(Text and Audio)
Title: A Sign From Heaven, Part 2
In a way, I feel like I’ve painted myself into a corner with this sermon. I’ve already confessed to you how much I love this passage. I’ve told you that few passages in Scripture have had the same impact and effect on my personal theology and practice as this one have. I told you that I specifically broke this passage into two sections, so that we could take last week to do the analysis of what Jesus said, and then take this week to look at the application.
So I’ve really set myself up. If this sermon stinks, or if I only preach my personal convictions, then all that build up was for nothing. With that being said, before we even review the passage and pray, I’d like to cover what I think should be our objectives today:
Objectives:
- To remain faithful to the text
- To share some applications in everyday life where this passage has been helpful
- To ask and answer some really difficult questions of everyday living
(read/pray)
“The Sign of the Prophet Jonah”
This is not the first time Jesus has given this same stern rebuke (Matthew 12:39). He refers them in that passage to the sign of the Prophet Jonah. We when went through that passage in September of last year, I asked that all of you take some time in the week leading up to that sermon and read the 4 chapter book of Jonah in the O.T. Then I challenged you with this question: What is this “Sign of Jonah”
If you recall, I argued that the easy answer, the simple answer, was to draw a parallel between Jonah being in the belly of a great fish for three days and nights with the upcoming death and resurrection of Jesus.
But I also argued that was only half the answer.
Does anyone remember the real significance of Jesus comparing himself to the ministry of Jonah?
Jonah’s mission was to the Gentile city of Nineveh. He had to go through the belly of a great fish to reach his final mission, just as Jesus had to go three days and nights into the earth, rise again, to reach the Gentiles.
And the parallels to the Jonah story don’t stop there. Jonah was a Jew, and even after he was obedient to God, travelled to Nineveh, preached to the people, saw them repent, he still went up on a hill, sat next to a tree outside of the city, and waited for God to destroy it.
Consider Jonah:
- He knew God’s will
- He fought against God’s will
- He played a major role in fulfilling prophecy
- He sulked and was angry at God’s decision
Does this sound like anyone we know in the N.T.? I think it’s no coincidence that Jesus references this particular story. It’s an easy answer to say, “Oh, Jesus is the Jonah figure.” But I’m not so sure it’s not the Pharisees and Sadducees.
My reasoning:
The actions of the Pharisees and Sadducees denying Jesus as the Messiah (and teaching the masses to do the same) was the very thing that fulfilled O.T. prophecy allowed the door of salvation to be open to the Gentiles!
Three Words:
- Hypocrites: They act like something they really are not. (Holy.) They speak like people who are intelligently informed. (They are not.) They pass judgment as people who have authority to do so. (They don’t.) They should be about service, but are instead about themselves.
- Wicked: Their intentions are not aligned with God’s. They set their own standards for morality, and ignore God’s. They call what is holy evil, and what is evil holy.
- Adulterous: They have forsaken their covenant vows. They have entertained and hosted other Gods. They have forgotten their original love.
The HUGE Point:
Q: What is the real rebuke of Jesus?
A: They live in a world they DO NOT understand.
Notice what I said, notice what I did not say. They live in a world they do not understand. They could understand it, if they had eyes to see and ears to hear, but the hardness of their hearts has kept them from doing their jobs as religious leaders.
Their job was to see the truth in the midst of what was happening in society and be able to tell what was good from evil, to be able to instruct others toward righteousness, to be able to clearly point out truth.
But they can’t do any of these things because their talk is shallow. They make petty observations (“It’s going to rain today”) based on shallow and anecdotal information. They don’t engage in the society they are called to serve, instead choosing to sit on high, puffed up with arrogance, and judge others and their decisions.
My fear is that far too many in the Christian community do the same.
They live in a world they do not understand.
They live in a world they don’t care about engaging with.
They are selfish, self-focused, and content to judge the actions of others without truly exploring society.
They speak out against movies they’ve never seen.
They criticize books they’ve never read.
They shun people who use technologies they’ve never taken the time to understand.
They surround themselves with only people who think like they do, dress like they do, speak like they do, all the while, with hands lifted high, praising the same Jesus Christ that rebuked people for not understanding or being able to relate to the world they lived in.
And, let me be very clear on this: To Understand something is not to agree with it, but, rather, to be able to explain WHY you agree or disagree with it.
Conclusion: If we are to have any hope of avoiding the foolish and selfish decision of the Pharisees and Sadducees, we need to be involved in society.
Now the Rubber meets the Road with a series of questions.
Q: How much should we be involved with society?
A: Enough to understand it, but not at the cost of sin.
Q: Pastor, do I need to know about how Facebook works?
A: Depends. Do the people you minister to use Facebook/Insta/Twitter? (Yes.) Will Facebook/Insta/Twitter cause me to sin? (No…but keep asking this question.) Then yes, absolutely.
Q: Can I go with my friends to a bar?
A: Depends. Can you truly represent Christ there? Are you likely to sin in thought or action there? (My personal answer to this question is yes, but I respect that for many of you the answer is no, never.)
Q: How much do I need to be involved with society?
A: Enough to understand it, but not at the cost of sin.
Others?