[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 31st of May, 2015. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel, http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
Listen and follow along as I read passages from two chapters of the Gospel according to Matthew that sound very similar but that actually came from two separate events in Jesus’ ministry. I’ll be reading from the New Living Translation of our Bible, the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 12 verses 38 through 40 and chapter 16 verses 1 through 4…
12:38 One day some teachers of religious law and Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.”
39 But Jesus replied, “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. 40 For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.”
16:1 One day the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test Jesus, demanding that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.
2 He replied, “You know the saying, ‘Red sky at night means fair weather tomorrow; 3 red sky in the morning means foul weather all day.’ You know how to interpret the weather signs in the sky, but you don’t know how to interpret the signs of the times! 4 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 12:38-40; 16:1-4 (NLT)
Let us pray… Father God, our Lord Jesus faced all kinds of people during His walk on earth, many of whom just tried to create problems and cause trouble. They tested Him at every opportunity. Father, may we never be like those, may we never test Jesus. Instead, may we learn more about Him as we listen to the message You have for us this morning. Speak to us Your words, Father, that we might hear and understand Your will. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Upon entering a little country store, a stranger noticed a sign saying "DANGER! BEWARE OF DOG!" posted on the glass door. Inside, he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor near the cash register. He asked the store’s owner "Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?"
"Yep," the proprietor answered, "That’s him."
The stranger couldn’t help being amused. "That certainly doesn’t look like a dangerous dog to me," he chuckled. "Why in the world did you decide to post that sign?"
"Because," the owner replied, "before I put that sign up, people kept tripping over him."
The real meaning behind a sign isn’t always evident. Some signs can be a bit misleading. Some don’t give all the info we might need. Some can have a hidden message. But all signs are placed where they can be seen and for a reason, even if we don’t always understand what that reason is at first.
I mentioned that those two scripture passages sound very similar but that they actually came from two different times in Jesus’ ministry. The first, in Matthew’s chapter 12, came after Jesus had healed a blind and mute man by casting a demon out of him. The Pharisees accused Jesus of being in league with Satan, the ruler of demons, a charge Jesus refuted with a version of His “house divided” sermon. So then the Pharisees said, “OK, if you’re really sent from God, then show us a sign from heaven.” And Jesus responded, “The only sign you need has already been given to you, and you should know it well because it comes from the scripture you cherish.”
The second incident occurred some time after Jesus fed the four thousand, which came after He fed the five thousand, which came well after the first incident. Again, the Pharisees stepped up to the plate to challenge Jesus. “Show us some miraculous sign that could only come from heaven”, they demanded. As if feeding so many people with so little food wasn’t a good enough sign.
This time when He replies, Jesus makes a comparison to what the people already accept as a sign “from heaven”: the aftereffects of a “red sky”. I learned that one long ago as, “Red sky at morning: sailors take warning! Red sky at night: sailors delight.” Again Jesus assures them they have already received the only sign they need to see.
In our Bible Study class recently, we’ve discussed how our Bible often provides the same message in multiple places or books, and often times nearly word for word. This is especially true of incidents in the ministry of Jesus as recorded by the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke – the Synoptic Gospels. We noted that when this occurs in the Bible, it indicates this is something really important, something that God wants to make sure we understand. So He tells us twice, or three times, or more.
Folks, what Jesus is saying here is really important. We’ve already been given all the signs we need, and not just that of Jonah. We just need to grasp what we’ve seen.
Our Bible is full of signs from God and from heaven. The first goes all the way back to the beginning of creation. In Genesis chapter 1 verse 14…
Upon entering a little country store, a stranger noticed a sign saying "DANGER! BEWARE OF DOG!" posted on the glass door. Inside, he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor near the cash register. He asked the store’s owner "Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?"
"Yep," the proprietor answered, "That’s him."
The stranger couldn’t help being amused. "That certainly doesn’t look like a dangerous dog to me," he chuckled. "Why in the world did you decide to post that sign?"
"Because," the owner replied, "before I put that sign up, people kept tripping over him."
The real meaning behind a sign isn’t always evident. Some signs can be a bit misleading. Some don’t give all the info we might need. Some can have a hidden message. But all signs are placed where they can be seen and for a reason, even if we don’t always understand what that reason is at first.
I mentioned that those two scripture passages sound very similar but that they actually came from two different times in Jesus’ ministry. The first, in Matthew’s chapter 12, came after Jesus had healed a blind and mute man by casting a demon out of him. The Pharisees accused Jesus of being in league with Satan, the ruler of demons, a charge Jesus refuted with a version of His “house divided” sermon. So then the Pharisees said, “OK, if you’re really sent from God, then show us a sign from heaven.” And Jesus responded, “The only sign you need has already been given to you, and you should know it well because it comes from the scripture you cherish.”
The second incident occurred some time after Jesus fed the four thousand, which came after He fed the five thousand, which came well after the first incident. Again, the Pharisees stepped up to the plate to challenge Jesus. “Show us some miraculous sign that could only come from heaven”, they demanded. As if feeding so many people with so little food wasn’t a good enough sign.
This time when He replies, Jesus makes a comparison to what the people already accept as a sign “from heaven”: the aftereffects of a “red sky”. I learned that one long ago as, “Red sky at morning: sailors take warning! Red sky at night: sailors delight.” Again Jesus assures them they have already received the only sign they need to see.
In our Bible Study class recently, we’ve discussed how our Bible often provides the same message in multiple places or books, and often times nearly word for word. This is especially true of incidents in the ministry of Jesus as recorded by the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke – the Synoptic Gospels. We noted that when this occurs in the Bible, it indicates this is something really important, something that God wants to make sure we understand. So He tells us twice, or three times, or more.
Folks, what Jesus is saying here is really important. We’ve already been given all the signs we need, and not just that of Jonah. We just need to grasp what we’ve seen.
Our Bible is full of signs from God and from heaven. The first goes all the way back to the beginning of creation. In Genesis chapter 1 verse 14…
14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years.”
--Genesis 1:14 (NKJV)
Did you ever think of the sun and the moon and the stars as signs? For centuries, sailors navigated by the stars, using them as signs for which way to go. And the constellations are used by the world as astrological signs, if you really believe in that sort of thing.
Then there was this great flood, after which God made a promise to the earth and to mankind. From Genesis chapter 9 verses 12 through 17…
Then there was this great flood, after which God made a promise to the earth and to mankind. From Genesis chapter 9 verses 12 through 17…
12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
--Genesis 9:12-17 (NKJV)
The rainbow we see after a shower or storm is God’s sign of the covenant He made with us.
Many of God’s signs serve as a warning to us, such as seen in Jeremiah chapter 44 verse 29…
Many of God’s signs serve as a warning to us, such as seen in Jeremiah chapter 44 verse 29…
29 "And this shall be a sign to you," says the Lord, "that I will punish you in this place, that you may know that My words will surely stand against you for adversity."
--Jeremiah 44:29 (NKJV)
That’s one sign we don’t want to miss or ignore! Jesus Himself put up a warning sign, as seen in Matthew chapter 24 verses 24 and 25…
And another just a few verses later, still in Matthew chapter 24, verses 29 through 31…
Of course not all of God’s signs are foreboding. Many are very dear to us, such as seen in Zechariah chapter 3 verse 8…
The “Servant”, the “Branch” that God speaks of through Zechariah is our Lord and Savior Jesus. Isaiah also points to Jesus long before His birth in chapter 19 of his book of prophecy, verse 20, among other places…
Remember how the Pharisees tried to test Jesus, how they challenged Him at every step? Isaiah provides us a glimpse into a conversation between God through Isaiah and King Ahaz of Judah, in chapter 7 verses 10 through 14…
Those are only a few examples of signs that God has provided willingly, for our benefit, to point us in the right direction.
But too often we humans are more like the Pharisees, asking God for some sign, sometimes even demanding He give us a sign. Just like Gideon did when the “Angel of the Lord” visited him, as recorded in Judges chapter 6 verse 17…
Now before we think that Gideon was making that request of some lowly angel or simple messenger of God, we need to notice that the “A” in “Angel of God” is capitalized, as are the “H” in Him and the “Y” in You. In the Old Testament, when we read of the “Angel of God” with a capital “A”, we are actually reading of Jesus, before He took on human form – the pre-incarnate Jesus. So Gideon was asking Jesus to show him a sign that He truly was speaking for God.
We’re like that sometimes, aren’t we? Don’t we ask for God to show us some sign? Don’t we want some kind of indication that what we’re about to do is what He wants us to do? Don’t we at times need assurance that He even exists? Show me a sign, Lord! Show me which way to go! Show me You are really present and active in my life!
Well, Family, what if God is waiting on us to show Him a sign?!? What if God wants to see some clear indication that we believe in Jesus, that we trust His promises, that we entrust our lives to Him and submit to Him? What if God wants more of us than a mere recitation of the Apostles’ Creed?
Have we put out signs that clearly show God our faith, our intentions, our love? We don’t have to guess at what kind of sign or display God might be looking for from us. Again we can turn to the words of Jesus to find out, as recorded in the Gospel of His beloved disciple John, chapter 13, verses 34 and 35…
If we truly love one another - just as we love ourselves, just as Jesus loves us – then we will be showing an unmistakable sign to God, one that He will not miss. If we love each other, our love will be reflected in how we treat them, how we help those in need, how we share the blessings God has poured out over us with all those around us.
If we love one another, God won’t have to ask that we show Him a sign. He’ll know that we have faith in Him. He’ll see that we submit ourselves to Jesus and that we do what He commanded us to do.
Our love is one sign that will not escape God’s attention, one sign He will not ignore. And the neat thing is, other people will see that sign, too. They’ll know you are a Christian by the love you share.
Please don’t hesitate to put that sign up on the front door of your heart. You may just keep someone from tripping over the “sleeping dogs” Satan leaves lying around. And you’ll definitely show God what He so longs to see.
Amen.
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, everywhere we look we see signs. Some are erected by man to guide us through the world around us. Some warn us of dangers ahead, some encourage us, some inform us. For the most part, we tend to follow those signs, for it is usually to our benefit to do so.
But Father, the most important signs are those which You place in our lives. They also serve to warn, encourage, and inform us. Sadly, too often we fail to heed them, choosing instead to ignore them, either for the sake of convenience or just because we think they don’t apply to us. Please help us understand that You place those signs for us to see because You love us and don’t want us to stray from the right path. Help us to heed the warnings You give, to take heart from Your encouragement, and to enjoy and learn from the information You provide.
Sadder still, our greater failing, Lord, is that too often we ask, even demand, a sign of Your presence without giving You a sign of our faith in You, of our love for one another, of our obedience of Your word, of our submission to Your Son Jesus. Forgive us, please Father, when we ask so much of You while giving so little of ourselves.
Father God, please listen as we humble ourselves now, bowing silently in Your presence, pleading from our hearts for Your mercy, speaking the words we cannot voice...
Father in heaven, we thank You so much for Your grace and mercy. We thank You for all the signs You provide to guide us through this life so that we can safely spend eternity with You and Your Son Jesus. Forgive us, Lord, when we ignore those signs that are so important. And especially please forgive us when we fail to show You the signs of our obedience, of our faith, of our love.
In the blessed name of Jesus we give You thanks, we ask Your forgiveness, and we pray. Amen.
24 “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand.”
--Matthew 24:24-25 (NKJV)
29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
--Matthew 24:29-31 (NKJV)
8 “Hear, O Joshua, the high priest,
You and your companions who sit before you,
For they are a wondrous sign;
For behold, I am bringing forth My Servant the BRANCH.”
--Zechariah 3:8 (NKJV)
20 And it will be for a sign and for a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the Lord because of the oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Mighty One, and He will deliver them.
--Isaiah 19:20 (NKJV)
10 Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above.”
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!”
13 Then he said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”
--Isaiah 7:10-14 (NKJV)
But too often we humans are more like the Pharisees, asking God for some sign, sometimes even demanding He give us a sign. Just like Gideon did when the “Angel of the Lord” visited him, as recorded in Judges chapter 6 verse 17…
17 Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me."
--Judges 6:17 (NKJV)
We’re like that sometimes, aren’t we? Don’t we ask for God to show us some sign? Don’t we want some kind of indication that what we’re about to do is what He wants us to do? Don’t we at times need assurance that He even exists? Show me a sign, Lord! Show me which way to go! Show me You are really present and active in my life!
Well, Family, what if God is waiting on us to show Him a sign?!? What if God wants to see some clear indication that we believe in Jesus, that we trust His promises, that we entrust our lives to Him and submit to Him? What if God wants more of us than a mere recitation of the Apostles’ Creed?
Have we put out signs that clearly show God our faith, our intentions, our love? We don’t have to guess at what kind of sign or display God might be looking for from us. Again we can turn to the words of Jesus to find out, as recorded in the Gospel of His beloved disciple John, chapter 13, verses 34 and 35…
34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
--John 13:34-35 (NKJV)
If we love one another, God won’t have to ask that we show Him a sign. He’ll know that we have faith in Him. He’ll see that we submit ourselves to Jesus and that we do what He commanded us to do.
Our love is one sign that will not escape God’s attention, one sign He will not ignore. And the neat thing is, other people will see that sign, too. They’ll know you are a Christian by the love you share.
Please don’t hesitate to put that sign up on the front door of your heart. You may just keep someone from tripping over the “sleeping dogs” Satan leaves lying around. And you’ll definitely show God what He so longs to see.
Amen.
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, everywhere we look we see signs. Some are erected by man to guide us through the world around us. Some warn us of dangers ahead, some encourage us, some inform us. For the most part, we tend to follow those signs, for it is usually to our benefit to do so.
But Father, the most important signs are those which You place in our lives. They also serve to warn, encourage, and inform us. Sadly, too often we fail to heed them, choosing instead to ignore them, either for the sake of convenience or just because we think they don’t apply to us. Please help us understand that You place those signs for us to see because You love us and don’t want us to stray from the right path. Help us to heed the warnings You give, to take heart from Your encouragement, and to enjoy and learn from the information You provide.
Sadder still, our greater failing, Lord, is that too often we ask, even demand, a sign of Your presence without giving You a sign of our faith in You, of our love for one another, of our obedience of Your word, of our submission to Your Son Jesus. Forgive us, please Father, when we ask so much of You while giving so little of ourselves.
Father God, please listen as we humble ourselves now, bowing silently in Your presence, pleading from our hearts for Your mercy, speaking the words we cannot voice...
Father in heaven, we thank You so much for Your grace and mercy. We thank You for all the signs You provide to guide us through this life so that we can safely spend eternity with You and Your Son Jesus. Forgive us, Lord, when we ignore those signs that are so important. And especially please forgive us when we fail to show You the signs of our obedience, of our faith, of our love.
In the blessed name of Jesus we give You thanks, we ask Your forgiveness, and we pray. Amen.
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