Jesus: You want a sign?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Handout
A heart matter
A heart matter
Jesus knew the heart of man, and it was wicked. Jesus was not impressed by the crowds but calls for the crowds to come by faith. He had shown them previously.
The importance and the power of the message; but more importantly is your name recorded in heaven.
He taught about who is your brother and also then the “better thing.”
He taught about prayer and the persistence in prayer.
And finally about a divided house and a strong man and a stronger man.
Jesus was concerned about the soul of man, not the works that could not save. He is about to get to the heart of the matter with this teaching we are looking at this morning.
You ask for a sign, the passage.
You ask for a sign, the passage.
29 As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. 30 “For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
31 “The Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. 32 “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
33 “No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. 34 “The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness.
35 “Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness. 36 “If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be wholly illumined, as when the lamp illumines you with its rays.”
What do you notice in this passage today?
What did the people of “this” generation want (v.29)?
They wanted a sign
Jesus said they would get one, and what would that sign be (vv.29-30)?
The sign of Jonah; it will be the Son of Man to this generation.
Why were the men of this generation going to be condemned (v.31-32)?
Because something greater than Solomon was there and they did not believe.
Something greater than Jonah was there and they did not repent.
What does Jesus say about the eye (v.34)?
That it is the the lamp of your body. This goes hand in hand with (v.33).
Jesus gives an admonition (v.35) and a truth (v.36), can you see them?
Watch out that the light in you is not darkness
If you body is full of light it will be wholly illuminated by the light within you.
(Transition) - So, now let’s go back and look at how Jesus answer the request for a sign.
Here’s your sign: Jonah
Here’s your sign: Jonah
29 And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, “This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. 30 For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.
31 The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.
Proof, give us proof, OK, now give us more proof.
People do not always believe what they see right in front of them. Jesus had performed signs before them and they did not believe, and then would they did believe they thought it was by the power of Beelzebul.
Jesus did promise a sign, the sign of Jonah
The journey of Jonah and the three days in the belly of the great fish was a shadow of a death burial and resurrection. Jesus is greater and his resurrection would be the real thing.
Jonah was a sign of the power of God; Jesus resurrection proved He is the Son of God (Rom1:4).
4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
The death, burial, and resurrection was the central point of the apostles preaching (in Acts 2, 3, 5, 13; 1Cor15); True that Jonah was a living miracle, but Jesus was too. For Jesus was greater than Jonah.
Now turning back to the request for a sign, another sign for proof:
William Barclay records a story of a man named Theudas from 15 years after Jesus death. He claimed to be the Messiah. Persuaded people to follow him with the promise that he would part the Jordan River in tow. He tried, he failed, and the Romans dealt severely with him. But he know what kind of sign the people wanted to see. Jesus told them, and tells us that hearing and keeping the word are more important than signs.”
There was another illustration beyond Jonah, there was the Queen of South and the wisdom of Solomon (1Kngs10).
The Queen of Sheba traveled a great distance (it is believed about 1500 miles) to hear the wisdom of Solomon.
The people asking for a sign had seen plenty right in front of them, did not have to travel, yet they did not believe.
Jesus audacious claim to be greater than the wisest man ever lived was a huge claim, a claim He fulfilled at the resurrection.
Interesting fact about these signs, Nineveh, Queen of Sheba, both were all Gentiles and yet they believed and the Jews, God’s chosen people did not believe, they wanted more signs.
Before moving on I found these comments from Adam Clarke that are worth considering.
“Christ preached to the Jews, was infinitely greater than Jonah, in his nature, person, and mission.
Jonah preached repentance to Nineveh only for forty days and Christ preached among the Jews for several years.”
Jonah wrought no miracles to authorize his preaching; but Christ wrought miracles every day, in every place where he went, and of every king.
Notwithstanding all this, the people of Judea did not repent, though the people of Nineveh did.
Another illustration: Light
Another illustration: Light
33 “No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. 34 The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.
35 Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. 36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.”
Scripture uses “light” in illustrations in several places (Mt6:22-23; Ps119:105; Pro6:23) those are externally shining lights, but the light He speaks of here, just like (Mt5:14-15) is internally generated.
Like a lamp on a lampstand, the inner light of a believer should be displayed in his words and his works.
“The brightest sun, the brightest light cannot make a blind man see.” (Wiersbe)
When we trust in Jesus, our eyes are opened and the light shines in and we become children of light (Jn8:12); We need to keep our eyes filled with light of the word; on our faith so the light will not turn to darkness (consider 1Jn2:16)
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
This is spiritual darkness, or light turning to darkness.
“When one lives in darkness, there are two possible reasons why. There may be no light source, or the darkness may be within —the inability to perceive light. When Jesus warned, take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness, He warned against the darkness within.” (Guzik)
When the Light of the Lord’s word shines, when the word and work of the Lord is understood, then one does not does not walk in the darkness of spiritual blindness.
Lightfoote said “There is no twilight living for the Christian, for God demands total submission and obedience (Lk11:23)
23 “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.
How about some biblical examples of this truth (keeping in mind the 1Jn2:16 verse.
16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.
Sampson: ended up as a blind slave because he yielded to the “lust of the flesh” you can read on that in Jud16.
Lot: He began as a pilgrim with Abraham, but ended up as a drunk in a cave committing incest because he yielded to the “lust of the eyes” you can read on that in Gen13:10-11.
Then there is King Saul: started as a humble leader, but his pride led him to a witch’s cave (1Sam28) and his life ended of suicide on the battlefield (1Sam31). His sin was the “pride of life.”
The admonishment given to those requesting a sign and missing the light was strong and I want to finish this morning with a comment by Courson
“Each of us is controlled either by light or darkness. The frightening thing is that some people have so hardened themselves against the Lord that they cannot tell the difference! They think they are following the light when, in reality, they are following the darkness. The scribes and Pharisees claimed to “see the light” as they studied the Law, but they were living in the darkness (see Jn12:35-50)
I hope, I pray that the light of Gods love, through Gods word shines in and through you today and each day and dispels any darkness at all, for where there is light there is no darkness.