39He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41The men 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.
43"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. 44Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. 45Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
In this passage, Jesus refers to Jonah, the prophet. We all know the story of Jonah and how he was in the fish's belly for three days. Jesus states, in verse 40, how as Jonah was in the fish's belly for three day, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three day and three nights. I think he is predicting his death and how he will rise three days later.
Another interesting point is how he talks about the people of Nineveh and compares them to the Jews. Jonah was sent to warn Nineveh to repent or face God's wrath, even though Jonah didn't want to go or see these wicked people saved. Nineveh listened and repented, and so, in turn, they were spared. Now Jesus mentions "now one greater than Jonah is here," but the Jews were still blind to see who Jesus truly was, and they later rejected him, even though Jesus still loved them to the very end.
Jesus said that a wicked and adulterous generation asks for miracles. Jonah's survival in the fish's belly for three days and three nights was a miracle and Jesus death and resurrections was the greatest miracle of all time. The Ninevehites witnessed Jonah's miracle and listened to God's warning and message and they received it with obeying hearts and repented. The Jews, in Jesus's time, witnessed the greatest miracle of all time, but most were closed-hearted and couldn't see God's awesomeness and power.
We are a wicked generation, full of greed and adulterous ways. How will we respond to Christ's miracle? Will we repent or choose to remain stubborn in our sinful ways?
2 comments:
i was so struck by Jesus's description of the evil spirit who comes out of a man, but eventually returns, "bringing with him seven spirits more wicked than himself".
christianity is not the only religion that can cast out demons. “evil spirits” in the form of various vices and disorders can be "cast out" by a number of secular, psychological self-help methods or medications. a person may appear to be healed from various addictions, destructive habits etc. the "house" appears to be "unoccupied, swept clean and put in order".
but Jesus says that if the condition of the man's life is improved by any other power save His own, then "the final condition of that man is worse than the first", for the evil spirit “goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there”.
being “cured” by any other means save Jesus leads to a worse spiritual state than the original disorder. we all know people who are disillusioned and disappointed and cynical about life. they had put their hope in some cause which eventually relapsed and failed. now they are incapable of believing in anything. their spiritual state is at least "eight times" worse than it was before.
if our “house” is not “occupied” by Jesus Christ, it will be open to the invasion of “evil spirits”. we all need to beware of the things we put our hope in, what we turn to to find our healing.
What stood out for me was how the Pharisees asked for a miraculous sign because they wanted proof that Jesus is who He claimed to be.
I think it's interesting how Jesus pointed back in time to Jonah. It was like He was saying, 'the sign was already given through the story of how the Ninevites repented through the prophet Jonah.' The Pharisees failed to recognize the signs given throughout their history and ultimately failed to recognize their God who stood right before them.
It's was easy at first to attach the labels of "wicked and adulterous" to the Pharisees and then think about how I can keep myself from becoming like them. But when I think harder about what they were asking for and why, I begin to realize how much I am like them already.
I don't and wouldn't ask Jesus for a sign to prove He is my Savior but I do find myself asking 'is He, can He really be my best friend? Is He and can He really be all that I ever need? Is He, is He really my "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace"? I know and believe Him to be THE Son of God. THE One and Only Savior. And in the Bible Jesus also says He is the "good shepherd" and assures us that God cares about us so much that He even counts the number of hair on our head. But when it comes to the nitty gritties of life- when my vices, my circumstances, or other personal trials come my way, I readily rely my own wits and the resources around me to carry me through. It's harder to depend on Christ and when I think about why, I know it's because of my lack of faith. When I do try to apply what faith I have, deep inside there is that request for a sign to assure me that He is near and that He will work things out for my good. He wants to work things out for our good...Can you truly believe He loves us that much? That He knows about every concern on our minds and that He'll work all things out for our good? To be honest, it's hard- it is hard for me to believe. But now I know not to ask for a sign but for greater faith. I hope we'll all be able to say 'Jesus, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"
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