Wednesday of the First Week of Lent -- March 16, 2011
Luke 11:29 – 32
As the crowds increased, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom; and now one greater than Solomon is here. The people of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now one greater than Jonah is here.
Why would people who claim to live life by “faith” look for signs? We seem to hunger for things that confirm our belief systems and the lives that we’ve already determined to live. We want some sign that gives us assurance for our relationship with God.
One thing is sure: You can draw a crowd through signs and charisma.
Crowds grew around Jesus, drawn by his charisma, his healing and his extraordinary challenges to the religious and government establishment. Yet the only sign Jesus would give was the “sign of Jonah.”
Far from a wondrous sign that evoked awe, the “sign of Jonah” was a sign of darkness. It suggested being imprisoned in the darkness of a whale, literally being thrown into a pit. It was not a sign of triumphalism. “Overcoming” and “victory” are not in the sign-of-Jonah-lexicon.
The way to life, wholeness and abundance is through darkness, giving up control and falling into whale’s bellies. It is not the way of upward mobility, but downward mobility.
If you track Jesus’ life, he knew well the story of Jonah and its sign of darkness. Jesus’ experience mirrored Jonah’s experience.
We should notice that this is what the spiritual life gets us into. Our destiny in this life is not egocentric triumphalism, but often darkness and confusion. The “sign of Jonah”, though, is what ultimately shapes us in life-changing transformation.
As the crowds increased, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom; and now one greater than Solomon is here. The people of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now one greater than Jonah is here.
Why would people who claim to live life by “faith” look for signs? We seem to hunger for things that confirm our belief systems and the lives that we’ve already determined to live. We want some sign that gives us assurance for our relationship with God.
One thing is sure: You can draw a crowd through signs and charisma.
Crowds grew around Jesus, drawn by his charisma, his healing and his extraordinary challenges to the religious and government establishment. Yet the only sign Jesus would give was the “sign of Jonah.”
Far from a wondrous sign that evoked awe, the “sign of Jonah” was a sign of darkness. It suggested being imprisoned in the darkness of a whale, literally being thrown into a pit. It was not a sign of triumphalism. “Overcoming” and “victory” are not in the sign-of-Jonah-lexicon.
The way to life, wholeness and abundance is through darkness, giving up control and falling into whale’s bellies. It is not the way of upward mobility, but downward mobility.
If you track Jesus’ life, he knew well the story of Jonah and its sign of darkness. Jesus’ experience mirrored Jonah’s experience.
We should notice that this is what the spiritual life gets us into. Our destiny in this life is not egocentric triumphalism, but often darkness and confusion. The “sign of Jonah”, though, is what ultimately shapes us in life-changing transformation.
Comments
Post a Comment