Christ, the lamb without blemish or defect…" (1 Peter 1:3-5)

It is apparent by this time he was thoroughly convinced that Jesus was the Son of God and that knowledge necessitated an attitude that reflected that claim. So he says, in 1 Peter 2:9, "You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light… (12) [therefore] Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us… (17) Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor." 

Part of loving the family is praying for them, which means we must know about their struggles. Join in proclaiming the name of Jesus to those that need encouragement

Monday Night for the Master

The medical journal, The Lancet, recently published an article that describes an alarming problem that potentially looms on the very near horizon. The article described the long-term effects that longer periods of isolation, even less than 10 days, can have on people. One of the authors of the article stated, “We are witnessing the deterioration of relationships. Rather than connecting people, restrictive measures are creating rivalries and arousing discord between people… Social isolation has been linked to cognitive impairment, reduced immunity, increased risk of cardiovascular disease, and ultimately, mortality… This pandemic will inevitably lead to redefining our relationship styles, which will no longer be based on proximity but on distance. Physical contact will be replaced by negotiated sharing, while the digitalization of lives, already started with the advent of social media, technology, and virtual reality will be further emphasized…”

While that can be extremely depressing, the authority of God’s word gives us the direction and the process to address these issues in our culture. First of all, God’s word was written during times of extreme negative conditions (wandering in the wilderness, pre- and post-captivity, Roman oppression, congregational tensions). That should give us comfort to know that God has always had a plan to save people in desperate situations. Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes…”

Many of Paul’s conclusions to his letters, end with a greeting for people at a particular congregation, or instructions to help keep the body working in harmony with God’s word. The Monday Night for the Master mission has a similar goal: to encourage people who may feel alone and isolated from people around them. We care about the body of Christ; therefore, our first task should be to care for the people we worship with.

Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, “For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”

We are Christ’s ambassadors bringing hope from the fears of this life and the hope for the afterlife. That’s what motivates us to continue to reach out, even during the stress of our time in history. The Monday Night for the Master is a mission to do just what scriptures encourage us, and instruct us to do.

1 Thessalonians 5:11, “So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.” Hebrews 10:24-25, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”

There may be many psychological effects of isolation, of extended time away from people, but we can help serve as the bridge back to a life within a community built on Christ. Please prayerfully and actively help us to reach those who need a call or a card to lift up their spirits. 

Restoration

What does restoration mean to you? 

• Hosea 4:6, “my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge…” 

• Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.” The same verse in the King James version starts, “Where there is no vision, the people perish…” 

In order to restore anything, you have to have a vision of what it should look like and knowledge about what is needed to complete it. That’s true for renewing anything: cars, houses, furniture, or lives. 

Jesus often encountered people with broken lives that needed restoring, and some of them weren’t the people you’d expect. 

In Matthew 8:6, a Roman centurion came to Jesus and said, “Lord, my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” We often focus on his confidence in Christ’s authority to heal from anywhere. And Jesus praises him for his faith that was unseen anywhere in Israel (Matthew 8:10). Immediately before this though, Jesus had just finished a sermon that was meant to mimic Moses’ address on Mt. Ebal (Deuteronomy 27-29), a sermon Moses had given right before he sent the people over the Jordan towards the Promised Land. In that instance, God was going to drive out the faithless Canaanite people. Now, Jesus had a non-Israelite come and demonstrate tremendous faith in who he was. 

The Israelites needed restoring, but some of the first examples of faith in His power to restore were people other than the Jews. Another time, a Syrophoenician woman came to Jesus for healing against all odds. Matthew 15:22, “A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, 'Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.'” She boldly asks for Jesus’ power even when it didn’t sound like she was going to get it at first. Like the Persistent Widow (Luke 18), she kept her faith strong. 

Although many Jews believed, there were still many who rejected Him. However, all of them would have acknowledged that Israel needed restoration or deliverance from the Romans. They wanted their kingdom back, but they lacked the vision to see Jesus as the one who could do it (at least at first). 

In Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman, He tells her, “You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

Although “salvation is from the Jews,” the Jews weren’t the ones eager to have a restored life. What does this tell us? That sometimes those who have had the good news of a restored life right in front of them all their life, fail to recognize what that looks like or how to find it. Thankfully, Jesus brings it all out in the open where we can all make the decision to have a renewed life. He brings life, He brings hope for the future, and He brings peace to our lives. Let’s have “eyes to see, and ears to hear.”