The Sign of Jonah

February 17, 2016

The Sign of Jonah

“Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign, but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.” Then Jesus left them and went away.

Matthew 16:4

Last week, we were driving to the Y just at daybreak. The sunrise was stunning as the sun began to peak over the eastern mountains. There were so many hues of red and orange, it was one of those ‘jaw-dropping’ moments advertised on Facebook. At the time, I immediately thought of the old mariner’s poem,

Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.

Red sky at night, sailors' delight.

It wasn’t until today, when I was reading Matthew 16:1-4, that I recalled that the old saying has been around for two millennia! (Incidentally, the warning wasn’t needed as the forecasted snow storms never materialize that day.)

Jesus’ warning, however, is one we need to take very seriously. While the religious leaders may have been good at meteorology, they weren’t so good at theology. This is the second time in Matthew’s Gospel that Jesus affirmed that he was all the sign God was going to give. If they cannot believe on the basis on the preaching, teaching and miraculous signs that accompanied Jesus, then they would be given one last sign: the sign of the prophet Jonah, that is, the death and resurrection of Jesus, God’s Messiah.

I believe Jesus’ warning impacts us individually, and corporately as his church. Many churches today try to reach the world, using the world’s norms for programs and standards. Many people today are undecided about whether to take the leap of faith to become fully-devoted followers of Jesus. What do the churches need to shape their programs and standards? What do individuals need to break the inertia that is holding them back?

I am fully persuaded the answer to both questions is to be found by embracing the truth of “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27 NRSV). This truth leads us to affirm that “Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us” (Colossians 3:11). When all that matters in our life and the life of our church is Jesus, everything else will be sorted out properly.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.