The Sign of Jonah

Scripture: Matthew 12:39 – “But he answered them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.’” (NRSVUE)

How many of us have been in a place of great doubt or turmoil or have faced a momentous decision and cried out, “God, please give me a sign!”? We need assurance to make sure that our decision will be the right one and will provide us with happiness and security. Of course, whatever signs we do get are barely noticeable, and we are often forced to fall back on our relationships with God and God’s truth to make our decisions. The regular discipline of prayer is not nearly as exciting as wanting a booming voice or a bolt of lightning to come from the sky.

During the time of Jesus, many of his fellow Jews looked at his ministry and doubted. They say a man healing the sick and promising forgiveness of sins by claiming divine authority. Jesus could be the Messiah, but he could also be a charlatan like many before him. So, they asked Jesus for a sign. If Jesus could do something remarkable, it would put their doubts away and they could be his disciples.

Jesus bristled at the lack of faith disguised in this demand for a sign and offered instead only “the sign of the prophet Jonah.” There are a couple of ways we might interpret this sign. The first is that it connects to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Just as Jonah was in the belly of a great fish for three days before returning to life on land, so too would Jesus spend three says in death before being resurrected. And what greater sign could there be than returning to life!

But the use of Jonah is significant, because Jonah is also known as a prophet who preached not to his own people, but to those in Nineveh. Surprisingly, these enemies of Israel listened to God and repented in a way that Israel itself never did. Jesus’ sign was that people from far away were hearing his message, even if those closest to him were ignoring him. Jesus also mentions the Queen of Sheba traveling great distances to see the riches of King Solomon as another example of someone coming to God from far away.

Sometimes the sign we need to be shown is that something is blocking our vision. Jesus presented a truth about love and mercy to the people around him in Galilee and Judea, but they dismissed that truth because it was challenging to them. Perhaps because it came from someone like them, it was easy to ignore. When someone we know offers us a simple but challenging solution for a problem, it can be very easy to dismiss them, We might be more excited if we receive a complicated solution that does not challenge our status quo from some exotic source. Your friend suggests that a consistent lifestyle change of diet and exercise can lead to weight loss. Maybe, you think, but this life hack you saw online will allow you to “melt belly fat with this one simple trick”, usually one that does not require you to change your lifestyle in any significant way.

The sign of Jonah is not just the miracle of Christ’s resurrection. It is also a challenge for us to not ignore the truth when it is right in front of our faces just because we may not want to hear it. Lots of people did not believe in Jesus, even after being told he rose from the dead. But many people do believe, even without ever experiencing a miracle, when they ground their lives in faith and relationship with God. Prayer and consistent practice may not be exciting, but a life of that finds joy in blessings and hope in suffering is all the sign we need.

Prayer: God, help me to recognize the ways you are already present in my life. Amen.

Image credit: Bernard Spragg. NZ