A Study of Matthew: Here's Your Sign!
Notes
Transcript
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”
But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none.
Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order.
Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.”
How many of you remember about 25-30 years ago, when the comedian Bill Engvall was doing the “Here’s your sign” bit? He was talking about people who do obviously stupid things.
"Last summer," says Bill Engvall, "I got a flat tire and pulled into a gas station lot. The attendant walked out, looked at the tire, and asked, 'Tire go flat?' I kept a straight face and replied, 'No, I was driving down the road when all of a sudden those other three just swelled right up on me.' Without batting an eyelash, he nodded his head and said, 'Yep. The heat'll do that.' What else could I say? I just reached into my briefcase and handed him his very own Stupid sign."
Of course, Mr. Engvall was talking about recognizing people by the things they say and do. The fact is, we are all usually good at interpreting things. We can read a book or watch a movie and figure out what the point of the story is. If we spend enough time with a person, we can usually figure out what this person is like and what their agenda is.
Today, we are reading Matthew chapter 12, starting in verse 38. The scribes and Pharisees are asking Jesus for a sign to prove that he is the Messiah. It sounds like a reasonable request, right? But how does Jesus respond to their request?
But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
He goes on to briefly tell the story of Jonah, and how the people of Nineveh repented.
Why does Jesus tell this story?
Well, if you remember our last two discussions, you know that the Pharisees have been looking for a reason to discredit Jesus. They got onto him first because his disciples dared to pick some kernels of grain off some stalks ON THE SABBATH! I know, it’s just awful.
THEN, they arranged for Jesus to meet a man with a withered hand on that very same Sabbath. They asked Jesus if it was right to heal a man on the Sabbath. Jesus points out scriptural references to times when it was considered right to do things that technically violated the law. He follows that by pointing out the times that the Pharisees have taken care of their animals on the Sabbath. And Jesus finishes up by telling the man that he is healed—and the man suddenly finds that his underdeveloped, dead hand is perfectly healthy!
Jesus goes on to heal several other people, including a blind mute man who was also demon possessed! This leads to another discussion between Jesus and the Pharisees about where he gets the authority to cast out demons. He warns them that seeing the work of the Holy Spirit and calling it the work of Satan is unforgivable blasphemy. Jesus also points out that you can tell the source of something by the quality of the fruit. A work of the devil will attempt to turn folks away from God. Rotten roots, rotten fruit. Everything Jesus does is turning people TOWARD God. Good roots, GOOD fruit.
So NOW the scribes and Pharisees want Jesus to prove what he’s saying by providing a sign. REALLY?
If turning a dead hand into a healthy one isn’t enough, what about all the other healings that happened that day? What about the DEMON-POSSESSED BLIND DEAF DUDE?
But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
What he is saying here is that, for some people—like these Pharisees—NO sign will ever be enough to prove who Jesus is. WHY? Because they don’t want him to be the Messiah. They just watched him cast out a demon. Since they couldn’t argue against the miracle, they chose to reject the source of the miracle.
“That wasn’t God who did that. That was SATAN! God is all for what WE are doing.”
These Pharisees made their livelihood on always being right. What Jesus is doing doesn’t line up with their teaching. Therefore, in spite of all the evidence to the contrary, they have to believe that Jesus is the one who is wrong.
Jesus tells these men that the only sign he will do for them is the sign of Jonah. Of course, he is talking about his death and resurrection. It took me a long time to understand what Jesus is saying here, but I finally figured it out.
The sign that Jesus will give them is the sign of Jonah. Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and nights before he brought the message of salvation to the wicked Ninevites. That message brought the entire city to repentance.
In spite of the hatred the Pharisees display for Jesus, he will give them the sign of Jonah. He will die and be buried for three days to give them the opportunity to receive salvation.
Yes, Jesus is speaking harshly to these men, but he’s not being mean or hateful. He’s pointing them to the truth.
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none.
Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order.
Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.”
Jesus is warning them that their actions are not producing godliness, but are creating barriers for people who want to know God. They have made a good show of looking clean, but they are not surrendered to God. As a result, they are creating a truly godless religious system that the devil will use to destroy people.
In spite of their actions and attitudes, Jesus tells them that he is willing to die for them.
Everybody is looking for a sign to prove that God exists. They want amazing, spectacular miracles. But when things DO happen, they doubt. The fact is, the person who is hungry for God will find God. The person who is running from God will find every reason to ignore the evidence of God’s hand reaching out to them.
I have had so many conversations with people who were questioning God’s love—and even God’s existence. I always bring it down to this. What are the odds that, at this very moment, when you are struggling with your belief, you wound up with someone like me? Someone who is convinced that God is real and that he is absolutely crazy about you. The fact is, this moment is a divine appointment orchestrated by God, just to let you know that he IS real and he DOES love you!
The folks who are open to finding God are comforted and encouraged by what I shared. But then there are the folks who dismiss what I say, because accepting it would force them to interact with God, and they’re not ready to do that.
The point is this. Until a heart is ready to receive Jesus, there is no message or miracle that will impress them enough to turn to Jesus. We don’t need to impress people into coming to our church or getting saved. The real sign that will point people to Jesus is the fruit of real Godliness being lived out in our daily lives.
